THE ANIMAL

1. You must be able to identify the breed. (Purebred or mix?)
   
   • If the owner claims his or her dog is a purebred, are there papers to prove it?
   • If breed wasn't important the police and the military would use pit bulls as working dogs, (security, bomb detection, etc.) and duck hunters would use them as retrievers. [Don't get me wrong, I've seen Beagles and small terriers like the Norwich Terrier trained and used by the Air Force in a drug detection role. Dogs, like people, are a product of heredity as well as environment. They have a hard time denying either. The typical pit bull owner often claims his dog was not bred to bite. Unfortunately it wasn't bred to let go either.]
     
2. Can you absolutely identify the particular dog that did the biting? Some owners and/or their attorneys will go to remarkable ends to confuse you.
   
   • Is the animal a male or a female? Take a picture of the dog that reveals the dog's sex. Use your own camera and film.
   • How much does the dog weigh? People routinely overestimate a dog's weight, especially if they are on the ground, looking up.
   • How tall is the dog? Most measurements are taken at the highest point of the shoulders, commonly called the withers. Measure in inches.
   • What color is the dog? Remember, all black labs are black, but not all black dogs are labs. Also remember, there are at least fifty different terms animal owners use to describe the color brown, some not suitable for listing here, but including liver, buff, beige, sedge, straw, deadgrass, sandy, clay, mud, dun, cafe-au-lait (a French poodle color), caramel, coffee, cocoa, chocolate, tea, toast, cream, fallow, fawn (Isabella), tan, mahogany, walnut, maple, honey, teak, topaz, amber, tawny, sable, auburn, chestnut, bay, copper, gold, bronze, hazel, cinnamon, nutmeg, red, rust, russet, sorrel, wheat, wheaton, blond, orange, lemon, apricot, and yellow. There are also combinations such as speckled, spotted, dappled, ticked, roan, brindle, and belton, and every owner has an opinion on how his dog's color should be described. Prevent contradictions in the courtroom, settle on one term, preferably the same one the owner uses and stick to it.
   • Dogs are commonly identified by color combinations, length or texture of hair coat, tail set, ear set and shape, and a variety of other physical characteristics.
     
3. Does the animal's personality match that of it's owner?
   
   • Many men are reluctant to neuter their male dogs and take uncommon pride in their dog's ability to procreate. National statistics support the fact that male dogs inflict a disproportionately larger number of bites.
   • Many people believe a dog needs an active sex life, and that having a litter will make a female dog mature faster. [Frustration over sex has killed a tremendous number of healthy dogs who had to cross a freeway in pursuit of that illusive active sex life.]
   • In my 30 plus years of working with people and animals, I have found it far easier to convince a woman that her dog or cat would be much better off neutered than it is to convince a man of the same fact.
     
4. Is this particular animal neutered?
   
   • Unneutered females are seasonally polyestrous and will usually come into season (heat) twice a year, spring and fall. This hormonal change often causes male dogs to fall hopelessly in love.
   • Unneutered male dogs are in season all the time. They will break out or dig out of enclosures, form packs, and seek out females in heat. [There is an old saying that if you keep your male dog locked up in the house while the female dog next door is in heat, you'd better put a big rock on top of your chimney.]
     
5. Does this dog have a biting history? Has it threatened, chased, or bitten another human? Important: Has someone told the owner about this, or has the owner witnessed it, admitted it, or bragged about it? Find out who has the facts and get a written statement. Dogs do not get one free bite, it's only a rumor. If the owner has prior knowledge of his dog's dangerous behavior then he can be found liable.
   
6. Has this dog chased or attacked another dog or worried (chased) livestock?
   
7. Is this a trained protection dog, or a miserable half-trained amateur?
   
8. Can this dog be made to demonstrate an appropriate response to simple commands? [A well-trained protection dog (Schutzhund) must, in the heat of battle, cease the attack in response to the verbal command, "out!"]

SCHUTZHUND is a German term for "protection dog." The training of owner, as well as the dog, is rigorous and not for the faint of heart. Unfortunately many who start the training get tired of the early emphasis on obedience work. As a result, only a very few early enthusiasts end up with a completely trained animal. The lazy ones appear to want to get to the violent (fun) stuff as quickly as possible. This attitude results in a half-trained dog which is a danger to everyone. The French equivalent of Schutzhund is called FRENCH RING SPORT. It is an interesting spectacle to watch since it also emphasizes protection training.

You may return to the previous page or proceed to the subject of the biting incident. Of course, if this is a colossal bore you can always return to Bob and Nita's homepage.

to Robert E. Armstrong.