Animal shelters overflow as Americans dump 'pandemic puppies' in droves. They're too broke to keep their dogs
Shelter Animals Count, a national database, estimates that the U.S. shelter population grew by nearly a quarter-million animals in 2023.
They're not dumping 'pandemic puppies', they're dumping the pitbulls that nobody wants. Breeders for dog fighting are pumping out dogs nobody wants because they're reactive, dangerous, and have the ability to kill a human being, then maul them.
Shelters are full of them. So desperate to get rid of them, shelters underplay their aggressiveness and danger. This puts the general population at risk. The UK just passed a new set of laws against more breeds of pitbulls, and rightfully so. You can see all the evidence they used to make their decision. It's gory and sad. So many people's lives, and smaller dogs, gone forever.
It's not just for dog fighting. It's backyard breeders who are hoping to make a quick buck, so they get the easiest dogs they can access, which is almost always pits, sell the puppies for whatever they can get, and then dump any of the ones they can't sell. I see them constantly on nextdoor, and it's appalling. And the kind of people who buy pit puppies from some rando are also the kind of people who dump them when they get too big and "oh we can't keep up with their energy."
Yep, this is the answer. Tons of people are trying to cash in on dog breeding like beaniebabies. Frenchies, pitties (including XXL toadline monstrosities), random mixes (shitpoos, bernadoodles, cockadoodles, etc), etc. Breeding rights, stud fees, etc. are big business and essentially none of these "breeders" have any clue what they're doing.
In the vast majority of places in the US, there are no requirements or certifications needed to breed dogs. And now people will pay insane amounts of money for frenchies with rare coat colors, or pitbulls that are bred solely to be huge and squat with no concern about temperament or health; so irresponsible, backyard breeders who either ignore or are completely ignorant of proper breeding practice and refuse to get or can't afford proper genetic testing and medical care for their animals, are breeding for phenotypes like coat color or being insanely huge and squat and breeding in serious congenital defects and abnormalities.
Then either buyers are stuck with these shitty, genetically fucked up dogs they paid like $5k-10k for that now need thousands more in veterinary care to treat all the issues bred into the dog (not to mention parvo, parasites, heartworms, etc.). Or the breeder's little business collapses when they realize that they can't afford to continue operating their shitty puppymill due to the fact that dog breeding is expensive and their fucked up breeds can't give natural birth and so all need c-sections. But, it's usually the first one because there are no shortage of buyers willing to pay stupid amounts of money and trust the "breeders" because they assume they're experts.
So people often end up dumping the dogs when they realize they can't care for them medically or are aggressive or whatever else, while backyard breeders continue to pump out fucked up dogs for profit.
Do you have a link to any stats? There seem to be two sides to this debate, where one side insists that these breeds are inherently aggressive and the other side insists it isn't true. I'm more inclined to believe to believe the former in my personal experience, but have always wanted something other than anecdotal to confirm.
Be mindful when reading the sources. This is a very polarizing debate, and it isn't really as clear as "pitbulls are little angelbaby velvethippos" or "pitbulls are vicious killing machines".
Pitbull is a range of phenotypes, not a breed. What we call pitbulls commonly are a mix of boxers, Am Staffs, bulldogs, american pit bull terriers, bull terriers, etc. So, we're relying on police to ID these dogs after a bite has been reported, and so a large number of aggressive individuals of a variety of breeds/mutts might get lumped into "pitbull" by cops.
Also, dog attacks are more likely to occur in lower socioeconomic status neighborhoods where dog ownership practices are often less responsible, and cops are more likely to be in the first place. Pitbull-type dogs are more likely to be owned by lower SES individuals (in part because they're so prevalent, but also due to cultural factors). So, it is likely that pitbull-type dogs are overrepresented by these statistics.
That said, it is wild that people claim that breeding does not impact behavior. Pitbulls and various bully breeds have often been bred to be aggressive and to guard territory, just like Cattle Dogs have been bred to nip at heels and keep creatures in a herd. Any cattle dog owner will tell you that their dog exhibits herding behavior even if it's never seen a cow or sheep. It's the same with some pitbulls and they happen to have one of the strongest bites of any type of dog coupled with a behavior where they latch on to the thing they've bitten and won't let go, but will continue to thrash around causing major tissue damage. Contrast that to German Shepherds, another dog that makes up a large number of dog bite cases. Their bite force is less on average than that of a pitbull and most German Shepherd bites are fear-aggression related because GSDs are extremely neurotic and anxious (also due to breeding), so GSDs tend to bite and release unless they're specifically bite trained, like for police work.
So anyway, just be aware that both sides of this debate try to put spin on it, but breed characteristics do matter, and our recordkeeping of dog breeds and bite statistics is flawed essentially due to the problems extant in law enforcement broadly.
The stats are easily manipulated by either side. The fact of the matter is that, given the number of attacks on humans and animals by pit bulls, and the average age of pits, roughly 1 in 10,000 pits will attack something in their life. This is an order of magnitude more frequent than rottweilers (the next most dangerous breed), and when a pit bull attacks, it's more likely to kill its victim than any other dog breed.
1 in 10,000 is large enough for some people to say the whole breed needs to be euthanized, it's small enough for some people to say that it's negligible, and it's at just the right spot for me to say that it should be illegal to breed them, but existing ones shouldn't be euthanized.
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/legal/dog-attack-statistics-breed/
Many dog advocates argue that there is no such thing as a bad breed, only a bad owner. Still, it can be helpful to understand which breeds of dogs are most commonly involved in bite incidents or acts of aggression. Dog attacks by breed statistics are invaluable both for individuals looking for a dog to adopt as well as for those who interact with animals who want to minimize risk.
Pit bulls are involved in more dog attacks than any other breed. In fact, the American Animal Hospital Association reports this breed was responsible for 22.5% of bites across all studies. Mixed breeds were a close second at 21.2% and German Shepherds were the third most dangerous breed, involved in 17.8% of bite incidents.⁶
Pit bulls are both more likely to be involved in bite incidents and more likely to cause serious injury or death when a bite does occur. In fact, from 1979 to 1998, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined pit bulls were involved in the most fatal dog attacks, accounting for 28% deaths due to dog bites during that same time period.⁷
I'll add, I like pitties. I'll also advise taking this with a grain of salt as so many mixed breed dogs fall into the pitbull umbrella.
All you've gotta do is Google 'human fatalities by dog breed chart" the numbers are all that matters, and frankly I'm annoyed that the data isn't enough to deter people from owning these dogs. A friend from grade school had 1 attack his daughter to the point where the kid was hospitalized. They had that dog euthanized, and went right out and got another pit bull. You can't fix stupid.
You're generally right but pretty misinformed all the same.
One thing I can say is that if shelters are playing down aggressiveness etc, it's because of stupid 'no kill' laws that forces them to keep the majority of these shit dogs and not be about to euthanize them. Thank all the animal lovers on Facebook who have no comprehension of the situation, have no interest in helping the dog themselves but they'll sure as fuck tell anyone what they think if they don't take care of the dog.
It's a perpetual cycle, lifestyles of the poor and dumb.
The shelters that do kill dogs don't just kill aggressive dogs though, they kill dogs they think nobody will want too. My boss has the most beautiful dog I've ever seen but he's deaf so you have to communicate with him through hand movements. Before she got him the shelter was going to kill him in a few weeks. This wasn't a Pit or any other dog some people think are inherently aggressive
The thought that they would have killed this dog if my boss's boyfriend hadn't noticed how special he was, haunts me every time I think about it.Correct me if there is data suggesting otherwise, but I dusagree that the "not kill" laws are stupid - I think the problem is that shelters don't have enough funding to care for all dogs. A law which protects animals from getting killed cannot, in my opinion, be a bad law - because every life, even that of a dog, is worth fighting for.
Why would people breed dogs for dog fighting and then give them to the shelter revealing their criminal enterprise by donating a steady stream of dogs. There are more pits in the shelter because unwanted dogs of all varieties are donated to the shelter and pits are less adopted because of psycho propaganda repeated by weirdos like you and breed restrictions in apartments.
I bet you also pimp stories about rapists and criminals crossing the border.
Pitbulls are a lot less dangerous than many other breeds...
That’s fucked. I’ll go bankrupt before I send my dog to a shelter.
Wtf are these downvotes for. Good for you, respecting the lives of your friends and family.
I know some people just don't have a choice, and that breaks my heart, but living in the US, I suspect it's a matter of mismatched priorities with others.
Companies and pet owners both need to understand that lives shouldn't be on the table when "trimming the budget."
Mohawk Hudson, for instance, has a lot of pit bulls, mastiffs and cane corsos.
Seems to be a lot of aggressive breeds of dogs, which are becoming banned throughout the nation. That might be more of the problem.
People who don't know what they are getting into, and as soon as they encounter a situation of their own creating... they bail because its hard. Pit bull owner (AST rescue mutt), they are not a beginner breed, they require ensuring that there is a hierarchy in the house and force an understanding of that. They are stubborn, hard headed, and amazing dogs (Tiptoe is a hurricane of tongues). We have a 6 yo at home, and I have to force his training and training for her. It's a lot of work, and most people are allergic to work when it becomes inconvenient to them.
Aggression is something that is there genetically and you have to work against it. Again that's work, but you will find that any dog that hasn't been traumatized (and some that have... again love my tip) leans naturally to happiness, not aggression.
Short answer is that people are awful, and because of that most of the time the dog suffers. That should be recognized for what it is.
Bonus... Pit Love: https://ibb.co/yVRW1Zh
I completely agree with this! I love Pit Bulls and have experienced a lot of them being the most loving dogs ever. Watch out for that whip/tail when they are happy! They are the Nanny Dog for a reason.
You really need to understand a breed and see if it fits your lifestyle. I could not have my neighbors Australian Shepherd or my other neighbors Belgian Malinois those dog are way to smart for me and need to be very active and always doing things to work their brains or they get bored and get into shit
yeah, you never see glut of doodles sittin in shelter
They are also large dogs that can be 60-100+ pounds each, which for a lot of people is too much dog. It seems a case of people looking at a cute puppy and not researching what a full grown version looks like. People do the same thing with iguanas and fish too.
Pit bulls aren't in any meaningful fashion becoming banned throughout the nation. Of the 338M Americans 215M live in states that ban breed specific regulation outright.
https://resources.bestfriends.org/article/anti-dog-breed-specific-legislation-state
Pit bulls aren't illegal in the remaining states its just not illegal itself to ban them. Only a tiny minority of counties and zero states ban pit bulls.
Lol neither cane corso or mastiff are an aggressive breed.
Mastiffs are extremely protective of their owners and it gives people the impression they are aggressive. Same with the Cane Corso. Both dogs are more defensive then aggressive, but the potential is still there especially when owned by people who easily dump dogs. You know they didn't bother training them which is the main issue
I feel bad for the dogs but those breeds need experienced, capable owners.
Inflation is a massive issue. My cat’s food has doubled in price, and litter is up 50%. And if one of them needs to see the vet, we essentially would have to put them down as vet bills for any treatment is insane. Just basic bloodwork costs hundreds now.
Look into the “equine bedding pellets” for a litter replacement. We use it for our two cats and there’s little to no smell, it’s easily cleanable, and the “waste” is dry sawdust. Best part, at least in my area, is that a 40lb bag is $6.
I used these for a bit but one of my cats is picky and won't use them to poop. She would pee on them though. She will only use fine clay litter 😞
It's likely that your vet was bought up by a corporation and has been inflating costs. It's getting harder to do, but search for independently owned and operated vets and only go to them. Your costs will go down and you'll get better pet care.
Yeah mine is so cheap, and will go so far out of the way to help my dogs. Way out in the sticks. By sticks I mean these guys do half livestock/half pets.
I use a care card. No interest financing. I paid for my good bois ccl repair with it. Paid it off two weeks ago then my other dog needed a stitch in her eyelid so we loaded that sucker back up.
The pit bull discussion never ends. Pit bulls are like guns: objectively bad for society but some people really want to have them so we all have to suffer the consequences. Pit bull lovers don't care about all the victims, they only care about their personal needs and "rights". You can't convince someone not to be selfish so the entire discussion doesn't make any sense.
There are no bad dogs, only bad owners.
That's not what the data shows though. The vast majority of dog attacks are by pitbulls.
It makes me sad how many ignorant people upvoted this.
Put bulls are not an objective bad for society. They're not ruthless killing machines. They're not even more aggressive than other dogs.
Arguably not more aggressive, but definitely more damaging and lethal.
Do you perhaps know what the word "pit" in the name pitbull stands for?
Do they do anything that other dogs can't do? Besides killing people. What's the benefit of having pit bulls?
Even the homeless keep their dogs, money should not be the issue.
Noooo such cute doggies why??? 😭
I encourage everyone to watch this video about "The Pitbull Problem".
It's not about how cute and cuddly they are. It's not news stories of them attacking kids. It's a look at the cultural narratives surrounding them and the actual data about Pitbull attacks.
No. I am tired of pitbull lobby. When they get angry they have the ability to cause more damage than any other breed and they get hella angry. You can be pretty freaken awful to the vast majority of breeds intentionally or otherwise and they will just endure it, not pits. And kids are freaken stupid. They will do things dogs aren't comfortable with. Then you get a dead kid. They were breed for a long time to be fighting dogs and mission successful.
Don't be a a bigot, one baby snack once in a while and pities are the most peaceful animals on earth, did I already told you that they are nanny dogs? Anyways just put a crown flower on them, the smell of flowers helps with the bloodlust.
The data shows that nearly every single fatal dog attack was by pitbull, with rottweilers being a distant second and basically no attacks from the other breeds
There are other dogs that are as aggressive or even more aggressive than Pitbulls, but the problem is that Pitbulls just don't want to let go when they attack. A pitbull attack typically doesn't stop until something is dead or severely maimed. The two main ways to stop a Pitbull attack are to kill the dog, or choke it unconscious. That's why when they do attack it is so much more likely to be fatal.
We definitely should require all Pitbulls to be spayed and neutered, and make them illegal to breed.
I think a large bit of this is who statistically breeds them and why. They're a popular intimidation breed for lowlives and dog-fighter scum.
Pits can be the sweetest of animals, but I think a large part of this correlation is the simple fact that dealer houses happen to have no interest in killer poodles or pugs to keep rivals and cops at bay.
Maybe part of the reason is they're the most common dog?
The paper in the video linked showed German Shephards attacked the most people (all reported attacks, not just fatal).
Another problem is pitbulls aren't a well-defined breed with clear, "pure" bloodlines. There are a lot of different kinds of "pitbulls." Some pitbulls definitely are very aggressive, some are not at all.
I have a smaller pitbull (adopted from a shelter), and I've never seen her act aggressively toward a person. She is well behaved at dog parks and kennels with free-play with other dogs.
One issue is that the data cited often is collected from news stories with the breed of the dog being guessed at more often than not. This leads to two significant problems. One is that any dog attack that's reported on will probably be severe. Other dog bites that are serious but non-sensational will not be counted. Two is that the dogs breed is haphazardly guessed at by either reporters or involve parties. Simply looking at a dog, especially a mix, it can be difficult to ascertain the breed and so one might just call them a Pitbull as a guess. Although I can't find data I would assume that pit bulls are used more often than other breeds for dog fighting, but I am ready to look at statistics and sources rather than simply confirm my own biases.
The point is the data comes from newspapers and media, which inaccurately reports dog breeds consistently, over reports certain breeds and under reports others. Through the 80s and 90s the media fearmongered about pitbull attacks, and this was mostly linked to the drug war and racism. So, there is no good data to go on. All the “studies” just cite these media reports.
It’s why the CDC and Humane Society oppose breed-specific legislation.
Edit: Downvotes don’t make this comment wrong. It just means you’re trying to suppress a truth you don’t like. The fact that the Humane Society and CDC are on my side says something about the quality of the evidence in this case. Are you all also anti-vaxxers and Q-Anon followers?
Bro people breed pits to kill today. Police pits are so scsry
Police
there's your problem
Police use pitbulls? Haven't heard of this. Any additional details?
I just got a puppy from a girl who couldn't keep it. She's clearly got some history of abuse but today she was so happy and even confident enough for play fighting gently!
Edit: since the top comment mentions pitbulls, it's probably worth noting that my puppy is also a pitbull and doesn't have an aggressive bone in her body! She gets scared easily but is never aggressive about it! She's also supernaturally well behaved. I've never seen a dog before her who took so well to a leash and my mom's a heckin dog breeder! She got off the leash today because I scared her when we were jumping around in the back yard and just immediately ran to the door of the house. Scared the heck out of me only to immediately be relieved that what she does is just automatically best case scenario! There's no way I have any chance of outrunning her. She seems to be trying to be social with the cat, but cat is having absolutely none of it. She loves animal crackers but won't mess with her bone that's stuffed with some kind of mush. She also has an extra toe! It's super weird but seems mostly healthy and we're gonna ask a vet about it.
Yo, I can talk about her for several more paragraphs. Just give the word.
I made an account just so I could ask you about more info about your dog, fire away
Her name is Sasha and she is grey. She's an adorable little chunk and weighs about 40lbs. There's a lot of varying information about how old that might mean she is and I think she might also be a kind of mix so that complicates it further. She gets scared fairly early. She's growled at me a couple times. She's so super polite when she wants something! I almost got her to bark once. At lvl 24 she'll evolve into a houndoom! We're practically all about positive reinforcement, but she's super receptive to a gentle "no". I think someone at her old place might have cut her whiskers. She has an extra toe! You can see it in the picture!
The pitbull breed can still be saved, we just have to consistently kill those who show aggressive behavior.
Edit: all right pitbulls are not all bad,some of them are even brave, I heard a story of how one died, a kid was trapped in a burning house, the pitbull seeing that, bravely broke into the house, so it could maul a child one more time.
Or you can spay / neuter them.
Nobody is going to adopt an aggressive dog, unless the refuge lies about it, as so often they do.
I would be okay with them being persevered by zoos. They do not belong to the general public just like we don't tolerate private ownership of jaguars, hyenas, and other dangerous animals.
So what happened? Did the states outlaw euthanasia?
The poor, dumb, and bleeding heart are still grifting and getting grifted I see.
I think I've met a single pitt owner who didn't want to breed their dog first.
It's almost definitely some Freudian shit where they're just as poor and disadvantaged as that dog and one of the few things that they think will make them happy is being able to have kids.
Nobody but other poor fuckers who can't afford the dog wants the puppies, they're too poor and busy to train them, and they just get worse and worse every time they're forced to breed with another one of their cousins since nobody else is going near.
Jesus Christ! Why do people blame the dogs when it’s the owners responsibility. I have a pitbull that I took in from the pandemic. He is the sweetest dog in the world to me and my family. He is patient and gentle with my kids. We got a French bulldog puppy for Christmas. He is so gentle with her. If you come in my house and I am there. He will love on you and want pets.
But, if you come over and I act suspicious about you he won’t be pleasant. I keep a muzzle on him in public because he’s really protective of myself and my family. I am under no illusion that he loves everyone like us.
Here is the other thing. I have grown up with dogs most of my life. I’ve had Jack russle terriers. I’ve had Great Danes. I’ve had boxers. Ive had French bulldogs, and pitbulls.
Of all the dogs I’ve owned pitbulls are the hardest to train. They are not a beginner dog. You have to remember that just like people they have moods and personalities independent of your own. Just because that dog loves and is nice to the pack it lives around everyday doesn’t mean that same courtesy is extended to strangers.
"Jesus christ, why do people blame the dogs"
Then goes on to explain that it is in fact, the dogs.
Any dog is capable of maiming people. A full face muzzle and a pinch collar keeps that from happening. So, like I said. If people took the proper precautions. Then a dog attack can’t happen. But they think that their dog loves everyone like the dog loves its family.
So if a dog attack is fully preventable. Then it is the owners fault.
sweetest dog in the world
won't be pleasant...really protective
And THIS is why pit types overflow the shelters and cause the vast majority of injuries. The delusion in pit owners is tangible.
Just because the dog is sweet with you and your family, doesn't make it sweet or safe. Nor does it mean it will stay that way if circumstances align badly. There are hundreds of dog breeds who are either genuinely sweet in all circumstances, or unable to cause serious damage if they aren't sweet.
People are getting on your case because your comments are full of cognitive dissonance. You say it's irresponsible owners, while somehow missing the evidence that you defending the sweetness of a dog that is clearly aggressive in public makes you one of the irresponsible owners.
Sure, muzzling your dog is a modicum of self- awareness, but these dogs simply shouldn't be around nearly as much as they are. People going on the internet and touting their sweetness is encouraging irresponsible people to breed, buy, and adopt them.
Sorry, but your comment reminded me of this video
Bro, are you me?
Citizens! Consumers! The economy is rebounding, because an ever dwindling number of large corporations are extracting wealth from workers at such an obscene rate that the GDP is going up!
Basically everyone at this point:
Also uh, even though they have a bad reputation for many mostly valid reasons, Pitbulls and other such guard/attack dog type breeds remain hugely popular with the non terminally online and non boutique, esoteric dogs as a status symbol crowd, many times /because they want an aggressive dog/ as they live in areas of high crime, due to aforementioned collapsing economy/society.
Ok...explain 10-15 years ago when your collapse wasn't happening. I won't wait
Explain... what exactly, 10-15 years ago? Overcrowded animal shelters?
Sure, you find the numbers on animal shelter capacity nationwide going back 20 years, divided up by breed, how many stayed how long, how many were refused etc...
Was there an overcrowding of animal shelters 10 to 15 years ago, I dont even know.
If there was, then well 10 to 15 years ago was the Housing Bubble / Financial Panic / Great Recession, so that would also make sense.