Dogs: Nature vs. Nurture

I think if you were to ask most people about what they think is the most dangerous dog in the world a is few common answers would come up. Doberman, Rottweiler, and of course American Pittbull would be the likely candidates at the top of the list.

It is understandable why people would feel that way because these animals have a much greater opportunity to strike fear into the hearts of would-be trespassers than say, my 6kg Shih Tzu or my neighbor's yappy Pomeranian. However, this does not mean these bigger animals are born with a killer instinct - they have to be taught that by bad owners.

Let me introduce you to my Scottish friend's American Pittbull, "Champ." Look how much he wishes to tear me to ribbons upon my arrival! So terrifying! That is until you are actually there and realize that he is whining because he really really really wants you to pet him.

Champ weighs 130 pounds and his jaw / head is at least as big as my own dog, Nadi, who is a Shih Tzu and tips the scales at around 13 pounds.

_{you want that multi-colored chew toy do ya? Hope you are prepared to lose a finger!}

Now Champ and Nadi will never meet one another and that is because Champ is a killing machine that needs to be feared by all creatures. Or at least that is the perception, but the reality of the situation is that Nadi, who has become super-protective of me over the years will get upset with any dog that approaches me and I am not sure why that is - i guess she just loves me too much to allow me to touch any other doggos.

That isn't the point here though. The point that i am trying to make is this: There is no such thing as a dangerous dog... only dangerous owners that train their dogs to be killers.

Champ would never hurt anyone and is quite possibly the biggest sweetheart that I have ever met. It only gets a little bit annoying because he weighs nearly as much as an adult human and his persistence at loving you is so extreme with his full-size envelope sized tongue.

I was looking after him for 5 days while his daddy was out of town for a new Thailand visa in Vietnam. Champ actually also has 2 sisters (kinda) who are both Huskies (another breed i love!) but they are so skiddish that I wasn't even able to get a photo of them.

American Pittbulls are illegal in Thailand and that is based on, I guess, the fact that if Champ wanted to hurt you, he would be significantly more capable of doing so than my Shih-Tzu is. However, the reverse situation is more likely to happen and despite his size I gave Champ the nickname of "Big Baby" while i was babysitting him.

Champ would only shower you with excessive kisses while welcoming you to his house and this has everything to do with having a good daddy. His owner is the reason why Champ is such an amazing creature. Adam (the Scottish owner) himself is an intimidating figure in that he is a boxing, jujitsu, and muay thai boxing instructor that tips the scales at around 200 lbs of solid kill-capable muscle. He is also one of the nicest people I have ever met.

It goes to show that no matter how "vicious" your dog breed is, it doesn't necessarily mean that this dog will end up that way. Adam could probably kill most of the people he meets yet he somehow manages to be incredibly nice to everyone, even if they don't deserve it....and his dogs act accordingly.

The point here is this: Our animals reflect our attitude we deliver to the world. We create the environment around us with everything we do in life and if you are a miserable, vicious a-hole, your dogs are going to act accordingly and probably get you in trouble. Because of the fact that Adam is such a genuinely nice person, his dogs are also genuinely nice despite the fact that all of them are regarded as feared animals.

I was a little bit afraid when he asked me to babysit his dogs but it couldn't possibly have been a more wonderful experience: Adam raised these dogs right and despite the fact that he, and his dogs, are creatures that could wreck havoc all around them... they don't...

And i wish more of the world was exactly like this