Rah Rah Ree!

Who doesn't love a pitbull in uniform? My "Bizzie Bee" grew up wearing a snuggie (a small -- the same size as Sophie my Jackahuahua!), t-shirts and her own puppy hoodie. Now, she wears an XXL to accomodate for her muscular build!

So many people look at Izzie and decide that she's a boxer mix or something other than a Pit Bull. Technically she is an American Pit Bull Terrier and comes from a long line of champions. Not bad for a Walmart dog!

Izzie LOVES people as is typical for her breed. They are very loyal and people-oriented. When we go to the dog park, she is so excited...not to see other dogs but to see other humans!  She basically ignores the other dogs and wants love and attention from all the owners.

Have I mentioned she is in love with my neighbor-kid Kyle?  The first time he met Izzie he had come to the door to see if we had seen his dog Elvis (very cute pug).  It was as if Izzie met Fabio because she instantly fell in love with him.  So much that she immediately shimmied her way under the fence and caught up with him before he could even make it home (he lives three houses down). Each time she escaped, she would run to him and he would drag her back.

Izzie is not atypical of the breed.  So why are cities, towns and even the military banning pit bull type breeds?  Recently I was watching an episode of Animal Channel's Pit Boss where a heartbroken couple who lived in military housing were told that their beloved mixed breed family pet was going to be seized and put down because the US Government has recently banned any pit bull "type" dogs.  They have no clue what breeds made up their girl but she didn't look like a pit bull...boxer maybe.

According to the American Temperament Testing Association which has been testing the temperament of dog breeds since 1977 ( http://www.atts.org/ ) the American Pit Bull Terrier scored very high - 772 dogs were tested and 86% passed as compared to American Icon, Lassie (the collie) that only had a passing score of 79.7% out of 846 dogs tested.


Izzie is no angel.  She can be a tad over zealous when she is playing with the other girls.  I can see the glint in her eye when she goes into the "red" stage and we break off any play that has been happening.  Izzie will always be crated if we leave the house -- things can get out of hand with no supervision.  APBTs were bred to have a high prey drive.  However so were English Bull Dogs, American Bull Dogs, and a whole slew of other breeds.  If you had a child with red hair, would you always blame him or her for all the mischief because of the red hair??

Just a thought...