Pit Bull type dog and a photo of bloody sneakers paints a picture in Runner’s World magazine’s October issue…
Shock.
Horror.
Disgust.
Anger.
Heartache.
I went through all of these emotions after reading John Brant’s article in Runner’s World magazine titled, “Don’t go out in Those Hills. There are Dogs Out There.” Our hearts go out to the runners who were attacked. The story is truly horrifying, and no runner should ever have to face a similar situation. Many of us have encountered off-leash dogs while running and the fear is something many of us can relate to. ”Those dogs” that were referenced were a pack of aggressive ”Pit Bull” type dogs that attacked a group of runners in California. It’s a scary and tragic story. What is also scary and tragic is the agenda of the author, his fear-based opinion and the sensationalized “facts” sprinkled throughout the article.
Before we get into our feelings about the article specifically, it should be noted that the term”Pit Bull” does not refer to a “breed” of dog, but a type of dog. Animal Farm Foundation could not have said it better:
“Our words matter. In Maryland, dog owners are losing their homes because their dog is called “pit bull”. Dogs are being surrendered because they are called “pit bull”. When we assign a breed label to a dog or speak about “pit bull” dogs with the public, we owe it to the dogs to examine the language and labels we use to describe them. A label will stick with a dog for the rest of its life. A label can mean discrimination, losing its home, or even death. Labels are a problem for the dogs when we allow adopters, politicians, and community members to think that the label we assigned can predict who that dog is or will be.”
Quotes were taken from odd sources in this article. A plastic surgeon is quoted about the dog’s background and jaw-strength. A plastic surgeon? No disrespect to the cosmetic surgery field, but surely a vet or dog expert should should have been quoted regarding canine genetic history and physical characteristics.
A quick Google search tells us that Ronald Berman, the trainer who was quoted in the article, specializes in bite-case lawsuits and litigation. (“I see photos of people with their faces ripped off.”) Why didn’t RW interview a trainer that focuses on normal, everyday training issues, as opposed to one who is involved with lawsuits that involve a minuscule fraction dogs? Let’s face it – the VAST majority of dogs, of any breed, will never be involved in any sort of litigation. Berman has dealt with the worst-of-the-worst bite-cases, so obviously his views will be slanted toward aggression, negligent and abusive owners, and horrific stories/experiences. (Or perhaps he had more to say, and those quotes were left out.)
To balance out the article, RW would surely meet a friendly bully-breed pooch, right? The author has this to say after snuggling with a socialized, friendly and “affectionate” dog:
“A tail wagging sweetie, Madison has obviously been raised right. She was spayed before reaching maturity, Dr. Hoffler says, adding that the dog lays beside the vet’s small children when they’re watching TV or sleeping. Nonetheless, Madison weighs 85-taut, chiseled pounds. Her muscles bunch massively around her haunches and he eyes form flat brown buttons, appearing equally intelligent and pitiless.”
Note words such as “nonetheless.” He uses “pitiless” to describe this loving creatures eyes. The definition of pitiless is: “having or showing little or no pity or mercy.” Really?
And more on this encounter with a friendly, family dog:
“Sitting on the couch in the client’s waiting room, with Madison snuffling into your hand and her massive jaw resting in your lap, you can’t help but laughing at her precocious capacity for affection. But at the same time, her enormous strength – her capacity to inflict pain and destruction – thrums from every fiber of her body. Cuddling with Madison feels like hugging a short-haired howitzer.”
Ever hear someone say, “You never know when a pit bull will just snap!” Do you wonder where that type of fear comes from? The author throws the animal community a bone by describing how “affectionate” Madison is, then goes straight back to his bias by explaining just how dangerous she could be. He goes as far to compare her to a military weapon of war. A family dog is compared to a weapon?
Dog attacks are tragic; regardless of the breed involved. Any dog, regardless of breed AND background, has the capacity for aggression. Any dog, regardless of breed AND background, also has the capacity for love, loyalty and a lifetime of devotion. Runner’s World could have run a balanced piece about the attack, even while including the type of dog, without the author’s biased, fear-based opinions. Perhaps they could include more information on what to do if you run up upon a nervous/aggressive dog of ANY breed?
The article speaks of the “pervasive outlaw” community that raises and breeds “Pit Bulls,” but not of the hundreds of thousands of us who share our everyday lives with them. What of the dogs that are THRIVING as members of loving families? And what of the thousands of Pit Bull type dogs that are sitting in shelters, many of whom are on the euthanasia list because families are scared to adopt due stereotypes such as the one printed in this very article.
That image of a “Pit Bull” with bloodied sneakers is hard to forget. Runners who don’t personally know how “normal” these dogs are, will likely cringe the next time they see a dog that looks similar to the one pictured. And that can mean life or death to a dog waiting to be adopted. When people are fearful, they don’t adopt. When people don’t adopt (and dogs keep flowing in), the kennels at shelters fill up. When there is no space at shelters, dogs of all breeds are at risk of euthanasia. Misinformed, opinionated media, like the article RW published hurts the rescue community as a whole, not only the Pit Bull type dogs. When municipalities are fearful of certain dogs, Breed Specific Legislation initiatives are enacted (that don’t work.) When businesses are fearful of certain dogs, landlords reject qualified applicants, insurance companies drop law-abiding homeowners, families are torn apart, and innocent dogs end up in overcrowded shelters for no other reason than the shape of their head and their body type.
What of the Pit Bulls that are therapy dogs, visiting hospitals, retirement homes, schools and prisons? What of the bully breeds that are being trained as bomb-sniffing dogs? What of the Pit-Mixes that are masters of agility in formal competition? What of the hundreds of thousands of goofy, snoring, farting, ball-fetching, bundles of love that many of us share our lives (and run) with? What of the hundreds of dogs, that we, as a group of 300 volunteers, have run with over the last two years? What of the healthy, adoptable and social dogs that will be overlooked in shelters, when would-be adopters remember this article?
Let’s face it – as a group, we volunteer to run with shelter dogs. Most of our running buddies in Philadelphia happen to be some sort of a mix-breed dog. So we have a LOT of experience handling dogs from all walks of life, backgrounds and breed combinations. Why not include an opinion from someone who does not fear these types of dog?
Last year Runner’s World gave us two awards: The “why didn’t I think of that award” and the “Best Animal-Related Idea” award on their RW Daily blog. I hesitated even speaking up, because we don’t want to burn bridges with the most powerful running publication in the USA. But this article made me sick to my stomach, and on behalf of the thousands of shelter dogs who’s lives are on the line because of negative stereotypes, I knew that we had to to be a voice. I encourage the editors to come to Philly and meet with us. We’d love to introduce the editors and John Brant, to shelter dogs we run with, our running volunteer “Milers,” dog experts & trainers, and dedicated shelter staff who engage with Pit Bull type dogs on a daily basis. Consider this an open invitation. We’re only a phone call or email away. (Philly is about an hour from the RW HQ.)
We value the decades of information Runner’s World Magazine has provided the running community with, but this article is full of sensationalized, biased journalism. And this type of shock-journalism puts innocent dogs’ lives at risk. Our sympathies to the people who were injured, but the same story could have been written from a balanced perspective that respects the injured runners and the “breed,” while providing information to educate the running community about legitimate threats and safety. An aggressive, off-leash dog of ANY breed can pose a threat to runners. This article was written from a standpoint of fear, not objectivity.
Here’s a picture of my loyal running partner, Lola, who in some municipalities, would be labeled a “Pit Bull” (even though she’s likely some mix of a terrier/boxer/bully/who-knows-what). Thankfully, I live in a city that cherishes all dogs and treats them as individuals. In Philadelphia, we have an amazing network of shelter volunteers, foster families, advocates and local rescues/shelters that are educating the public about adoption and rescue. Lola is my best-friend, my protector, my pavement-pounding partner, my snuggle-master and the inspiration behind The Monster Milers. Does she look like a weapon to you?
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- Reaction to Runner’s World “Don’t Go Into Those Hills…” article « Miles Covered - [...] it was all said on our non-profit blog, I’m just going to link to the post. I sincerely hope ...
I’m the slower 1/2 of of “TWINS RUN in our family”. I have yet to read the Runner’s World article, so I cannot comment directly on the article. I do appreciate your willingness to share your opinions. And, I think your suggestions should be listened to by Runner’s World. I can only write from my own experience. I loved my family’s dogs very much. However, I am also very afraid of dogs because friends and family have been attacked by dogs, including my sister while running. One article in Runner’s World is not going change my opinions, my loves or my fears. In my opinion, there are vicious dogs, just like there are vicious people. I do my best to avoid both.
Exactly! Dogs should be looked at as individuals, not as a whole. No one likes vicious dogs (or people). I think RW could have written a much more helpful article if they went a bit deeper into how we, as runners, can avoid threats from off-leash dogs while running. Heck, they could even start a campaign to urge the public to start leashing dogs.
I’m so sorry you guys were attacked. I have some close friends who were also attacked as children, and the fear is something they will probably never let go of… It’s a very real fear. I’ve been working with dogs my entire adult life, so my good experiences with them FAR outweigh the negative.
Thanks for posting “slower twin.”
Hope to see you guys at a race this Fall?
Thanks for your reply. I do hope that Runner’s World will respond to your post. And, I hope to see you at a race in the Fall. I’m running the Philadelphia Rock ‘N’ Roll Half Marathon and the Philadelphia Marathon.
I’ve been running on and off for years. My partners, and dogs, have always been Am.Pit Bull Terriers (or a mix thereof). I like a medium to large, balanced, athletic, in your pocket, dog. I love my crew. We run in the rain, the snow, dusk, dawn, whenever. I cherish their zeal and willingness to run with me (even though I’m slow) and their tolerance at my dressing them in raincoats or blankets when it’s really cold or wet. I trust them, implicitly. We’ve been chased by dogs who were not controlled by their owner/handlers and it’s always an adrenaline rush. Not a wanted rush. I’m so very sorry for the pain and suffering these brothers went through and angry nothing has been done to catch the owner – in fact, the writer buried a breed of dog in lieu of ranting about the behavior of the owner who did NOTHING to help these boys, in fact, he issued a ‘fuck you’ when they begged for help. NOTHING mentioned about that lack of cooperation from police or tribal police to end such nightmares for these boys. Nothing done to catch the person responsible for the dogs. Instead, the ‘trainer’ interviewed is/was clearly biased, the article is fear based and passive aggressive as far as the dog breed being bashed is concerned and really didn’t do that much to discuss how the brothers (and sisters) and Samantha are faring now. Thanks RW for making it clear who won in this article. The owner of the dogs. The brothers and sisters are sent my very best wishes and prayers that they can overcome this fear at some point and I’ll go along with my rescue peers and try, again, to clear up these misconceptions that were allowed in this article.
I agree. My entire point with this post was that ANY dog can show aggression? Why did RW think they had to “educate the public” with half truths and sensational quotes about a particular breed. So dissapointed. And then there are the commenters who use this very article to say things like, “See, that’s why you always have to know a dog’s background!” (effectively destroying rescue efforts = let’s face it, we don’t know a dog’s background when we rescue a stray…) or, “Pits shouldn’t be family pets.” (Ridiculous, they’ve been family pets for decades. The hundreds of thousands that live their lives in happy solitude don’t make press.)
First it was the Rotties, then the German Shepherds, then the Dobermans, now we’re in the age of the anti-pit bull. When will we start blaming the humans? (And I include sloppy journalists in this umbrella. They’re they ones perpetrating the myth.)
As someone who coordinates and runs with shelter dogs as well (Miles and Mutts), many of pit mix, I do wonder how others will react to this article as well. Personally, I did not think the slant against pits was too strong on my first read through. However, seeing these types of statements is usually something I dismiss anyway since I know how normal any dog can be regardless of their breed, perhaps I am immune to them while the general population is not. I certainly agree that any off-leash of any breed could pose a threat and the article could have been written with a different slant to provide useful information not just imparting fear and shock. Kudos to you for a well written reaction!
You can dismiss the statements, others cannot. That’s where this becomes a matter of life and death.
I’m a dog lover and a vet but there are clear distinctions between humans and animals. Dogs certainly have individual personalities but there are very clear personality and ability traits found in specific breeds – I get the feeling that you would praise a positive quality such as those seen in specific breeds used for Search and Resue but tend to defend the individual dogs and their owners who have the ability to be trained for destruction and fear. There is great responsibility in raising Pittbullls. I caution strongly against owning them as pets unless the family origin can be traced and the future owners understand the importance of care and training. I would rather offend a million dogs and their owners than see another dog owner who thinks they know what they are doing with certain breeds only to read about another dog attack. Choose your breed wisely and understand the reputation and genetic predisposition that goes along with it. RW did a fantastic job. Bravo to them for not worrying about being PC.
Or better yet, rescue a mutt. I’m a pet professional as well, so I’ve literally handled hundreds (if not thousands) of dogs. Plenty of folks I know and work with own pit-mixes and they’re not “training superstars.” You don’t need to be a guru to share your lives with one of these dogs. Some dogs need more work than others, but that is true across the entire breed spectrum. The rescues we work with spend a lot of time researching potential adoptive families to make sure it’s a good fit.
Statements like “I caution strongly against owning them as pets unless the family origin can be traced” amounts to euthanizing thousands of dogs daily, across the country for no other reason than the fact that they were picked up as strays or dropped off at shelters. What of the hundreds of thousands of rescued pits who NEVER show aggression? They’re the VAST majority. Should they be euthanized because their “origins” can’t be traced? So only purebred dogs from breeders are stable? Millions of mutt-owners will disagree. Surely, you care for mutts in your veterinary practice? This seems like an odd sentiment coming from a vet.
My own pit mix was abused and starving when we adopted her six years ago and she’s a wonderful family member. Pit-mixes are the #1 breed our dog walking service handles in the City of Philadelphia. (Our rescue community rocks!) In seven years, and over 300,000 walks, we have not had a SINGLE incident involving a pit or a pit-mix. Not one. Now, if these dogs are so dangerous, how do you explain that? The only way to “trace origins” really is buy purchasing a dog from a breeder, which means that millions of dogs in shelters are euthanized annually. I firmly disagree with you on this one. Treat every dog as an individual. Else rescues should just throw their hands in the air and give up. That’s the entire point of rescue.
Save a life. Rescue.
FThe biggest problem with your statement is that the term “pit bull” does not refer to a breed, so it’s impossible to ascribe genetic characteristics that supposedly co-occur in breeds to “pit bulls”. A “pit bull” is, at this moment in most places, any dog with short hair, a muscular build, and a decent sized head. Did you know that only 4% of a dog’s genetic make-up controls his phenotype (what he looks like)? 4% is a tiny, tiny amount. To give you a comparison, humans owe their phenotype to 10% of their genotype. Would you make the same statement about traits running in humans?
I live with two “pit bulls”. They look completely different and probably don’t share much genetic heritage. They were identified based solely on their physical description. Oh and by the way, they’re both delightful and fantastic with people – just like the literally THOUSANDS of other “pit bulls” I’ve worked with by fostering and volunteering and doing community outreach for various organizations. There is no earthly reason why someone needs to be special or more responsible to have a “pit bull.” I’m not special. I’m just your average responsible dog owner.
Further, your statement about breed traits is purely anecdotal, despite being the prevailing wisdom. While it may be true that certain genetic lineages are prone to certain behaviors, there’s actually no solid scientific evidence exists that indicates that to be true (at least as of 2009). We’ve always assumed that because we bred dogs to look a specific way, we also bred them to act a specific way, but behavior and personality are insanely complex traits. And if it is true that certain behaviors and personality traits tend to co-occur in breeds, that still doesn’t preclude individual dogs from being awesome, AND that STILL doesn’t address the fact that American Pit Bull Terriers (one of three actual breeds people might be referring to when they say “pit bull”) have been specifically selected to be extremely friendly and tolerant of humans. So, by your own logic, these dogs are therefor an aberration and should have been addressed by RW as individuals rather than standard representatives of the breed.
As a vet, surely you must know the AVMA recently indicated that canine profiling is asinine and took a stand against breed discriminatory legislation because all the scientific evidence indicates that breed profiling doesn’t work.
I gotta call BS on you their “Charlie.” You’re not a vet, and if you are, you’re not a very good one. Not only are you out of line with every respectable professional organization in your field, but you misspelled “pit bull,” even after it was written out for you several times in the article above. Your views already belie a lack of knowledge on the subject of dogs and breeds, and typing “pittbulll” drives the point home. Nice try there though, trying to disguise you’re fear-bias as an educated opinion.
This is excellently written. Thank you for your support. I have attached our short response to the article.
I have had a subscription to Runner’s World for almost 10 years, and I have always thought of myself as a devoted reader. I’ve always valued the integrity of the magazine’s content, however, I could not hold the recent piece, “Don’t go out in those hills. There are dogs out there,” to those same standards. David Wiley attempted to forewarn readers in his Editor’s Letter that the article may appear negative but I don’t think a preemptive admittance of this irresponsible journalism should equal an acceptance by it’s readers.
The general public overlooks statements like “the problem is always the owner, not the dog…” and that pits “are known to demonstrate an equal capacity for love and affection.” Instead, what they focus on are phrases like “pitbulls are the number one breed for fatalities” and “pitbulls have been involved in several other horrific incidents in California and across the nation in the past year or so.” What they see is a picture of a pitbull in dark shadows, bloody running shoes and socks, and graphic photos from the attack.
The part that I think frustrates me the most is that I believe the writer (and therefore, magazine itself) knew what he was doing – knew that this would cause an uproar – and still continued to publish the article. The clichéd phrase, “even bad publicity is good publicity,” comes to mind. The problem is, you are further damaging an already damaged breed. The entire article would’ve been just as informative if every mention of an American Pitbull Terrier would’ve been replaced with simply the word “dog.” It appears the writer chose to favor sensationalism over journalism.
As an owner of three friendly pitbulls, two of them being rescues, I work tirelessly explaining to others that the breed isn’t as malicious as the public makes them out to be – a stereotype your magazine has just helped to perpetuate. Any breed has the capacity to harm “if you [don’t] train them properly.” Now you’ve just further exploited the breed.
I agree Lea. It was the details of this article that did the damage. Comparing a family dog to a weapon. Not even acknowledging that “Pit Bulls” are not even a breed of dogs. (As much as a “hound” is a breed.) I really hope RW does a follow up article. I’m waiting to see how they respond.
I’ve been a subscriber to Runner’s World magazine for many years, but I’m disgusted with the author’s agenda. I will not renew in the future. That’s a promise.
I agree with Jen and Lea. Not only was the message of the Runner’s World story irresponsible, but the lack of sophistication and immaturity of the writing itself left me wondering about the editor who let it go to print. The writer was just indulging himself with all of his obtuse, melodramatic descriptions. In the end, the writer’s clumsy attempt to sensationalize had me questioning how bad it really was. It really lowered my opinion of a magazine I’ve never had any complaints with.
Hi, I am not a runner and have not read the article. I am writing because I own Pit Bull type dogs and work at a shelter who rescues Pit Bull type dogs.I appreciate you talking sence. It is so important that people do not jump to categorizing and sensationilizing.
It’s funny how the people who always come to defend “pit bulls” are the ones who work in the veterinary field, fostered, or volunteered, In other words, they have handled dozens to hundreds to thousands of these dogs. The people who always come to post against the breed have little to no experience, aside from isolated incidents or stories they read (like in a running magazine).
I’ve been volunteering and fostering for 7 years, and have handled thousands of dogs in my time. I learned quickly that “pit bulls” are just dogs, and you judge dogs by their temperament, not their breed.
Let us know if Runner’s World allows a letter to the editor to be printed regarding the article. If they don’t, I’ve got a few friends who subscribe and I’d love to convince them otherwise.
I haven’t heard from Runner’s World yet. I will let everyone know if we do… Unfortunately, a lot of damage has already been done with this article, some of which is going to be irreversible in the minds of the thousands of runners who read the article.
So true about the defenders often are the folks who have handled many, many dogs. Perhaps we know what we’re talking about?
Someone posted a link to this blog on the Runner’s World Facebook page, but it has since been removed along with the comments (none of which were inappropriate) accusing the author of shoddy journalism. So apparently readers aren’t allowed to call them on their screw-ups. My subscription will not be renewed.
Ours didn’t get removed, but it’s sad that you saw posts disappearing. I still have hope that RW will at least publish our letter to the editor. We suspect that they were flooded with feedback…
Bravo! SO glad that somebody stood up for the dogs!
I am no longer a runner due to back and knee issues (no cartilage left) but when I was running I always had an airhorn attached to my belt. My worst encounter on my morning run was a COLLIE. The first day the dog charged me, teeth bared, I let a LONG honk out of my horn that stopped it in shock. The second morning, the dog got up and started across the lawn and I tooted the horn. It stopped. The third morning it raised its head and put it back down.
Now that I work in canine rescue and am a dog trainer, I have compressed air on my belt. I seldom use it and if I do I spray it in the air. The noise will stop a dog in its tracks. I believe that runners should go out equipped to handle dogs of ANY sort that may come charging up from the ankle biters to the larger ones. These can include noise makers, the compressed air, pepper spray, etc.
My rescue currently has two pit bull dogs that are non-food aggressive or toy aggressive, and fancy themselves lap dogs. These are in the shelter and another was just adopted over the weekend. A loveable goofball. I’ve interned at AFF and met such dedicated individuals and lovely dogs. The author should be sent to AFF and Best Friends to do a retraction piece.
An airhorn! That’s smart. I wish RW ran an article about creative ways you can deter off-leash dogs, of any kind. Thanks for sharing Rebecca…
Great opinions expressed all around. I’m in awe of Lola’s owner, who put together such a cogent argument — my thought are always such a tangle! I would have been in the same camp as the author of the RW article not too long ago, and then I started transporting, mostly pitbulls from the New York shelters. Trial by fire, but did I learn quickly, and there’s no better dog in my book. Never mind the nay-sayers, but THANK YOU for standing up for pit bulls everywhere. As you say, our words matter. Little lives hang in the balance.
It’s so funny how your perspective on certain dogs can change after you’ve had experience with them. I think that’s what irked all of us about this article – there was no balance in the perspective and the opinions were blatantly fear-based.
Thanks for donating your time Suzy!
My wife and I have two rescues and one might have a little pitbull in her. We’re not sure. Anyways, when I saw the initial picture for the article, I thought to myself, “Oh no, here we go again.” I have to admit, after reading the article I perceived the only villain to be the landowner who appears in the article (well, and the hard-charging father a bit). I did not once think to myself, “Those damn dogs.” The quotes from the scientist also make two very important points – Bad owners and not neutering are to blame for aggressive behavior in dogs. Yes, it would have been nice if the article was about a different breed of dog, but the story happened to involve pitbulls. Yes, there will be people who read the article and blame the pitbulls, but I do believe that there will be more people who place blame elsewhere and show compassion for the animals. Maybe I’m too optimistic or maybe I’m forgiving because of my love for dogs, but I think we rescue dog lovers sometimes jump at the opportunity to pick apart those who write about them, even if there are positive takeaways from the article. Rather, we should extract the positive lessons that can be learned from this article and thank the author for bringing the issue to the forefront. Articles like these give us the opportunity to discuss the issue at hand with the general public, but if we’re too worried about picking everything apart, people will perceive us rescue dog owners as crazier than the dogs we own and our words are unheard. Anyways, just a few thoughts.
By the way, I love what you guys do. For my 31st birthday in February I’m going to be traveling to eight states in eight days via Megabus, running each city with a different shelter dog, raising funds for the Humane Socity of America, and attempting to get eight dogs adopted. I’ll be writing about it at http://www.agoodrun.com. Keep doing what you guys do.