Pit bull is one of the most misunderstood breeds in the world. They have proved their sweetness over and over again, but sadly, they are still stereotyped to be very dangerous and hostile dogs. Many places have even tried to ban them! What people fail to realize is that dogs grow up the way they were raised.
Thankfully, there are many programs out there that are trying to show the public that pit bulls deserve just as much love as other breeds do. Animal Farm Foundation is one of them. Together with Austin Pets Alive! and Universal K9, they have been trying to train pit bulls to be official police canines.
Many police forces all over the nation have now adopted trained pit bulls. They are slowly understanding how obedient and hard-working these dogs can be. More and more police departments are accepting this ingenious idea to get more trained K9 partners while also providing homes for pit bulls.
“Police Departments are finally getting it,” explained Protect Pit Bulls from BSL online. “Instead of spending $10,000 to $15,000 for a trained Belgian or GSD, they are now taking pit bulls from shelters and training them, and they are proving themselves to be amazing police and military K9’s.”
Pit bulls are very obedient and can be trained to do almost anything their owners need. It doesn’t come as a surprise that they can be great police dogs!
Sadly, they get a very bad status for being “aggressive”. These poor dogs have frequently been the victims of legislation trying to ban them from entire communities — something Protect Pit Bulls from BSL (breed-specific legislation) is trying to stop.
Thankfully, the police training is helping to change people’s perception towards this misunderstood breed. They are slowly but surely realizing that pit bulls can be well-trained, protective, and professional animals.
The dogs learn everything from narcotics, explosives, cadaver, and arson detection, to criminal apprehension during their training period. “Any dog that has the drive, confidence, and desire to work can do it! Breed does not dictate a dog’s ability to work,” said Universal K9 founder Brad Croft.
Training rescued pit bulls costs a lot less than opting for purebred, trained German Shepherds or Belgian Malinois. They are the most used breeds in the police forces, but they can cost tens of thousands of dollars.
Police departments all over the nation have introduced pit bulls to the force. To a name a few – Washougal Police Department, the Chattahoochee Hills, Georgia Police Department, and the Poughkeepsie Police Department in New York. There is a chance these pit bulls would have been put down if they hadn’t been adopted by the trainers and turned into police dogs.
“AFF [Austin Pets Alive!] stresses treating each dog as an individual — we can’t base their behavior on their appearance or their past. Clifford doesn’t speculate or dwell on their past. The dogs don’t either. Let them be dogs,” told K9 trainer Bernice Clifford.
The police department trainers believe that pit bulls are perfect for their training. They say the only difficulty they have ever had with pit bulls is trying to get them to be aggressive toward people!
The K9 trainers with the help of AFF and the cops have been proving to everyone that there is no reason to treat pit bulls in a different way! Let’s hope that soon this amazing breed will be hailed heroic, rather than hostile and hazardous.
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