January 22nd, 2007
By Jason Mann
A growing concern of mine is the amount of people emailing me telling me they can not afford veterinarian care for their American Pit Bull Terriers.
Every time I get one of these emails I ask myself why such a person would have a dog in the first place. Much less an American Pit Bull Terrier. My dogs, God love them, have cost well over $15,000 in vet bills in the 6 years I have had them. Note, that is both dogs combined vet bills over a 6 year period.
Routine care is one thing. You can plan for that $150 per visit, 4 times a year, regular exam. What you can not plan for is what gets you. And that is why I’m writing this article.
American Pit Bull Terriers cost money and part of that cost is veterinarian care. It seems logical but so many people do not think about it or think about it after the fact and this lands thousands, wait, millions of dogs into shelters every single day.
Rule #1 of American Pit Bull Terrier Ownership
You may have read my “owners pledge” to their APBT’s. You might not have. Either way it starts out with a rule #1.
That rule is, if you can not afford to give your dog the best medical and health care possible then you should not have an American Pit Bull Terrier or any dog for that matter.
When I receive an email from a 19 year old kid who says, “I can’t afford a vet” I get a little ticked off. My response is, “Re-home the dog into a home that can afford proper medical care.”
The Bottom Line
You should always consider your dogs health to be the number one asset you have. A Pit Bull in great health will live a longer more fulfilled life. Yes, these dogs love to play hard and fast and I am not in a position to tell anyone they shouldn’t allow their Pit Bulls to play hard. But think about the cost. Not the financial cost but the cost to your dogs overall health.
If you want to learn more about how you can afford quality medical care then you should check out pet health insurance. It works much the same way human health insurance works and is worth taking a look at.
Until Next time!,
Jason Mann, Angel CGC/CTD, Honey and Mr. Patch (The Heinz 57 Mutt)
The Most Informative Pit Bull Web Site Online
Categories: Pit Bull Blog |
7 Comments
January 12th, 2007
You know I was hoping common sense would prevail in 2007 but alas, my hopes are dashed. Well at least so far this year.
I moderated a ton of comments and there are people there talking about protecting kids, calling Pit Bull owners “a-holes” and a few about how they have dealt with the ignorance on a personal level.
One person said, “Pits are truly the most dangerous dog other than a wolf.”
Wolves are not dogs. Another ignorant comment.
I would ask people to sit down and think about it for a moment.
Ask yourself, if the American Pit Bull Terrier is so vicious how it is that millions of them live worldwide and we only see a handful of attacks?
There is only ONE Pit Bull and that is the PUREBRED American Pit Bull Terrier. Unless you know for a fact the dog is purebred American Pit Bull Terrier it can NOT be considered
a Pit Bull.
The problem is everyone tosses in 8-9-10 other breeds that are similar to the American Pit Bull Terrier and calls them Pit Bulls.
Even then though, that would only increase the numbers of dogs called, “pit bulls” and still only a handful of dogs attack, maul, or kill people each year.
If they were all so vicious wouldn’t we see thousands of attacks on a daily basis? Wouldn’t 200-300 people a year die at the teeth of these animals?
Of course. Use your common sense.
I think it’s ignorant to assume my dog will kill a kid because a dog in Spain did.
I think it is ignorant to think my dog will “turn on me” because a dog bite it’s owner in Ohio.
I think it is completely ignorant to assume that millions of other dogs are “dangerous” because ONE or TWO incidents in some city in anywhere USA.
One commentor said, “You childish a–holes think its so important to look ‘cool’ next to a ‘bad-a–’ dog that you don’t give a f— about innocent human bystanders. Is this your subconscious revenge upon the world for not getting the attention you feel you’ve always deserved? Haven’t you people begun to figure out by now that others immediately assume pit bull owners are dopes with inferioritycomplexes. You would think that stigma alone would dissuade some of you, but I guess you’re too dense to ‘get’ it.”
So now you are a Psych major and know me? Ummm. Wake up.
I can some up every reaction to the “Pit Bull Dilemma” in two words. Fear and Ignorance.
Then again, as Joe Public above pointed out, I might be dense.
You know I wrote this post because it’s time to really stop bickering amongst ourselves and find a real solution to this situation.
In 2007 I hope that we (Pit Bull owners and Non-Pit BUll owners) can finally see some middle ground and make some headway for well being of the dogs.
I for one am sick of ignorant comments, how about you?
Have a great day!
Best Regards,
Jason, Angel CGC/CTD, Honey and Mr. Patches, the innocent Mixed breed dog.
http://www.PitBullLovers.com
Categories: Pit Bull Blog |
26 Comments
