Riding in the car

Frederick loves riding in the car.  I think it has to do with the fact that he loves going new places and meeting new people. Sometimes when him and Violet are being rambunctious I take them on a drive to calm them down. I try to take them somewhere almost everyday just to get them used to the world and new experiences and because they love it. So yesterday I took them with me to run and get food and I had their window halfway down so if course they had their heads sticking out. The guy at the drive through said I love your dog I just love pitbulls. It made smile and made me realize that another reason it's good to take him out is to show other people that really he's this goofy drooling dog  not the mean vicious stereotype. 

A man's best friend

Watching DR and Frederick together gives me such joy. DR is so good with Frederick, stern but loving. Frederick really is his best friend. Watching them together shows me that someday DR will be a great father and I love that this dog brought us so much closer and into a family.

They bring joy into my life everyday.

Apartment Life

Sorry its been awhile folks we moved last month and its been hectic. We went from a house with a huge backyard to an apartment to try and save money... the puppies don't like the small space and no backyard. They end up playing on our bed because there really just isn't any space.

Lucky for us both my mom and my boyfriends mom allow us to bring them over and use their backyards. Good thing Violet and Frederick get along with their dogs. 

With living in an apartment for the next 6 months at least I could use any suggestions on how to make life a little easier also on housebreaking in an apartment for Violet.
THANKS! As always comments are welcome!

Violet

We recently adopted a new little puppy who we have named Violet. We had been thinking about getting a new puppy for awhile and I had been looking at pit bull rescue website but we just couldn't find one that would be a perfect fit. Then a few weeks ago I was driving home and there was a free puppies sign... I had to stop and that when we found Violet.

She was only 6 weeks old at the time. We are not sure what kind of dog she is. The lady said the mom she thinks is part Chow (I didn't think she looked chow) and she thinks the dad might have been a Rottweiler from the neighborhood. She had 10 puppies that she just couldn't afford to keep any longer. So that how we got Violet. She is now 9 weeks old has been to the vet twice and so far has a clean bill of health. 

Her a Frederick have been doing ok together. At first he was a little rough. I mean he is a 60 pound dog used to playing with dogs his size and here we bring home a 6 pound puppy. He had to learn to be gentle. It didn't take Violet long to learn how to play rough though. Even though she is only 10 pounds now she runs up and try to tackle him. We are having a little bit of trouble with her nipping at him which has cause Frederick to regress a bit and nip back. Luckily with other dogs he is still just as nice as he always has been. Most of the time they seem to get along unless they are fighting over a bone. The best time is when they are tired and fall asleep together. 

This is what I pictured when I thought about getting a second dog. Hopefully as she gets bigger we will stop the biting and she will grow up to be just as behaved as Frederick. Only time will tell. 

Holidays

We have had a busy holiday season around our house this year. I am a little amazed at how good Frederick is around our Christmas tree. We never even had to tell him not to touch it.

Our Christmas card photo this year

I also got a new camera for Christmas which means... A lot more pictures!! I took some while he was playing ball tonight out back. Tried to take some action shots.

DJ and Frederick

I hope everyone else had a good holiday season and after the new year I will get busy on posting again!

Changing minds

I have been trying to find the words to write this post for almost a week now.

The entire purpose of this blog is to try to change people's opinions of pit bull type dogs. How am I supposed to do that though when I can't even change my mother's opinion? 

When we first got Frederick, my mother thought I was crazy. She kept telling me how dangerous they could be and how we would have to get rid of him once we started having kids. I brushed it off at the time. I have to be honest I was nervous at first too about him being aggressive. 

After getting to know him, and as soon as we stopped the wanting to chew on everything including our toes habit, I realized how much he just wanted to be loved. 

My mother calls him her grand puppy and she comes over to see him. She is at least willing to be around him now. She pets him, but I can always tell she is still scared. She is tense. This kills me. Frederick loves her and my brother and absolutely loves when they stop by. He is hyper, and tends to still jump on people when he wants their attention at first (something we are working on), but he has never tried to bite her or my brother or been aggressive around them. 

A few days ago her, my brother, and my nephew stopped by. My  mom and I were packing my nephew up in the car when she asked where my 13 year old brother was. I told her he was out back playing with Frederick and she turned and looked at me and said "Is he OK out there by himself?". I was amazed. It was literally like a slap in the face which is hard to explain why it hurt that bad but I hate when people judge him for his breed. If he was a lab or a beagle like her dog, she wouldn't have thought twice about it. Because he is a pit bull though, she was scared. 

My brother and Frederick 

Every day I try to educate other people about this breed and try to fight to end this discrimination, but how am I supposed to convince strangers that pit bulls can be loving family members if I cant convince my mother? 

Facts about Pit Bulls

I decided today that I would take a moment and do a post on a few Pit Bull facts. First off did you know that in Miami, FL it is legal to own a tiger but not a pit bull? DR and I thought about moving to Miami awhile back because I have a friend who lives there and he is a HUGE Miami Heat fan but after reading about their Breed Specific Legislation (BSL) we decided against it.

Seems a little ridiculous doesn't it?

Pit bulls attacks have resulted in more fatalities than any other breed. This is true. It is also true that the probability of being fatally attacked by a pit bull is lower than any other breed. Actually, the probability of being fatally attacked by a pit bull is .00125%. That doesn't seem very high now does it?

In canine temperament studies, pit bulls consistently score higher than a lot of other breeds. The average score was an 82.8%. American Pit Bull Terriers score an 86.8%, Beagle's and Great Dane's average was 80%, Pomeranian's average score was a 75.8%.

Male dogs are 6.2 times more likely to attack than a female dog. In 2006, more than 97% of attacks were from dogs that were not neutered or spayed. So be responsible, spay or neuter your pit bull. The facts show that this helps their chances with not attacking someone and will help to end this stigma that pit bulls are aggressive.

Pit Bulls used to be known as the nanny dog. When you had children, you wanted a pit bull to protect them. It was this way for over a hundred years. Pit bulls love to be around humans and are extremely good with children.

Pit Bulls form extremely strong bonds with their owners and want nothing more than to please them.  Pit Bull puppies actually prefer human company to their mothers on average 2 weeks earlier than any other breed. They can also be pushy and stubborn too though. If you don't set rules they will make up their own and try to test the ones you have. Most pit bulls also love going new places and meeting new people. I know Frederick is always ready to jump in the car and meet anyone we come across.

Thoughts and comments welcomed! Thank you!