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PhysicallyFIT
aboutPitBulls
The
Absolute
Bull
By Marisa Scully
As I write, I am sitting on the sofa next to one of my pit bulls, Pun, whose current name is a truncation of his previous
name, Punisher. Right now I could drag this dog across the room by one of his legs, my eleven-pound
mutt could use his ear as a chew toy, and a perfect stranger could enter the house and receive a kiss from him.
Flash back to three hours ago at flyball practice, one of the sports Pun plays. Flyball is a relay race where a dog
makes four jumps, pounces on a box that releases a tennis ball, and brings the ball back over the same four
obstacles. The dogs run past their canine teammates who have already run, or are about to run for them. While
we wait for our turn Pun is barking (actually it’s more like shrieking) and, when other dogs go zooming past, he’s
lunging and looking. I’m not trying to calm him or give him commands or correct him for acting like an animal;
I’m allowing him to become aroused and excited, for his desire to be released from his built-up restraint.
When I do let him go, Pun bolts straight to
get his tennis ball, returns back over the
jumps and, when he returns to me, drops his
tennis ball and lunges mouth open wide onto
the tug toy I’m holding. He grasps the toy in
his mouth and we both swing around together,
attached to one another by our game. Out
of all of the dogs, people, sounds, flying
objects and other stimuli in the building, he
reliably winds up where he wants to be the
most: with me. This did not happen
overnight. Pun and I worked at this together
for a long time ─ starting off easy, practicing
small bits at a time — before it clicked that
playing flyball was so much fun it would be
silly to pay attention to anything but the
game. The dog at flyball practice looks very
different from the dog that waits on the bathmat
while I shower. But to me, the extreme
intensity and dedication with which Pun
applies himself to any task are what make
him versatile, what make him special, what
make him a pit bull.
Pit bulls have been an “issue” in the public eye for some
time now. In order to combat the pleas for breed bans and
eventual extinction, a great number of pit bull owners have
come together, united by their love for the frequently misunderstood
dogs. But the reasons why these people love pit
bulls vary greatly ─ and, these differences create a counterproductive
divide where we should be working together.
Some supporters feel a compulsion to disclaim any and
every negative comment or observation made about pit
bulls. We’ll call them the “blue group.” They frequently say
things like, “The only difference between a pit bull and a
golden retriever is the size of their jaw.” They claim that as
long as the dogs are not abused or trained to be aggressive,
they are harmless, sweet and angelic.
At the other end of the spectrum are those who love pit
bulls for the same reasons people want them outlawed.
We’ll call them the “black group.” These fanciers may say
things like, “Of course pit bulls are the best dogs, they can
beat any other breed to a bloody pulp.” The black group
admires the potential strength, power, courage and drive of
the breed, viewing them as canine gladiators. They believe
28 I PhillyFIT
March/April I 215-396-0268 I www.phillyfit.com