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The Pit Bull Placebo: The Media, Myths and Politics of Canine Aggression |  | Author: Karen Delise
Publisher: Anubis Publishing
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $23.00
as of 11/23/2009 15:01 MST details
You Save: $1.95 (8%)
New (7) Used (9) from $23.00
Seller: findorranbooks
Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 192598
Media: Paperback
Pages: 210
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.7 x 7.5 x 0.5
ISBN: 0972191410
Dewey Decimal Number: 636.7
EAN: 9780972191418
ASIN: 0972191410
Publication Date: June 11, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
First it was the Bloodhound, sensationalized in the dramatizations of Uncle Tom's Cabin. Then it was the Doberman, symbol of the Nazi menace. Today, it is the Pit bull that is vilified for the depravity of his masters. Today, police chase down fleeing Pit bulls in the street, firing dozens of wild shots in response to media-fed rumors of supernatural Pit bull abilities. Politicians coach and nurture this fear with their own brand of rhetoric used to assist in the passing of quick and ineffective legislation created to pacify communities ignorant of the real cause for dog attacks. Hundreds of animal shelters throughout the country kill all unclaimed Pit bull-looking dogs, as they are deemed "unadoptable" solely on their physical appearance. This has occurred because the human/dog bond, the most complex and profound inter-species relationship in the history of mankind, has been reduced to a simple axiom: Breed of dog = degree of dangerousness. We have come to accept that hanging entire breeds of dogs in effigy for the sins of their owners is an acceptable solution to canine aggression because we have been placated by a Pit Bull Placebo. Like the pharmacologically inactive sugar pill dispensed to pacify a patient who supposes it to be medicine, eradication of the Pit bull is the placebo administered to ease the public's anxiety about dog attacks. The book, The Pit Bull Placebo: The Media, Myths and Politics of Canine Aggression, explores how our views and beliefs about canine aggression have changed over the last 150 years and how our perceptions about the nature and behavior of dogs has been influenced by persons and organizations who often times disseminate information about dog attacks which is tailored to further an agenda unrelated to the improvement of the human/dog bond. We are in the midst of a social hysteria about Pit bulls because we have abandoned centuries-old common-sense and have been duped by inaccurate reporting from the "Pit Bull Paparazzi" and by politicians who traffic in rumors, myths and pseudoscience in their efforts to pass legislation that demonizes dogs while exonerating criminal and abusive owners. If we truly believe that the extremely rare cases of fatal dog attacks merit extreme measures in the management of dogs, if our concern and shock is genuine, then we must be equally genuine and sincere in seeking out and addressing the real causes for these incidents. Only by stepping back from the swirl of present-day hysteria surrounding isolated cases of severe canine aggression and examining the problem from a broader and more objective perspective can we hope to understand and address the human and canine behaviors which contribute to these incidents.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
 A Must For society, Not Just Dog owners November 8, 2009
General Grant (Gerald, Mo.)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Everyone needs to read this book. It gives the facts behind dog bites, and proves who the real dangerous threats are, the media, politicians, and irresponsible dog owners. They need to make a movie of this book, because unless the truth gets heard the myths will continue, and a lot of innocent animals will continue to suffer as well.
 I own a Pit Bullx but thought this was very biased June 26, 2009
Sian Simon (Purcellville, VA USA)
0 out of 5 found this review helpful
I read the entire book, and I love my dog and hate the bad rap that the breed gets, but I felt it was biased to the point of being almost like propaganda.
It has a zillion reports of Pit Bull aggression and why they can't be true, but I felt like it was "me thinks she doth protest too much" to quote the Bard.
I would like to see a more well balanced discussion of the issues. I did like the train of thought she developed around Pit Bulls getting a bad rap due to the press and dogfighting, therefore attracting the wrong type of owner who encourages aggressiveness. The insights into intact dogs and chains were enlightening, but could have been summed up in about 20 pages.
We live on a farm and I've often said I can't imagine how miserable our dog would be if she wasn't out and about doing "stuff" with us. But then I say that about our other dog, who is a Lab, and currently the most popular dog in America, I think. The Lab is always the instigator of mischief - go figure!
Proof! March 25, 2009
Jason L. Kahn
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Simply put, This book is proof, to show/inform the ignorant, media gullable, people out there that all the garbage and myths they believe are actually false. For example, most don't even know the difference between a guard and a watch dog.
Blame the sub-standard owners and the sensationalizing media not the breed!
in a word - EXCELLENT February 2, 2009
Gillian Shippen (Australia)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
In a word - excellent. Truely enlightening, pity the people that are in positions of power also do not read this title.
it's not just about Pit Bulls, it's about all breeds. How the writer was able to go back and get all that data is an incredible achievement and proves this was something that had to be told.
This book should be a MUST READ for all dog owners and law makers. November 25, 2008
Amber Murphy (Minnesota)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
As the title says, this book should be a must read for all dog owners and law makers and even people looking at getting a dog. I'm not even finished with the book and I've learned a lot I didn't know, like the fact that all the garbage the media is spouting about Pit Bulls being killer, blood thirsty dogs with locking jaws is actually the garbage the dog fighters are spouting to make their dogs seem like mean and ferocious fighting/killing machines. I wish the media could see that what they are saying is the same things the dog fighters are saying and stop, but ignorance is bliss as they say. Why find out, and report, the truth when myth's and lies sell so much better. I also didn't know that almost everyone fighting to ban Pit Bull's uses the arguement that Pit Bull's are different from other dogs. Since when is my question.
I bet a lot of people would be suprised by what they'd learn if they read this book, especially about some of the dog breeds that used to be looked upon as vicious. It's very informative and I'd recommend it to anyone looking at getting a dog.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
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