Should there be an age limit on owning and or handling an APBT?

I would like to know what the members of this forum think on the subject in question. I will be 15 on the 2nd of March, all i've wanted since I was 12 and a bit was a Bull breed (Started with the SBT and then discovered the APBT)

And now I am finally in the position to get one, I plan on getting my dog in late June of next year (2011) after I have finished my Junior Cert

I know there is people who think that a person my age is not mature enough to handle a Bulldog. I think the opposite, I take it as a huge compliment when people will trust me with their own Pitbull in these situations. I take it as an even bigger compliment that people will ask me to mind their dog while he is on holidays/gone away etc.

So to answer the question, I think if a person is mature enough and responsible enough to handle a Bulldog 'in the field' then they should be allowed, I don't think there should be legislation to back up my opinion, I think parents and dog owners should have enough sence to know the capabilities of the person in question... Which unfortunately it seems, alot don't have



Thanks for looking, it's a subject I take pretty seriously...

Also, I know I have let myself down more times then I should have on this website, with my comments and opinions. But please don't hold that against me I feel i'm over that stage now, I went through a time when I just said stuff on here to annoy people and see how far I could go with the rules

But i'm sorry about that now, I was just awfully bored over the Summer lol.

P.S. This thread is not supposed to be about me, it's supposed to be about anyone, not considered an adult, who wants to own a Bulldog...

i'm a neutral to this, as i've seen young adults and teenagers more responsible than adults, peers and their own parents. it should be dealt with individually i suppose. of course i wouldnt get a bull @ terrier breed for a 5 year old kid to take care of. just common sense

Exactly!

i think when your able to... im teaching lia how to handle the breed. shes 10 and better then me at times but they are strong and if a situation was to arise she wouldnt be able to hold them back or stop something from kicking off. shes is learning and she will know more by the time herself and myself know she is able to avoid or deal with a situation if it arises. that could be in a yrs time. who knows everyone is different.

just want to add to im still learning and im well we wont go in age............lol

12 gauge wrote:i'm a neutral to this, as i've seen young adults and teenagers more responsible than adults, peers and their own parents. it should be dealt with individually i suppose. of course i wouldnt get a bull @ terrier breed for a 5 year old kid to take care of. just common sense

Very well put mate. I also don't believe any breed should be treated deferently so if there's a test to be taken to prove your competence as a dog owner (which I think there should be) then all potential dog owners should have to take the test no matter what breed they intend to own.

Harry - even though you are young from what I've read so far you seem to have your head screwed on, are doing all the right things a potential dog owner should do and you sound like you want to do right by your breed of choice.........good on ya mate, it's refreshing to see a person of your age with such mature views.

Cheers Leigh

can i just say that i voted 18 but it should be for any dog not just pittbaulls.

good topic harry, i think that as long as the handler is able to control the dog physically as these breeds are very strong and the handler has some what knowledge behind them then age is just a number in some cases. but we have to be realistic For instance a 5 to 9 or some10 year olds holding and trying to control a mature bully breed it would be just silly if for some reason something was to kick off i dont think a child of that age would be able to control that strength, thats just my opinion.

LeighandApple wrote:

12 gauge wrote:i'm a neutral to this, as i've seen young adults and teenagers more responsible than adults, peers and their own parents. it should be dealt with individually i suppose. of course i wouldnt get a bull @ terrier breed for a 5 year old kid to take care of. just common sense

Very well put mate. I also don't believe any breed should be treated deferently so if there's a test to be taken to prove your competence as a dog owner (which I think there should be) then all potential dog owners should have to take the test no matter what breed they intend to own.

Harry - even though you are young from what I've read so far you seem to have your head screwed on, are doing all the right things a potential dog owner should do and you sound like you want to do right by your breed of choice.........good on ya mate, it's refreshing to see a person of your age with such mature views.

Cheers Leigh

have to agree with you, their should be a theory test before you can receive a lenience, just like driving a car knowledge is needed before you get behind that wheel, again regardless of what breed is chosen.

I agree with most of what has been said. The stuff about the little kiss, they don't have the strength to hold back a dog if something was to happen. Thats more the parents responsiblity tho JMO.

ady, why do u say 18+?

i'm gona be honest i said 16+ as physically your better able to handle a dog but that doesnt mean your capable of minding a dog, harry i was with you on two walks and the last one you really proved your able to handle a bully breed dog there should be laws to help not like the ones now that only make things harder for bull breed owners

if there was a test as mentioned above it would help solve a lot of problems but there still would be those who'd get a back yard bred dog for half nothing.

i know it seems harsh with the age limit but these are strong dogs and can at times even for the most experienced person be a bit of a hand full on the lead... i've two younger bros 9 and 14 and they can control my pup as good as i can and i think it'll be a great help to them in the future been able to handle such a powerfull breed so if the person is under 16 but physicaly capable of controling a dog and has the abilitys to care for that dog proper they should be left own a bully breed as there are plenty people out there who are 27 and older that cant manage to dress themselves no mind look after a pitbull

So do you think that I should be able to have a Pit?

i think you should i seen you with all the dogs at the limerick walk and you were well able for em the 16+ thing should be a rule but theres always an exception to every rule

This is a very interesting but tricky tread, as some of the members mentioned about the legal age. If the age limit was lifted, we would have alot of kids and irresponsible parents, letting them take a dog out on the street. So im caught in a dilemma here, so to cut any arguments out, yes there should be an age limit. I reckon 18 and the owner is physically and mentally mature and experienced to handle a powerful breed. Harry you do have a good head on your shoulders, when you put your mind to it. We cant bend the rules for one person. It would be like giving a 17 yr old a full driving license to drive a powerful car or bike. That is why these restrictions are put in place.

A 17 year old can drive what ever he wants, but the insurance companies would charge twice the value of the car...

Harry wrote:A 17 year old can drive what ever he wants, but the insurance companies would charge twice the value of the car...

Harry a 17 year old cant drive anything over a 1.3 engine and a resticted amount of hp. As fora bike, you have to be over 21 to drive anything over 33 bhp or 25 kw and thats 2 years after passing your test. Some insurances companys wont even look at you until your 25, well thats in bikes.

You can drive what ever you want Once you have your licence you can drive a Lambo, but the insurance is what stops people. It's definatly not 1.3 anyway, because I can get insured on a 1.4 Civic for the low low price of 1500

But we're going slightly off topic here It's supposed to be about dogs lol.

once you get a licence for your dog the government should ask you to put your dog through basic training at a low cost or tie in a fee for both licence and training, now this goes for all breeds. this will show your able to handle your said dog and the dog gets some sort of training... then maybe someone who is younger then the legal age limit could possible own there dog of choice.

ive seen grown men dragged down the road by there medium/large dogs. ive also seen children walking medium/large dogs without a bother because the dog was a well trained dog and just looked like it was enjoying the walk.

I did select 18+ because a dog owner needs to be physically and mentally capable of dealing with any situation that may arise. For instance both of my dogs walk nicely with my 12yo daughter, but if my dogs were attacked on the walk it would be unfair to expect her to be phsically capable to deal with it. This goes for any breed or type.

Harry - this is not to say you shouldn't own a APBT at your age but you seem to be the acception to the rule. I also wanted to have my own dog from when I was around 13 but had to wait until I was 19 (when I moved out).

I know there is a couple of things I need to work on, the most important being better at seeing when a potential fight is going to happen, mostly because my dogs can be around any dog without a problem. I can't work on that by myself because my dogs are too good and there's no dogs around to practice on lol. I kno i am not perfect, but i kno what I have to work on, and I think that is what matters.

I think it's funny that I asked this on another forum, which is all about the Pits in there original image, and every response was a positive one.

think everyone knows ya here harry. they also know how much you want a pit but want to put you wide and look out for ya too.

slattery9104 wrote:

if there was a test as mentioned above it would help solve a lot of problems but there still would be those who'd get a back yard bred dog for half nothing.

i hate to burst your little bubble slattery but there are only back yard breeders around ( except for the old school boys ) and thats not going to change untill we start a proper registery and start competing in events like the ACES events. in the mean time ye can make do with the puppy peddeler and fashion accessory producer !

how do you define a back yard breeder?
in my opinion a back yard breeder is some one who breeds for just profit and not for the love of the breed and theres plenty of them around but there are a few people who breed but always have the dogs as first priority and dont breed half/crossbreeds or breed two dogs that are unhealthy or too old or just breed litter after litter

if you look at the forum you'd see that irelands pitbulls are it the middle of setting up a registry for pitbulls so that real breeders and not back yard breeders can be seen apart from those who just want money

also there will be competitions held in 2011 like that of aces for all the dogs that will be registered

and any one who "makes do" with bad breeders only gives pitbulls a worse name if people didnt buy from puppy farmers then there wouldnt be as big a problem with the apbt in ireland as it is.

i dont believe that back yard breeding will ever go away as i said most those that only have a pitbull as a fashin accessory (and theres a lot of them around) will still buy from a back yard breeder as they dont care about the dog its just for the image but it can be reduced if people just had access to proper breeders who know about their dogs and dont breed just for money

i agree with a lot of things your sayin and i know well wats in the pipe line thats why i mentioned the registry and the events, also the idea of breeding is to better the breed and aspire to produce dogs that are equally as good if not better than the stock you started with , and another thing you can read all the books in the world but nothing can educate you better than experance !