DF and I have always wanted to eventually get a Bull Terrior/Pig Dog and over the weekend told me that when we get one he would like to take it out "once in a blue moon" to use them for what they are actually bred for. Pig Hunting!
We currently have a German Shepherd who is 2 years old and the most placid/dopey dog you will ever meet, but of course I wouldn't never leave a child around him un-attended, even though I have the upmost confidence he would never hurt them, but you just never know.. and I'm hoping once we get this other pup it will catch on to his temperment and have no interest in chasing down pigs!
I'm a little uneasy about it, especially when we are TTC a bub I don't really want a dog that knows how to "hunt" around the house, although it will be a family pet first and be treated exactly as our other dog, iykwim.
I don't really know anyone who has had this bread as a pet other than my dad back in the day, who said his pup was as wussy as they come, but wasn't very tollerable with other dogs that he didn't have regular contact with.
If anyone has had any experience with them I would love to hear about it!
It would be very important to be able to interact with both parents of the puppies to see what they are like. But just my opinion...the dog is either a pig hunting dog or a pet...the lines of being a pig dog vs being a docile, safe pet may be easily blurred by the dog's instincts. Would probably also depend on if the dog was a crossbreed or a "purebred" hunting dog (whatever breed that may be) as to how "reliable" the puppies temperament is going to be as it gets older.
My brother's friends have pig dogs, a couple of them are bit so so and I wouldn't want anything to do with them, one of them is a lovely dog, but I still wouldn't let little children around it. If it were me, I would do a lot of research and choose a puppy carefully, view both parents and interact with both parents, and if you can older dogs from previous litters if they may have kept any. I would definitely steer clear of backyard breeders which can be a little dodgy anyway, but with a dog that has deeply ingrained hunting instincts you'd want to make sure the breeder is being 100% honest with you and knows what their dogs are like temperament-wise.
I would never EVER have children around a pig dog. In fact my brother bred them for years and he would not allow us in the backyard even when the pups were little.
1) - why bother if he is only going hunting once in a blue moon. If its bred properly its unfair. I wouldn't keep a Kelpie in a backyard either.
2) - its bred for ripping the guts/jugulars out of BIG, WILD BOARS - you can't have that around children. End of Story.
Though they are not ideal for a first-time dog owner, because of their power and difficulty to train, their physical strength is matched by their intelligence, which makes them thoroughly reliable pets. Both body and mind need to be kept active and they can be fun and playful. They are typically very affectionate dogs that love human company. Bull Terriers are particularly good with children, and usually have a high pain threshold, which reduces the risk of injury to children from a defensive bite. Younger dogs, however, may regard children as playmates and because of their strength could cause inadvertent injury. They are protective of children in their charge, and the females are especially noted for this. Bull Terriers make formidable guard dogs while their owners are away. The American Temperament Test Society, Inc. (ATTS), a not-for-profit organization that promotes uniform temperament testing for dog breeds, gives the Bull Terrier a pass rate of 92.1% as of the 25/8/8. The average for all breeds is 81.5%.
The English bull terrier is a great family dog as they are calm and relaxed but will play and become very active when played with they are very lovable and should be great with children when socialized at a early age.
i love these dogs. I dont think i will ever get one though.
As far as hunting dogs go, those i know with them keep them as hunting animals. they have them separate from the pets. They are not a pet, and I think with that breed it would be too confusing and unfair for them to be expected to go out hunting sometimes and to be a good family pet the rest of the time.
I agree with Lulu and others.
I was raised with shepherds and farm dogs my whole life, so I am no prude about dogs around kids. But hunting dogs that are used as hunting dogs need not to be treated as pets - they are simply not pets. And especially around kids is just irresponsible imo.
You are much better off getting another shepherd. You can get the puppies that dont make it as police dogs, just call the K9 division of the police in your state and they will tell you when the next intake is up. That way you know they have been socialised, temperament tested and have begun training. They are excellent dogs around kids, even littleys, when trained properly
I had a pet bull terrier (pure bred) growing up and I loved her to bits.
When I was about 4 or 5 my dad bought home our new pet, a bull terrier that was given to him at work that day, how did this happen? he was at work (a muffler shop) when a customer pulled up with a bull terrier in the car, it was young but fully grown, it had marks and blood everywhere, it turned out that its parents would attack and fight it when ever they were unattended so this guy had to take it everywhere until he found her a new home. Well my dad fell in love and bought her home .
She was the most pleasent, placid, loving dog ever, (we also had a Chihuahua at home, she was the knarky one). Our bull terrier, who had been named 'Keg' by the previous owners was wonderful, she wouldn't hurt a fly, I used to constantly use her as a pillow I have photos somewhere... I will see if I can find one. My parents never ever hesitating in leaving us alone together.
We used to go hunting when I was young, mainly rabbit hunting, and Keg would come with us. She would fetch the dead rabbits, but she did not hunt them alive as such.
Our dog Keg was beautiful. She had a rough start to life but with our love she was a wonderful pet. She died when I was a young teenager after we moved house and the new neighbour had said he didn't trust bull terriers... we think she was poisened. I now have a Kelpie that I have had for the past 13 years...
I can in no way speak about all bull terriers and the way they will be around children. I personally would not trust a hunting dog around my children even though I am contradicting my dog/upbringing, with the hunting side of things I guess we did it right and we were lucky. I would not teach a dog to hunt if they were to be a family pet.
I just thought that I would tell you my story of my beloved dog that I trusted with my life and yes she was a bull terrier
We have a pure bred American Red Nose Pitty, and she is 100% family smoocher. Although she is hardly ever out with other dogs or people, she is friendly to everyone. We have only ever seen her rear up at another dog, who rushed at her in excitement. I trust her more with our children than our Kelpie. She is very tolerable with all dogs and people, including children of all sizes. She would be a couch potato if you let her, just anywhere that you are, she wants to be too. Yep, she's a wuss with the family, but very protective at the same time.
I wouldn't think that you could have a dog that is both a 'hunting' animal and a 'family pet'. If I had a hunting dog I would feel very uncomfortable it being around my children, supervised or not, and it would have to live in a super secure enclosure (cage basically) at the far end of the yard away from the children.
We got our dog as a young pup, and I think you can pretty much (but there are those that you couldn't) have whatever breed you like as a family dog, its just about how you bring them up. I have no idea what her parents were like. And if you google pics of these dogs, mine looks nothing like them, in terms of I think she is much more beautiful, and doesn't look quite so much like a meat head as these showy dogs.
Bull Terrior/Pig Dogs!
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