© 2013, Jerry D. Patillo, CPDT-KA

The Chihuahua may be the most ferocious dog breed in the world!

How can I say that? I’m a dog-behavior specialist, specializing in dog-dog and dog-human aggression and other undesirable behaviors. I’ve trained family dogs all my life and horses during my teen years — more than a few years ago! I’ve been training dogs professionally since 2004. I started specializing in dog aggression probably around 2006.

Since 2004, I’ve been bitten by more Chihuahuas, more Shih Tzus, more miniature Dachshunds than any other breed. In all that time a so-called “bully breed” has never bitten me. A Boxer has bitten me, but most authorities wouldn’t typically label the Boxer as a bully breed.

Fortunately, the little breeds don’t inflict too much damage when they bite, but that doesn’t excuse their behavior. Why do these little guys bite so much? Because their owners and the owners’ friends TEACH them to bite!

Sure, people don’t intentionally teach their dogs to bite. However, these intelligent creatures learn to bite because biting and snapping get them what they want. What do they want? They want the scary human or other dog to go away. When their barking, growling, snarling, snapping, and biting get the desired result, then they learn very quickly to repeat their successful, but highly undesirable, behaviors.

So we should ban all Chihuahuas, Shih Tzus, and other little breeds from apartments, condos, housing associations, and even whole cities, right? I don’t think so. We should punish and ban owners – and trainers – from using training practices that encourage these behaviors.

In all the years I’ve been training professionally and specializing in dog aggression, I’ve never been bitten by an American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, American Bulldog, or any other “bully” breed except, perhaps, the dog mentioned above.

I’ve not kept records, but my personal experience has been that, on a bite-per-breed basis, Pit Bulls, AmStaffs, and other “bully” breeds are among the sweetest, most devoted, most dependable, and safest dogs around — if they’re trained to be. Chihuahuas, Shih Tzus, Dachshunds, and other dogs can be among the most vicious dogs in the world — if they’re trained to be, whether intentionally or unintentionally.

If you have a Pit or other “bully” breed, and you’re in a confrontation with your apartment, condo, housing association, or the city, give us a call. I’m not a lawyer, and I can’t make any guarantees about the outcome. However, we can be your advocate to help you keep the love of your life (your dog) from being taken away from you. Again – no guarantees. Our services are NOT FREE, but if you have a “bully” breed, we can give you a substantial discount off our standard rates for training and behavior modification.

Call us TODAY!