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The Pit Bull Placebo: The Media, Myths and Politics of Canine Aggression | 
 enlarge | Author: Karen Delise
Publisher: Anubis Publishing
Category: Book
Buy New: $24.95
Rating:  14 reviews
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
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually ships in 2 to 5 weeks
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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: Read 9 more reviews...
This book should be a MUST READ for all dog owners and law makers. November 25, 2008
Amber Murphy (Minnesota)
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.
Fantastic book for EVERYONE November 11, 2008
minimouse (Fond du Lac, WI)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
As a dog trainer I especially liked this honest and frank book. As a Pit Bull and Doberman owner I enjoyed the historical look into the problems of owning a "public menance". The rabid fear encouraged by the media has cost thousands of dogs to be killed for no other reason but unresponcible owners and a great lead-in on the 6:00 news. ALL dogs can bite; all dogs can kill.
 The Truth Behind The Breed September 13, 2008
Australian Canine Psychology Centre (Australia)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Before the Pit Bull it was the Rottweiler. Before the Rottweiler it was the Doberman. Before the Doberman it was the German Shepherd and so on.
The truth is ANY dog can bite, and all do. The truth is ANY dog can be trained for aggression. The truth is ANY dog can be fodder for the media's insatiable appetite for tabloid TV and sensationalism.
Karen Delise has written what should become a must have on any dog trainers book shelf or in the library of anyone who cares about and respects dogs.
Here is an open ledger of the real Pit Bull. Here is a book that honestly exposes what every dog trainer and behaviourist should know - What our dogs do and how they behave is entirely due to how we interact, train and socialise with dogs.
This educative volume should be mandatory reading for every student journalist.
Reviewed by the Australian Canine Psychology Centre
Good Book August 10, 2008
P. Chavez (Washington, DC)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Great book for a long history of how the media has influenced the perception of dogs long before pit bulls. It doesn't really get into pit bulls until the last few chapters. But it's a good read if you are interested in the media's treatment of dogs over the past hundred years.
ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I'VE READ IN A LONG TIME June 13, 2008
L. Sharkey (Nanuet, NY United States)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
OH MY GOD, this was one of the best books I've read. This book should be mandatory reading in schools so young kids can understand the reason why some dogs bite,since obviously their parents dont explain it to them. And it also just goes to show you how ridiculous our politicians are when they have FACTS in front of them about dog bite cases but still rely on the media for their information.This book totally opened up my eyes to the reasons and causes for dog bites that I was unaware of.THANK YOU,THANK YOU Karen Delise for writting this AMAZIMG book.I hope millions of people will read it.
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