"Pit Bulls and Parolees"

Tia Torres, founder of pit bull rescue Villalobos Rescue Center.

Since October 2009, the popular Animal Planet show Pit Bulls and Parolees has aired on Saturdays at 10 p.m. Although the show may seem like just another reality TV show, it offers great insight into what the pit bull breed is all about.

The show details the lives of Tia Torres and her children as they operate the largest pit bull rescue organization in the country: Villalobos Rescue Center. Although the New Orleans center often aids other dog breeds, it specializes in pit bull rescue and rehabilitation.

Cheech and Chong, two American Bulldog brothers who were
rescued by Villalobos Rescue Center.

Throughout the five seasons it has aired, the rescue center has saved the lives of dogs who came from horrible pasts. These include:

• abandoned dogs
• abused dogs
• dogs in the fighting business

However, Tia and her family don't just save canine lives. They also give parolees a second chance by offering them jobs at the rescue center. The parolees take care of the animals, which includes bathing and cleaning up after them, and often find a reason to turn their lives around simply by working with such a loyal and loving animal.

Here is an introduction to Villalobos Rescue Center and

the fifth season of Pit Bulls and Parolees:

Although I am a new viewer of the show, I think the show does a great job of portraying the breed as it truly is: loving, loyal, and vastly misunderstood. It is touching to see starving fighting dogs who were tied up using giant ship chains joyously lick the face of a parolee rescuer as he or she cuts them free. 

The passion that Tia and her family and staff show while rescuing these animals, even if it means crawling under a chain link fence or navigating a trash-filled, abandoned house to get to a dog, is incredible. Their enthusiasm and efforts really pay off and show that pit bulls are not aggressive killers, even when a human taught them to be.

Eyelashes, a rescued pit bull puppy currently adoptable
at Villalobos Rescue Center.

"Cheech and Chong." Photograph. vrcpitbull.net, 2014. Web. 25 Oct. 2014.

"Eyelashes." Photograph. vrcpitbull.net, 2014. Web. 25 Oct. 2014.

"Pit Bulls and Parolees." IMDb, 2014. Web. 25 Oct. 2014.

"Pit Bulls and Parolees Tia Torres." Animal Planet, 2014. Web. 25 Oct. 2014.

Pit Bull Negativity in the News

Pit bulls like Jack, who saved a cat from coyotes,
usually appear in negative news stories   

Across news stations and newspapers nationwide, pit bull stories are actually quite common.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of these stories are incredibly negative and cast the American Pit Bull Terrier breed under an umbrella of viciousness and aggression.

In fact, on USAToday's website, 12 of the first 15 pit bull-related articles have negative headlines such as "Elderly man attacked by pitbull in Royal" and "Victim in deadly pitbull attack seeks tougher punishment for owners." The content of each article presses an agenda of breed condemnation in its language depicting each and every pit bull as a killer. Furthermore, all 15 articles have been published since Sept. 2 of this year.

Why do pit bulls have such a bad rep?

According to the website of Cesar Millan, famed host of Animal Planet's TV show Dog Whisperer, Americans actually loved and cherished the pit bull in the time period prior to the 1980s. In fact,Our Gang comedies and Buster Brown. In World War I, the breed was often featured on American military posters and was even utilized during the war.

Cesar Millan, host of Dog Whisperer, is a huge advocate for the breed.

because of the breed's fascination with and devout loyalty toward children in particular, it became known as "The Nanny Dog," and was featured in many shows starring children, such as in the

What is incredibly shocking is that, from the beginning of the century until the 1980s, only one negative pit bull news story made national news. The only reason it did so was because someone intentionally set 26 dogs on a young woman.

However, in the 1980s, dog fighting made a serious comeback, even with the existence of federal laws. The pit bull became the poster dog for dog fighting and was the choice guard dog for drug dealers and gangs. In 1987, a hugely-publicized attack occurred when a pit bull killed a two-and-a-half-year-old boy while guarding a marijuana crop.

Togo, a pit bull who served America in World War II.

Shortly thereafter, attempts to ban the breed popped up throughout the country. A New Mexico town named Tijeras, which is outside of Albuquerque, quickly passed one of the toughest breed specific legislation laws in history. Officers were authorized to capture and kill any dog resembling on pit bull on sight without having to compensate owners.

Although the tide seems to be turning, progress seems to take a step back every time a pit bull attack story surfaces in major news.

"Every time something bad is reported in the news, it ruins it for the rest of us who are responsible owners." -Tia Torres, Pitbulls and Parolees

Examples of Pit Bull Articles in the News

Although there are many articles to choose from, here are some recent articles that foster a bad reputation for pit bulls:

1. Pit bull stabbed in store - A pit bull is stereotyped in Petsmart and stabbed in front of children.

   

   Clara was stereotyped in a Petsmart store and stabbed to death.

2. Attacking pit bull is credited with a biting history - In the article, another attacking dog is killed after being described as a pit bull. Most people cannot properly identify a pit bull, which garners more fear and hate towards the breed as news articles publish false identification.
3. Pit bulls are shot and killed by officers - Pit bulls are frequently shot by police officers because of the stigma attached to them.
4. Pit bull attacks its owner - This article is full of anti-pit bull statements and demonstrates a clear bias.
5. Pit bull gets 1,000 stitches after being attacked - A pit bull was randomly stabbed by a stranger. He didn't even fight back.

Pit bull Lefty took a bullet for her owner, resulting in an amputated leg.

Here are some examples of positive pit bull stories, which are less popular than the negative ones:

1. Elderly victim blames owners, not breed, for attack - I consider this a positive story because the news article ends with a quote from the victim stating that he blames the owners for the issues. Bad owners make bad dogs.
2. Pit bull saves boy with bee allergies - The female dog dragged the 8-year-old by his trouser leg, then let him crawl on her back before carrying him to his mom. The boy is allergic to bees, and was stung 24 times. The dog was also stung.
3. 16 hero pit bulls - A wonderfully written article that rejects pit bull stereotypes and mentions 16 pit bulls who committed heroic acts.

Need more convincing that the pit bull is stereotyped?

Tatertot, who saved a 4-year-old-boy, actually has a
better breed temperament statistic than a Chihuahua.

The American Temperament Test Society recently conducted tests demonstrating dog breeds' temperament behavior. They simulate a walk through the park and expose dogs to situations that test aspects of temperament, such as stability, aggressiveness, owner protectiveness and friendliness as well as the dog's ability to discern between a threatening and stable situation.

In these tests, the American Pit Bull Terrier passed at a rate of 86.8%. 

• The Chihuahua only received a 69.8%
• The German Shepherd received an 84.8%
• The Golden Retriever received an 85.2%
• The Border Collie received an 81.5%
• The Toy Poodle received an 80%

Please go to the ATTS breed statistics page to see how the pit bull compares to other breeds of dog.

With these results, why isn't the media pushing a negative representation of Chihuahuas, Toy Poodles and Golden Retrievers?

Angela Boone Photography. "Tatertot saved a 4-year-old boy from a blood sugar crash." Photograph. huffingtonpost.com, 29 July 2014. Web. 17 Oct. 2014. <photo>.

"ATTS Breed Statistics." American Temperament Test Society, Inc., 14 Feb. 2013. Web. 18 Oct. 2014.

Bastian, Joe. "How Did Pit Bulls Get Such a Bad Rap?" Cesar's Way, 2014. Web. 17 Oct. 2014.

"Cesar's Special Makes the Case for Pit Bulls." Photograph. millanfoundation.org, 2014. Web. 18 Oct. 2014. <photo>.

"Jack risked his life for a cat being attacked by coyotes." Photograph. huffingtonpost.com, 29 July 2014. Web. 17 Oct. 2014. <photo>.

"Lefty took a bullet for her owner." Photograph. huffingtonpost.com, 29 July 2014. Web. 17 Oct. 2014. <photo>.

Newnan-Coweta Humane Society. "Police: Man Stabbed Pit Bull In Front of Kids In Petsmart Store." Photograph. wfmynews2.com, 2 Sept. 2014. Web. 18 Oct. 2014. <photo>.

"Togo 6th Regimen Nebraska." Photograph. fight4them.org, 24 May 2012. Web. 18 Oct. 2014. <photo>.