There is definitely a huge double standard when it comes to small, noisy, and rather useless dogs, and big dogs such as mastiffs. My dad hates my Cane Corso's guts, and though when he asserts himself it can be moving, he is a very good dog. My dad has a rat/jack mix that bit my oldest son over a game of fetch. The ball bounced off a wall and came back to my son, and when he went to pick it up the little dog bit him. My in-laws snorky attacks kids in the family at least monthly....but since these dogs generally are unable to do much harm, they are excused. We have discussed boarding my dog and the snorky together while we go on an upcoming vacation with the in-laws, but I'm not gonna let it happen because I know that as soon as we drive away, the Corso will ingest that snorky.....and I wouldn't blame him!
Small, noisy, rather useless dogs. Ha!! Love it! I have to say those type dogs are a major "pet peeve" of mine (pun intended). Although, I should be honest and blame it on the owners... Why do people feel it is completely ok to let their small dogs roam free without any thought to teaching them simple dog "manners". I have 3 stories that I could tell about small dogs causing major terror, but I will refrain for now.
These small dogs bite frequently- largely without report due to the fact that the damage they cause is "minor". When you stop to think about it... they really can do significant damage! Often times, they can and do inflict more psychological damage than actual physical damage. And, that is something that cannot be measured or tallied. Just think, how many people have already said in this thread that they have been bitten by small dogs? How many people are out there that are scared of dogs largely because they were either bitten by a small dog as a child or bitten by a dog that was not well-socialized or obedient (unfortunately too often these 2 situations go hand in hand)? Again, how many big dogs avoid or become overly tense around smaller dogs due to the negative experiences they have had with these unruly little guys? I can't say this enough, obedience training and socialization is for ALL dogs not just BIG dogs. (This is coming from someone who once owned and LOVED a toy fox terrier.) The
responsibility of dog ownership does not lessen or increase based on the size of the dog. It comes with the territory. Want to own a dog? Socialize it, train it, and love it!!!
I guess I should add to.... WHILE, the
responsibility of dog ownership does not lessen or increase based on the size of the dog. (Unfortanetly and sadly, the legal ramefications and liability often do increase with the size of the dog). If owners of tiny dogs, were threatened with just a little bit of what big owners deal with, we probably wouldn't see nearly the number of situations noted above. If only we lived in an ideal world ;-)
