How TO Take Care Of Pit BUll Puppies

It is a common view that pitbulls are violent, aggressive animals, but this view is highly inaccurate. In fact, pitbulls adore people. It is not difficult to raise a pit bull pup to be a loving member of the family.

Steps

1. 1
   Tell people it's a pitbull. Inform family and close friends that you are bringing home a pitbull puppy in advance - don't 'warn' them about it, but make sure they are aware of what breed it is and understand that the myths about pitbulls being monsters are just that: myths. Depending on the attitude of neighbours one may or may not decide to tell them in advance - as long as the dog doesn't get into their garden they may not even notice.
2. 2
   Exercise! Ensure you have space to exercise the dog - a garden is a good idea, but pitbulls need lots of exercise, so take them out once or twice a day every day, even as a puppy. Some people use treadmills to exercise their dog in bad weather - get your puppy used to this, just in case you need to use it in the future.
3. 3
   Combat boredom. Pitbulls, like border collies, are highly intelligent and can become destructive if left with nothing to do. Don't leave the puppy alone for long, and if you must go, leave it in an enclosed area (not free run of the house, especially not the stairs) without wires or expensive furniture, with a durable chew toy it can play with. Give them a chewtoy if you're driving a long way so they don't mess up the boot (trunk) of the car.
4. 4
   Socialise the puppy! Introduce it to different people, to friends and family. Get it used to them. Then try taking it out in public. Let it see the world! The more used to everything your young dog becomes, the less afraid and defensive it will become. (N.B. Don't overdo it, though - remember that slow steps are better than throwing the poor thing in at the deep end.)
5. 5
   Don't let them escape. Don't leave anything near the fence - pitbulls can learn to climb trees, and once your puppy realises this it will try anything to get out and wander, and pitbulls are excellent fence jumpers so watch out. If this happens, not only will the dog be hard to find, but it could get hit by a car or stolen (pitbulls, due to their 'aggressive nature', are now popular pets for gangs, so they're worth a lot of money).
6. 6
   Microchip the puppy. Due to their escape-artist qualities and value this is perhaps more important with pitbulls than other breeds. Many humane societies offer low-cost microchipping, often a much lower price than vets offer.
7. 7
   Treat it like a normal dog. While you should always be aware that you own a people-friendly dog rather than a dog-friendly one, don't treat your puppy differently, especially not if you have other dogs, as this will create hostility between them.

Tips

• There is no better person to teach you about raising a pitbull puppy than an experienced owner. Ask your vet if they know of anyone you could contact to ask about it. Meet them and see if they can offer any 'do' and 'don't' tips you hadn't heard about.
• Choose one person to be the 'master', but have encourage everyone to interact positively with the puppy so it becomes people-friendly. This rule is the same with any breed.
• While it may seem unkind, spaying or neutering the dog when it is older is a good idea - male dogs in particular tend to be better behaved and less aggressive once spayed.

Warnings

• Don't leave the puppy with young children. You would never leave an adult dog of any breed with kids because you know kids don't act correctly around them and could hurt or upset them; in the same way, don't leave the puppy with them. If the puppy associates a child with their tail being pulled, which could happen if you're not there to stop them, they may become aggressive towards that child. Even if the animal adores the child, full-grown pitbulls weigh enough to hurt them by accident, especially since the breed is so energetic.
• Never leave your pitbull alone with other dogs - pitbulls are not dog-friendly, and while an older pitbull could harm another dog (regardless of who initiated the fight) if left unsupervised, pibull puppies may be hurt by larger dogs because accidents happen. You wouldn't leave a child who disliked dogs alone with them - pitbulls are the same. If your pet maims or kills another dog, even if it wasn't its fault and it would never hurt a person, it will be put down. Protect your dog. Watch it.
• Never hit your dog. This is for two reasons: 1 - your dog is a living creature which does not deserve to be hurt. This can be considered animal abuse. 2 - the myth about pitbulls having locking jaws may be absurd, but they were bred to have strong jaws and to retaliate if struck. That kind of aggression may be in their genetics.