The American Pitbull

The American Pitbull

 

 

 

Background: The pitbull is a very well known dog in America and can be seen in "The little rascals", The RCA dog, and the Buster Brown shoe dog. Although the dog is more well known for its's negative history. They were developed in the United Kingdom when crossing bull dogs and terrier's to make the pitbull. For years they were put in fighting rings and were forced to fight other dogs. This history has followed them and they are now labeled as aggressive,and dangerous dogs that shouldn't be allowed in public and with people.

 -Pitbulls are even banned in certain cities and even countries, such as Denver, parts of Florida, Great Britain and New Zealand. Also over 500 cities have strict restrictions on the breed.

 

Characteristics:

Height: 14-24 inches

Weight: 22-78 lbs

Life span: about 12-14 years

Temperament:Loyal, good natured, loving dog that if trained properly can be a truly amazing dog.

Coat&Color: pitbull's can come in almost every color, tan, black, white, mixed, brindle etc.

 

 

 

Health issues: Generally a healthy breed, although some are prone to hip dysplasia, cataracts, and congenital heart disease.

Living conditions: Pitbulls do best with a lot of space to run but can live in apartments with plenty of exercise.

 

 

Tips:

*Pitbulls have a lot of energy and should be taken on long daily walks and are given plenty of exercise.

*As a puppy you should socialize them as much as possible so they become used to people and other animals.

*During training you should be firm but calm and confident.

* When any dog is brought into a home it is the dogs natural instinct to make us their pack, there fore you must remain the pack leader.

*Teach them bite control so they know not to bite people.

*Pitbulls are not recommended for first time owners.

 

 

Final note:

Pitbull's have a very bad history but what people don't understand is that these are loving dogs that are eager to please and when trained and treated wrong they will become the vicious monsters that everyone believes the entire breed is to be. Any dog can become vicious it doesn't matter if its a poodle, a golden retriever, or a pitbull, it is all about how they are raised. Pittbulls are powerful dogs that can recover from horrible conditions and learn to trust humans again which is surprising because a lot of dogs cannot recover from what pitbulls go through. I've known about this breed since I was younger watching them on Animal Planet when they would be rescued from homes that would put them in illegal dog fights and never once did I think that they were bad dogs.





 

 

 



 

 

 

 

Tornjak

 

 

The Tornjak

Pronounced (Torn-yak)

 

Background history:  The tornjak is a very old breed that originated and lives in Bosnia, Herzegovinian and Croatia for the past 1,000 years. In these countries they are used for herding and guardian dogs for large farms, like what many believe to be one of  their ancestors the Tibetan Mastiff. In these countries the breed is very popular and is even on Bosnia's stamp. Although in the U.S they are not even recognized by the AKC (American Kennel Club) and are very hard to come by.As far as I know of there are only 3 breeders in North America, 2 in Canada and 1 that is just started to breed Tornjak's in the U.S.

                                             

Characteristics:

Height: Male's:65-70cm, females:60-65 cm

Weight: ~140 lbs

Lifespan: ~14 years

Temperament: friendly, calm, courageous, obedient, intelligent, full of dignity and self confidence, when the situation demands it, it is a vigilant, a very alert watchdog

Coat: Their coat is doubled for the cold weather and their base color is white and can include tan, brown, black, and copper markings all over the body in many different ways.

 

 

Puppy stage:

*The Tornjak is a strong breed that will become dominant if you allow them to. During early training you should set your dominance to ensure they do not over power you.

* If you intend the dog to be sociable you must expose them to multiple people very Early when they're puppies.

*Do not put them on puppy food for long, because they're big dogs if they grow too quickly it will affect their bones and make them weak.

*They grow fast so take in all the small cuteness you can, they will start growing very large in about 4 months. 

Care tips:

* Tornjak's are survivors so keep them on a low protein diet will keep their coat neat.

*Provide strong toys because their teeth are very strong.



* Tornjak's need plenty of running space.

* Give them plenty of exercise.

*Grooming is essential for their thick coat.

* Be aware of bloat make sure after they eat to keep them from doing extraneous activities for at least a half hour.

* Tornjak's are fast so keep them on a leash until they learn to respond on your command.

 

From my own experience having a tornjak (The dog at the top is mine):

My dog's name is Tocan (Toch-an) which means faithful in Croatian. He is 8 months old at the moment, 85 lbs, and on his hind legs he stands 5"2. We adopted him when he was 3 months old in March and he was flown over from Alberta Canada. I honestly love this dog and the more he grows the more I am amazed with the breed. He is a VERY intelligent, if he wants something he will find a way to get it. He learns quickly and when you tell him a command you can actually see him thinking about it before he does it. This is a sort of bad trait but still very impressive, when the family is busy doing things and Tocan wants to be played with he will grab a shoe and show it to you because he knows that he isnt allowed to have it from past training. Tocan is also a very loving dog who loves to think he is a small dog and sits on my lap when I am on the couch. I honestly love everything about him and he is always making me laugh just by his own clumsiness, I would highly recommend a tornjak as a family pet.

 

 

 

 

 



Sgilman's Review on The Hunger Games

So this week I watched The Hunger Games, after the well known book "The Hunger Games".

My story of why I watched the movie:

 When I first saw the trailer for this movie I knew it was time to read the book because everyone I had talked to told me I need to read it before I watched the movie so I sat down and read the book for a solid two days straight and loved everything about it so much that I couldn't put it down which is surprising for me because I am not the type of person that will sit down and read books, but this time I did and I am so happy that I did. 

My review on the movie:

After watching the movie I was confused on why so many people hated the movie because I honestly thought the movie was good, there were some parts that I would have changed but all in all I liked the movie.

Pro's: 

*The casting for the movie was VERY well done and I wouldn't have changed the cast. Although Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutchinson had to use some hair dye they fit the characters of Katniss and Peeta perfectly. Jennifer being young but responsible, caring, smart, and strong like Katniss was portrayed in the book. Then there was Josh who was able to portray the also young, caring,strong, and loving Peeta. And then the rest of the characters I could go on about how well they were cast but that would take a while. 

* The make up work nailed the character descriptions, done by the three time academy award winning make up artist Ve Neill. Ve was able to make the people of the capital look different and odd looking to us but didn't make them look tacky, and she also made Peeta disappear easily. 

* The action scenes were well choreographed

*Stayed close enough to the book.

Cons: 

* They didn't really show the relationship between Katniss and Gale enough to have the audience that didn't read the book notice the love triangle between Gale Katniss and Peeta.

*They changed how Katniss received the Mocking jay pin. 

*Didn't mention much about the 13th district. 

* The training sessions were a little off from the book's description of how they went.

* There was nothing explaining of how Katniss and Rue began an alliance. 

* Finally there was just small mistakes that didn't follow the book. 

All in all I enjoyed the movie and I am excited for the next movie "Cathching Fire" to premiere