How to Participate in the Kids for Pits Campaign

Pit Bulls are easily the most misunderstood and mistreated breed of dog in the world. They have a reputation for being vicious, yet are no more prone to viciousness than any other breed. In fact, pit bulls are not even up there with the breeds that tend to bite the most. Only difference is: they are stronger than most. They are also one of the more loyal breeds, which unfortunately makes them better candidates for being trained to fight, as they want to please their owners. The most unfortunate part of the whole thing is; there are no bad dogs, just bad breeders and owners.

And tragically, because of their undeserved reputation, shelters are filled with pit bulls, most of which won't make it out to loving homes. They are often used to fight or breed, and when their owners are done with them they simply discard them. Often, the types of people who think it's "cool" or "tough" to have a pit bull don't make the most caring, responsible guardians.

Pit bulls are also often victims of breed specific legislation, not permitted in most rental properties and cause their owners to be charged higher insurance rates. All of these factors contribute to the high abandonment rate of innocent pit bulls.

It doesn't have to be this way; however, when all it takes is some education. In this article you will learn ways to take part in "Kids for Pits," a campaign to show the world all the kids that love pit bulls and the pit bulls who love them.

Instructions

    • 1

      Visit the Kids for Pits website, which is sponsored by "Max, the Shelter Dog" (see Resources below). "Max, the Shelter Dog" by Nicole Rivera is a book geared toward young readers. It is the story of a pit bull named "Max" who is abandoned at a shelter by his family. The story is told from Max's perspective as he endures his journey through the shelter system in hopes of finding a new family. Through Max's ordeal, children learn about animal shelters, compassion, hope and the urgency of adopting pets. They will be leaders of the generation that will hopefully put an end to animal shelters for good.

    • 2

      Have your child, age 14 years or younger, email his/her name and pit bull's name, city and state and a few sentences about their relationship with their pit bull to: [email protected].

    • 3

      Submit to the website as many photos of the child or children with your pit bull as you like. The goal is 100,000 family photos, which will be sent to Congress. Each family is considered one photo regardless of how many are sent, but the photos might be used in promotional activities including websites, newsletters and flyers.

    • 4

      Print out a dog park flyer from the website and hang it up at your local dog park. The flyer says: "Pit Bull owners join the 'Kids for Pits Campaign' in an effort to show the public that pit bulls are loving children all over the world." Then it gives the website address.

    • 5

      Order postcards from the website that you can distribute at local pet supply stores, vets' offices and shelters/rescues. The postcards say the same thing as the flyer. If they happen to be out of postcards you have permission to print one out from the website.

    • 6

      Spread the word about "Kids for Pits" on forums, blogs, your Facebook, MySpace and Twitter pages and other social networking sites. Include your photos as well.

    • 7

      Read "Max, the Shelter Dog" to your child's class and bring your pit bull along if you get permission.

    • 8

      Add "Max, the Shelter Dog" to your Kaboodle and Wist accounts (click on links in Resources).