Why do I love Pit Bulls? Maybe it’s that big, beautiful head, just begging to be rubbed. Maybe it’s those soulful eyes, leading me straight into a wounded heart. Maybe it’s that childlike spirit… full of innocence and hope… despite the harsh realities of the world. Maybe it’s that joyful smile, saying to the critics: “I know you think I’m mean. I know you don’t trust me. But even though you hate me… I still love you.”
Maybe it’s the loyalty… the unwavering devotion in the face of cruelty, neglect, and abuse. Maybe it’s the fact that this very loyalty… this precious gift of allegiance… is exploited every day by evil humans with sadistic motivations.
Maybe it’s the undying will to please their master, the drive for praise at any cost, or the endless desire for compassion of any kind. Maybe that’s what makes them so special…
Maybe it’s the love… the love that waits… often for an entire lifetime… to be given. The love that dies… in the dogfighting ring… on the end of a chain… or at the pound. The love wasted, the lives forsaken, the beauty forgotten… Maybe that’s what I see in them…
Maybe it’s because the media has inaccurately and wrongfully demonized one of the most loving, loyal, and incredible breeds on Earth—the Pit Bull. Maybe it’s because the public believes these mistruths and joins in the bashing. Maybe it’s because Breed Specific Legislation (BSL) has enacted laws banning these amazing creatures… laws that seek to destroy every last living, breathing Pit Bull in America. Maybe it’s because, for the lucky few Pit Bulls in loving homes, BSL rips them away from their families and sentences them to death. Maybe it’s because these precious souls can’t understand why this is happening to them… as they cry out for their families, just before they are killed… Maybe that’s why I fight for them…
Maybe it’s because Pit Bulls are the most abused breed in existence… and the most highly euthanized breed in shelters. Maybe it’s because, in many American shelters, strict policies prohibit the adoption of bully breeds, eliminating all hope for these dogs. Maybe it’s because, even when given the chance for a family, no one wants to adopt them. Maybe it’s the heartbreak of knowing, that after a lifetime of suffering… and then being dumped at the pound, their only way out… their only chance for mercy… is death. Maybe that’s why I care so much…
Maybe it’s because, even in no-kill shelters, Pit Bulls often spend their entire lives waiting for someone to take them home. Maybe it’s because, for so many, that adoption day will never come. Maybe it’s because, while waiting on that unlikely chance for a family, many of these dogs will slowly lose their minds living in a tiny shelter kennel. Maybe it’s because, due to the stress of shelter confinement and the lack of socialization, their already small chances of adoption are soon reduced to no chance at all of ever getting out. Maybe it’s because, for bully breeds, the never-ending dream of having a family of their own… is only a dream…
After weeks, months, and years of waiting in a shelter for a family who will never come for them, all hope turns to despair… all desire turns to depression… all joy turns to anguish. Across the country, millions of these beautiful, amazing dogs are simply living each day… waiting to die.
So why do I rescue Pit Bulls? Maybe my drive to save them is because I’ve never known a breed more deserving of life. Maybe my will to help them is because they have no other hope. Maybe my advocacy for the breed stems from my desire to fight injustice… to right the wrongs and stand up for the victims.
Maybe it’s the fact that 2 of the most incredible dogs I have ever known are my children, Rudy and Riley (below), both Pit Bulls. Maybe it’s because many of my amazing rescue babies are Pit Bulls. Maybe it’s because I would do anything for my children, because my children would do anything for me. Maybe it’s because they have no reason to trust me, or anyone for that matter, and yet… they do. Maybe it’s because they have no reason to forgive, and yet, they have.
Maybe my love for them is a reflection of their love for me… unconditional, unwavering, and infinite. Maybe I want to change the world for them… to end the unspeakable suffering… to tell them that they matter… and to return the love they so freely and unselfishly give. Maybe it’s because I realize that I possess the power to do all of these things. Maybe it’s because I know that can use my life to fix this for them.
And maybe, just maybe, you will join me…
By Ashley Owen Hill, Founder of Lucky Dog Rescue
