Stray Pit Rescue
I recently posted in another subreddit about how I took in a female Pitbull stray who had a rough start and was directed to ask for a more realistic explanation here. She showed up to my doorstep emaciated, lactating (no pups found), and suffered severe mycotoxin poisoning that led to seizures and a coma. She is physically recovered now, but I’m navigating a tricky pack dynamic and want to know if I’m sitting on a powder keg.
As I said in my post there, I am not a fan of pitbulls and have my prejudices when dealing with them. I understand every dog is an individual and am willing to give this one a fair shot.
The Pack:
• A senior Border Collie who acts as the "referee" and "splitter."
• A 15lb Jack Russell Terrier with zero fear.
• The Pitbull. Very "soft" personality, extremely food-motivated, no resource guarding, and no redirected aggression when pulled away from a stimulus.
The Concern:
Now that she’s healthy, her prey drive has "flipped on" intensely. She’s obsessed with squirrels/birds and has zero recall once she locks in. When playing with my JRT, she uses a "stalk and pounce" maneuver. She stays "soft" during the pounce, but my JRT "fires back" and gets scrappy.
My Border Collie often steps in to split them up when the energy gets too high. While the Pittie has a very mild and extremely obedient temperament with us (lots of plopping on top of us and licking), I’m REALLY worried about Predatory Drift.
My questions for the group:
- Have you lived with a Pittie that had a "soft" personality but high predatory motor patterns?
- Does the fact that she can be redirected with treats during a squirrel-fixation suggest her impulse control is good enough to trust around a small dog?
My goal is to understand pitbulls better and make a decision as to whether its worth the risk to take in a stray whom I have zero background history on or rehome her immediately.