Cognitive Dissonance
Webster’s Dictionary defines cognitive dissonance as “mental stress or discomfort experienced by an
individual who is confronted by information that
conflicts with existing beliefs, ideas or values”.
What that means in real world terms is that if
you have a deeply held belief, it doesn’t matter
how much proof you are given, you will find a
way to discount or ignore it all, to protect what
you hold dear.
individual who is confronted by information that
conflicts with existing beliefs, ideas or values”.
What that means in real world terms is that if
you have a deeply held belief, it doesn’t matter
how much proof you are given, you will find a
way to discount or ignore it all, to protect what
you hold dear.
The area where this has the most impact in my
own life, is with anti-pit bull, pro-BSL people. It
doesn’t matter that all of the latest studies prove,
beyond a shadow of a doubt, that no one breed
of dog is more aggressive than another.
own life, is with anti-pit bull, pro-BSL people. It
doesn’t matter that all of the latest studies prove,
beyond a shadow of a doubt, that no one breed
of dog is more aggressive than another.
They find a way to minimize or discount that
information, or twist it to suit their own erroneous
beliefs. That would be fine if they just minded
their own business, believing whatever they
wanted to.
information, or twist it to suit their own erroneous
beliefs. That would be fine if they just minded
their own business, believing whatever they
wanted to.
But that isn’t the way it goes. Every single time
there is a news article, facebook post, or opinion
piece that portrays these dogs in a positive light,
you will find them spewing the same old venom
in the comment sections. It generally takes about
24 hours for them to appear, but then they do,
all at once. Apparently they have a strong network,
and alert each other to opportunities to cut
and paste their drivel.
there is a news article, facebook post, or opinion
piece that portrays these dogs in a positive light,
you will find them spewing the same old venom
in the comment sections. It generally takes about
24 hours for them to appear, but then they do,
all at once. Apparently they have a strong network,
and alert each other to opportunities to cut
and paste their drivel.
It doesn’t matter that every single organization
that works with dogs for a living disputes their
contentions. That dog trainers, veterinarians,
and behaviorists do not support breed discrimination.
That all the latest studies show time and
again, that dogs are the product of their
training, socialization and environment.
that works with dogs for a living disputes their
contentions. That dog trainers, veterinarians,
and behaviorists do not support breed discrimination.
That all the latest studies show time and
again, that dogs are the product of their
training, socialization and environment.
They will dismiss the studies by saying they
were funded by “the pit bull lobby”. But they
also contend that only criminals own pit bulls……
how many criminals do you know who are
willing to pay to change people’s minds about
anything? Come on…if you believe that, you
will believe anything.
were funded by “the pit bull lobby”. But they
also contend that only criminals own pit bulls……
how many criminals do you know who are
willing to pay to change people’s minds about
anything? Come on…if you believe that, you
will believe anything.
At the risk of my blood pressure, I looked at
one of the most familiar dog hating sites. I will
not name it, because I don’t need them to
have any additional press. They already get
too much attention. Here are some of the
things I read there. (warning…this may cause
extreme anger).
one of the most familiar dog hating sites. I will
not name it, because I don’t need them to
have any additional press. They already get
too much attention. Here are some of the
things I read there. (warning…this may cause
extreme anger).
- Pit bull type dogs lead in all bite statistics.
- Untrue. They don’t even lead in serious bite
- counts. In fact, the CDC stopped tracking dog
- bites by breed because it served no good
- purpose. It isn’t a breed that causes dog attacks,
- it is an individual dog, usually because of
- something humans have done (chained, abused, neglected, abused) or have not done (spay/neuter, train, socialize).
- Pit bull jaws lock and are impossible to pry open. They have the most severe bite in the
- canine world. Untrue. Pit bulls have no different
- jaw structure than any other dog. They have less
- PSI in their bites than other large breeds.
- Pit bull bites are so severe because they bite
- and shake. ALL dogs, especially terrier breeds,
- bite and shake. That is a canine characteristic,
- not a breed characteristic.
- Pit bull owners are thugs, criminals, or mentally
- ill. Untrue. There are millions of well-respected, educated and responsible pit bull owners.
- Pit bull owners try and lessen the threat by
- saying their dogs will “lick you to death”. We
- say that because it is TRUE, not because we are
- trying to hide their true nature. Most of the pit
- bulls I’ve met want to be lap dogs. They are
- happiest when people are touching them. Heck, Ray leans against me when I’m driving.
- Pit bull owners have a “lion tamer mentality”.
- Huh? I’m not even sure how to respond to that one.
- It is just a matter of time before a dog
- aggressive dog (or one with a high prey
- drive) turns on humans. Untrue. There
- are many, many, many dogs of many different
- breeds who are not good with other dogs.
- That doesn’t mean they are suddenly going
- to become human aggressive. These are two
- totally separate, unrelated behaviors.
- Pit bulls attack out of the blue, with no warning. Untrue. All dogs depend on body
- language to communicate. They telegraph
- exactly how they are feeling by the way
- they hold their head, body, ears, tail and hair.
- If you aren’t smart enough to learn basic
- canine body language, you don’t deserve to
- have a dog. If your dog is licking his lips,
- yawning, looking away…you are making him
- very uncomfortable, and should stop what you
- are doing before he feels compelled to tell you
- in a more forceful manner.
- Pit bull terrier dogs are all ticking time
- bombs. It’s not if they will go off, it’s when.
- Untrue. There are several million wonderful
- pittie type dogs in people’s homes who will
- never act aggressively towards anyone or
- anything. Unless you count pittie gas as
- aggression.
- It is simple to identify a pit bull terrier breed.
- Untrue. Many dogs that are considered “pit bulls”
- are nothing more than mutts. Good old fashioned American mutts. With no DNA in common with
- the more commonly known pit bull terrier type
- breeds. What they are saying is that how a
- dog looks determines how he will act,
- regardless of his background.
For my own peace of mind I had to find a way
to understand where these people are coming
from. Some of these rabid anti-pit people may
have had a tragedy in their lives. They may
have been bitten or scared by a dog. They may
have lost a beloved family member or pet. For
whatever reason, they feel my dog is a threat to
their safety and happiness. When I stop and
think about it, I can find it in my heart to feel for
them. It must be horrible to be that consumed
by hatred.
to understand where these people are coming
from. Some of these rabid anti-pit people may
have had a tragedy in their lives. They may
have been bitten or scared by a dog. They may
have lost a beloved family member or pet. For
whatever reason, they feel my dog is a threat to
their safety and happiness. When I stop and
think about it, I can find it in my heart to feel for
them. It must be horrible to be that consumed
by hatred.
Their contentions and hatred do not change a
basic fact: BSL laws do nothing to actually make
a community safer. They don’t address the things
that actually cause dog aggression….things
that land squarely in the laps of humans:
spay/neuter, socialization, training and responsible
care of dogs. It doesn’t matter that no amount
of proof, or scientific studies are going to change
the minds of people who have lost the ability to
distinguish fact from fiction.
basic fact: BSL laws do nothing to actually make
a community safer. They don’t address the things
that actually cause dog aggression….things
that land squarely in the laps of humans:
spay/neuter, socialization, training and responsible
care of dogs. It doesn’t matter that no amount
of proof, or scientific studies are going to change
the minds of people who have lost the ability to
distinguish fact from fiction.
What we can work to do is change the minds of
people who haven’t had the opportunity to interact
with a pit type dog. We need to view ourselves as ambassadors for the breed…and our dogs as a
positive shining example for the world to see.
people who haven’t had the opportunity to interact
with a pit type dog. We need to view ourselves as ambassadors for the breed…and our dogs as a
positive shining example for the world to see.
We are winning this war. BSL laws are being over-turned everywhere. There are increasingly frequent positive
stories about wonderful dogs and the amazing things
they do. We just need to keep the faith and continue
to fight the good fight. We CAN change the world
stories about wonderful dogs and the amazing things
they do. We just need to keep the faith and continue
to fight the good fight. We CAN change the world
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