Breed Stereotypes

I am just wondering, a lady in my class brought a breed in to for basic obedience. (I'm an assistant) But the first task is to introduce your dog breed. This person brought in a breed that had originally bred as a fighting breed, this proceeded to bring about reactions of disgust, and people actually moved away from her!
I thought this was really unfair! Her dog was incredibly friendly, and the looks given to her by the other clients must have knocked her confidence!

So does anyone have any experience of people being 'put-off' by the breed they own?

Does anyone have any breed that has not conformed to their 'breed stereotype'?

Reactions to certain breeds will be influenced by many things, bad experiences or simple ignorance.

I used to experience it with my Boxers, folk either loved them or hated them, you get used to it, and I would suggest to this lady she grow a thick skin, if she has a breed that attracts prejudice, be it fair or not.

As a matter of interest what breed are we talking about.......

I think, when people have chosen a breed and got the dog, that it would take more than a few disparaging looks to put them off their dog.

In a class situation, such a discussion could lead on to how we change and dull down the gameness through good breeding.

If the dog in question is a nice friendly guy, s/he's a good example of how we can change things for the better.

Unfortunately, of course, it's not always the case, but in this scenario it sounds like all the components were there for a good discussion with an excellent example at hand

Being in a class environment might be a good time to educate about the breed and its history. You never know, light bulbs might go off in their heads. Even if one single person accepts the information given, it's heading in the right direction with squashing breed discrimination.

Well I have an 82 lb completely black dog. He scares people all the time. People avoid us in parks, and in general. He is a Retriever mix, but is a mutt. Fluffy-ish big old doggy.

Frankly, he is the largest dog around and it's very rare to see dogs as large as him. I have seen very, very few. I didn't WANT an 82 lb dog myself and was told by the shelter that he would only be 60 lbs.

Most people here own pit bulls and other dogs far smaller than him. I think that is the main thing that scares people. His size, and his color. He's not a dangerous dog at all, and loves all people and all other animals. But I understand how he can be scary.

I suck it up and if I cannot get a chance to talk to the person, I just move along. I have been able to warm people over many times, because he really is a grand champion when it comes to behavior.

As he is a Retriever mix, there are hardly any "breed stereotypes" that would harm his image in this area. Labradors are loved by America in general and are generally considered good dogs. And a good dog he is!

i own staffies.... i don't really need to say anymore, i am used to it and i don't really care what peoples opinions of us are... their loss! i met a young lad yesterday whose staff ran up to my pup, he asked was it ok for them to have a run and i leapt at the chance... first time for my dog to be off lead with a new friend, he was telling me how all the people in the field avoid him and his dog.... i remember being upset the first time it happened to me and i told him anytime we are around i would love to say hi to his dog and dakota would love to play, i never judge any breed, i take each dog as i find it. i also agree that perhaps the class could be used to educate people, i am lucky in that my training group has 2 other staffies and only one person has given us dirty looks... all the dogs get on great and enjoy saying hi to one another and that is really important to me