Our dog is a racist, is that odd?
We previously lived in a community that was filled with a large number of Native Americans. When we would have our dog, Dixie, in the car with us she would go ape shit over men who were not white- this was like everyone in the town. On walks and when company would come over she would make a huge ongoing scene barking and lunging at them.
Often a good Mexican/ republican friend of ours (don’t worry it is a loving reference that is an inside joke between us) would come over and she would loose it even after we introduced them. Sometimes she would calm down and forget he was there, then all of the sudden get startled and start going crazy again. We weren’t sure we could trust her with company because of her racism.
On the other hand her racism and aggression is a benefit for us. It warns would be intruders of her presence and advises them to stay away.
A Hispanic man just came to the door selling stuff and I was happy to have my racist dog here protecting me. Although he was polite and harmless I am still weary of solicitors in this town simply because of the number of home invasions that take place so frequently here.
I wearily opened the locked door (only because we were expecting a package delivery) but did not step outside while he talked to me. I was struggling to keep the dog inside because I would hate for her to push past me and attack some poor non-home-invading solicitor.
I am glad to have her, racism and all. Who knows one day we might need her to save us!
Now I want to know your door locking and answering habits. Also, have you ever had a racist protective pet? Do you lock your doors all the time? When you are home alone do you answer the door when someone comes a knocking? Spill!
It’s hard for them to come a knocking without me knowing who they are (windows and peepholes) and I pretty much just open the door.
We once had a dog who was sexist. He was friendly to everybody when my husband was home, but DH worked out of town for weeks at a time. When he was gone, no males that were not blood-related to one of us were not allowed out of the vehicles. He was vicious-sounding and we had to tie him up when the girls had dates.
Females were welcome anytime.
We didn’t train him to do this, and I thought that it was very strange that he was able to detect a blood relationship. Our neighbors (men the dog was well-acquainted with) weren’t even allowed in the yard when hubby was gone.
What was really odd was that this dog was friendly to one of the suitors, the one that my youngest married four years later. How could he know?
It is crazy how they have a sense about things huh? I am glad to have our dog, I hope she would kick butt if ever necessary. It is nice to have a protector.
Our pup doesn’t seem to be racist again humans, but he is certainly more aggressive with men. He also hates Boxer breed dogs. We think it’s because he may have been attacked by one prior to us adopting him, but he goes bonkers at them.
As for answering the door, I never answer it when I’m home alone. I also placed a “no soliciting” sign on my front door because they kept waking my daughter during the afternoon during her nap.
Momisodess last blog post..Tap Tap Tap
The site of my 3 psychotic, loudly barking, and jumping on the door, dogs is enough to keep most solicitors away. We have an alarm system that we activate at night and when we’re not at home. Usually, the front door is always locked, as we go in and out through the garage. There have a few reports on the news lately of home invasions, but it seems that all the intruders are looking for is oxycontin, which we don’t have.
Beckys last blog post..Northern Neighbor
All sorts of home invasions are happening here for money and goods. People are stealing and selling the stolen stuff. There was even this guy that tried to rob an old lady in her home while she was watching TV. When she didn’t have cash for him he tried to rape her. Things are getting scary out here.
Here’s a little story of mine that happened recently. I always lock my door at night, but during the day when Faith is home, she would come in and out all the time with her friends, so I left the door unlocked.
We have a roomate, so it’s not often that I can walk around in my t-shirt and undies which I love to do. Well the guys where out to sea, so I was in my living room, on the computer, dressed just like that, and I heard the door open , and turned around. I was quite suprised to see some guy standing at my door. He got so red in the face, and apologized like 10 times. My t-shirt was long enough that he saw nothing, but still!!!
Then like 2 days later, I was on my couch , breastfeeding Riley and a lady opened the door. And was like, “Wrong apt, sorry”
From then on, I lock my door no matter what. I’m lucky neither of those people where physco and hurt me or my kids.
They went to one of the apt’s by ours, but I’m thinking to myself, ” If your friends are the ones that live here, wouldn’t you know what apt they are in?”””
Adam freaked out when I told him and made me promise to lock the door at all times. He’s gone alot so I am home alone alot with the kids.
I always look through the peep hole before answering and I make Faith do the same. I have her put a chair by the door so she can see out.
If it’s not anyone we know or the UPS/Fed Ex then we don’t open it.
I used 2 have a male dog that didn’t like any males coming aound me. He was fine with my gf’s. He was 1/2 Lab,1/2 Chow.
OMG, I can’t believe 2 people walked in on you in your own apartment. Once when we were apartment living some guy tried coming in to our apartment all stoned and drunk but the door was locked so he just pounded and freaked out. He really though the was locked out of his place but he was really at our place. It was scary!
I can’t believe they walked in on me either.
Yeah, I think dogs sense evil in people.Adam wanted to get one to protect us when he’s gone, but you can’t raise a dog in an apt. I want to get a dog once we get a house.
It’s scary being a female and being home alone alot. I worry about my daughter all the time. She is beautiful and I would go crazy on someone if they ever hurt her.
I don’t want to live in fear though ya know, or have her live in fear. I have been very open to her about how bad men can be as far as pedafiles and stuff. I just want her to be aware of her surroundings.
I was actually thinking of finding a self-defense class in this area for her and I to take. Just so we have the knowledge ya know.
Out here in the lost land? locked doors? from what? we don’t even get any visitors. and never any solicitors. Sorry that you have to be so wary of door knocking people.
maiden53s last blog post..New Family Member
We had a shelter dog that was racist–we surmised that she’d been abused by a dark-complected man. It was very unfortunate that out mail carrier was black.
Jenn @ Juggling Lifes last blog post..Adventures In Strikethroughs
Oh, thank god. I thought we were the only ones with a racist dog. I swear our dog only barks at black men.
We live in a nice town, but our apartment is right at the city limits and there are some shady characters, so I’m thrilled that our dog barks like a crazy beast when someone walks up the steps or knocks on the door. Makes me feel better, especially since my husband works 24-hour shifts.
corrins last blog post..BFF Bella & Tara
Well we don’t have any pets but our son doesn’t like dark men, no problem with the women just he is afriad of and not friendly to dark men, which is hard considering half of our family is hispanic, try explaining that one at family gatherings.
As for the door answering I don’t answer it home alone unless I am expecting something and I never open it all the way I just kinda peep my head out. Doors always locked all the time, balcony sliding glass door locked, windows have an extra lock on all of them, and door is always locked with both locks… a bit much maybe but makes me feel safe.
hahaha!! I have a male border collie, Boris, who is a GENIUS at reading people and if they are creepy he comes unhinged. It has nothing to do with skin color, it has to do with their intentions. I took him to stay with a girlfriend one weekend and he went completely Cujo on her male roommate (if you can imagine a sweet border collie with foam coming out his mouth and teeth ready to bite the guy’s head off) who turned out to be a complete dirt bag. He was white. At our house one day at noon he stood up with his front paws on our front window and went Cujo. We looked up and down the street and saw nothing. About 30 seconds later 3 hoodlums walked by the house across the street, all had their hoods pulled up over their heads and they tried to break into my neighbor’s vehicle. It was my dog barking that stopped them.
We lock our doors when we’re home. All the time. We have a HUGE (special order) peep-hole in the front door and a No Soliciting sign. If the door bell rings and Mr Hyphen isn’t home to get the door, I know that UPS and the mail carrier just put the stuff on the step and leave, so I don’t answer it. Anybody else must be in my vision of the peep hole and has to put up with my dog barking and going crazy. He’s my hero.
Hyphen Mamas last blog post..To Stifle the Creativity? Seeking Advice– Installment 2
Poopy is afraid of African American men. I don’t know why, although I did get him from a rescue effort, so who knows? He’s fine with everyone else. African American women are fine. 😉
Rees last blog post..Sharing Saturday – Volume ???
hi Talina…somehow this whole thread troubles me quite a bit. honestly, if I had a dog who appeared to be “racist.” I would contact a good dog trainer/behavior consultant IMMEDIATELY and see how a peofessional could help me de-condition my dog so that he, or she, only reacted wildly where there was what a reasonable human would regard as a clear and present danger.
I haven’t had a dog since just before my daughter was orn 14 eyars ago…he was a wonderful, mellow creture who didn;t get into fights and mostly barked when the raccoons were trying to get into the house.
I live in a multi-ethnic menighborhood that was historically working- to middle-class African AMerican, and it would be both inconvenient and totally offensive to my neighbors, a good half of whom are African American, Asian American, or Latino, if I had a dog who targeted black or brown people as “enemies.”
but then I have done my best to learn survival skills in oth urban and rural settings for getting along with people and for keeping myself safe without resorting to weappns or paranoia. and in working on the racism that i think all of us have grown up with and, sadly, internalized to some extent.
now in all honesty, there have been problems in this neighborhood; I had some old theives who were walking into my hose or entering through an )unlocked) bathroom window a few years back, and I would have been very grateful fo even a smallish dog to bark and alert me and/or scare them off. (I have cats and turtles and a tortoise, all of whom are good company but none of whom are helpful as door alarms.) after a relatively quiet spate of no robbery, I got up last Tuesday to discover that someone had stolen the battern from my car, during a week when i could ill afford it.
I work as a su teacher in the pubilc schools in a largely impoverished area. I am around viokence, or teh potential for vilence, all the time, or so it seems. I don;t feel being racist and projecting that value onto a dog, who has no ocncept of race or rqacism, jsut of what demands a defensive response and what doesn;t, is the answer.
the thing about dog ownership is that YOU are the alpha dog for the pack into which your dog belongs. YOU have the respnsiility to say how it is ging to be, and to seek professional help if your dog has dangerous or socially disruptive habits.
how would you handle it if you got sued when your dog bit a Black person? how about if you were close friends with someone of another ethnicity, and tour dog attacked that person? or are you sure that none of your friends wuld fall under this rubric? if so, what does that say about you and your values?
saying that “I know my dog is ‘racist’ and I though it was helpful in keeping my famuly safe.” is not an acceptable defense, I’m pretty sure though I’m not a lawyer. and if I were Black and had to deal with your dog barking at me as if he wanted to kill me eveery time I walked by, i’m probably file a complaint if you didn’t get a dog trainer to cool the animal out, FAST.
a potentially vicious dog is a loaded gun, and a weapon that targets people of specific ethnicities. to my thinking, this is just not ethincally acceptable. your dog isn’t, but he is poorly trained and a liability.
I apologize for coming off a bit heavy on this; I came back to this site because I was so pleased to read of a younger woman seeking the Farm Midwifery Services for an out of hospital birth, and I was totally shocked to find this thread about “isn’t being racist acceptable to protect your family?” no, it isn;t. and one thing I can say for the Farm (I have had reltives and friends who were memebrs and know them well) is that though most residents including the midwives were and are Caucasian, they are truly committed to promoting a non-racist, society for all.
My shepherd, husky mix is EXTREMELY racist. I don’t get it at all. maybe she was a boder patrol dog in a previous life but she barks like crazy at hispanic and Asian people. which is weird because my daughter’s boyfriend is of hispanic heritage. just yesterday we were at the park picnicking and the dog was tied up to the tree next to us. Hundreds of people walked by and she just lay there sleeping. One Asian woman walked by and the dog stood up and started barking at her like crazy. The woman screamed and ran away tripping over her own feet and falling on the grass. Her entire, non English speaking family came and started yelling at us 20 minutes later in the parking lot saying my dog attacked her… The dog never even touched her so I do not know how they construe that as an attack. I don’t think she would ever bite someone that wasn’t a threat but why the heck does she act like that with those two kinds of races. Yes she is intimidating to look at when she is barking at you but she doesn’t attack!