Razors Edge: Evolution of the Bully

Story // Dave Wilson   Photographer // Al Santiago

What is Razors Edge? What’s up with BowWow Pits, Devils Den, The Elite Edge, The ABKC, and The American Bully? What is this all about and where did it come from?  How do all these celebrities, athletes, and entertainers fit in? What are all these adds we see in DUB magazine, BET, every dog magazine, and urban magazine?  What is up with Razors Edge Entertainment, Mega productions, and most importantly, The Elite Edge girls? To find the answers to these questions and the truth behind the Bully movement we had to go to the man himself, Dave Wilson, owner and founder of Razors Edge.

To begin, I’d like to thank everyone in our Bully communities supporting and promoting our breed, Americas breed. Razors Edge is more than dogs, it’s what I feel is the essence of America. It’s the true meaning behind unity. It’s a way of life that backs what our country is founded on.  It’s people coming together from every region, and all races. It’s about representing a dog that represents us. It’s about Courage, Power, Honor, and Respect.  It’s about coming together as one in support of what we love.  Razors Edge is for everyone and was created by everyone.

I will give a brief run down on the origination of Razors Edge and Myself. I grew up in the DC metropolitan area. This is one of the most diverse places in our country. In my early years we grew up watching the Lil Rascals TV show and all fell in love with Petey. We all wanted a dog like that to be with us on our journeys through child hood. As I got older the realities of life became more harsh. The world changes and you begin to see the struggle of survival. In my life, there came a time where being tough was the most important status trait. This is how you were ranked and labeled amongst your peers. A lot of American children have to face this and the pressures of  peer status. Growing up this way, being tough was what we strived for. The breed of dog that represented this to us, was the Pit Bull. Owning these dogs was also another way of representing this persona. My friends and myself grew up with these dogs and tried to portray ourselves as juvenile gladiators. I have softened these terminologies some for the average reader; but those who grew up this way understand what I’m trying to say. The Pit Bull was the breed that represented how we wanted to portray ourselves. We were probably not the ideal representatives of the breed at this time, but we did become infatuated with the breed. As a lot of us know, these lifestyles don’t always take us through the right roads. Sometimes the reality of the law steps in and sends us a different route. That route personally changed my life and the breed became my savior.

Resource from: http://atomicdoggmagazine.com

First I need to make it clear that animal aggression and human aggression are two completely different things and are in no way linked. Just because a dog is aggressive toward other dogs or animals does not mean he will be aggressive toward people. In fact, with Pitbulls this is very obvious. Pitbulls are naturally aggressive toward other dogs and animals.

It has been bred into them over many generations. But, they have also been bred to be friendly to people.

This leads us to “soundness”, a sound Pitbull will never show aggression toward a person. A Pitbull that does, has been bred incorrectly, lacks confidence, and probably isn’t even a pure bred Pitbull and may not be a Pitbull at all. If a Pitbull does ever show aggression toward a person, it should be neutered or spayed immediately and never allowed to breed. The reason for this is to prevent that trait from being passed down to further generations of Pitbulls. If irresponsible breeders continue to breed these bad traits, Pitbulls will soon be outlawed all over the world and possibly made extinct.

When it comes to preventing and fixing aggression, there are three important factors that can be abbreviated as SST or Soundness, Socialization, and Training. We already covered soundness so I will skip that and start with socialization.

The best time to begin socializing your Pitbull is when it’s a puppy. This means you should allow your Pitbull puppy to interact with as many people and other dogs/animals as possible. Take it to a park or on walks through crowded areas. The more people and animals it interacts with the less likely it will be to show aggression in the future. If you have an older Pitbull it can be more difficult to socialize because it may already be showing some aggression. In this case you must be more careful. One possibility is to get a good muzzle and put it on your Pitbull and then allow it to play with other dogs. It may show aggression but with the muzzle on, it can’t do much damage. However if it does show aggression it should be immediately corrected.

Training is another important aspect of preventing and stopping aggression because a well trained Pitbull will be easier to control. Training is a very large topic so I can’t cover it here in this article, but my book contains a ton of information about training that can help you with this. If you’ve trained your Pitbull correctly and it shows aggression, you can correct it and let your Pitbull know that you won’t accept that behavior. If you correct and punish your Pitbull every time it shows aggression you should be able to solve the problem. By punish I don’t mean hitting or spanking because physical corrections don’t work very well on Pitbulls and for some Pitbulls, physical corrections don’t work at all.

If you have a Pitbull and want to get another, you should get one of the opposite sex because Pitbulls are more aggressive toward the same sex. I recommend that if you have a Pitbull, you make sure that it’s your only pet. It’s not wise to bring a Pitbull into a house that already has other dogs or cats. If you do already have another dog, whether it’s a Pitbull or another breed, you should make sure your Pitbulls is of the opposite sex of the dog you already have.

Follow these guidelines and you will have no problem preventing aggression. If your dog is already showing aggression this information should make it easier to fix but it’s much harder to fix than it is to prevent.

Q- What will I need to train my dog to weigh pull?

A- The most important things you will need is a healthy dog, time and patients!  Once you have those the rest is simple!

You will need a weight pull harness designed for the size of your dog and items of different weight.

Q- At what age can I start training?

A-  Around the age of 6 months you dog will be able to start pulling light weight. Puppies that are still growing and maturing can be damaged if introduced to weight to early, the pulling can alter the way their bones and joints mature in a harmful way.

By the age of 18 Months he or she will have fully developed mussels and tissue to pull heavier weights.

Q- Should I get my dog a weight pulling harness to get him used to it ahead of time?

A- No, a regular harness leash will work great to get the dog used to the feel of it. Just do not have your dog pulling anything with a regular harness. Only use it to get your dog used to the feeling of a harness. DO NOT ALLOW YOUR DOG TO PULL WEIGHT IN A REGULAR HARNESS.

Q- Once my dog is ready for training how do I introduce the harness?

A- Put the harness on the dog and play with him or her! This will make them feel as if, it has something to do with playing or fun. Walk with the dog while he or she is wearing the harness. Make sure you also praise him or her to let them know it is a good thing!

Q- How do I teach the pull command?

A-  With the harness on, take the dog for a walk with a learn attached. Then call him back to you and introduce a word you want to use as the command to pull. So “Pull”  or “Work”. Just make sure you pick a work to use that you will stick with. If you try to change commands, it will only confuse the dog.

Q- Should I use a “bait”?

A- This is a tricky question. It has been noted over the years as being done, however, if you chose to, make sure you do not use any thing that resembles a human or an animal should never be used as bait!  Using any such item will actually get your dog disqualified during an event! We find that teaching dogs to pull on command is much easier and does not cause any confusion to the dog.

Q- Are we ready for weight yet?

A- Once you dog feels comfortable with the harness on and is responding to your command, its time to introduce some weight. A 1-10 pound barbell weight tied to a  cable or a tire is a good first light resistance that doesn’t make to much noise. The chances are good  if your dog has had fun, he or she will run to you like there is nothing on it.  It is very important that you go very easy the next month. After each pulling event, make sure you reward the dog with a treat or love, or how ever you normally praise the dog. You will want to practice with this weight for a month or so, to get the dog used to the feel of pulling. After about a month of this weight, increase the e weight. Make sure you only increase the weight slowly. After each weigh increase work with your dog for a few weeks with that weight, before you introduce heavier weights.

Properly using a crate can make house training a breeze. Before we go through the necessary steps to properly train your bully, we need to explain the importance of a crate.

A crate is a plastic kennel that you will use to house your dog during the puppy stages and times where your dog can not be supervised.

A crate can be a very comfortable enclosure for a dog, dogs are born with denning instincts. In the wild a dog/wolf would chose to live in a cave or enclosure type atmosphere.

The idea to a crate is to have a dog in an enclosure big enough to stand up and turn around in; yet, small enough that they could not use the bathroom and still be able to get away from it.

If you are starting with a puppy, you will have to purchase different crates as your dog grows in size.

The first step is to get your dog to like and enjoy their crate. Make it fun for them to go in the crate, get excited and say “crate’, then praise them upon entering their crate. Placing toys and feeding them inside the crate, can help them to enjoy being in there. Most of their play time with a toy should be inside the crate, as well as outside.

The second step is knowing when to put your dog in the crate. The easiest answer is any unsupervised time, and bed time. If you are not able to supervise your dog, then your dog should go into his/hers crate. A puppy should not be in the crate for more than 3-4 hour stretches. Adults can go way longer.

The third step is understanding your dogs bathroom habits. You never want to leave your dog in the crate when they have not relieved themselves completely. I general rule is after drinking, a dog will need to relieve themselves within 10-20 minutes. After eating, a dog will need to relieve themselves within 30-60 minutes. Always make sure your dog is completely relieved before leaving them in their crate.

The fourth step is going from the crate to outside. Always take your dog straight from the crate outside. Never give them a moment to wander in the house without going straight outside. Even if your dog has recently been relieved, you should still keep the habit of going right outside.

These are simple steps to follow, if you get your dog in these habits, accidents will rarely happen. The idea is to not give your dog the opportunity to have an inside accident. Preventive maintenance is the key.

Other things you should know while crate training your dog are giving them supervised free time. Once your dog has gone outside and your are sure they have relieved themselves, then you may bring them inside for “free” time. This is supervised play time within your house. If you are watching your dog, you will notice and be able to prevent an accident before it occurs. For instance, dogs usually smell around and prepare to use the bathroom. When you see them getting ready to do this inside the house, immediately take them back outside again. If a dog is chewing on furniture or getting into something they shouldn’t, you should be able to reprimand them immediately.

When you are unable to give them constant supervision, then it’s time to put them back into the crate. It is also extremely important to note, that exercise is a must! Dogs need at least 20 minutes of natural light a day. Dogs need at least ½ hour o f exercise three times a day at a minimum. Your dog must have enough time to stretch and work its muscles and limbs daily. Too much crate time can be detrimental to the health of your dog, you must exercise your dogs, not too mention, it’s great for your own health. Take the time to work and bond with your dog daily. Another tip is to teach your dog not to bark or howl in the crate. This can be done very easily, but you will have to set the incident up to make it work. Put the crate someone where you can toss a shoe or something against it that will make a loud noise, but where the dog will not be able to see you. The idea is to make your think you have left. Say a strong word that you will use for be quiet, such as, no, ous, etc…

Say this word at the say time the object hits the crate. The idea is to startle the dog and then they associate the word you used. If done correctly, you should only have to do this a few times before the dog will understand. From that point on, your dog will know that word means be quiet. Again, you will have to startle the dog, so hide and be very quiet.

Over time your dog will need to be crated less and less. As your dog gets older and learns the routine, you should be giving longer “free” time. In most cases, after a year of age, most dogs can become completely house trained, by using this method.

The key is simplicity, try and prevent an accident form ever occurring, and your dog will simply not know how to have an accident. When followed correctly the crate method can be 100% effective. Crates are safe and can help your dog learn how to be the ideal house pet. Crates can also help for travel, vet visits, and times when you have to keep your dog isolated.

Resource from: www.theeliteedge.com

Bring your pit bull and meet the Dog Man every Sunday morning, 8:00 to 12:00 at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum near Figueroa and King.

Trainer ‘DogMan’ is offering FREE (yes you read correctly) Pitbull training classes. If you are in or around the L.A area I would highly recommend this, he is a great trainer, with 20yrs experience in dog training. He understands what pitbulls are about, and is willing to help any owner with a bully breed.