However, the timing was never right, and when we finally decided to get a dog, my wife and I decided it was now or never. If we were going to try and have kids, we certainly were not going to have time for a dog once the baby came. So we went to the Humane Society and picked the best dog available right then and there.
We lived in Hawaii at the time, and that state is lousy with pit bulls and pit bull mixes. Pits don't have anywhere near the negative reputation that they seem to have everywhere else. They're just dogs and no one thinks twice about them. So the law of statistics being what they are, the dog we fell for ended up being a pit bull mix. I never would have thought of myself as a pit bull owner, but having had Ripley in our lives for the last three years, I am very glad we did.
She has very short hair, so she doesn't need a lot of grooming. She is quiet, which is very nice. And she is an energetic, playful pup! Contrary to the myth of the vicious pit bull, she's always trying to get other dogs to play chase with her at the dog park, and if another dog gets too aggressive, she always runs away. She doesn't seem to suffer from any sort of hereditary conditions, as she is a mutt, and she's about as healthy as you could want.
The choice made for the sake of expediency has led to me becoming a fan of the breed.
