[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="250" caption="(Not the hero dog, but just as small...)"](Not the hero dog, but just as small...)[/caption]Gotta give 'em credit--ABC news reports that a Chihuahua jumped in front of two pit bulls who threatened her family. A sad situation all around: two apparently unneutered pit bulls chewed their way out of their yard and ran into a neighboring apartment, where the door was open to barbecue dinner. The pits cornered a woman with her two children--a boy, 4, and a newborn. The woman whacked one dog with a TV remote, but the other kept coming. Their Chihuahua, Manchas, jumped between the pit bulls and the family, and the big dogs concentrated on attacking the little dog, carrying it out of the house.In general, I like pit bulls rather a lot, (a lot more than I usually like Chihuahuas!) but they do need good training and reliable fencing. A pair of adult unneutered pits in this area also makes one wonder if they were used for fighting, or used to produce fighting dogs--they're obviously not show dogs. I used to do a lot of dog training, including temperament testing. I would be skeptical of the story, except I have seen tiny dogs with a lot of courage before. Good dog, Manchas! Rest in Peace.

Lisa Fullam is professor of moral theology at the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley. She is the author of The Virtue of Humility: A Thomistic Apologetic (Edwin Mellen Press).

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