Ace

I couldn't believe Steven had brought home a pit bull puppy two months after I had a baby. A pit bull around a baby?! This isn't a very good idea, right? I couldn't have been more wrong. Ace was the runt of the litter. He was blue with brindle stripes and had the cutest little face ever. He immediately took to me. He would crawl up under my neck and sleep for hours.

My relationship with Steven wasn't the best. Well in fact it was absolutely horrible. He was mentally and physically abusive and had been since we first started dating, 4 years before the birth of our daughter. This abuse continued until the day I left.

Ace grew up with Allie, my daughter. They were best friends. When Steven would  decide to take out all of his anger on me, Ace was there to comfort me and Allie. He wouldn't step up to Steven during these times because a pit bull is loyal to their owners no matter what. He would always cuddle up with me after Steven would speed off. How is it the media portrays this dog as a "monster" when the real monster is my daughters father?

Even after all the drug abuse, betrayal, physical and mental abuse, and all the pain Steven put me through I told myself I had to stay. What would happen to him if I left? Would Allie grow up with out a dad? I couldn't let that happen, what kind of mother would I be if I just gave up? I struggled with these questions for years.
Ace was now almost 100 pounds and the love of my life. I never knew I could love a pit bull! He was very dog and people friendly. He had absolutely no aggression issues but he was allowed to roam and that made me very nervous. I had done my research on this breed when Steven decided to bring him home. When Ace was about two, Steven and I decided to get another puppy. We found a tan pit bull puppy and named her Zoey. Two weeks later we came across a gorgeous blue pit bull puppy and had to take her home as well. So now we have three! Ace, Zoey and Sadie. Sadie was from a back yard breeder and had health problems since day one. She only lived to be about six months old. Losing her was hard on all of us, especially Steven. He may not have loved me or his daughter, but he loved his dogs. I remember when Sadie died Steven was very angry. He beat the hell out of me and then left. I didn't see him for probably a week.

Steven would tell me on a daily basis that no one would ever want me because I was young with a baby. I believed him. He would tell me I was fat and I wouldn't eat for days. He would hit me but tell me that he loves me. This guy had some serious issues and here I was, abused, lonely but yet I still loved him with every thing I had. I have came to realize this is the reason I love the American Pit Bull Terrier so much. They are the most abused dog in the world yet they still love despite what they have been through.

I ended up leaving Steven four years ago. After I left Ace was still allowed to roam. I begged Steven to let me have him because he was never home. He refused. Ace ventured off one day to visit a female in heat. There was another male there as well. Ace killed the dog. It was no fault of his own. This was Steven's fault for not keeping him confined and not being there with him. A few weeks later Ace disappeared. We have no idea what happened to him. Maybe he was stolen or killed, we don't know. I still think about him and wonder what his life would have been like if I would have taken him. It breaks my heart to think about the dog that was my rock during a horrible time in my life could now be locked in a basement somewhere being made to fight for his life and I am not there to help him.

we miss you buddy!