I find if you hang around a while here you will notice everyone here respects the pit bull breed and we do not sucker into media hype. Pit bulls are not a breed for everyone this is fact but it has nothing to due with the temperament of the dog and everything to do with potential owners. All breeds and all dogs have their own criteria. Working dogs need people who are pretty active and somewhat strong willed have a bit of a lengthier patience level. Herding dogs need people who are extremely active and can really entertain the dog mentally . Toy dogs need people with a good lap and depending on the breed a good yard. All dogs are different and require people that match their needs..think of it as e harmony for dogs you got to find the right match.

Pit Bulls do not have an instinctual habit to attack people they don't have instinctual habit to fight. They are actually instinctual loving dogs that are great with kids fantastic working dogs and wonderful companions. There is no difference in their trainable then any other dog in his stature and they are extremely smart. They can be willful with people they can "run over" but this comes with any "bully" breed. I think you will find that if anyone takes the time to do any kind of reasonable research on the breed and actually interact one with that has been trained by someone with a half a brain that they are as great as any other dog.

 

Pit Bulls do not have an instinctual habit to attack people they don't have instinctual habit to fight. They are actually instinctual loving dogs that are great with kids fantastic working dogs and wonderful companions. There is no difference in their trainable then any other dog in his stature and they are extremely smart. They can be willful with people they can "run over" but this comes with any "bully" breed. I think you will find that if anyone takes the time to do any kind of reasonable research on the breed and actually interact one with that has been trained by someone with a half a brain that they are as great as any other dog.

True the majority don't have an instinct to attack people. Most culled man biters and due to other factors a stable, human friendly temperament endured and flourished. Medical attention needed to be given for one. Dogs would go to other people to be put through keep at times. Of course they didn't receive much socialization but still needed to be safe around family and may be sold to others later in life. There was no use for a HA dog, it wasn't needed since their "job" was fighting. So we ended up with a breed that is generally great around humans. Though we must remember some HA dogs were bred and we are also living in a different time with many ignorant breeders. HA can be a problem, one should always consider the source before they get an APBT. HA is a huge liability in this breed and very damaging to their image.

Pit Bulls do have an instinct to fight. Fight drive, the will and desire to fight was one of the traits bred into them. Not every APBT has it, not every one will be DA. One important factor to remember is that even if they are not DA they may still retain their fighting ability. This is why it is important to never leave them alone with other dogs. Also to be aware of the fact, as you obviously can't be prepared for something you don't know about or are in denial about. Which ends up bad for the dogs involved and isn't fair to them.

In general I've never found them to be willful, and I've willful breeds and worked with willful dogs. I've found them to be easy dog to train in general. Some are more bidable than others, however the main issue I see is lesser intelligence and focus in some compared to those who get it right off that leads to needing more repetitions rather than the dog is stubborn. I've had to change and adapt new training style for other breeds, time and patience! They don't just learn it and do it like Pits.

Actually anyone that takes the time to research will come across the DA tendencies and fighting side of the breed.

While the purpose of breeding may have been for a stronger more powerful dog to fight each each other I still don't believe that instinctively it wants to fight. I think it has been shown by too many people that trained young and provided proper socialization that it can be friendly to any animal . I believe the media has done so good at it's job and people have used the dog for its purpose for so long people just truly believe that this dog is a naturally aggressive or can be an aggressive dog or the way some people make it sound WANT to be an aggressive . I just don't buy into that. I think any breed not socialized and not handled correctly CAN become aggressive to animals and dogs a like. I mean this is just my opinion you don't have to take it for face value .

That was never the purpose. They have been bred to fight for likely close to 200yrs. You don't erase the traits they were bred for in a few generations. Desire to fight hasn't been lost. Breeding for a more powerful dog wasn't the goal gameness was the goal along with other traits that a specific breeder sought or traits that would be beneficial in a match.

There are plenty of powerful breeds, but they are not bred and used for fighting because they do not have the desire to fight nor the other traits of the APBT. Now there are some that do take an DA individual of that breed and try it, but they are ignorant to pit dogs. It is why a Rott who is powerful and larger will lose to a pit, why an aggressive acting Dobie will be done in short order, why a GSD will be mauled and killed. They do not have the same will and desire, nor ability.

The dog wants to fight or they wouldn't do it. That is the point of selective breeding. Dogs that quit would be culled and dogs that were game would be bred. In order to prove gameness a dog must have a will to fight. A cold dog might be bred by some, which is a dog that doesn't want to and wont fight, but he or she can't be known as game or cur so not all dogmen would breed such a dog.

Traits are bred into dog breeds. A dogs environment and genetics makes a dog what it is. You have the dogs personality and temperament and what the owner chooses to do with it. A dog is a reflection f their pedigree, bloodline and breed. You can have dogs of different breeds with different traits but bloodlines tend to produce predictable traits and then the exact pedigree factors in.

Bloodhounds are bred to trail, they trail because they want to. Just like a Pit fights because they want to. They same way the hound needs no encouragement and will trail itself to exhaustion, over heating or even death if on his own or with a careless handler. Is no different than an APBT who fights until collapse, exhaustion or death because of a careless handler or a pet owner who "didnt know better" their sweetums would never fight.

A dog doesn't fight for 1 or 2 hours because they are badly socialized. They want to. Puppies don't kill eachother because they were trained to, they are much to young. They don't fight like adults because they haven't been socialized again, much too young as a matter of fact most people say they need to be WITH their littermates as part of learning social behavior. Pups don't have to be separated, managed and worked with because of a bad owner, its the opposite, they wouldn't need such intervention and training if it wasn't their nature.

Media has no influence on my opinion. It's experience and basic facts of canine genetics and breeding.

An APBT get excited wags their tail whine, ect because they want to fight. It isn't about fear nor other factors. They don't display DA like other breeds. They want to fight, not give off a threat display. They don't growl and make noise when fighting and knash teeth. They simply grab a hold. They give some indications (which are similar to a prey driven dog wanting a bunny or a Malinois wanting a man) others do not and simply go for it. Those which do show signs clearly WANT TO FIGHT, with a high desire. They are compelled to do it, want it and distressed if they can't. Is it the dogs fault? Is it fair to have created such a breed? Nope. But it was done. Leaving an unnatural dog. A dog that lacks self preservation.

Considering everything shown to be genetic within them I don't see how it can be denied.
Certain bloodlines tend to turn on early, others are late starters maybe nearing 3yrs old. The DA isn't only genetic but the age at which it is displayed. Some lines throw more hot dogs (showing the DA is genetic, as well as the level displayed), while some seem to produce calmer dogs. Some are great wtestlers, others have no ability at all. Some have hard mouth, other@ soft nought. Some are chest dogs, others like the stifle while some lines produce head dogs.

These dogs can be managed, controlled, trained, co exist with other dogs even, but you wouldn't have to put in the work if they didn't have the traits. It goes for any breed. You work with or against nature when you train and use behavior modification. When training a dog not to do something you need a reward of higher value, but in some cases that is easier said than done.

Considering aggression is hereditary in dogs in other animals it is senseless and illogical to think that APBT are exempt.

My matter of opinion is not towards weather or not they are naturally go lucky friendly with other dogs but that their is this image about them just being instinctively aggressive in general which I don't think is true at all. I don't believe any dog is just going around naturally wanting "fight" something. They may be more guarded or less inclined to flight and more enticed to fight when they are nervous or apprehensive of a new dog but I think that is different then aggression. it is a strong willed dog and very fearless. I feel traits like these can be abused and turned into aggression. I in no way said this breed would be go great thrown in a family with other dogs without being acclimated or am I saying that all the dogs they meet it's going to go smooth sailing. I am just saying that I haven't seen a breed yet with proper socialization ( which I have made this several times my MAIN factor in the equation) to just instinctively pick a fight. I think I mentioned in my first posts how all dogs in certain categories require certain things from their owners to ensure better quality of the dog's natural personality. A pit bull owner needs to be aware of all his traits and train accordingly I just don't like tossing the word aggressive around with the breed because I feel it is tossed enough. I don't think its intended purpose of the breed should be something we push for or accept as a behavior and I think with training that is useable for almost all breeds has proven to work with this breed as well.

It's not that they want to fight something, its another dog they want. If they see, smell or hear one. It's a desire to make contact and engage. For some they also have a high prey drive and want a small animal.

They don't fight because they are apprehensive or nervous. Hardly. Fear aggression is easy to peg. Many won't fight and those that will pick fight over flight when their threat display doesn't work won't fight for a long length of time because unlike the APBT they don't want to fight.

If you haven't seen it then you haven't had enough experience with the APBT. Socialization or lack there of isn't a factor. It also isn't a matter of picking fights. It's grabbing another dog, working a hold, shaking and not letting go except to get a different better hold or try to pick the other dog out of a certain area.

Plenty are properly handled and socialized. Pits are not somehow immune to genetic aggression. Including unfortunately HA within some.

Exactly they need to be aware. These traits are highly important to be aware of. It's a little more serious than a hound that bays in the backyard.

 

Actually, pit bulls DO have an "instinctual habit to fight". It's what they were originally bred for, and it does nothing good for the breed to dismiss their natural inclinations. Yes, pit bulls do have a tendency toward being aggressive with other dogs. This is not exclusive to pit bills (my LAB was dog-aggressive!), and is fully manageable. And not all pit bulls will be dog-aggressive, but it is necessary to acknowledge the tendency. They should, however, always be good with humans. This is, in my opinion, the main reason for their huge popularity (which is never good for a breed, because the more popular the breed is, the more irresponsible twits will own them. Irresponsible twits do not make good dog owners). The way that many pit bulls are kept would lead to large-scale disaster with a less tolerant breed.

As for why they're so discriminated against, well, there's always some breed that people like to get hysterical about. In the 80s, it was Rottweilers. Dobes, bloodhounds, GSDs, and many other breeds have all had periods of being the scapegoat breed for the media. Eventually they'll get sick of picking on pit bulls, and will move on to some other breed.

 

Actually, pit bulls DO have an "instinctual habit to fight". It's what they were originally bred for, and it does nothing good for the breed to dismiss their natural inclinations.

this is mostly correct. Pit Bulls do have a slightly higher tendancy towards dog aggression..but it's not exactly an instinctual habit to fight.

It's more predatory drive gone a bit wacky in the most obvious cases like Bolo. But the type of aggression Bolo has is like 1 in a million and can be fairly easily managed with consistency and vigilance.

other cases will be less obvious but in some ways more extreme, resulting from temperamental instability (dog aggression is sort of a non issue even with responsible pit bull breeders...but the best bred pit bulls who turn up DA, are usually easily managed and that's a key consideration when breeders are selecting dogs. the dog should not be uncontrollably dog aggressive and NEVER man aggressive) where breeders are breeding slavering, unstable crazies or you get a dog that's game.

a game dog isnt aggressive by nature. they're usually pretty friendly...unless they get exposed to a conflict situation. this is something to keep in mind. a game dog wont necessarily START the fight...they dont go looking for battles..but once a fight gets brought to them, it's on and it's not gonna stop until the opponent is soundly and thoroughly whooped. This is actually a really awesome trait in other contexts. A game pit bull is relentless in her pursuits. Take a game pit and train it to be a SAR dog and you'll get a FANTASTIC SAR dog. but put that same dog in a dog to dog conflict..they wont give up. And once exposed, they may develop DA.

Inga is correct. Pits are not dog park dogs generally speaking. they're not for everyone. but that doesnt mean they should be banned or persecuted.

as for why they're so persecuted..

People fear and hate what they dont understand. For a lot of people it's very difficult to wrap their brains around the idea that just because a dog is one kind of aggressive, doesnt mean it is aggressive across the board. it's also difficult for people to concieve of the idea that not all dogs want to be happy super friendly buddies with EVERYTHING and EVERYONE. it runs counter to the stereotype of what a dog is "supposed to be". and because people have these preconcieved notions about what dogs are supposed to be like..they get a dog like a pit bull..and make huge errors out of either blind ignorance or just plain ol stupidity and that often results in bad things happening. which in turn reinforces the idea that for some reason..a pit bull is an abnormal dog and should be feared.

 

While the purpose of breeding may have been for a stronger more powerful dog to fight each each other I still don't believe that instinctively it wants to fight. I think it has been shown by too many people that trained young and provided proper socialization that it can be friendly to any animal . I believe the media has done so good at it's job and people have used the dog for its purpose for so long people just truly believe that this dog is a naturally aggressive or can be an aggressive dog or the way some people make it sound WANT to be an aggressive . I just don't buy into that. I think any breed not socialized and not handled correctly CAN become aggressive to animals and dogs a like. I mean this is just my opinion you don't have to take it for face value .

 

Well the media doesn't do any good for them. Especially with people falsly claiming that a dog attack was by a pit bull when it was a different breed all together. I think when most people hear about pit bulls they think of fighting dogs and dogs that attack people. I can't convince my mother that they can be great pets, all I hear is "well on the news blah blah blah"

I think dogs such as Rotties, GSDs, Dobermans are still discriminated against. When I tell people that I want to own a GSD someday, the first thing most say is "That dog could attack you!" and I usually respond with "yes it could, as could a golden retriever or a lab." To which I get a response "but labs and golden retrievers are such nice dogs!" >.< Its hopeless sometimes.

I often wonder if the two shows on animal planet, Pit Boss and Pitbulls and parolees will help or hurt pit bulls in the long run. I do remember a story I read in Dog Fancy magazine about a guy, who said that he would not have adopted a pit bull before seeing Pits and Parolees, but that is only one case.

 

I think those two shows are helping. At least I would like to think so. I am tired of the bad talk about pit bulls.

 

In my mind the best the thing those shows could do, and I love them watch both of them, lol , is they are at least positive media. And when things get into the media that is just how it plays out good cop bad cop. I am hoping it will start to open peoples eyes some but you know people love to choose ignorance sometimes. It is just easier to accept what people tell them to it makes them feel safer. I get comments all the time about how scary my "pit bull looks" I dont even bother telling them isn't a pit bull because it dosent bug me I just smile and go yea she is one big scary monster. And what is great is she dosent even look like a pitbull so like Rinchan said 50% of the time people don't even know what the hell a pit bull looks like.

 

But it's not a matter of opinion. For instance, herding dogs were bred to herd. If you don't have a flock of sheep for them to herd, they will herd the kids or the cats, or something. This is instinctual behavior for them and can't be trained out, although it can be managed and directed toward more constructive pursuits.

Same for dogs who were originally bred to fight. The behavior can be managed and directed toward more constructive pursuits, but some dogs will always have that "gameness", and that can't be trained out. Some dogs are dog-aggressive. That's not a bash on the dogs, or the breeds that are inclined toward dog-aggression, it's just a statement of fact. It's not really a big deal. There are manymany dogs (of any breed) who were socialized and trained properly, who "turned on" at a certain age and became dog-aggressive. It's just they way they are. But like I said, dog-aggression is not a big deal, it's entirely managable. Not every dog is doggie daycare material.

 

Yes I do love that the shows give pit bulls some positive press and portray the dogs in a positive light. However, go to Pit boss's imdb page and there is some guy that posts stories about pitbull attacks and mocks the idea of them being a misunderstood breed. Some people really hae it out for this breed. And PETA's stupid article about having them banned and pts doesn't help <.<

I have noticed that people are afraid of dobermans too. In every story that needs an evil dog, it is usually the doberman. Has there been any movies where the dobie wasn't the villian?

 

My matter of opinion is not towards weather or not they are naturally go lucky friendly with other dogs but that their is this image about them just being instinctively aggressive in general which I don't think is true at all. I don't believe any dog is just going around naturally wanting "fight" something. They may be more guarded or less inclined to flight and more enticed to fight when they are nervous or apprehensive of a new dog but I think that is different then aggression. it is a strong willed dog and very fearless. I feel traits like these can be abused and turned into aggression. I in no way said this breed would be go great thrown in a family with other dogs without being acclimated or am I saying that all the dogs they meet it's going to go smooth sailing. I am just saying that I haven't seen a breed yet with proper socialization ( which I have made this several times my MAIN factor in the equation) to just instinctively pick a fight. I think I mentioned in my first posts how all dogs in certain categories require certain things from their owners to ensure better quality of the dog's natural personality. A pit bull owner needs to be aware of all his traits and train accordingly I just don't like tossing the word aggressive around with the breed because I feel it is tossed enough. I don't think its intended purpose of the breed should be something we push for or accept as a behavior and I think with training that is useable for almost all breeds has proven to work with this breed as well.

Has there been any movies where the dobie wasn't the villian?

What i find funny about all the dogs they use in movies as the "bad guys" i think its because they are easily trained lol. germand shepheards , rotties, dobies, st bernards, all very smart dogs that work well under pressure. Unfortuattly people get caught up in the plot of the evil dog and forget this was a perfectly wonderful dog that worked well with all the actors and children in the movie. Like I said people believe in what they are told to believe.

 

I have worked with a HUGE amount of Pit Bulls in rescue. The truth is that Yes, there is an instinct to fight with other dogs. Now, does that mean that every single one of them has it? No. Does it mean that a dog that is normally nice with NEVER become aggressive with other dogs? No. Each breed of dog is bred for a reason. The original purpose to Pit Bulls was as a blood sport dog. They were not bred to be human aggressive at any point. I think that people who chose to own a Pit Bull need to be responsible and that will mean not assuming their dog is friendly with other dogs.

When Spicy or Zim show up, they will probably post further on this. Owning a dog is a responsibility but owning a Pit Bull, Rottweiler, Doberman, GSD or any of the other "dangerous breeds" (that term annoys me by the way) is even more of a responsibility. We responsible owners of those breeds do not have the luxury of being lax at any point.

Ex. the other night at the kennel club I was standing along the wall with my Rottie in a down. Next to me was a gal with her Doberman and another gal with her Chow. All 3 of these breeds are considered "dangerous dogs" All 3 of these dogs were laying, well behaved not causing any issue and only a few feet apart. Another 5-7 feet away was a Lab and a few feet from that a petit basset griffon vendeen and another Lab. So, 3 "friendly dogs" the 3 friendly dogs were very aggressive, snapping at other dogs that passed, growling and 1 of them even snapped at their owners. If one of them snapped at one of our dogs, our dogs would have likely defended themselves. Who would have been blamed? Now days, a Lab or some of the lesser known breeds has the luxury of making a mistake, a Pit Bull or any those other "dangerous" breeds, do not. There is still discrimination in this world.

It is unfair but it is. I know that there are people out there that don't think this is true but people who own these breeds understand it to be true.

Anyway, if I had a Pit Bull, I would assume he/she has the potential to be dog aggressive and treat him or her as such. In other words, I wouldn't take said dog to the dog park I would make sure he/she was under my control out in public. Leashed and trained and socialized, but that is me.

 

This is all so true. And I just have to say this....does it mean my dog is 3x as dangerous because it is Dobe/Rott/Shep mixed! No! It is the responsible ownership that counts.
Unfortunately in some places not too many miles from where I live the poor Pitt is being used as a fighter and also a lot of byb's and a statement of prestige amongs certain members of certain clubs, putting it mildly. There were 2 cases last year of Pitt Bulls killing children. I am sure these are the doings of all the wrong people with all the wrongly trained dogs.
My very first dog of my own was a Doberman and it was 1976. I trained him as a guard dog. But he never bit a single person. It is all in responsible ownership and training.

Is there not something different with the power of pressure that a Pitt Bull's jaw has that is so lethal if he bites?

 

I remember the episode.. Bondi Vet right? I remember thinking at the time how silly the woman was (the puppy turned out to be a whippet x staffordshire bull terrier after a DNA test), but what really bugged me was that the VET didn't bother correcting her. But then, he has a lot of weird ideas, I usually don't watch it anymore. Like when the two dogs who lived together got in a fight and one was seriously injured, and the vet said it's because the other one thinks he's dominant and sees the other dog (the victim) as competition. His solution - neuter the victim so he's no longer a threat to the dominant dog.

And recently he did a special show where he was supposed to deal with normal puppy problems, I think the show was called "Your first puppy" or something like that. I didn't watch it, but people told me how bad it was, the families on the show got their puppies from pet stores and backyard breeders, the vet didn't say anything, and he recommended using an airhorn as a deterrent for bad behaviour.

 

Because of the large number of Pits out there in Shelters, I investigated the idea of fostering a Pit and due to the DA part of the breed decided not to. Could I manage it? You betcha... but I do not WANT to manage it. So.. I dropped the idea.

A LARGE part of the Pit Bull discrimination has to do with the perception of who owns the dogs. A lot of regular people own Pits but when you go to the drug dealin' end of Town, the majority of dogs owned there are Pit Bulls. The landlords and insurance agents and banks are prohibited from Redlining an area of town as a place where they will not do business due to anti discrimination laws.... but they can get around it by not insuring, renting or lending to anyone who has a Pit Bull. When I used to watch Animal Cops Detroit.. the majority of dog cases involved Pit Bulls and in that place they Euthanize any Pit who comes into the shelter. Are all these dogs BAD? No.. but the people who own them are deemed "bad."

Do I agree with the above paragraph? NO I DO NOT. You asked and that is what I have both seen and heard.

Meanwhile I have GSD's and that has caused me some issues too.

 

They are discriminated against because they are, unfortunately, an easy target. Most people don't know jack about dog behavior, especially terriers. So, it's easy for the ignorant to discriminate against them. Which is a shame because terriers like the Pit have such a rich history of service to us. Rarely is that illustrated now, no thanks to the media.

 

Because people like neat, tidy answers to complicated issues. Especially if they can scapegoat a bad guy. That's why.

 

As far as I know ALL dogs can be socialized as pups to avoid any problems with Dog aggression. However, I did learn a 'neat' fact about Pits. Pits are tough, pain resistant dogs. They don't 'like' to fight any more than other dogs ... however, they can get over-excited quickly and draw blood without adequate Bite Inhibition. Other dogs, such as Labs, can do the same, but they tend to be very mouthy as pups and get Bite Inhibition training... even inadvertently. A Pit Bull pup may not bite as hard, as a pup, so may not get the needed training... This is a modified explanation that Ian Dunbar gave me for the following observation at a dog park.

My 10 yo Lab was playing with a 1 yo Pit Bull. The Pit was too energetic, so my Lab went away. Later, a gentle Rott was playing with the Pit, and they had a great tussle. Then we heard a shreik, and saw the Pit hanging on the cheek of the Rott with the Rott screaming. After we separated them, the Pitt owner left the park, while the Pitt owner ministered to the bleeding wounds. The thing that I did understand is that as soon as we separated them, the Rott did not shrink away, instead trying to get back to the Pit to continue playing !

Experienced puppy owners recognize that behavior as a puppy that looks like he's being bullied, but instead is playing roughly, very happily. My interpretation of Dunbar's explanation is that the Rott was having a great time, and a little bloodshed was just part of the game... However, not all dogs like it, and I imagine that a Pit can go too far... without being aggressive, even though the result may be just as catastrophic.

BTW - See: The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs for more about Pit bulls and fighting.

 

As far as I know ALL dogs can be socialized as pups to avoid any problems with Dog aggression. However, I did learn a 'neat' fact about Pits. Pits are tough, pain resistant dogs. They don't 'like' to fight any more than other dogs

incorrect. some DO like to fight. i own one of them.

however, they can get over-excited quickly and draw blood without adequate Bite Inhibition.

she has SPECTACULAR bite inhibition. she can grab my arm and shake it and drag me when we wrestle and not leave so much as bruise. Dogs are a different story.

Other dogs, such as Labs, can do the same, but they tend to be very mouthy as pups and get Bite Inhibition training... even inadvertently. A Pit Bull pup may not bite as hard, as a pup, so may not get the needed training... This is a modified explanation that Ian Dunbar gave me for the following observation at a dog park.

My 10 yo Lab was playing with a 1 yo Pit Bull. The Pit was too energetic, so my Lab went away. Later, a gentle Rott was playing with the Pit, and they had a great tussle. Then we heard a shreik, and saw the Pit hanging on the cheek of the Rott with the Rott screaming. After we separated them, the Pitt owner left the park, while the Pitt owner ministered to the bleeding wounds. The thing that I did understand is that as soon as we separated them, the Rott did not shrink away, instead trying to get back to the Pit to continue playing !

Experienced puppy owners recognize that behavior as a puppy that looks like he's being bullied, but instead is playing roughly, very happily. My interpretation of Dunbar's explanation is that the Rott was having a great time, and a little bloodshed was just part of the game... However, not all dogs like it, and I imagine that a Pit can go too far... without being aggressive, even though the result may be just as catastrophic.

pit bull puppies dont bite hard? that's hysterically funny. the rest is to some degree correct..for many pits..BUT not ALL.

BTW - See: The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs for more about Pit bulls and fighting.

i wouldnt recommend such biased garbage for "The Real Story" about pits.

 

I'm not attracted to any of the bully breeds. Or terriers in general, to be honest. I've never understood why anyone would want one. If it weren't for the junky contingent of dog owners that are attracted to such breeds there wouldn't be such a huge problem in shelters and the bad reputation. Over 60% of all the dogs euthanized in shelters are pit bull types. They also dominate the rosters in available dogs for adoption.

I think most people are better off with retriever types. But all things considered, there probably ought to be laws regarding dog ownership and especially breeding such that people would have to provide reasonable proof that they are worthy before. That might do something to alleviate the oversupply and the damage to the dogs.

 

to be honest your attitude is absolutely disgusting.

Id rather get kicked in the head than have to pick a retriever over a pit bull.

and if you're going to start talking statistics, you need to back them up. they may dominate the rosters where YOU are but here...LAB MIXES. the distribution of breeds in shelters is regional.

and as for the kind of laws you mention, they repeatedly FAIL and do nothing but cause grief and harm.

 

Wow! So many +ve and -ve thoughts about the breed! PBTs and all their cousins (APBTs, Amstaffs, SBTs, Bts, etc.) are banned here in Singapore. Only get to watch them on TV. Always wanted to work with this breed, but I'd probably would never get to:-((

 

I am respectfully cautious around all strange dogs especially those bred for fighting. This is because I see that many (I want to say most) dog owners don't have a clue how to raise/train them, or don't particularly care. A neighbor's Pit escaped from the garage he was kept in (starving as I could see) and the police had to be called. Eventually the officer had to shoot the poor animal as no one could get near him safely. That dog was in the garbage and had finally found something to eat. I'd defend it too. Let's discriminate against stupid people instead of the pups they destroy. I wish people had to be licensed to keep dogs. Maybe we could have a better handle on who is responsible enough to care for a potentially dangerous animal.

 

I do have to say this cracked me up:

Herding dogs need people who are extremely active and can really entertain the dog mentally . Toy dogs need people with a good lap and depending on the breed a good yard.

Considering my toy dogs have been about 10 times more active than my herding breeds. Just saying....

 

The book "the pit bull placebo" by Karen Delisle is a fascinating read on this topic. It is available online.

As for why people discriminate against Pit Bulls, my opinion is that people like simple answers: dog bites, dog is a pit bull, pit bulls bite, pit bulls are dangerous. Add to that the fact that most people get their information out of biased media sources who would rather highlight insignificant facts (breed) than important elements (tethered, unsocialized dog, ie) and what you get is a misinformed people who believe what they have been told for years.

Most people who hate or are scared of pit bulls have never met one, couldn't recognize one if it was humping their leg, and are convinced the "information" they know is fact. Most people have never spent a second researching the breed or trying to inform themsleves.

Around here, the good old myths about pit bulls are still propagated as gospel:

pit bulls have locking jaws
pit bulls have the most powerful bite of all dogs, comparable to a great white shark
pit bulls can turn on their owner without warning
pit bulls are intolerant of children
pit bulls don't feel pain at all, which is why they cannot be pried off their victim once they bite
etc, etc, etc.

it is very hard to argue with someone who has been raised with these myths from infancy and believes them to be the doG given truth. Heck, even a guy I had talked to for 30 minutes, who had been petting a pit bull the whole time, ended the conversation with "well, this one is a nice dog and all you told me makes sense, but I still would never trust a pit bull around my family".

 

Unfortunately some PB's are bred to be dog aggressive today not all are but there are plenty. Media gives them a bad rap and stupid owners and breeders give them a bad start and then the bad rap. My sisters dog was attacked by a DA pitbull, her's was on a leash the other dog wasn't, her dog was taken to the ER for stitches.

I went to shoeing school with the nimwit that bred pitbulls for aggressiveness...if any of the pups in the liter weren't aggressive it was electrocuted to death, nice huh? So he is one of hundreds of people breeding for aggressive temperaments...not cool.

I love the bully breeds, my other sister has 2 pit bulls and my niece has 1 pit and 1 ATS. Even if the pups were bred for aggression it would need a good responsible owner to help train appropriately and to really socialized this dog but unfortunately these will get into bad hands and its a horrible recipe and the dog is the one who suffers and give the bred a bad name.

This is how I feel they get a bad rap.

 

It is unfortunate that they are discriminated against. They are wonderful dogs..aren't they the breed that use to be called "nanny dogs" because of how good they were with children? I believe Petie from the Little Rascals was a pitbull.

Anyway , one contributing factor that I did not see mentioned here , was the fact that once a breed gets this reputation , they become..pardon the expression , A-hole magnets. Back when German Shepherds , Rotties , Dobes were the bad dog de jour ,that is what was on the other end of the leash when you saw a drug dealer , thug , or generally misguided young male that wanted to look bad ass with his dog . Given the fact that bad owners make bad dogs it does not surprise me that PBs are the ones that end up in the spotlight.

For every good PB owner , there are probably 2 or 3 bad owners who picked the breed BECAUSE of the hype.

This contributes to the vicious cycle of a wonderful breed being victimized by bad press and bad owners.

I did not see that show , but reasons why that woman might not have wanted a dog with pit in it? Could have been misinformation that made her fear them..but it could also be for more practical reasons , such as the fear of being attached to a dog that gets ripped away from you due to BSL..it could be not wanting to be judged for choosing the breed , it could also be because her home owners insurance precludes her from having a pit bull. Mine does. I looked into a home owners insurance that does not ban pits ( out of principle )..they were double or triple the cost of my rate.

This is why it is imperative that the breed is rescued from not just bad owners and dog fighting rings ,but BSLs , insurance discrimination , and unfair media coverage.

It is easy to say well , just start with a sweep of dog fighting rings , because the activity is illegal. But how do you save them from bad owners who do not necessarily fight them? Start by taking away the media hype.

But heck , if media hype was easy to control we would not have spent 48 hours watching every blessed network blame a stupid political poster for a deranged man's shooting spree.

I swear the media is the true antichrist.....

 

Hmmmm sh*t loads of money. Not sure about that one, maybe a few people. Not in US I wouldn't say. I mean big money dogs and purses exist, but I wouldn't call that the norm. Some don't even match dogs or rarely matched. Others wasn't for big money. FB told me he only made a couple hundred here and there. Minus the cost of up keeping dogs people like that can't be over turning a profit.

 

Im talking about back in the day when having a prized fighter could make you a few grand. Any way point is it used to make money,weather it was alot or not is not the point the point is they are not used to make ANY now yet their past still haunts them and the positive attributes are ignored not to mention that we as pit bull lovers DO find them the most attractive type dogs even if some think they are ugly.

 

Ok but sh*t loads sounds like a lot. I understand the point and that type of money was a lot back in that day. It seems like that while dog fighting was said to be an underground sport for the under class there is history showing that it was done by the upper class and to even get into an English dog fight could be costly.

Here dogs are sometimes fought for big money, IN THIS DAY. It just isn't the norm. Not to mention you got to lose sometime.

 

I just wanted to say that I've enjoyed reading all the responses. We have a lab mix who is likely mixed with a pit ( in our shelters here that is the number one dog, lab mix ). I'm perfectly okay with that because I know she will be a wonderful dog around humans and if she becomes dog aggressive (because I DO agree pits can be more DA than other dogs) no big deal, our last lab was dog aggressive and she lived a perfectly happy life. For now, Aggie loves other dogs (minus two particular dogs at the dog park and we simply leave when they get there because their owners are twits and have made their dogs into neurotic idiots and I don't feel like constantly having to keep Aggie away from these two dogs because she "plays too rough", mind you NO one else thinks this everyone else thinks she's wonderful) so we go to the dog park every day/close to every day because she likes it and because it is important to TRY to interact with other dogs till it's irresponsible to do so. At least that's how I've always thought(please correct me if I'm wrong). We took our lab around other dogs, but then she got old and decided she wanted to eat the other dogs so we just avoided them. No big deal. For now, I keep a close eye on Aggie (and all the other dogs, not just pits, who come to the dog park) at the dog park so that I minimize any issues at the start of it. So far so good but we are perfectly okay with her being a one dog house if we need to. Will save us money in the long run lol.

For the OP: I think pits are discriminated against because when they are in the news it's rarely for something good, just like rotties, and dobes (I think GSDs get some good coverage for police work lol). I also agree with the irresponsible owners leading to a lot of problems with the breed. Just my opinion of course.