Pit Bulls- Bad Breed or Bad Owners?

Pit Bulls have been in a firestorm of bad publicity throughout the country and they often bear the brunt of breed specific legislation. One severe or fatal attack can result in either restrictions or outright banning of this breed (and other breeds) in a community. While any severe or fatal attack on a person is tragic, there is often a tragic loss of perspective as to degree of dangerousness associated with this breed in reaction to a fatality. Virtually any breed of dog can be implicated in a human fatality.

From 1965 - 2001, there have been at least 36 different breeds/types of dog that have been involved in a fatal attack in the United States. (This number rises to at least 52 breeds/types when surveying fatal attacks worldwide). We are increasingly becoming a society that has less and less tolerance and understanding of natural canine behaviors. Breed specific behaviors that have been respected and selected for over the centuries are now often viewed as unnatural or dangerous. Dogs have throughout the centuries served as protectors and guardians of our property, possessions and families. Dogs have also been used for thousands of years to track, chase and hunt both large and small animals. These natural and selected-for canine behaviors seem to now eliciting fear, shock and a sense of distrust among many people.

There seems to be an ever growing expectation of a 'behaviorally homogenized' dog - 'Benji' in the shape of a Rottweiler. Breeds of dogs with greater protection instincts or an elevated prey-drive are often unfairly viewed as 'aggressive or dangerous'. No breed of dog is inherently vicious, as all breeds of dogs were created and are maintained exclusively to serve and co-exist with humans. The problem exists not within the breed of dog, but rather within the owners that fail to control, supervise, maintain and properly train the breed of dog they choose to keep.

CANINE AGGRESSION - AN OVERVIEW
It is important to emphasize that dogs bite today for the same reasons that they did one hundred or one thousand years ago. Dogs are no more dangerous today than they were a century or millennium ago. They only difference is a shift in human perception of what is and is not natural canine behavior and/or aggression and the breed of dog involved.

Examination of newspaper archival records dating back to the 1950’s and 1960’s reveal the same types of severe and fatal attacks occurring then as today. The only difference is the breed of dog responsible for these events. A random study of 74 severe and fatal attacks reported in the Evening Bulletin (Philadelphia, PA) from 1964-1968, show no severe or fatal attacks by Rottweilers and only one attack attributed to a Pit-Bull-type dog. The dogs involved in most of these incidents were the breeds that were popular at the time.

Over two thousand years ago, Plato extolled a basic understanding of canine behavior when he wrote 'the disposition of noble dogs is to be gentle with people they know and the opposite with those they don’t know....' Recently, this fundamental principal of canine behavior seems to elude many people as parents allow their children to be unsupervised with unfamiliar dogs and lawmakers clamor to declare certain dogs as dangerous in response to an attack.

Any dog, regardless of breed, is only as dangerous as his/her owner allows it to be.

Addressing the issue of severe and fatal dog attacks as a breed specific problem is akin to treating the symptom and not the disease. Severe and fatal attacks will continue until we come to the realization that allowing a toddler to wander off to a chained dog is more of a critical factor in a fatal dog attack than which breed of dog is at the end of the chain.

Only when we become more knowledgeable, humane and responsible in our treatment of dogs can we hope to prevent future tragedies.

**No breed of dog is inherently vicious

**Any dog, regardless of breed, is only as dangerous as his/her owner allows it to be

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Posted by groovypeg

I have a serious fear of Pit Bulls. My Fh's friends have one. One night we went to their house and I did not know that they had a dog. When the dog came running out I freaked out and left the party. My question is this: are Pit Bulls inherently vicious, or does a bad owner cause the viciousness? Are there certain types of Pit Bulls that are better than others?

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Don't know, doesn't matter. I am so very afraid of them. I would have trampled over you in my hurry to get to the door if I was there.

DH insists that is the owners. He used to have two Rot Weilers (sp). I almost fainted the one time I had to be near them.

To me, a big dog, regardless of how well they are trained - sooooo scary.

I think it's more bad owners...but I think any breed may or may not have a tendency to *get* vicious. They are animals...if aggravated, they will react, as do we. We have a Rottweiler, and she's never been vicious to anyone outside of being in an unknown situation...I brought her to work one day after she hadn't been here for over a year...and she snapped at a few of the men (she doesn't seem to like strange men), but we put a stop to that. She cuddles, she watches the little toddlers in the family (herds them..makes sure they are ok going up and down steps), and gets very upset when she is yelled at.

Pets are a product of their environment....you get what you give.

um, i take slight offense to this. my little baby is A PITBULL!!! she is 90 pounds of love, mush and affection!!! she's my life!!

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Posted by minniebride14

um, i take slight offense to this. my little baby is A PITBULL!!! she is 90 pounds of love, mush and affection!!! she's my life!!

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YAY! I am so glad you said that!
There are no vicious dogs, only vicious owners!

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Posted by Sage10.03

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Posted by minniebride14

um, i take slight offense to this. my little baby is A PITBULL!!! she is 90 pounds of love, mush and affection!!! she's my life!!

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YAY! I am so glad you said that!
There are no vicious dogs, only vicious owners!

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RIGHT ON!!!! you hit the nail on the head!!

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Posted by JENNCHRIS

IMO, why risk it... I would never get a pit bull, every time you hear of an attack it's almost always a pit bull, and usually it's a dog that showed no aggressive behavior before. I'm sure the owners are most of the problem, but the pit bulls are more prone to violent behavior.

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i understand and respect what you're saying - to a degree, but it's not entirely true. the truth is the only dog attack stories they 'sensationalize' are the pitbull attack stories. face it, it's more dramatic to hear of a pitbull attack than a dalmatation attack. a mutt or black lab attacking someone isn't as interesting for the news. there are just as many attacks with other dogs, as there are with pitbulls. the ONLY difference with pitbulls are that they have the strong jaws. BUT, again, if they are not trained or conditioned to use them in a violent manner, they won't.

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Posted by JENNCHRIS

IMO, why risk it... I would never get a pit bull, every time you hear of an attack it's almost always a pit bull, and usually it's a dog that showed no aggressive behavior before. I'm sure the owners are most of the problem, but the pit bulls are more prone to violent behavior.

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That is absolutely untrue....It's just that they like to talk about those attacks more...
If you look at the statistics (as a report in my above post showed) pitbulls are involved in no more attacks than a poodle (for instance)

I totally inderstand that having children, you only want to protect your child (as I would want to protect mine), but it's just sad to see that so many people assume things about these breeds of dogs.

i have a fear of all dogs, just to clarify! LOL! but particularly, pit bulls scare me b/c of everything that i hear in the news. i am just curious b/c fh's friends insist their dog is sweet as pie and well trained.

my friend has 100 lb rottweiler who she is says is also very docile, but that recently her babysitter's kid has been terrorizing the dog and now the dog is growling and scratching at the babysitter's kid.

Bad owners

Period

End of story

bad owners...raises another question...are kids bad or do they have bad parents???

pit bulls have exceptionally strong jaws which makes their bites seem worse b/c they can hold on longer and stronger. but like rude and bratty kids, who teaches them that it is okay to bite???