Are pitbulls dangerous? -

[melty]

So, I don't have a pitbull nor do I much care for them. However I can't help but notice any time pitbulls come up in the media - often for dog bites they may or may not be responsible for - pitbulls fans appear out of thin air. They claim pitbulls are just misunderstood, and laws targeting them specifically are wrong. I even saw a buzzfeed article recently that was sarcastically titled "25 times pitbulls were totally mean and scary." There is a real effort to rebrand pitbulls.
I've done some research, but both sides seem biased so it's hard to tell what the truth is. Anti pit people claim pits are inherently dangerous due to breeding and have a much higher incidence of fatal bites. Pro pit people claim pits aren't genetically predisposed to be more dangerous and most alleged pit attacks come from other animals. Of course there are a ton of pit fan stores about how their little fluffers is just the sweetest dog in the world but I don't really care about that.
What do you think?

 

[RJ MacReady]

I'm not sure how any of the arguments pan out statistically, because it's hard to come by unbiased numbers, but my personal experience with pit bulls and pit bull mixes have been strictly negative.

Spoiler: powerlevel ahead

I currently live next to people who own two pit bull mixes. One is pretty average for a dog - not too aggressive, not too big - and the other is a real monster that likely weighs as much as me, and I'm not a small guy. It's an extremely aggressive animal, and whenever it spots someone outside, it'll jump up on the fence and pursue us as close as it can get. It's actually so heavy it's broke off several boards and cracked the posts by ramming into it over the years. It's bit my family once before (not too bad, thankfully) and almost took off my hand recently. Rammed its head a good ten inches past a gap in the fence.

Because of this, I could probably give less of a shit about what pit bull defenders have to say. Claiming an animal is sweet and misunderstood goes out the window once it's hurting people and destroying property.

It's also worth adding that the people I live next to are drunken hicks with a bit of a local reputation. For scale, they once planted a massive weed plant in their backyard in full view of my deck and probably passing cars, but it disappeared before I got around to calling the cops because they got spooked after an argument with another of my neighbours. I seem to notice pit bulls are most popular among people like this, so it's fair to suggest it's a manner of rearing.

But to me, it entirely makes sense to say that it's "in the breed", because dogs (like all animals) are influenced by base instinct and some behaviour is just written into their genes. Put a beagle in front of the animals they were bred to hunt and see what happens, for example. Hell, even housecats that rarely touch grass will go apeshit over birds and mice.

 

[Holdek]

Yes. Read in the news accounts about when dogs kill people and it's usually pitbulls and rottweilers.

 

[Sweet and Savoury]

The weird thing is my brother has a pit bull and at first I wouldn't come near the bloody thing but as I got used to it she's a really gentle creature who acts just like any other dog. So I'm on the fence; maybe it is just shitty owners who make their dogs crazy or maybe some pit bulls are just fucked up like some people are just messed up in the head. I just don't know.

 

[chimpburgers]

Yeah I believe so but don't deny that there are exceptions to the rule. The ones that I've seen at the vet were always overly hyperactive and really aggressive no matter how much their owners did to try to control their dog's behavior.

 

[MasterDisaster]

Pitbulls and Rottweilers tend to get really bad press because they're dogs that were, for the most part, bred for aggression in the first place. Pitbulls were actually trained to combats bulls at one point. This, however, is not grounds to look at them as violent species. There is no such thing as an inherently 'bad dog', just bad owners. A lot of people who get males, the far more aggressive of the sexes, tend to never get them neutered which is common practice to help cull aggressive tendencies. Then theres the factor of the owners who tend to be neglectful for multiple reasons ranging from just wanting a well know species of aggressive canine for looks, protection or the worst, fighting. A pitbull raised in a caring and nurturing environment has the potential to be a great dog, same as a rottweiler. Sadly the ones you see in the news are generally the worst ones; beaten, usually left unattended and even just let go so 'its the cops problem'.

 

[ASoulMan]

The only thing that breeds dangerous dogs are shitty owners.

Plain and simple.

 

[Vitriol]

The only thing that breeds dangerous dogs are shitty owners.

Plain and simple.

Not sure i agree with this, just as certain breeds are bred for docility others most certainly are not. War dogs, fighting dogs, and certain working dogs were bred for strength and aggression. Pitbulls and Rockweilers might not be selected with this as a primary trait now and may not be as aggressive as their forebears but they certainly as a group have both a greater potential for violence and more of an inclination towards it.

You could of course actively breed these tendancies out and with some lines this will have happened however with the continued popularity of certain breeds as guard dogs there are plenty of extant lines of highly aggressive dogs.

Now in most cases dedicated training + neutering will go along way towards countering and correcting this particularly between the dog and its family but some dogs will always have a 'mean' streak especially towards strangers.

Strong dogs like Rockweilers, alsatians and i presume pitts also need a lot of excercise to avoid becomming bored and hyperactive- while an overly boisterous westie isn't really any bother a boistrous Rockweilers or Pittbull can be quite dangerous without really meaning to be.

 

[TrippinKahlua]

Pit Bulls are not dangerous.

 

[Ido]

Pitbulls are just dogs, yes you have to be careful around them, they are bigger dogs so it's not something you can really prevent (or take for granted). If raised right there shouldn't be an issue, it's really just down to how they were trained. It's disgusting how these dogs are treated by the media.

 

[MrTroll]

People really have no tolerance for ugly domestic animals. If pitbulls were adorable like dachshunds or golden labs, nobody would give a shit about how violent they are.

 

[RJ MacReady]

People really have no tolerance for ugly domestic animals. If pitbulls were adorable like dachshunds or golden labs, nobody would give a shit about how violent they are.

That necessarily assumes that people think pit bulls and the like are ugly. I personally don't. There's also bound to be a few breeds/mixes which usually have facial features similar to pit bulls. I know such a dog personally.

 

[*Asterisk*]

Here's the issue: While good dog owners can tame and control anything, what kills it with the likes of pitbulls again and again is that most of the owners who get them want them to be scary. Wether they want them to scare their neighbors or for their redneck dogfighting operation, the priority is on pitbuls being the nastiest bastards in the whole world. You can dance around the truth all you like, but the sole purpose for the pitbull's creation was the bloodsport circuit.

I say, euthanize and neuter the little bastards on sight.

 

[Vitriol]

Pit Bulls are not dangerous.

The data disagrees with you,

The most recent study i can find on the subject which i trust as being 100% unbiased is 15 years old however it is corroborated so closely and has been replicated so frequently by more recent studies by groups i would consider to have a bias i am willing to take it as still correct. The study is:
Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998
Journal of American veterinary medical association.


Pittbulls and rottweilers were involved in between 50-70% of the total attcks depending on the year. Whether down to bad training or natural inclination or both the fact remains that as a group pittbulls and rottweilers are statistically much more dangerous than other breeds.

 

[melty]

I don't have the source right now, but I just remembered that pits are responsible for nearly all fatal attacks on other animals, pets, livestock. (Among dog breeds, that is)

 

[TrippinKahlua]

People think Pit Bulls are dangerous because of their stupid owners raising them up to be so.

The first time I ever saw a documentary on the "dangers" of Pit Bulls, the documentary actually gave an example featuring a crazy red neck woman attempting to make a Police Officer go away by saying "I am letting my dog out. If you don't want to get bitten, I'd say you better get out of here." and of course, the woman lets the dog out, and he goes and attacks the police officer.

I am not afraid of dogs, pit bulls included. If a dog starts to attack you, kick that mother fucker in the face. Grab it by the snout and give it harsh pressure. Show that dog who's boss.

One of my most longest friends has a pit bull, and she's pretty sweet. Dumb, but not dangerous.

 

[GV 002]

I think it's situational, but there is also something to be said for genetics.

Spoiler: POWERLEVEL STORY TIME

I worked as a kennelmaid for 4ish years, and I've worked with dogs of all breeds, shapes, sizes and temperaments. Some breeds naturally are more aggressive than others, (for example Chow Chows, Shar Peis, giant Schnauzers and Jack Russells were definite repeat offenders for aggression, and I've been bitten numerous times!), but it's all dependent on the situation. In the kennels environment a lot of dogs were anxious and wary of being separated from their owners and being manhandled by strangers, which is perfectly understandable. Others are happy as Larry until you try to put the lead on or take the feed bowl away. Some will go for you only if you look them in the eye. It's all a case of boundaries, dominance issues and anxiety. I never once had a problem with Pit Bulls or Rotties, but the tendency to defend their owner with force if necessary is hardwired into their genetics, just like other specific breeds; either breed will attack at a perceived threat to the home or family, but in some cases bad training/socialising can lead to 'unprovoked' attacks triggered by invading the dog's personal space, unwanted touching or approach, etc. The Pit and Rottie are kinda unfortunate as they, through genetics again, have particularly damaging bites; the Rottie has a devastating scissor-bite that's designed to do some serious harm, the Pit was bred to kill and subdue through strangulation and therefore will not easily let go of his target, which doesn't really help when coupled with bad training and bad breeding.

Basically, I think it's a combination of genetics, irresponsible ownership and failure to understand animals as a whole. It's not just the owners, sometimes people do in fact bring the attacks upon themselves by doing something stupid. Goes both ways.

 

[Surtur]

Actually, many reported pit bull attacks are not committed by pit bulls. Oftentimes pit bull or sometimes rottweiler is used as a synonym for "large, aggressive dog" and even when the mix up is discovered it is still listed as a pit bull attack. Take a look at dog attack statistics in the 80s and see how they look now. In the early 80s the majority of dog attacks stemmed from "unknown " breeds with only a small few that were pit attacks. Now the numbers are reversed. Pit bull hysteria started in the 80s and I think that's why so many of these attacks are reported as pit bulls.

 

[melty]

Claiming an animal is sweet and misunderstood goes out the window once it's hurting people and destroying property.

This is sort of my thinking. Is owning a certain type of dog really a right if that dog is a problem? A lot of pit bull fanatics go nuts over them and on any proposed breeding restrictions. Not even the aggressive rednecks or tough guy types, but otherwise normal people, I think sometimes get a thrill out of owning a "misunderstood" dog. There was one article around Christmas about a Santa nervous around a service dog that was a pit and I kind of got the feeling the family was going around looking for oppression.
If it's 100% the owner's behavior, then controlling pitbulls as a breed won't solve anything because the shitheads will just get a different kind of dog and that dog will be aggressive instead. But if there is a genetic component then I think these animals should perhaps be more restricted.

 

[XYZpdq]

I grew up next to gay couple that had a pitbull they'd raised from a pup. It was as sweet and friendly a dog as you'd ever hope to meet.

Gay pitbulls are clearly the answer.