The responses are predictable. Don't anyone take this personal; even pitty bully dog owners do not know what they have, Animal Control employees don't know, veterinarians don't know and the general public of course does not know, the AKC does not know (or care). So, up to me to dispense a bit of education and beg my pardon if I'm not shy about it; if it saves one life, one disfiguration, one trauma, then it's worth it.
One can find any stat you prefer on which breed bites the most or is most dangerous, the causes for it, and what can be done to prevent it, or to cure it. While a beagle, poodle and a dozen other breeds can be kicked off the cuff for aggression, a Bull or a Rott (OK, lets include the German Shepard, Chow, and all large breeds, tho the incident rate and degree of injury and violence of it is much lower) is another matter. And forget not the Belgian Malinois (-ma - Len - wa), the streamlined version of a German Shepard.
But what causes a long owned Pitty (or Rotty or.......you get me) that has been a docile family pet, affectionate like any other canine to suddenly ( and not so unpredictable, as you will learn ) "go off", "become vicious" or "attack" seemingly unprovoked? Canine, along with many others in the animal kingdom, have seven basic instincts: Food drive, defense, territorial, pack, mating, prey drive, and guarding the prey. What is Prey drive and why is it key canine behavior? Again, the Pit Bull, followed by the Rottweiler then in descending amounts in the rest of the breeds, have the highest ratios of it. It is an inherent part of the dogs psych; it can not be "trained out", "socialized out" nor "bred out". It is a latent behavior until triggered by motion and/or audible activity. In National Geographic presentations you can see the prey/pack instincts in action: selection of the young/weak/lame/slow/isolated for take down, often triggered by sudden movement/alarm/sound. Sound familiar with children playing and shouting, a handicapped or elderly person with a limp, or an intoxicated person or a baby squalling? So there lays the family Pitt/Rott pet in the front yard, some children are progressing down the street playing kickball, shouting, laughing and having fun, prey drive now in play.........they are approaching the "territorial drive/boundary" of the Pitt; along with the children are one of their pets, (add another dog + or more = pack instinct now in play), the ball is kicked into the Pitts yard, defense instinct is now in play.......the stage is set for tragedy and no one knows why the "big baby", aka family pet went insane and mauled/mutilated/killed a child then turns on the neighbor who intervenes (remember guarding the prey instinct?), what a wolf/lion/dog will do when they can not consume the kill in one feeding?
So let's chain that Pitt to the tree so he won't cause trouble. Now, in this artificial environment, with the vegetation bare to the end of the tether that is now the Pitts "territory", the feeding/water bowl/toy has become the "prey" to be guarded and no one understands why he went wild and killed one of the children who went to fetch the bowl for feeding. Or the owner was one day "attacked" going into the dogs room in the house. Or a thousand other scenarios that may trigger "prey drive". Are you getting it? The insurance companies have; many will not insure homeowners who keep this type animal. Not rare for Pitts to be banned in some towns, neighborhoods across this nation, they have earned and deserve special consideration under the law due to documented history of risk.
Rare for a Pitt to be in obedience competition. They score very low on temperament testing. Companion dog, why?
Pitts or Rotts in the Military?; don't think so. And who had ever witnessed a Pitt in LE?? If there is one thing a Police dog must do is OUT! and (excuse me while I laugh) where is the Pitt that will release a bite on command?? I'm just getting warmed up but you are bored so must make an end here.
If you haven't had enough we can start on the psychological profile of owners who are so proud of their Pitts.
The Pit Bull and Pit Bull type breeds should be banned. At the very least owners should be required to pass competency testing of the breed and inherent traits plus stringent kennel/control/financial/risk restrictions
