Pitt Bulls...........?

Question

I know about the "bad" Pitt Bull reputation, but are Pitt Bulls more likely to be more agressive than any other dog? and are they "meaner" than any other dog? Thank you and i would love expert answers who know a lot about this subject!!

Answer 1

Pit Bulls are naturally dog-agressive, however, that is a trait that can be trained out of them. Dog-agression and Human agression are two completely different things. Pit Bulls naturally love humans, they are very gentle and make good pets for children do to their high-pain tolerence. I foster Pit Bulls and my mom works at a Pit Bull rescue center, so I know alot about them.

Answer 2

A Pitt can be aggressive. You have to train them. I have three dogs, a 20 lb Rat Terrier, a big Beagle at 40 lbs and a 55lb Pitt Bull. The Pitt tries to be top dog but it does not work. The Ratty is nine old years old and been here for a bit longer than the other two that are five years. They all run around and play rough. The Pitt is always going after the Beagles ears. She tries to be the dominate dog. The only time I hear a whimper out of them is when the Ratty has had enough and grabs the Pitt by the ear until she whines. The little guy is top dog. All of my dogs love people. None of them have been aggressive to people. They just jump on you to get you to pay attention to them. Yes, bad mannered.

Answer 3

Understanding the APBT Temperment

Temperament is the most important trait of the American Pit Bull Terrier. When adopting or buying a new puppy the first thing you should look for is a pup with a good temperament. This is why adopting is so popular today because you know the temperament of an adult or young adolescent dog up front. Puppies are always a gamble, even if the pup seems to have a solid temperament we can't forget it's still a puppy and experiences can effect the pup as it grows.

You can buy a pup that seems to have a good temperament and end up with a nervy, scarred, fear biter. I'm not saying this is always the case, but it does happen quite often.

How do I know if a dog/puppy has a good temperament?

When looking for a puppy or getting a dog from a rescue you should look for a confident and enthusiastic dog that enjoys all people. Puppies that shy away or aggressively attack your leg should be avoided. Adult and adolescent dogs that are fearful of people should also be avoided.

Extreme shyness or people aggressive APBT's are, in my opinion, not representative of the breed and should not be placed or bought from a breeder. Sadly, we do not live in a perfect world and many dogs with behavior problems are adopted and sold to first time APBT owners.

Bottom line: a dog that is curious, confident, playful, and doesn't freak out and shake to death at the site of new experiences is a dog with a good temperament.

A Word on human aggressive dogs.

While other breeds display human aggression and their owner's let them get away with it. The American Pit Bull Terrier should never be human aggressive. They are not guard dogs and biting people is completely unacceptable.

American Pit Bull Terriers with quality of character would never bite a human being for any reason.

A word on dog aggression

American Pit Bull Terriers are a dog aggressive breed. This is not a bad thing, but it is something we as owners must understand. Dog aggression is expected in this breed. Extreme dog aggression (i.e. over the top, tries to kill everything it sees) should not be tolerated however. Centuries of selective breeding have engrained this trait into the DNA of the breed. They are fighters by nature and their genes tell them to do this. This can not be trained out of them and in recent years "doggy shrinks" have lead people to believe it can be. This is complete BS

Bottom line: Dog aggression is not a bad thing and a dog should not be punished for being what it is. The American Pit Bull Terrier is a fighting breed. To expect it not to fight is to expect a lab not to retrieve. We need to teach people about dog aggression, effective ways to manage this trait, and allow our dogs to live happy lives.

Are Pit Bulls are dominant by nature?

In a word, no. Contrary to popular and misguided belief the APBT is not dominant by nature. You will find individual dogs within the breed that do display dominate behavior but as a rule they are not dominant. I have ran into several people who say something along the lines of, "they are great dogs once you show'em who the boss is." They don't need to be shown who the boss is because they know. More times than not you will find them be quite submissive and happy to take their place in your home.

One reason people say they need to be shown who the boss is, is that these people lack the skills to communicate to their dog what they want. They think the dog is being dominant when they don't listen or pee in the house. Which is not the case. Dominant behavior towards people is very rare in the APBT and if you find yourself thinking you have a dominant dog, consult a professional who is extremely knowledgeable about the APBT.

In summary

The American Pit Bull Terrier is an outgoing, confident, enthusiastic, dog that will have dog aggression to varying degrees. When selecting a puppy or accessing a young/adult dog, look for a dog that has these traits and characteristics. Spotting them isn't hard once you see them.

As owners we need to rethink our impact on the breed. Are you helping the breed by your actions? Or are you hurting the breed by your lack of actions? Does your dog represent the breed and it's traits? If it does, get out there and show your dog off. We will only change the public's view of the breed by showing them our dogs and their wonderful temperaments!

Additional information on temperament

* UKC Breed standard

* APBT temperament information

* The Working Pit Bull

Answer 4

I understand your question. Its not the owners, and I know alot of people are going to disagree. A pit bull from show breeding, one with a long line in the dogs pedigree is cool. The problm is when Joe breeds his to Johns down the street, then you have no idea about the pedigree. Habits are bred into breeds, if I'm wrong, then why does my Dads beagles, wich are nationally known, have their noses on the ground sniffing for rabbit tracks at 5 months old? Because He breeds good dogs to good dogs, then you get good dogs. Most guard dogs, such as Dobermans snap to get you to back away, let you know your not welcome, pits, bad pits, bite, tear and hang on. Hope this helps! And by the way, I'm not a pit hater, I just hate whats happening to the breed for the "Macho" imadge.........

Answer 5

Pit bulls are the same as all the other breeds, in my opinion that is, They just getaggresive when they play. They have abnormally large jaws that lock easily. And besides, there is no such thing as a bad dog. Just Bad owners, I has a pitt once, (he died not too long ago) and all he ever wanted to do was lick and play. His name was Bosco. Now I have one named Boozer and he is even sweeter!

Answer 6

Pit bulls are and at the same time are not any more likely to be more aggressive than any other dog. For the most part, they are not. Aggression is almost always a people problem...people fail to socialize their dogs (so the dogs are afraid of people), they fail to train their dogs (the play biting and jumping that was "acceptable" or "cute" when the dog was 8 weeks old can be dangerous when the same dog is 8 months old), they fail to contain their dogs properly (chained dogs are much much more likely to become territorially aggressive and a loose dog is an out of control dog regardless of breed), and they abuse dogs in the name of "training" to make them "protective," "guard dogs," or just plain mean (for illegal dog fighting). Unfortunately, pit bull type dogs are all the rage in criminal circles, so in some areas pit bulls are more likely to be owned by irresponsible owners who intentionally undersocialize and abuse their dogs to make them "tough" and mean...which also means that in these areas the same criminal contingent is more likely to breed dogs with unstable temperments so that it is easier to make them mean with less effort on their part.

However, in my area (and I suspect in fact most areas) the vast majority of pit bulls are very sweet loving dogs. In the 6 years of experience working for both veterinarians and a dog groomer I have only met one pit bull who was not friendly and loving of people, and that one was not aggressive and has not made an attempt to bite (I could see her doing it though, as she is an extremely fearful dog...but fear and genuine aggression are not the same thing). In fact, I firmly believe that the head is the most dangerous end of a pit bull...not because of the teeth, but because they have a tendancy to crack you in the face when they jump up to lick you!

Answer 7

I own a pit bull. He's the sweetest dog I've ever had. Yes, he likes to play ruff, and you have to watch him with new people because he's very protective, but really it's all in the way you train them. Most are trained to be fighters and aggressive. You can train them differently, and they won't turn out to be aggressive. You have to know that you are the dominate one, so when they're young, you can't be afraid to throw them down and tell them no. They're just as harmless as any other dog out there, they just have a bad rep. because people are stupid. It's just like German Shepards. Any big dog that looks mean, people assume it will be mean.

Answer 8

They were bred for fighting so it is in them. Does it mean they're all dangerous? No. It depends on the owner and, unfortunately, there's plenty of idiots out there who get Pits to look tough, teach them to be aggressive and when they can't handle them anymore, the dogs end up in shelters. I've spend a lot of time in shelters in different areas and am always amazed at the number of Pits and Rotties they have.

Answer 9

YES!! Pit Bulls were originally bred for fighting-they are more aggressive-they are VERY beautiful dogs, but I have a child, so getting one is out of the question! Best of luck!

Answer 10

they arent "meaner" but they can do some damage. Infact, the bad name of the pit bull has led to them being outlawed in many cities across the States.Unlike other dogs, the pitbulls jaw muscles dont stop half way up the skull, but continue right up to the top of the head. But read this entire website and it will let you know alot about it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pit_Bull