do you think a dogs breed determines whether it will bite you or not?

Question

do you think its fair to say that all of any breed of dog is more dangerous than other breeds. I had a dog warden tell me the other day that my american staffordshire terrier aka pitbull should be put to sleep before it bites someone even though my dog has never biten anyone or any animal and she barley even barks. not to mention she two years old and only about 18 inches high and maybe 40 lbs. the warden proceeded to tell me that my dog is viscious and would turn on me at a moments notice. what do you all think.

i know my dog wont bite she'd rather lick you to death than bite you

Answer 1

wow i'm sorry that your community has an idiot for a dog warden. the moron probably couldnt even tell a boxer from an APBT.

Answer 2

It really depends on training and how the dog is raised, whether or not is has enough structure, etc. However that is not to say that some dogs are not more likely than others to be aggressive. Some breeds were bred specifically to be aggressive. When was the last time you have heard of a vicious golden retriever attack? Probably never. It's not in thier nature. Even a poorly trained golden is probably not likely to do anything to harm someone. However a pitbull might be more likley to attack someone (or more likely another animal) if it's not properly trained. With proper training and rearing your Am Staff could be a gentle as a lamb, but the key part is " With proper training". People need to recognize that dogs like this have the physical capacity to do serious harm. If a person is not up to the responsibility that owning that particular breed entails, then they should not own the dog.

Answer 3

There are breeds that are more likely to bite but I wouldn't say that it is breed specific. Cocker Spaniels used to be a great family dog but due to breeding they are up on the list of biters. Pitt Bulls used to be a good family dog (remember Buster Brown Shoes) but now is on the top of the list.

Breeding has a lot to do with it & not necessarily how a pup is raised. Some dogs like the Pitt, Dobermans, German Sheperds, Rotts & a few more that have become popular are being bred in peoples back yards. The people breeding them don't try to better the breed, all they are interested in is producing "mean" pups. There for all conformation, predisposistions are ignored which produces nothing but unpredictable temperaments.

I watch the body behavior of all dogs reguardless of the breed. I worked with dogs that had behavior problems & found that it is not breed specific. I've had little Poodles, Schnauzers, Llasas etc. think that they could tear my hands & arms to pieces.

I myself don't trust most Pitts. I have been on the other end of those jaws many times & most of the time it was unprovoked.

The genetics are all screwed up due to back yard breeders who don't know anything about how the genetics work to produce a better dog.

Answer 4

I am sorry that you happen to have a breed that comes with labels . Do all pitts end up biting ? NO But unfortunately for them they are part of the Terrier group. Terrier's were first created to be rat and small vermin hunters and were created with a strong instinct to kill what they catch. It is hard wired in their DNA . That is why little jack Russel's and other little dogs are known as ankle biters cause they will bite if irritated ,but they are small enough not to do much damage. Pitts on the other hand are larger and stronger and capable of doing much damage. Don't ever be fooled into thinking that because you treat the dog right and it is friendly now does not mean it won't ever bite . Many people with children scarred for life by their family pet would say the same. I like the dogs but it's sad what has been bred into them. I'm not saying a pitt couldn't be a nice pet but I would never leave one unsupervised with children or other pets just because you never know. So in summery just like retrievers are hard wired to retrieve and hounds to hunt , Terriers kill! it's just a fact of life , it's not there fault but it's the truth just the same.

Answer 5

Certain breeds have a proclivity to be aggressive. It is in their breeding, but I also feel if the dog's lineage has been bred to down play this aggressiveness and the dog is properly socialized and trained, then the chances this dog will strike out is less. I said less, not eliminated.

Still, knowing you have a breed that can strike at any time, it is up to you to socialize that dog, put that dog through as much obedience as you can. A dog kept at home hasn't been socialized and more likely to react to new experiences in an aggressive manner. Your dog's aggressiveness is greater than my breeds'. You dog also needs much stimulation including a lot of exercise. A tired dog is a good dog. Too often "cupcakes" escape from their home confinement and suddenly confronted by new experiences, become aggressive.

There is a movement throughout the world to eliminate these aggressive breeds.......just kill them out. I don't believe in this. However, any dog shown to be aggressive, especially those from the known aggressive breeds should be evaluated carefully.

Realize the warden sees the dogs' at their worst so has these extreme opinions.

Answer 6

I think that this is entirely false. A dog's breed does not determine if it will bite or not. The nicest little designer dog will bite if you mistreat it.

Some dogs are more aggressive than others, but that does not automatically mean that it will rip someone to shreds. Some dogs have been sadly bred to fight or to guard and are more easily provoked to do so than others by instinct. And some animals dog get bad batches of genetics, due to inbreeding or over-breeding and that is not the animals' fault. In this case it would be kinder to put the animal down as it is not living a happy existence at that point.

Sadly enough there are these stupid biases that have become a predominate way of thinking, that a dog's breed makes it an incurable viscous creature. This is not limited to pitts alone, in fact in several areas, GSD, Malamutes, Huskies, and even Poodles have been banned because they are deemed viscous and dangerous dogs.

Answer 7

Absolutely not. Any breed of dog has the capacity to bite, and any breed can bite! I have been around countless pit bulls and never been bitten, all they ever do is give kisses. On the other hand, my aunt's little Jack Russel Terrier bit me pretty bad once! Check out the temperament testing done on all breeds and check out where different breeds score... Pit bulls are up there! They beat out a lot of the breeds that people consider to be "angels".

Answer 8

No, definitely not!! Breeding alone is not a determination, training and treatment are large factors.

My former neighbors had two 'pit-bulls' - one an English Staffordshire terrier and the other, her son, English & American Staffordshire - both were very people friendly (I'm not sure about dog friendly). They'd sooner lick you and get petted than anything.

A cousin had a Doberman Pinscher - my concern with him was that he'd knock me over in his exuberant greeting or lick my earrings off.

Another neighbor had a German Shepherd, their Westie was more likely to nip/bite than Rommell was.

Answer 9

It all depends on how they are raised. I was bitten on the face by a yellow lab when I was a child. Any dog can bite, and any dog can NOT bite. The breed makes zero difference.

Pit bulls actually bite a lot less than other dogs do. They are actually very intelligent and affectionate dogs. They do very well in behaviour/temperment tests, and the vast majority of them (97%, as opposed to 87% of all dogs in general) will never bite anyone. They only have a bad reputation because when they DO bite, they are capable of causing more damage.

Answer 10

A dogs temperment determines it's aggressiveness. The owner has a lot to do with it, but it is also the breed. Some breeds become aggressive more readily than other breeds...but just because you have a pitbull doesn't mean that it would bite someone. it just means that she has the ability to become aggressive if prompted more easily.

Answer 11

Absolutly NOT, any dog can bite and the worst bite I ever took was from a Collie. There are breeds such as Rotties, Dobes, Pitbull breeds, Gsd, MinPins etc that have many members who are dominate so need a firm but fair leader. Dogs bred to be police dogs or herding dogs need to be brave and staunch so would bite sooner than a submissive dog such as many Goldens if treated poorly. Unfortunatly many people get guard dog breeds to make their ego inflate and encourage the wrong behavior, treat the dog meanly or just let the dog do what he wants. Few dogs have the "balls" to really bite a person unless trained to do so. I have owned several large breeds that were trained to bite people(Schtzhund-Personal Protection trained) and never did any of them bite me, my neighbors, anyone at the dog park or people at the dog shows they went to, or anyone but the padded trained agitator. Or dog fight either. I specialise in rehabbing the dogs that no one can handle from teperment problems, which in most cases means they bite and find in the vast majority of dogs firm obed. training and me being the leader brings them around fast. Dogs, and kids, prefer a leader who is firm but fair and sets out ground rules they understand and keep to. Dogs get very confused if they can jump on you only in playclothes, get on the bed only on Wed nights and get to eat food from the table only when Dad isn't home. They need consistent rules and all of my dogs are obed. trained whether my personal dogs or fosters. Dogs instinctively know an Alpha person and many a border goes home from me with short nails with the owner saying but WE can not cut his nails, he won't let us.