Is the Pit Bull Terrier really that vicious ?

Question

Or is it just the way people train and/or inbreed them ?

I,myself don't trust them as far as I can throw them.

Answer 1

I am a professional pet groomer , and I have seen by far friendly pit bulls. People do in-breeding and train them to be mean and to fight. I have also had some nasty ones that came into my shop before too but they were mainly rescues, or from people that does not appreciate dogs as sometimes you can tell that they are abusive. I really don't care for the breed as to own one, but allot of people that I groom for can tell you they have the sweetest pit in the world. So I would say if it wasn't for people in-breeding, and the cruel training, I don't think that they would be vicious.

Answer 2

Here lies the problem, back in 1976 when the animal welfare act came into effect, dogfighting was brought to the surface. The media used that as a cash crop, and every dog attack that resembled a "pit bull" was labeled as such. There are 25 breeds that closely resemble the American Pit Bull Terrier, BTW. The problem is that dog aggression IS NOT the same thing as human aggression, but most don't know that. Well, you know how rumors spread, especially bad ones. Next thing you know, American Pit Bull Terriers got into bad hands. People not only overbred these dogs, but started adding other breeds to make bigger dogs, with less than perfect temperaments. This is where you see people with "100 lb Pits". Eddington's "Wanna Be a Whopper" is a prime example. Now, there is a problem with people crossing English Bulldogs in to get a squatty dog, best example is Gotti and Razor's Edge dogs.

Basically, what I'm getting at is, no one seems to realize what a true APBT looks like, acts like or is truely bred for anymore. They are bred for a rock solid temperament, and should weigh between 30-50 lbs. With all of the overbreeding and poor breeding practices, there are bad ones out there, but, two things that I have to say:

1. True APBTs are not viscious, and you being a stranger could walk up to 99% of them by yourself and get licked to death, that's about it.

2. Dog aggression IS NOT the same thing as human aggression, but people don't realize this. When these dogs were fought, they were handled and washed by the opposing dog's owner, often times a stranger. Dogs that bit were taken out of the breeding program, and often killed because no one wanted to be in a small "pit" with two dogs that would bite you.


Sorry for the rambling, but I hope I answered your question more in depth.

Answer 3

Its party the training and partly the inbreeding. Both are factors. For years now people have been using pits as fighting dogs, and breeding the "champion" and most vicious lines of said dogs. When you go to a reputable breeder their pit bulls are very different from the pits you can usually get. And any dog can be bad if trained to be. Or not trained. Every breed has its own quirks that need to be dealth with, some are stubborn, some are hyperactive, and some like pits have animal aggresion. My pit is amazing and very good with people and other animals (until an animal tries messing with her, then she shows aggression although does not act on it, she'll growl and bark but has been trained NOT to attack.)

Answer 4

I've got a Pitt, and she's the most sweet, cuddly dog I've ever had. Ask any owner (that actually considers a dog part of the family) and they'll tell you the same. Of course its all breeders/fighters/owners that turn a dog bad. All my dogs have been loving and gentle. All have been different breeds, I've got to assume that its the way our family treats them rather than breed.
Think about the recent "DANGER" breeds... In the 60's it was German shepards (which I have) due to the footage of the race riots. The early 90's was rottweilers (which I also own) because all the rappers were depicting them as vicious protectors. Now the popular fighting dogs are Pitts, therefore the get unbalanced attention. While Pitts do damage, the ACTUAL attacks by Pitts are on par with other breeds.

My dogs are all well behaved.

Answer 5

Some are some are not. You can't generalize a breed. Many are loving and even life saving dogs, others are unstable, dangerous or killers.

It depends on they are bred, trained and socialized.

Inbred has really nothing to do with viciousness. It is poor breeding, no matter what form the breeder choses. If you outcross or inbred 2 dogs with a bad temperament together you increase the chance of passing it on either way.

Most purebred dogs all have linebreeding in the pedigree. Most breeds wouldn't even exist without inbreeding. Including APBTs. Nearly all APBTs trace back to the same foundation dogs.

I have found that many dogs who have a bad temperament are actually scatterbred. This doesn't make a dog have a bad temperament either, its just that most often bybs breed without regard to pedigre or bloodline. Then they do not care about health or TEMPERAMENT and it just happens the dog is scatterbred. They just breed this dog to that dog or find the most convenient dog to breed to. Neighbors, family members, some stranger walking their dog until the dog is from many bloodlines which are not recognizable. Unfortunately my hubby has a family member who does this.

Even sometimes a pit mix is bred to his Pits. He has had a lot come out with bad temperament. His last only had 1 pup (thank goodness) and it grew up to be a human aggressive too and was PTS. I guess him mother won't even take a pup from him, she wants a Pit but is too worried about getting an unstable dog if its one from him.

Answer 6

You shouldn't trust what you hear from anyone who's never owned one. If someone has never owned, never met, or intereacted with a pit bull, they have no right to say if they are mean. Or to say they are "Dangerous". I own a pit bull (possibly presa canario) mix. I don't know if you know what a presa canario is, but it is probably the ONLY dog in the world that can take a pit bull in a fight. My dog is possibly both. And yet, she's the sweetest dog in the world. I have a five year old niece who takes food out of her mouth while she's eatting, and the dog just stands there. Sure, there are some that are aggressive, but it's the owners fault.

Don't discriminate until you've experienced one for youself.

Answer 7

NO, it is the way ppl train them. Most likely if the owner abuses the dog a lot, then the dog will turn on it's owner, that's when it's violent. Trust, i have 3 pit bulls, and they are good dogs. They are not violent, they just protect really well, but not to the point where it becomes extremely violent and out of control. I don't support how ppl use them in fights, to me that is so wrong. ppl like Michael Vick and DMX need to be put on death row for that ****.

Answer 8

It's all in how they're trained and raised. I've never met a mean Pit Bull. However, I have met a mean Dobermann, Boston Terriers, Toy Poodles, Pugs, Beagles, Labs, and Weimaraners.

For the people that say "all Pits are mean and should be banned", well then you must want all moms banned. Andrea Yates drowned all five of her children; surely all moms are like her. http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/women/andrea_yates/index.html
Or ban all dads, since Winifred Wright abused his children so badly that one died and the rest suffered horribly.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2003/03/15/BA248878.DTL
Heck, you might just want to ban families, since aunts, uncles, cousins, brothers, sisters, etc. can abuse and kill their family.
No? What's the difference between them and Pit Bulls? Let me tell you. The dogs are doing what they've been taught. They don't pause and think, well, if I attack this dog, I'll probably end up torn up and in pain. They do what they're taught to do. People can decide what they're going to do. They know what's right and what's wrong.

Answer 9

NO. I had one and she was one of the nicest dogs I have owned. I worked at a Vet Clinic and half of the employees had at least one, none of them were "vicious". They are labeled vicious because of people like Michael Vick and if there is one that bites someone it's all over the news. I'm sure poodles, yorkies and other family dogs bite people all the time but do they put it on the news? no, because it's not as interesting to people as hearing an evil pit bull biting someone. They are great family dogs and if you socialize them with people and other animals they are fine. If you train them to be mean then they will be.

Answer 10

It's all about training and innate temperment.

Any breed of dog can be sweet, and any breed can be vicious.

Pit bulls get a bad rap because so many lowlifes think it's cool to have a 'tough' dog and train or torture them to be mean. I live in a town where half the dogs used to be pit bulls or pit crosses and I have extensive experience with them.

The normal, healthy, properly raised pitbull is a happy, bouncy, friendly dog with an outgoing attitude and a huge capacity for play, especially "stick".

If they are not neutered the females tend to be a bit high strung and the males pretty agressive with other dogs, but that is also true of most breeds.

Pit Bulls are poor choices for families with small children, the elderly or people with balance or disability issues - but only because they are so powerful and play so vigorously they can knock you off your feet without realizing how rough they are being. Again, this can be true of many larger breed dogs.

The dogs that I am very careful with are dobermans. Don't trust them one little bit.