Are Pit Bulls more dangerous than other breeds?

[Cantelo]

It should go without saying that I mean pit bulls as in the breed and not the rapper

According to Livescience,

A five-year review of dog-bite injuries from the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, published in 2009 in the journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, found that almost 51 percent of the attacks were from pit bulls, almost 9 percent were from Rottweilers and 6 percent were from mixes of those two breeds.

Fans of pit bulls are quick to assert that a dog's propensity for attack depends in large part on its owner and how it is raised, and there's considerable evidence that owners of pit bulls and other high-risk dogs are themselves high-risk people.

A 2006 study from the Journal of Interpersonal Violence revealed that owners of vicious dogs were significantly more likely to have criminal convictions for aggressive crimes, drugs, alcohol, domestic violence, crimes involving children and firearms.

Personally I do find pit bulls to be a breed that seems to attract trashy people, and lots of pit bull owners do unfairly characterize their dogs as teddy bears who would never hurt a fly (in a way I've never seen an owner of any other breed do). Aside from the one source I posted as an example, I've seen loads more that consistently rank Pitbulls (and, distantly, rottweilers and German shepherds) as the breed guilty of the most dog attacks in the US.

What do you guys think?

[Genivaria]

They can be stronger and have a stronger bite then alot of other breeds but the same can be said of other dogs that don't face the same stereotypes.

[Wine-loving Chimps]

Oh, definitely. Have you ever seen how angry bulls get after being stuck in the pits?

But in all seriousness not really. They are certainly more capable of being dangerous, but that doesn't inherently make them more dangerous than other dog breeds.

[Genivaria]

Oh, definitely. Have you ever seen how angry bulls get after being stuck in the pits?

But in all seriousness not really. They are certainly more capable of being dangerous, but that doesn't inherently make them more dangerous than other dog breeds.

The important things to remember is to never startle a dog that doesn't know you, and be cautious when you introduce them to children.
Socializing dogs at an early age is important to curbing their aggressive impulses later on.

[Wickedly evil people]

depends upon their human

[The Black Forrest]

Oh Pit's are the death dog of this era. Previously, Rots, Dobies and German Sheppard's were going to kill everybody.

I have met many who were the nicest dogs. I have met some who where skittish and a few who were mean.

[Neutraligon]

How much of the pitbull bite thing is because they tend to be a more common breed?

[Heloin]

Pit Bulls are a dangerous evil dog to people who'd rather blame a breed and think nothing deeper then that then actually look into any issues surrounding animal welfare.

[Diopolis]

There's no definition of a pit bull, not really.
If you're specifically talking about American Pit Bull Terriers, then the purebreds are no more aggressive than any other breed, although they're more dangerous in a scrap, and they're frequently crossbred with aggressive breeds. But most people when they refer to "pit bulls" have a much broader definition including american bulldogs, mastiff crosses, bull terrier breeds, and crossbreeds with any detectable amount of ancestry from any of the above. This is not a group that is circumscribed well enough to generalize about.
I will further note that there are a lot of dog breeds not particularly well suited to being pets, or which are potentially dangerous(to a greater extent than a typical pit) when kept as urban/suburban pets, which nobody raises a stink about.

How much of the pitbull bite thing is because they tend to be a more common breed?

In my part of the US most people call any large dog that doesn't look like part of another breed a pit bull by default. Probably a large percentage of these pit bull bites are by bog standard mongrels.

[Trollzyn the Infinite]

Yes, but it's not their fault. They've been purebred so much their skulls literally crush their brains so they're in pain all the time and aren't very patient as a result. You'd be pretty mean too if your brain was pressing against your skull 24/7.

Hell, I'm pretty mean already even without my brain pressing against my skull 24/7.

[Ordenstaat Burgundy]

Honestly? It depends on their temperament as well as how they're raised, as well as the environment they are in. I have seen pitbulls who have been fairly docile and good natured, but I have also seen pitbulls who needed to be muzzled at all times. To be blunt, it's not that the pitbulls are dangerous but rather how they are trained/treated by their owner. That's the biggest determinant of whether or not the pitbull will be dangerous or not, at least in my experience.

[Saiwania]

Objectively speaking, the answer is yes. Pit Bulls are bred specifically to maul wild game or worse. Which is why their role is typically only good for security/military roles. It is inherently a vicious dog that most people can't handle but think they can because they don't have a lot of sense.

[Aeritai]

The way I see it Pit Bulls are born good, but depending on the enviroment they are growing up in. Like if the Pit Bull grows up in a abusive home it would most likely be violent towards other humans. Same could be said about a human too, for example a child growing up in a gang infested town is most likely to become a gangster as an adult due to the enviroment they lived in.

[The Lone Alliance]

They're more dangerous because they have people actively breeding them to be dangerous thanks to people like Michael Vick telling everyone that Pit's are the best if you want a dog that will tear other things apart and rip out throats in dog fighting rings.

It's like a self fufilling meme prophecy now.

There's so many pits being bred now because of criminals wanting dog fights that it's causing them to grow in population.

[Klorgia1]

Why is there a "It depends on the individual dog" and No option? Am I missing something?

[Cekoviu]

We had a thread about this pretty recently...

[Diopolis]

Why is there a "It depends on the individual dog" and No option? Am I missing something?

My guess is that "it depends on the owner" and "it depends on the individual's breeding" is the distinction.

[The United Nations Of Europa]

Chihuahuas would be the most dangerous dog breed if they weren't so small

[Jebslund]

and lots of pit bull owners do unfairly characterize their dogs as teddy bears who would never hurt a fly

That would be because a well-trained and well-socialised pit bull, like any other dog, is a teddy bear who would never hurt a fly. It's not unfair, it's the truth. As for pit bull owners doing it more than other breeds, owners of other breeds aren't called upon to defend their choice of animal or, indeed, their pets' right to exist as often as other breeds are. It's like big, scary-looking dudes having to characterise themselves as gentle giants more often than short dudes because they've been treated as ticking timebombs their entire lives.

[Estado Novo Portugues]

When it comes to personality, Pitbulls are a lot like Gaboon vipers. They're both very patient creatures, but push them past their tipping point and you're f---ed.

So why do Pitbulls kill/injure way more people than Gaboons? Other than Pitbulls being more common (I think), many owners also don't take the same safety precautions they would for other dangerous animals. Would you pick up a venomous viper with bare hands, or let children play with it? I hope not. Most Gaboons don't want to kill you, but all of them can kill you, so it's a bad idea to casually handle them like a boa or python. Kept responsibly, these animals can make great pets. But they're not for beginners.

In any case, breed-specific bans are a no from me. There are many pet animals that can do much more harm than a Pitbull, yet I'm sure some of the cities/towns that ban Pitbulls don't ban those exotic species, and that's a double standard. Whatever you do, don't kill them. If you require owners to keep them in a guarded enclosure, like for zoo animals, they won't hurt anybody.

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

My personal experience with pitbulls hasn’t been negative. The ones I’ve encountered have been teddy bears. Incredibly sweet, trusting, playful dogs, but that’s because their owners have raised and trained them like that. Like any dog, without proper socialization, could be dangerous. I’ve seen chihuahuas who are a fright and vicious, and have seen German Shepherds who are of the sweetest disposition.

[Arkhane]

If pitbulls are the size of toy breeds then they wouldn't be considered "inherently dangerous" no matter how many times they pounce and snap on children. Bites and puncture wounds from smaller breeds aren't exactly worthy of hospital visits.

Bigger dogs obviously have a stronger bite, wider jaw and brute strength. As humans, we're not used to being overpowered by our pets, so when small dogs like chihuahuas and pomeranians growl and bite and attempt to hurt us, we go "awww" at how adorable they are trying to act tough instead of recognizing that this is a dangerous behavior that needs to be corrected.

Pit bulls and larger breeds can obviously deliver on their threats and this is where the stigma comes from.

Pitbulls are not violent by nature, but they are large enough to seriously hurt and even kill a person.

That is why we need to raise them properly, not just pitbulls, but all family pets, big or small, that biting people is bad UNLESS they're defending themselves.

[Cantelo]

My personal experience with pitbulls hasn’t been negative. The ones I’ve encountered have been teddy bears. Incredibly sweet, trusting, playful dogs, but that’s because their owners have raised and trained them like that. Like any dog, without proper socialization, could be dangerous. I’ve seen chihuahuas who are a fright and vicious, and have seen German Shepherds who are of the sweetest disposition.

I’ve always thought that the reason tiny dogs are aggressive is because there’s little incentive to train or breed them otherwise. Yapping and, at worse, a potential nibble to the ankles and feet isn’t a huge risk to anyone and doesn’t pose any sort of threat.

Which is why I don’t buy the “if chihuahuas were bigger they’d be the most dangerous dog” talking point because then aggressiveness would’ve been bred out a long time ago, unless the ancient Toltecs wanted a canine version of midget wrestling

[Nanatsu no Tsuki]

My personal experience with pitbulls hasn’t been negative. The ones I’ve encountered have been teddy bears. Incredibly sweet, trusting, playful dogs, but that’s because their owners have raised and trained them like that. Like any dog, without proper socialization, could be dangerous. I’ve seen chihuahuas who are a fright and vicious, and have seen German Shepherds who are of the sweetest disposition.

I’ve always thought that the reason tiny dogs are aggressive is because there’s little incentive to train or breed them otherwise. Yapping and, at worse, a potential nibble to the ankles and feet isn’t a huge risk to anyone and doesn’t pose any sort of threat.

Which is why I don’t buy the “if chihuahuas were bigger they’d be the most dangerous dog” talking point because then aggressiveness would’ve been bred out a long time ago, unless the ancient Toltecs wanted a canine version of midget wrestling

And that’s the problem. My mother used to have mini daschunds. She had them properly socialized and trained, otherwise they could be dangerous as they have more teeth and their bites can be more harmful than that of most small breeds. The same goes for other dog breeds, big or small.

[Estado Novo Portugues]

I still think Pitbulls (as well as other large and powerful breeds) should be regulated more than smaller/weaker dogs.

Simply put, a Pitbull is not a Golden Retriever, in the same way a full-size passenger bus is not a Ford Focus. Much of the skills are the same, but you wouldn't let a freshly licensed teenager drive the bus. Because there's a lot more that can go wrong, with more disastrous consequences. A bite from a Golden Retriever, while painful, is usually not the end of the world—but a Pitbull bite very well could be, because of their bite force and tendency to hold on. I firmly think Pitbulls should be reserved for experienced owners (at least 10 years owning other dogs), at least in populated areas. On a farm in the middle of nowhere, let them own whatever they want.