I'll throw in my 2 cents.
First to compare a domesticated animal to a non domesticated exotic is asinine. But anyway
I use to work at a local shelter and I did dog behavior evaluations. That's right, I would go into a small room with a dog I never met and pretty much mess with him. People always asked if I was scared of the pit bulls. I said no way. Pitties tend to wear their emotions on their sleeves. They are wiggly silly pups. There were a couple that were a bit more tense, but I could ALWAYS read a pit bull. In fact the few bites I did get were from small dogs, and the 2 dogs that made my blood run cold were a husky mix and a gold retriever.
Pit bulls are NOT naturally aggressive towards people. Even fighting dogs (which I have dealt with) are not people aggressive. What would be the point of having a fighting dog if you could never handle it? They is a streak of dog aggression, which seemed to be in more pits than most. Not all were dog aggressive but it was seen a lot. Dogs cannot generalize. A dog aggressive dog does not equal a people aggressive dog. period.
These dogs do need a special person for them due to the fact they have A TON of energy and without training lack impulse control. So do most young labs lol.
Most the dogs bite case are horribly skewed and we very rarely get all the facts. All sorts of dogs are IDed as Pit Bull because that's what gets a bigger reaction. The media has destroyed this breed. Couple that with the fact that often these dogs are unaltered and chained up when the bite happens. Take a dog with a ton of energy, low impulse control, then chain him up all day. The risk of a bite increase drastically.
The other problem with the whole thing is many dog owners are clueless when it comes to dog behavior. Even when they watch their kids with a dog they aren't picking up the signs that the dog is uncomfortable and wants the child to go away. To dogs hugging is rude and kissing on the nose is risky at best. I see "cute" pictures on facebook of kids riding dogs, pulling at their ears and faces all the time. Everyone says it's adorable but it's dangerous, many times the dog's face is screaming that he is not comfortable with what is going on.
Pitties make great pets! I will probably never have one because I really don't have the energy for one. But I still love the breed. They are so silly and sweet.
Reply With Quote