Why do people get pit bulls?

It's a thinly veiled attempt to assert themselves as the alpha dog.

You see, people go around and see a stud muffin like me, and feel inferior. So they think by getting a macho dog, and being lord over that macho dog, they become the defacto alpha-dog, and hence not put themselves at a distinct disadvantage when compared to naturals like me.

And it's not just 2" running shorts, bub.

Oof, I really hope this is just bait. As someone from the Newport Beach area with my pit bull laying next to me right now, I think you should look into why you think this way and consider if maybe it's not the pit bulls you're irrationally afraid of

Pit bulls are awesome.

With the right owner and the right training, they are wonderful pets.

While jogging various parks/open areas, I've never been intimidated by a pit bull or their owner. One of two things are always the case: either the dog is on a short leash with an attentive in-control walker or the dog is completely off-leash and walking directly behind the owner and doesn't even look up (a perfectly trained dog).

The dogs that I do have trouble with/intimidated by are the off-leash, "my dog can do no harm" Golden Retrievers/Labradors/Border Collies/small-dogs that run towards me barking and grueling while the owner shouts some combinations of "come back Lassie" and "don't worry he's friendly". I have been known to kick, throw rocks at, and/or hit with sticks, dogs that approach me in this manner. Then when the owner gets upset, I cuss them out for not having the dog on a leash and not being in control of their pet.

People with larger/stronger/intimidating dogs tend to have them better trained or in 100% short-leash control. People with smaller/weaker dogs tend to have a "let them run free" attitude and those dogs are rarely trained at all (but they still bite).

German Shepherds are another good example of a large/strong/intimidating dog that I frequently see in one of two states: 1. short leashed, perfectly in step with owner or 2. off-leash, following owner, perfectly trained.

Poor (dumb) people with large dogs are going to do stupid things - by definition, a lot of what they do in life is dumb/stupid - that's why they are poor. Dogs, cars, finance decision, substance abuse - don't blame everyone for the acts of the lower end of society.

Pitbulls were bred for dog-fighting, and because of that they tend to make horrible, aggressive pets. They are also subject to horrible, unethical breeding practices such as overbreeding and breeding with no regard to health or temperament. Put all these factors together, and you get breeds of dogs that are WAY overrepresented in animal shelters (look on sites like Petfinder and you will see pages and pages of pitbulls). In an effort to get these dogs out of the shelter, no-kill animal shelters and animal-rights advocacy groups have coordinated a propaganda campaign in order to change the public perception that pitbulls are no more dangerous than other dogs (even though statistics and genetics flat-out disagree). You have probably heard phrases like "nanny dog," "blame the deed not the breed," or "no bad dogs, only bad owners," especially after a pitbull makes the news for killing someone. I understand that not all pitbulls are aggressive, I know several pitbulls that I trust and will have my dogs around, but I also understand that not all are like that so I just tend to avoid them to keep myself and my dogs safe. This only adds to the distorted view of pitbulls as safe dogs - you hear anecdotal evidence from owners of people who have met nice pits who believe that because their experience with pitbulls has been positive, the only reason a pitbull would act aggressive is due to poor ownership (i.e. lack of training or abuse).

Because of their original function as fighting dogs, traits such as heightened prey-drive and fight-or-flight instincts have been selected when breeding pitbulls, and those instincts don't just go away with training, if anything they can only be managed (which most people are not knowledgeable or responsible enough to do).

As to why people want to own these dogs, well, I think it's different for every person but I would say the most common reasons are a desire for insecure people to project how much of a badass they are (look at me! I can control this wild animal, don't f*ck with me); a desire to rescue the poor, oppressed doggy and just plain ignorance about the breed and dogs in general.

seattle prattle wrote:

It's a thinly veiled attempt to assert themselves as the alpha dog.

You see, people go around and see a stud muffin like me, and feel inferior. So they think by getting a macho dog, and being lord over that macho dog, they become the defacto alpha-dog, and hence not put themselves at a distinct disadvantage when compared to naturals like me.

And it's not just 2" running shorts, bub.

You are in the highest two decades of intelligence. Wish we had more of your type around. Nope, the world is polluted with idiots of low intelligence who all think theyre actually smart.

Deciles, not decades.

Watch the video of the Mexican cartel having their pit bulls rip the genitals off that guy and you'll understand.

steve. the. addict... wrote:

seattle prattle wrote:

It's a thinly veiled attempt to assert themselves as the alpha dog.

You see, people go around and see a stud muffin like me, and feel inferior. So they think by getting a macho dog, and being lord over that macho dog, they become the defacto alpha-dog, and hence not put themselves at a distinct disadvantage when compared to naturals like me.

And it's not just 2" running shorts, bub.

You are in the highest two decades of intelligence. Wish we had more of your type around. Nope, the world is polluted with idiots of low intelligence who all think theyre actually smart.

Hey, got to be able to laugh at ourselves, right?

FWIW, i use to work with a guy years ago who had a pitbull or two and he showed me how they are really beautiful creatures and very attached to their owners. I'm not so sure that extends to other dogs, but they were really sweet with their own people.

I suspect if you come across some mean ones, it may have more to do with how they were trained than about the dog itself.

I get why people want true protection dogs (Shepherds, Rotties, Dobermans, Mastiffs) but I cannot understand why people want Pits. The breeds I have listed are much more trainable, and tend to (with the right breeding) have more stabled temperaments that don't allow them to completely fly off the handle whenever they perceive a threat. If you say that you want a protection dog, there are much better dogs to pick from. If you just want a sweet companion dog, there are much better dogs to pick from that don't come with the risk and baggage of a Pitbull. If you just want a Pit because you think they look cute, then you probably shouldn't own a dog because buying dogs based on appearance alone is always a bad idea.

Let it Rupp wrote:

Pitbulls were bred for dog-fighting, and because of that they tend to make horrible, aggressive pets. They are also subject to horrible, unethical breeding practices such as overbreeding and breeding with no regard to health or temperament. Put all these factors together, and you get breeds of dogs that are WAY overrepresented in animal shelters (look on sites like Petfinder and you will see pages and pages of pitbulls). In an effort to get these dogs out of the shelter, no-kill animal shelters and animal-rights advocacy groups have coordinated a propaganda campaign in order to change the public perception that pitbulls are no more dangerous than other dogs (even though statistics and genetics flat-out disagree).

I'll be sure to tell my extended family and in-laws that all the cuddly, docile pitbulls they've had over the years are actually horrible and aggressive. They'll probably be surprised, but they'll come around when they read your comment.

Pit Bulls need to not exist. They are the Cartel of dogs, and they want to kill even if you're not trying to rip them off.

krispy kremlin._._._._. wrote:

Poor (dumb) people with large dogs are going to do stupid things - by definition, a lot of what they do in life is dumb/stupid - that's why they are poor. Dogs, cars, finance decision, substance abuse - don't blame everyone for the acts of the lower end of society.

White racist BS at it's best.

seattle prattle wrote:

steve. the. addict... wrote:

You are in the highest two decades of intelligence. Wish we had more of your type around. Nope, the world is polluted with idiots of low intelligence who all think theyre actually smart.

Hey, got to be able to laugh at ourselves, right?

FWIW, i use to work with a guy years ago who had a pitbull or two and he showed me how they are really beautiful creatures and very attached to their owners. I'm not so sure that extends to other dogs, but they were really sweet with their own people.

I suspect if you come across some mean ones, it may have more to do with how they were trained than about the dog itself.

I don't mean to be a d*ck but this just isn't true. Pitbulls were, and still are, bred for dogfighting - that is why they are aggressive. There is a reason pitbulls are the fighting dog of choice today, and not Labradors or even German Shepherds and it is purely their genetics. That "meanness" is not trained, it's with them at birth.

The reason your friend had a good experience with his pitbulls is not because of his superior handling skill (not to say that he was a bad owner), it was pure luck that he happened to get pits that did exhibit the traits of a fighting dog.

The science supports this as well. A 2019 Harvard study that scanned the brains of different dogs showed that "fighting breed" dogs were correlated with much higher activity in the brain regions responsible for "fight or flight" compared to other dogs.

Good for your family that they were lucky their pitbulls were fine. I'll be sure to tell my dogs that the horrible aggressive pitbulls that attacked them over the years are actually cuddly and docile. Your anecdotal evidence doesn't disprove anything. I even said that I know not all Pitbulls are aggressive, but that doesn't change the fact that a significant amount of them are (hence the reputation). That also doesn't change the fact that pitbulls are overrepresented in dog-on-human deaths, and kill more people than all other breeds combined.

You're ignorant. Pitties are wonderful family pets.

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=pitt+bulls+youtube

Had a part pit bull. Great dog, and not a violent bone in his body. Used to let the cat beat him up. I think it's how you raise them.

Owning a pet is the equivalent of modern day slavery.

All dogs are annoying yapping ankle-biting crap-machines, but only pit bulls seem to maim and kill children on a regular basis.

malmo wrote:

You're ignorant. Pitties are wonderful family pets.

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=pitt+bulls+youtube