Pitbull

Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was first used in 1927. Within the United States the pit bull is usually considered a heterogeneous grouping that includes the breeds American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, American Bully, Staffordshire Bull Terrier and occasionally the American Bulldog, along with any crossbred dog that shares certain physical characteristics with these breeds. In other countries including Britain, the Staffordshire Bull Terrier is not considered a pit bull. Most pit bull-type dogs descend from the British Bull and terrier, a 19th century dog-fighting type developed from crosses between the Old English Bulldog and the Old English Terrier.

Quick Facts Origin …
Pit bull-type dogs have a controversial reputation as pets both in the United States and internationally, due to their history in dog fighting, the number of high-profile attacks documented in the media over decades, and their proclivity to latching on while biting. Proponents of the breed and advocates of regulation have engaged in a nature-versus-nurture debate over whether apparent aggressive tendencies in pit bulls may be appropriately attributed to owners’ care for the dog or inherent qualities. Numerous advocacy organizations have sprung up in defense of the pit bull. A number of controlled studies have argued that the type is not disproportionately dangerous, offering competing interpretations on dog bite statistics. Independent organizations have published statistics based on hospital records showing pit bulls are responsible for more than half of dog bite incidents among all breeds despite comprising 6% of pet dogs.

Pit bull-type dogs are extensively used in the United States for dogfighting, a practice that has continued despite being outlawed. A number of nations and jurisdictions restrict the ownership of pit bull-type dogs through breed-specific legislation.

History

Early 19th century bull and terrier.
It is believed all dogs that are now classified as pit bulls descend from the British bull and terrier, which were first imported into North America in the 1870s. The bull-and-terrier was a type of dog developed in the United Kingdom in the early 19th century for the blood sports of dog fighting and rat baiting, it was created by crossing the ferocious, thickly muscled Old English Bulldog with the agile, lithe, feisty Black and Tan Terrier. The aggressive Old English Bulldog, which was bred for bear and bull baiting, was often also pitted against its own kind in organised dog fights, but it was found that lighter, faster dogs were better suited to dogfighting than the heavier Bulldog. To produce a lighter, faster more agile dog that retained the courage and tenacity of the Bulldog, outcrosses from local terriers were tried, and ultimately found to be successful.

As it was in the United Kingdom, dog fighting became a popular pastime in 19th century America and bull-and-terriers were imported to the New World to pursue the blood sport. In the United States organised dog fights have been progressively outlawed in various states since 1874, culminating in federal legislation criminalising animal fighting in 2007.

In the 1890s breeders of American pit bull-type dogs attempted to have their dogs recognised by the American Kennel Club, but because of the type’s association with dogfighting, the club rejected these entreaties. Following this rejection, in 1898 breeders of American Pit Bull Terriers established a rival kennel club, the United Kennel Club. In addition to being a breed registry, the United Kennel Club also regulated dogfights. In the 1930s the American Kennel Club was faced with a dilemma, whilst not wishing to condone dogfighting there was a desire to recognise a uniquely American dog breed for which over 30 years of breed records existed. The solution was to recognise Pit Bull Terriers under a different name and prohibit these dogs from being used in organised fights and in 1935 the American Kennel Club recognised Pit Bull Terriers as Staffordshire Terriers.

The name “Staffordshire Bull Terrier” was first used in Britain in 1930 in advertisements for bull-and-terrier-type dogs. Organised dog fighting had been effectively eliminated in the United Kingdom by the Protection of Animals Act 1911, but devotees of the bull-and-terrier type continued to breed these dogs, predominantly in England’s Black Country. Throughout the early 1930s attempts were made in England to gain recognition for these dogs with The Kennel Club, these efforts were successful in 1935. In order to avoid confusion with the British breed, in 1972 the American Kennel Club changed the name of their American breed to the American Staffordshire Terrier.

Despite criminalisation, illegal fights using pit bull-type dogs have continued to be widespread in the United States, in the 1990s in that country it was estimated 1,500 dogs died annually in organised fights and by the mid-2000s it was estimated over 40,000 people were involved in the illegal blood sport. Pit bull-type dogs are also used by criminal organisations to guard illegal narcotics, and to intimidate and attack civilians, other criminals and police, the type becoming a status symbol in American gang culture. On the other side of the law, pit bull-type dogs have been used by U.S. Customs and Border Protection as drug detection dogs.

There is a lobby of animal rights groups that are spending millions of dollars to try to “re-brand pit bulls as family dogs.” In efforts to counter negative perceptions about pit bull-type dogs, both the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the New York City Center for Animal Care and Control have unsuccessfully attempted to rename the type.

Identification
Studies have found that when people involved in dog rescue, adoption, and regulation identify the breed of a dog of mixed parentage, this identification did not always correlate with the DNA analysis of that dog. Mixed-breed dogs are often labeled as pit bulls if they have certain physical characteristics, such as a square-shaped head or bulky body type.

Dog attack risk
See also: Dog bite and Fatal dog attacks in the United States

A male pit bull, muzzled

A pit bull with cropped ears
Pit bulls were originally bred for bull baiting and dog fighting, and because of this heritage, they often show a tendency to attack other animals with a remarkable ferocity that contributes to public stigma against the breed. In fighting with dogs of other breeds, pit bulls, German Shepherds, Great Danes and Rottweilers were often the aggressor, and more than twenty percent of studied Akitas, Jack Russell Terriers and pit bulls displayed serious aggression towards other dogs. Although there may be a connection between breed of dog and aggression towards humans, the difficulty of classifying dog attacks by specific breed after the fact has made this point controversial and debated. Violent interactions between humans and canines have been studied by the U.S. government, notably the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as academic veterinary researchers. The interpretation of these studies, breed identification and relevance issues, and variable circumstances have given rise to intense controversy. Additionally, researchers on both sides of the pit bull debate rarely disclose when they are being funded by lobbyists, leading to a risk that the scientific literature on pit bulls has been influenced by money.:p. 1172

A 2020 literature review in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery found that from 1971 to 2018 of all pure breed dogs in the United States, pit bull-type breeds were second, behind the German Shepherd, and ahead of Labradors, Chow Chows, and Rottweilers (in that order) for the most bites severe enough to require hospital treatment. The study found that the proportion of bites caused by German Shepherds decreased by 0.63 percent per year over that time interval while the proportion caused by pit bulls increased by 1.17 percent per year. The pit bull proportion of dog bites increased more slowly in Denver, Colorado, where breed-specific legislation had been in place.

In a 2014 literature review of dog bite studies, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) argues that breed is a poor sole predictor of dog bites. Controlled studies have not identified pit bulls as disproportionately dangerous. Pit bull-type dogs are more frequently identified with cases involving very severe injuries or fatalities than other breeds, but a 2007 study suggested this may relate to the popularity of the breed, noting that sled dogs, such as Siberian Huskies, were involved in a majority of fatal dog attacks in some areas of Canada. Bite statistics by breed are no longer tracked by the CDC, and are discouraged by the AVMA and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

In a 2000 review by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which examines data from both media reports and from the Humane Society of the United States, pit bull-type dogs were identified in approximately one-third of dog bite-related fatalities in the United States between 1981 and 1992. The review notes that studies on dog bite-related fatalities which collect information by surveying news reports are subject to potential errors, as some fatal attacks may not have been reported, a study might not find all relevant news reports, and the dog breed might be misidentified.

Pit bulls are known for their tenacity and refusal to release a bite, even in the face of great pain. A popular myth mischaracterized pit bulls as having “locking jaws.” The refusal to let go is a behavioral, not physiological trait, and there is no locking mechanism in a pit bull’s jaws. Pit bull-type dogs, like other terriers, hunting and bull-baiting breeds, can exhibit a bite, hold, and shake behavior and at times refuse to release. Pit bulls also have wide skulls, well-developed facial muscles, and strong jaws, and some research suggests that pit bull bites are particularly serious because they tend to bite deeply and grind their molars into tissue. Breaking an ammonia ampule and holding it up to the dog’s nose can cause the dog to release its hold.