In a recent article about legislation against Pit Bulls, I ended with a comment on how fear and anger over isolated and heavily reported attacks was resulting in reprehensible actions being taken against Pit Bulls as a breed group, blaming the dog, and not irresponsible dog owners. A common refrain is "get rid of these dangerous dogs", even though breed specific legislation has not resulted in changes promised. Not anywhere..JPG)
After reading an article showcasing a Baltimore group which, like the HSUS's "End Dogfighting in Chicago" organization, is working to help Pit Bulls and the people who care for them, I was compelled to put together the following facts. I hope others will use this information to combat the fear that has perpetuated myths about this breed group. Some may even wish to forward it to local media, city councilmen, senators, and representatives as a fact sheet for their reference. It is sorely needed, providing the truth about the breed group, and another avenue for action.
Here's the fact sheet dispatching the myths about pit bulls from the Animal Farm Foundation:
"Fear:
Pit Bulls have "locking jaws."
Fact:
"We found that the American Pit Bull Terriers did not have any unique mechanism that would allow these dogs to lock their jaws. There were no mechanical or morphological differences . . ."
Dr. I. Lehr Brisbin, University of Georgia
Fear:
Pit Bulls have massive biting power measuring in 1,000s of pounds of pressure per square inch. (PSI)
Fact:
On average, dogs bite with 320 lbs of pressure per square inch. The bite pressure of a German Shepherd, an American Pit Bull Terrier and a Rottweiler were tested. The American Pit Bull Terrier had the least amount of bite pressure of the three dogs tested.
Dr. Brady Barr, National Geographic
Fear:
Family pet pit bulls turn on their owners.
Fact:
No single neutered household pet pit bull has ever killed anyone.
Karen Delise, Founder and Director of Research for the National Canine Research Council, and Author of The Pit Bull Placebo: The Media Myths and Politics of Canine Aggression (Anubis Publishing).
Fear:
Pit Bulls attack without warning.
Fact:
"Pit Bulls signal like other dogs."
The Institute of Animal Welfare and Behavior of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Hannover, Germany temperament tested over 1,000 dogs.
Fear:
Pit Bulls are "ticking time bombs" that turn on their owners.
Fact:
"No single, neutered household pet pit bull has ever killed anyone."
Karen Delise, Founder and Director of Research for the National Canine Research Council, and Author of The Pit Bull Placebo: The Media Myths and Politics of Canine Aggression (Anubis Publishing).
Fear:
While there are some pit bulls with good temperaments, they are the exception not the rule.
Fact:
The American Temperament Test shows pit bulls consistently score above the average for all breeds tested, year in and year out!
The American Temperament Test Society, ATTS
Fear:
Pit Bulls are more dangerous than other dogs.
Fact:
"A dog is only as dangerous as its owner allows it to be."
Diane Jessup, Founder of LawDogsUSA, Author, retired Animal Control Officer."
After all these dogs have endured in the name of fear and greed, it's a good thing to be equipped to spread the truth around.
There's more expert research available, including a link to a pdf book (free) entitled "Pit Bull Placebo, The Media, Myths and Politics of Canine Aggression” from the National Canine Research Council website, on dancingdogblog.
.Photo by Petraits of Lake Shore Animal Shelter's Emmet
Comments
Here`s the actual link to the NCRC
//nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/ncrc-research/
Here`s the direct link to Pit Bull Placebo
//nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/ncrc-publications/
This site is currently being revamped but this is also a great site for fact based info
//www.animalfarmfoundation.org/index.php
And here`s some recent Research on the cost of BSL to Taxpayers
//www.prweb.com/releases/pit_bulls/legislation/prweb2475504.htm
Illinois Info
//nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/in-your-state/illinois/
Keep spreading the truth
Eventually Legislators will stop pandering to the Stupid and start listening to Experts in the field.
I call BS on this pit bull propaganda. Pure garbage.
Well, a captive tiger is only as dangerous as its owner lets it be, too, but that doesn't mean that tigers aren't dangerous if not managed with 100% responsibility. Pit bulls were (and still are) bred for the propensity to attack and kill other dogs without any provocation.
Nearly all pit bull breeders are grossly irresponsible and many of them are still breeding FOR dangerousness. Hence many pit bulls have a genetic predisposition to be dangerous.
Sorry, but the pit bull breeder lobby wants everybdoy to believe that irresponsible dog breeding doesn't have any effect and that is a lie. The cost of allowing pit bull breeders to continue to breed pit bulls in the most grossly irresponsible ways imaginable are the deaths of children, other dogs and lots and lots and lots of pit bulls. And, of course, the reaction to all this carnage is breed bans.
There is a problem with rescued "pit bulls" being placed in family neighborhoods.
The study should compare the pit bull bite to a lab bite, not other dogs that at one time were considered dangerous. The number one family dog is the lab.
Pit bulls are the number one dog awaiting adoption, dogs with questionable pasts should not be place in family neighborhoods, period. You are wrong to spin your questions. Every agency placing pit bulls state the pit bull needs a special handler, and they do.
Go to any large urban shelter and look at all the pit bulls waiting to die on death row. Remember, virtually all of these dogs had irresponsible breeders, many of whom bred the dogs specifically for dangerousness to other dogs, to humans or to both.
Pit bull breeders want to pretend that all this irresponsible pit bull breeding has no victims. Of course, pit bulls themselves are the most numerous victims, but the other victims are other dogs and children.
It is a breed specific problem and demands breed specific solutions. Anybody who looks at a shelter population that is 50%, 60% or 70% pit bulls honestly can't deny that.
Very insightful.
You have obviously done your research for this article.
The ATTS test is a ridiculous measure of breed safety for a number of reasons. It is totally misleading and dishonest to tout ATTS results as proof of breed temperament stablility. First of all, people whose pit bulls will bite without provocation aren't paying $40 to take the ATTS test. But much more basically, the test is not a test of good companion dog temperament. It was developed to test for aptitude for "bitework" sports, like schutzhund and thus heavily rewards boldness and faults timidity. Dogs are tested on such things as reactions to gunshots and whether they approach an umbrella opened in their face. Pit bulls DO tend to be bold, so they do okay on this test. More timid breeds, such as shelties, do horribly on the ATTS test.
How many shelties have killed children in this country? (answer: none). How many pit bulls have? (answer: lots).
Re the "cost of BSL to Taxpayers," how much does it cost taxpayers to pay for the rehabilitation of a single child seriously mauled by a pit bull? (If you even want to argue that "cost to taxpayers" is the main issue when it comes to protecting children--and I doubt you want to go there).
Is the current system (where pit bulls glut shelters, and every single one of those pit bulls had to be caught, cared for and killed by employees paid by the taxpayers) free for taxpayers?
look. i've read a few of ur post and it makes me sick. my dog has never offered to bite anyone unless he was provoked. he is in a house now with a yorkie a poodle and two small children (1 and 3). when the girls are sleepin he goes in their room and checks on them. if one of them is sleepin on the couch he'll crawl up there and sleep next to them. he lays on the couch while they smack him and pulll his ears and tail. the yorkie and poodle have snapped at my dog and he walks away. the small dogs nip and the babies and cause a bigger worry of them gettin bit than my 90 lb AMERICAN PIT BULL TERREIR!!! so like i said u make me sick. it's people like u that cause the death of good dogs. get alife and try protestin against something that actually makes a difference..... like sex offenders or kidnappings. not dogs that are lovin and caring.
I see the "research" on the cost of BSL. Ask them to see the entire report instead of taking bits and pieces from it. And the report was done by the same group that does reports for the tobacco companies against smoking bans. In other words, they write what they are paid to write. And the "National Canine Research Council" is one person, a self published author, who is doing nothing more than selling her books with this garbage. www.DogsBite.org has several studies done by universities and noted researchers that contradict what is posted here and most of the comments. Stop looking for that which proves your argument and look for the truth about these dogs. A recent study by DogsBite, using easily verifible sources, shows that pit/pit type dogs are killing a person every 21 days in this country. How can people continue to deny the truth? That denial will lead to all out bans, is that what you want?
After everyone has a peek at dogsbite have a look at the comment left by Canine Fatality Investigator Jim Crosby on this blog entry below
"When a quest for vengeance becomes dangerous"
//btoellner.typepad.com/kcdogblog/2008/09/dogsbiteorg----when-a-quest-for-vengeance-becomes-dangerous.html
A snippet
[quote]... The author is not remotely interested in accuracy-I have sent several comments correcting 'facts' from having been on scene-and they never appear....Dogbites is nothing more than a hate fueled site with a clear agenda to warp the truth and destroy a breed of dog based on the authors personal feelings. [/quote]
Good article, Mary. Thanks. Also, Karen Delise has gratiously put "The Pit Bull Placebo" up for free download in its entirety. Check it out at:
//nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/ncrc-publications/
"dogcentric says:
The ATTS test is a ridiculous measure of breed safety for a number of reasons. It is totally misleading and dishonest to tout ATTS results as proof of breed temperament stablility. First of all, people whose pit bulls will bite without provocation aren't paying $40 to take the ATTS test."
uhh...do you think other dog breed owners are paying $40 for dogs that do bite and that's why they are scoring lower than Pit breeds? That's really dumb, of course they're not either. Regardless, these are owners that care enough to see how 'their dog' measures up, the results are the results.
I am not affiliated with (or even particularly partial to) the Dogsbite website. I am interested in the truth about dog attacks. If Mr. Crosby or Karen Delise has actual facts that dispute facts on Dogsbite, why aren't they telling us about them? I'd like to see them. That is, if they have evidence that dog breed misidentification in dog bite related fatalities is rampant (and to make pit bulls not a problem it would have to be very rampant, indeed), why not post pictures of the dogs involved?
Ms. Delise has TWO examples of claimed misidentified breeds in "The Pit Bull Placebo." (Hardly enough to skew the very grim statistics) Both were multi-dog attacks and she doesn't show us all the dogs involved. (In one of the cases, the other dog involved looked quite a bit like the pit bull it was identified as by the media, but Ms. Delise only publishes the picture of the dog that doesn't look like a pit bull and neglects to show us the other one for some reason).
lolinaz,
Of course, owners of shelties who will outright bite evaluators aren't paying $40 to take the ATTS test either, and virtually no shelties OR pit bulls fail the "reaction to a friendly stranger" portion of the ATTS test. (I am an AKC Canine Good Citizen evaluator and I have NEVER failed a single dog on the equivalent portion of the AKC CGC test--every dog who takes the test passes that station and I would be shocked to see one who couldn't).
Dogs do fail the CGC (not many, but some)of course. The ones who fail, typically fail because of TIMIDITY, not aggression. That is, they don't recover quickly after hearing gunshots, or they won't walk across the x-pen on the ground or (frequently) they shy away from the umbrella suddenly opened in their face and don't go up and touch it with their nose.
Pit bulls do not tend to be timid, (remember what they were bred to do) hence, they do reasonably well on a test that rewards boldness.
An interesting aspect of the ATTS test (and one that favors pit bulls) is that it doesn't even purport to test for dangerousness to other dogs. A pit bull can have the huge temperament flaw of high levels of dog aggression and still pass the ATTS with flying colors.
Why aren`t you simply directing your queries to Karen Delise
and Jim Crosby?
They`re easy to find.
Here`s Karen Delise`s contact Info
//nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/about-ncrc/
Here`s Jim Crosby`s contact Info
//www.canineaggression.org/
I`m sure they`d be willing to respond.
The "very grim statistics"??
If that refers to the number of Canine fatalities per year by any or all dogs,it is an absurd statement considering there are ~75 million dogs.
Even if you took a high average of 30 fatalities by all dogs,that means 99.99996% of all dogs will never kill.
That`s hardly "a grim" statistic.
That`s an incredible statistic considering all the human/canine interactions.
That`s why they make great companions.
The benefits far outweigh any risk.
That doesn`t mean that each and ever fatality isn`t tragic.
I take it you`re referring to Fatalities because there is NO National Bite Registry.
Fatal Bite #`s fluctuate
//nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/dog-b
Wrong link posted
Fatal bite #`s fluctuate
//nationalcanineresearchcouncil.com/dog-bites/types-of-dog-bites/
I actually did ask these questions of Ms. Delise. She didn't answer them, and left the discussion. I also asked her about her practice of using "case studies" to spin the pit bull issue. For example, she lists the autopsy results from ten cherry picked fatal dog attacks (only one of which was a pit bull). Because all the injuries are horrific (these are AUTOPSY resports, by definition the injuries will be fatal), she implies that this proves that pit bulls aren't more dangerous than other breeds.
Of course, you could use the same technique and list autopsy results from fatal volvo accidents and include one motorcycle fatality, and "prove" that volvos are just as dangerous as motorcycles. It would be a lie, but using Delise Logic, it would prove the point.
I also asked Ms. Delise about the picture of the dog she identifies as a "labrador" involved in a fatal attack on page 160 of "The Pitbull Placebo." The dog pictured is not a labrador. She claimed that the fact that the dog clearly has a black mask (and markings consistent with being a german shepherd mix) is just a trick of lighting and said that she has other pictures that make the dog look more like a labrador. I asked her why, if she had pictures that look like the dog, she chose to use a picture that she claims misrepresents what the dog actually looks like in her book? Why use a picture at all if you aren't going to use an accurate picture?
Of course, if Dogsbite or "the media" misidentifies even a single dog as a pit bull who isn't one, Ms. Delise claims that is rock solid evidence of a vast media conspiracy against pit bulls. So what is it when she misidentifies a dog as a "labrador" when it isn't one?
Re the idea that most dogs (including most pit bulls) will never kill people, so what? If we can think of ways to save the lives of even ONE child by regulating pit bull breeding, shouldn't we do it? This is particularly true if it can be done without even seriously inconveniencing a single responsible pit bull owner or breeder.
One law that accomplishes that is breed specific mandatory microchipping of all pit bulls and pit bull mixes and mandatory spay/neuter of all pit bulls and pit bull mixes except AKC and UKC-PR registered show dogs. This would make pit bulls rare (which, as dogs bred to kill other dogs, they should be) and would allow every responsible owner to keep his/her pit bull.
It would save some children's lives while also alleviating HUGE amounts of pit bull suffering. It is a win for everybody.
I have worked with pitbulls, and know of many who do. The only time I have seen one act up, was when he was caged, in boarding, next to an unuetered caso dogo, but he was still a big baby, just wanted to show he was not afraid. The only mean one I have seen, was a mix that was trained by the owners as an attack dog, but when a woman who ran a dog rescue walked right up to him, he whined and sat down. People are the problem, uneducated humans who train them that way to show off. The dog pays the price of being loyal to his owner
I have seen other breeds with a bad rap that were excellent family pets, and where arouind young children and infants. Those same dogs were talked down by vets! as being mean and never to be trusted around children! Look at Petey from the Little Rascals series, he was a pit and was with small children every day. Pure APBTS do not attack unprovoked, the backyard bred mixes are usually trained to be agrressive, and are not naturally.
I have heard and saw pictures of so called pure APBTS bred by a certain kennel. They were later fined as mixing APBTS with bulldogs and such to give them that stocky, gruff look. As far as I know, that kennel is actually still around! Helping to give purebred pits a bad name! Places like those should be shut down and the liscense taken away. Many breeders also mix them with other breeds and advertise them as pure. Unknowing people actually pay for them like that because they want to abuse them and own a tough looking dog.
Every few years people find another breed to damage. Remember the bad news about Dobermanns, Rottwielers, German Shepards--all proven loyal and good family pets when treated with love.
Talk about spin.
Enjoy yourself
Mary, could you follow up with an article titled "The truth about pit bull victims"?
Perhaps you could find inspiration in any of the 360 videos I've uploaded to Youtube? May I recommend little Charlotte Blevins as your first report?
Who "fines" irresponsible pit bull breeders, Fran? The reality is that it is perfectly legal to explicitly breed pit bulls FOR dangerousness (either to other dogs, people or both) and plenty of pit bull breeders do just that. Hence the breed specific problems that pit bulls have and cause.
The notion that pit bulls are just like dobermans of the 1970s is one that pit bull people love to spread, but it is false. Dobermans killed a total of 13 people in the 35 years between 1965 and 2001. Pit bulls killed 21 people in 2007 alone. Pit bulls are far, far more dangerous than dobermans ever were.
It is just silly for Fran to say "pure APBTs do not attack unprovoked." What are pit bulls BRED to do, Fran? The "sport" of dog fighting is all about racing across a pit, attacking another dog with no provocation whatsoever, and continuing the attack until the other dog is dead.
Pit bulls, whether a mix or not should not be living in family neighborhoods, especially when the dog has an unknown blood line.
To the contributor who stated she has never met an unfriendly pit bull, she is fortunate, Agencies placing pit bulls, state pit bulls need special handlers. There must be a reason why this is true.
The pit bull who attacked Maxx lived in our neighborhood for one week.
The attack was unprovoked. myspace.com/maxxthreelegs.
Pit bull lovers need to take responsibility for the breed, too many lives have been shattered by this breed.
Set your Google alert to "Dog Attacks". The majority of the attacks are by pit bulls, followed by breeds that were considered dangerous in the past.
How many lives will be shattered by this breed?
Just go to Google News and search for Pit Bull.
End of argument.
My Silkie Terrier and Cocker Spaniel are many times more likely to bite you than than any Pitbull I've known.. (That's not normally reported however)
There is no significant predictive element based on breed, if there was, you would still have to isolate for what kind of owner they have. If you eliminate Pibulls out of fear, these bad owners will go out and get a Rottweiler, or a Mastiff, then you will you want to eliminate those breeds too.
It's scary to me that people have bought into the stereo type, media driven images of pit bulls being a problem. I had a Pitbull in my family for over 10 years, she was gorgeous smart, sensitive and a loving pet. I have rescued and placed many of them in responsible homes. They are GREAT dogs. Any dog is capable of biting, if the owner is not in control of ANY dog. The vast majority of pitbulls are good citizens. That's the truth. Thanks Mary.
Ridiculous to compare bites of other smaller breeds to a pit bull bite. The problem is pit bull owners/lovers will not admit there is a problem. So they are actually the ones hurting the reputation of the breed.
Determine where the problem is, fix it and let those pit bulls who have a chance in society survive. The actual pit bull owner/lover, is the one making the all or none decisions.
That is the truth. Elimination of anything is not the right answer.
"If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who deal likewise with their fellow men." -St. Francis of Assisi
Elizabeth,
Sorry, but every dog trainer knows that breed is a very significant element in predicting whether dogs will bite. Even if they didn't Gershman, Sacks et al. did a carefully controlled study entitled "Which Dogs Bite--A Case Control Study" that determined that BREED was one of the most predictive factors as to whether dogs bit children.
Hi Fran;
Great article. I see the dogsBite people are here in full swing giving you the gears about the TRUTH of your article.
I have dealt with dogcentric a NUMBER of times and no matter what FACTS are given they are NEVER accepted or acknowledged. While dogsBite "says" it is a victim group it's real agenda is to promote BSL everywhere. They could care less about the tens and tens of thousands of responsible dog owners. They do not want the bad owners to pay they want EVERYONE to pay for the few.
As much info as you give these haters they will put everything down, dispute it and go on spreading their fear and hatred.
Don't waste your good time trying to reason with them unless you have ALLOT of time to WASTE. Trust me, these dogsbite people cannot be reasoned with. I know, I have tried and tried and tried and tried and tried and tired and tried and tried.
Keep up the good work and continue to get the truth out there.
Fayclis,
Like so many pit bull owners/lovers you are not willing to listen. There is a problem. Help to solve the problem. I, as so many others, do not have a BSL agenda. I do believe rescued pit bulls do not belong in family neighborhoods. Gladly I will debate this issue with any pit bull owner/lover. The debate will be fact based. Period. Dogs are being placed in family neighborhoods when in fact they should live in a place away from the public. This is fact.
God Bless
Fayclis suggests that the solution is to make "bad" pit bull owners pay after their dogs kill or maul a child. Who do they "pay" if the child is dead? Of course, maybe the child is lucky and only maimed and crippled or disfigured for life. Under current law, the pit bull owner is virtually always liable for huge civil damages. This hasn't prevented pit bull maulings from proliferating. Under current Texas law, the pit bull owner is potentially chargable with a FELONY. This didn't prevent two pit bulls from killing children in Texas this year in April alone.
The truth is that that punishing owners after the fact may make Fayclis feel good, but it does NOTHING to prevent future attacks. Almost no pit bull owner thinks that their dog is going to kill a child. If they did think that, they would all have prevented it. They are as stunned as everybody else when it happens.
Note: Another child, this one ten years old, was killed by pit bulls yesterday. Again, it was in Texas, which has what are probably the toughest criminal sanctions for owners of dogs who attack in the entire country ("Lillian's Law").
So much for Fayclis's theory that the solution to dangerous dog attacks is just to make owners "pay."
Why quote from Jim Crosby? This is still in Google cache although he removed it from his web site.
Investigating Serious and Fatal Dog Attacks:
A Suggested Protocol, by James W. Crosby
"Enter now the Pit Bull, and other breeds speci?cally selected by Man to ?ght each other. These animals have several concerning behavioral difference from most other canines. When they ?ght, human intervention has selected for animals that do not turn off, and do not stop ?ghting until one, or both, are dead. There is no surrender for these animals. A fully submissive body posture is no more than another opportunity for them to disembowel their adversary.
As a corollary to this, these dogs seem to have a shorter negotiation sequence. Many times we hear of a Pit Bull or similar dog that “…just went off…”
"...These dogs already have a propensity for tenacity and continued aggression based on years of selective breeding.
He realized his mistake and took it off. Thank you Google cache.
And then the "National Canine Research Council" a big name for a little person who only wants to sell her self published books. No one would listen to her under her own name so she made up a name to mislead people. Ask for the raw data behind the conclusions, you won't be able to get it. She claims it is too much for her web site. Sorry, but www.DogsBite.org manages to put theirs on the web for all to see and decide for themselves. But not the NCRC, they don't want you to see the truth of what these dogs are doing to people daily.
How did she miss this attack from a neutered pit?
From hamptonroads.com
The dog was surrendered to animal control officers and euthanized, Lee said. The dog, a neutered male not quite 2 years old, will be tested for rabies. However, the dog's rabies vaccination was current and the dog had no previous history with Animal Services, the police news release said.
And she missed this attack by a neutered pit:
From the Chicago Tribune
What they didn't know, what Nick didn't know, was that Petey was developing a temper as he grew. He was barking and snapping at strangers, behavior that continued even after he was neutered.
How many more has she failed to report if she didn't see these two? Can't put much credence in what NCRC says when they "miss" stories that don't back up what they say. Makes you wonder what their agenda really is.
I'm just writing this to say that, contrary to what some posts below have said, Karen Delise of the National Canine Research Council has always provided meticulous documentation from court records, necropsy reports and other official documents to all who ask.
hey "not a fan" read what you type before you comment. the fact was that it has never KILLED anyone. it said nothing about them ever attacking anyone. and if your "not a fan" then get off the website
Mary, I just want to say thank you for collecting and publishing this information. Forgot for a second that we're talking about pit bulls. The truth is any of these myths could have applied to any breed, same as any dog can bite, fight, or look menacing.
If you're looking for any further resources, the group I'm involved with includes several on their website: http://love-a-bull.org.
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