10 Unbiased Truth About Pit Bulls: A Comprehensive and In-Depth Exploration of the Breed

October 9, 2023October 27, 2024 by Molly

Pit bulls are highly energetic and powerful breed of dog. They are more famous than other dogs for their active and playful characteristic.

The primary purpose behind breeding these dogs were to use them in fighting and working. Due to their strong muscular build, people often think that they become violent against anyone. But this is a quite unbiased truth about Pit bulls.

Proper training and domestication can always keep a Pit bull friendly with its human companion.

History – Unbiased Truth About Pit Bulls

Pit bulls were first bred from Old English Bulldogs that were famous for bull-baiting. During 1835, people started to use them in pitting against the rats which was known as ratting. The word “Pit” of pit bulls came from this.

The first Pit bull was named as Pit Bull Terrier as it came from the cross between Bulldogs and Terriers.

Immigrants from the British Isles arrived in the United States just before the civil war. Their Pit bulls also came along with them. The “American” Pit Bull Terrier was the name given to the Pit Bull Terrier breed at this period.

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Historical uses of pit bulls

Primarily people of England use Pit bull as a fighting dog in bull-baiting and ratting. Despite these, there rose some other uses of Pit bulls in late 1800’s –

They were used for guarding livestock animal and herding cattle and sheep.
People start to use them for guarding their house against thieves and wild animal.
During hunt, they were used as hog catcher.
Their loyal nature leads them to be used as “nanny dog” also.
Sergeant Stubby, one of the famous Pit bull dogs, served the US army during 1^st world war as a front-line war dog.
They were also used in the advertisement as a sign of their bravery, loyalty and hardworking nature.
Petey, a cute ring-eyed Pit bull, was used in famous television show Little Rascals.
Slowly, general public as well as scholars and celebrities (like- Theodore Roosevelt, Helen Keller, Thomas Edison) started to keep a Pit bull as their pet.

Evolution of the breed

After the ban of bull-baiting and ratting, people started gambling over underground dog-fighting which was quite easier than fighting with a bull or bear.

In this gambling show, they found out the strength of Bulldogs and the agility of Terriers. So, they wanted to create a supreme dog breeding these two. That’s how, the first breed of Pit bull was developed, naming “Pit Bull Terrier”.

Before 2000, Doberman and Rod Wilder were ranked as the supreme breed. But since 2000, Pit bulls have grabbed the position.

Pitbull Breed — Bull Dog + Terrier Dog = Pit Bull

Popularity and Stereotypes

Pit bull’s popularity and stereotype are two related factors that represent public’s perception about them. Here are some brief discussions on these two factors –

Popularity:

Loyalty – Pit bulls are famous for this quality which turns them into a pet of people.

Bravery – Their bravery had been used a weapon against the enemies during the 1^st world war.

Friendly – Human loves to domesticate them as they are quite affectionate and friendly in nature, especially to the children.

Stereotypes

Aggression – The strength and muscle power are thought to be the aggressive nature of Pit bulls which led their use in fighting.

Negligence – If you don’t put effort to make your Pit bull social, calm and well-mannered, it might cost you to domesticate a powerful one.

Media portrayal – Some media tried earlier to pose a negative impact on Pit bulls only showing their vicious side. Some good approaches were also taken to turn back the friendly image of Pit bull by rehabilitating them properly.

Legislative issues – As Pit bulls have become a hot topic for long time, breeding specific legislation (BSL) had banned the breeding of certain types of dogs in different states.

10 Unbiased Truth About Pit Bulls

Surely, you have understood till now that there is a lot of controversies regarding Pit bulls. But now we will know 5 unbiased truths about Pit bulls –

1. Versatility:

Competitive obedience, agility, weight pulling, hunting, carting and tracking are some of the well-known skills of Pit bulls.

2. Maintenance:

To keep it clean, no trimming is required except bathing routinely. But the cost of their medication is a little bit high which has ranked them as no. 19^th in the highest medical cost bearing animal.

3. Easy to train:

Due to their minimal size (17 to 22 inches tall), they are easy to handle. Their obedience has made them easier to train using fewer commands.

4. Price:

They cost less than other breeds. On an average, $600 is needed to adopt a puppy of Pit bull.

5. Allergenic:

It might cause sneezing to its owner as they’re not hypoallergenic.

6. Dental health:

They possess strong dental health than other dogs.

7. Human Fatalities from Pit Bulls:

Despite of having friendly nature, there are some human fatalities caused by Pit bulls which can’t be ignored. Like –

Two study done between 2009-2015 and 2005-2019 have concluded that Pit bulls were responsible for 51% cases of kids being dog bitten in Philadelphia and 66% American deaths respectively.
Among the dog bites, 22.5% has occurred by Pit bulls which ranked them second among the biting dogs.

8. Temperament of Pit Bulls

Common misconceptions about pit bull temperament: It is natural that all dog bites and especially when they are provoked. Unfortunately, Pit bulls were always portrayed as the most vicious in this case which is not at all an unbiased truth about Pit bulls.

Like- An incident in 2007 showed 4 dog bites happened in 4 days and one bite was done by Pit bull. But 230 news agencies of different national and international agencies only covered this one bite incident.

Factors that influence pit bull temperament: There are some crucial factors that can influence the temperament of your Pit bulls –

Environment
Medical treatment
Genetic background
Training and domestication

Positive and negative traits of pit bulls: You can know about some unbiased truths about Pit bulls through this table that represents their positive and negative traits –

Positive trait	Obedient Friendly Energetic Intelligent
Negative trait	Stubborn Unpredictable Prone to leg injuries Destructive chewing

9. Pit Bulls Behavior and Aggression:

Most of the animals are wild in nature. But proper training can turn their aggressiveness into friendliness.

Factors that Affect Aggressive Behavior: There are some critical factors that affect the aggressive behavior of Pit bulls –

Genetic factors
Improper training and socialization
Unstable environment
Physical issues

Pit Bulls and Aggression Towards Other Animals: All Pit bulls are not aggressive towards other animals. Domesticated ones are never aggressive at all.

Their ferociousness came from the suffering behind the cage which is not natural and common for all Pit bulls.

10. Early Socialization and Training:

As Pit bulls are quite intelligent, they are always eager to learn. So, do train your dog as early as possible to make them more social.

Do some sporting, keep them under your control and expose them to other animals and children. Don’t keep them in cage always. Most importantly, never provoke them.