The pit bull problem...what people have been battling for years, but yet still don't quite grasp the concept. The problem with pit bulls is not the dogs themselves. They do not teach themselves to attack people, nor do they ask for irresponsible owners who don't socialize or train them. Pit bulls are the "cool" dog to have for people who need an ego boost. This type of people have them for the wrong reasons. They want them as guard dogs or protection dogs - neither of which the pit bull was bred to do. They want the pit bull to be mean & aggressive when approached, which is the exact opposite that a pit bull was created for! Sure, they were created as a fighting breed. But they were created to fight against other dogs, not people. As part of creating the breed, only those dogs showing absolutely NO people aggression were used in breeding programs. No matter how great the dog fought, if it showed any aggression towards a person, it was destroyed - people aggression was absolutely not tolerated. The same dogs in the fighting ring a lot of the time also slept in the beds of their owners children, giving them the nickname of the "nanny dog." 

People nowadays are training their pit bulls to be people aggressive. Something not seen very often in the breed up until the past 20 years. Pit bulls are not natural guard dogs. Most will allow a burglar in their home, love on them, and show them where momma hides her money & jewelry.

The pit bull is a very loyal, obedient, loving breed of dog. They are also extremely athletic and tenacious. Many people take advantage of their positive personality traits and turn them into negative traits. A pit bull will always want to please it's owner. Whether it be through weight pulls, obedience work, therapy work, dog fights or attacks on people - they will always do what they know makes their owners happy, and gets them a "good dog!" Dogs do not have a conscience, they cannot tell right from wrong. Poor breeding practices, as well as training and no socialization create the problem dogs we see today. 

You will never see a pit bull owned by a responsible person cause any harm to anyone. Responsible owners raise their dogs properly, they socialize, train and treat them as family. Responsible owners (other than those who actively show) will have their companion dogs spayed/neutered to stabilize temperaments and not contribute to the overpopulation this breed faces. Responsible owners contain their dogs properly and do not allow them to roam freely. Responsible owners never set their dogs up for failure.

So the next time you hear of a pit bull attack, don't take everything the media tells you to heart. Of course they will tell you "loving family dog attacks..." but what they won't tell you is that dog has lived it's entire life outside on a chain, was never showed how to act around children, was being taunted or tortured by the neighbors kids and finally had enough. Pit bulls are not the only breeds capable of biting a person. All dogs have teeth, and all dogs are capable of inflicting serious wounds. There are MILLIONS of pit bulls living in the USA alone. They are the number one dog to end up in shelters. If all the millions of pit bulls out there were really all bad dogs, do you really think there'd be so many people around to defend them? 

Innocent until proven guilty, or guilty until proven innocent?

Did you know that there's never been a documented lethal attack by a spayed or neutered pit bull?

Did you know that shortly after the pit bull ban in Denver, CO a person was killed by their Alaskan Malamute dog?  

Did you know that pit bulls were banned in Miami-Dade, FL due to pit bull fighting problems in the 80's - NOT because of attacks on people? 

Breed Bans do not solve anything, they are a band-aid for a true problem. Instead of supporting breed bans which only affect responsible owners and their dogs who have done nothing wrong, why not fight for something more important - like stricter laws against dogs with known aggression histories, mandatory spay/neuters for companion animals not actively involved in the show ring a responsible breeding program, or tougher laws against people who are known to have aggressive animals.

My dogs and I have never done anything wrong. We should not suffer due to the ignorance of someone else.