I'm a dog trainer and I work for a company that trains Police dogs and also works with aggressive pets. Pit bulls are fabulous dogs...if you know how to handle a working breed. There are exceptions to any stereotype, but I'm not talking about those dogs.

The fact is that they are a breed not everyone should own. They are high drive (prey drive, the desire to chase, catch, and kill), extremely intelligent, pain tolerant, and highly trainable. This is an absolutely to die for combination if you are looking at police or military dogs, but with the stigma the breed has collected due to poor owners and people breeding fighting dogs, we can't use them.

Take away all that bad 'mojo' and quite honestly, they would be the only breed I'd probably own. However, they are not suitable for most people, and as with ANY dog, I'd never leave them alone with a child. People are not educated in a way which makes them understand dog behavior, hence the reason people insist "the dog just turned one day" and the pit usually does alot of damage.

Most people pretty much let their dogs do whatever they want and as the dog matures, it takes over the leadership position. The pup that would let your child crawl all over it, is much less likely to tolerate the behavior (particularly from a child, which the dog percieves as the lowest on the totem pole) as a mature adult.

I have worked with dozens of pits, and never been bitten...but I also know how to read them. The most notoriously aggressive breeds I've worked with have been Chows (and chow mixes), Shar-peis, and cocker spaniels (although this is generally fear based biting). Most small dogs are quicker to bite than large dogs. The only large dogs I've ever been bitten by have been mixed breeds. I get bitten about once out of every 200 dogs I work with, and the most recent was a Great Pyrenees/Malamute mix.

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