Assessing the Risk a Breed Poses

Rarely if ever are dog professionals such as myself consulted when it comes to making rulings about what dog is dangerous and what is not. Concerns about a breed are often based on a broad generalization made through the observation of very few specimens of the breed.

What do I mean? Well, using a non-pit bull example: A woman I met insisted Border Collies are laid back and low key dogs suited for suburban life. Now, anyone who works with dogs knows that a Border Collie is one of the worst breeds for a suburban life. This is probably the highest energy breed known to man.

Their work drives and needs make them horrible pets for the average dog owner. Yet this woman owned a couple Border Collies who were quite abnormal for the breed. Her perception of the breed based on a very small sampling (her two dogs) and poor research was leading her to give erroneous and potentially dangerous advice. How many people got Border Collies based on this woman's advice and later ended up with a problem dog because they could not handle it?

Are the dogs lumped into the general heading of pit bull really a danger? Let's first look at the group of dogs called Terriers as a whole. Most terrier breeds developed in Great Britain and Ireland. These were dogs of varying sizes from the tiny Yorkshire (originally a mouser) and Norfolk, to the medium Lakeland, the ancestor to the American Staffordshire Terrier (close relative to the American Pit Bull Terrier), to the giant Airedale.

Falling between these size extremes are breeds such as the Fox Terriers, Norfolk Terriers, Scotties, Westies, Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terriers, Manchester terriers and many others. Terriers as a whole were bred to hunt vermin. They were bred to be tenacious. Though a terrier may not start a fight, they often will not back down from a challenge.

The ancestors of the dog called commonly a pit bull were bred to be an all-round farm dog first and foremost. Terriers as a whole are often stubborn, self-willed, tenacious and active. These are traits that in any breed require a knowledgeable and experienced owner. For example, Australian Cattle Dogs (heelers) have traits very similar to Terriers that make then unsuited for novice dog owners. Not only do they have a herding drive, but they are more tenacious than other herding breeds. An ACD is a tough dog - more than most people can handle. Yet we do not see them as a dangerous breed over all. Why do we assume other breeds with similar traits are risks? Is it the breed? Do pits pose a "clear and present danger"? Simply put: no.

The danger a dog poses comes from the human who owns it. In the past twenty years, I have worked with dogs in many capacities: showing, fostering, shelter work, as therapy animals, competing in performance events and as a professional trainer/consultant. I have yet to meet an American Pit Bull Terrier or generic pit bull from a good source and in a good home that posed any more danger than any other Terrier. When I think of the dangerous dogs I have known over the years, the first ones that come to mind now are a Chihuahua, an Australian Shepherd/Dalmatian cross, and a Golden Retriever.