Anonymous wrote:Why? Because, cuddly, funny, dopey, affectionate, sleepy. Great big cat-dogs. I've never, ever met a mean pittie, just a**holes who abuse them.

Sadly, I have. I met a cute, cuddly, funny, and affectionate pitt who spontaneously attacked two different people in a short period of time. This same sweet pitt also lunged at my toddler when my DC got to close to the pitt owner's child. I get it. The pitt was in protective mode and new toddlers make strange noises and are unpredictable. But given my experiences, I will never EVER allow my kids to be in a home with a pitt. You just can't compare them to other large dogs. A pitt is completely different than, say, a lab, great dane or bernese mountain dog. Suggesting otherwise is just silly and makes pitt owners seem foolish.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why? Because, cuddly, funny, dopey, affectionate, sleepy. Great big cat-dogs. I've never, ever met a mean pittie, just a**holes who abuse them.

+1 I have a pit and my next dog will be a pit too. Such sweeties who only want to please their families!

Oh. My. God.

Anonymous wrote:Why? Because, cuddly, funny, dopey, affectionate, sleepy. Great big cat-dogs. I've never, ever met a mean pittie, just a**holes who abuse them.

+1 I have a pit and my next dog will be a pit too. Such sweeties who only want to please their families!

Anonymous wrote:Why? Because, cuddly, funny, dopey, affectionate, sleepy. Great big cat-dogs. I've never, ever met a mean pittie, just a**holes who abuse them.

+1 Exactly.

Why? Because, cuddly, funny, dopey, affectionate, sleepy. Great big cat-dogs. I've never, ever met a mean pittie, just a**holes who abuse them.

Got my pit from the Baltimore City shelter. The majority of the dogs there were pits at the time and they were putting down a lot of dogs due to over capacity. She is well trained, sweet, and has been a wonderful family dog for us the past 11 years. She thinks she is a lap dog. We are responsible owners and we don't do dog parks or let her off leash - while we don't feel she would do anything wrong, as a pit owner we don't want any extra scrutiny or take any chances because any large dog could be provoked and just as all humans don't get along, all dogs don't get along either.

I have family members with pits. Some of them got Amstaffies from breeders, and yes, I think the "cool" and "rebel" factor was a part of it. Others just got a dog from the shelter, and most dogs at the shelter are pits/pit mixes nowadays.

At the Fairfax Animal Shelter right now, they have 22 dogs and 4 or 5 of them are not pits or pit mixes. So 17 or 18 of them are pits or pit mixes.

We have two. The first I adopted from the shelter where I volunteered after he had been there for 6+ months with no interest. I had just bought a house, so I guess in the back of my mind the idea of a bigger dog was appealing, but he was also a great running buddy (and cuddle on the couch buddy) who has just turned into a great dog all around. The second was an 11-week-old foster fail 3 years later thanks to my now-husband. Stereotypes and (mis)perceptions aside, they're just dogs. Our dogs are very well-trained and EXTREMELY friendly but we are also very responsible owners and proactively manage both dogs (no dog parks, wait to be fed/petted, always on leash outside, etc.), which is really the key. Any dog, but particularly a large, fast, and/or strong one, can be dangerous in the hands of an irresponsible owner.

Another NP, the problem is not that they're mean but that their physical build allows them to do a lot more damage than your average hound mix. Any dog can bite, but not any dog can kill you.

All the people I know who have pits, have a real chip on their shoulder about anti-pit bias. I do think they got the dogs to make a statement. It's also true, though, that more dogs in urban shelters tend to be pits or similar mixes. The adoption organization where I got my shepherd mix "imports" hounds and shepherds from rural areas where there are a lot of those types, even though there are full shelters here too.

Anonymous wrote:I don't happen to own one, never have, but have encountered many that are very sweet that my dog plays with. I don't understand your attitude. There are many ways to tell a mean dog. Breed is not one.

NP. I've known a couple pits but would never have one. The problem seems to be that they are sweet, placid dogs up until they aren't.

I don't happen to own one, never have, but have encountered many that are very sweet that my dog plays with. I don't understand your attitude. There are many ways to tell a mean dog. Breed is not one.

I don’t understand the appeal of yappy, aggressive, rat/like chihuahuas. Same reasoning. Could be any number of things. Protection. You find them cute. You like their blocky heads and their doggie smile. You prefer a larger size dog.

(And no, I don’t have a pit bull.)

Anonymous wrote:I have 3 female friends with pit mixes. It’s a bleeding heart thing —- “aww they’re just big babies!” Combined with “don’t buy, adopt.” They feel like they are rescuing a misunderstood animal.

Mixes are not the same, and do not have the same temperament.

I have 3 female friends with pit mixes. It’s a bleeding heart thing —- “aww they’re just big babies!” Combined with “don’t buy, adopt.” They feel like they are rescuing a misunderstood animal.

I guess I just don't understand the reasoning or appeal here. Is it a self-defense thing??