What are pitbulls – Lets discover

Lets start with wikipedia:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia – Dated 3/12/2022

Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed.^[1][2][3] The term was first used in 1927.^[3] Within the United States the pit bull is usually considered a heterogeneous grouping that includes the breeds American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, American Bully, Staffordshire Bull Terrier and occasionally the American Bulldog, along with any crossbred dog that shares certain physical characteristics with these breeds. In other countries including Britain, the Staffordshire Bull Terrier is not considered a pit bull.^[1][4][5] Most pit bull-type dogs descend from the British Bull and terrier, a 19th-century dog-fighting type developed from crosses between the Old English Bulldog and the Old English Terrier.^[6][7][8]

Pit bull-type dogs have a controversial reputation as pets both in the United States and internationally, due to their history in dog fighting,^[9] the number of high-profile attacks documented in the media over decades, and their proclivity to latching on while biting. Proponents of the breed and advocates of regulation have engaged in a nature-versus-nurture debate over whether apparent aggressive tendencies in pit bulls may be appropriately attributed to owners’ care for the dog or inherent qualities.^[10] Numerous advocacy organizations have sprung up in defense of the pit bull. Some studies have argued that the type is not disproportionately dangerous, offering competing interpretations on dog bite statistics. Independent organizations have published statistics based on hospital records showing pit bulls are responsible for more than half of dog bite incidents among all breeds despite comprising 6% of pet dogs.^{[11][12]: p. 18, 49} Some insurance companies will not cover pit bulls (along with rottweilers and wolf hybrids) because these particular breeds cause a disproportionate rate of bite incidents.^[13] Dog bite severity varies by the breed of dog, and studies have found that pit bull-type dogs have both the highest risk of biting and a tendency to produce the most severe injuries.^[14]

Pit bull-type dogs are extensively used in the United States for dogfighting, a practice that has continued despite being outlawed.^[7][15] A number of nations and jurisdictions restrict the ownership of pit bull-type dogs through breed-specific legislation.^[1][4] A pro-pit bull lobby exists that spends millions of dollars a year promoting pit bulls as family pets, funding pro-pit bull researchers, and opposing laws that regulate their ownership.^{[12]: loc 762}



Identification (misidentification)

Studies have found that when people involved in dog rescue, adoption, and regulation identify the breed of a dog of mixed parentage, this identification did not always correlate with the DNA analysis of that dog.^[24][25][26] Mixed-breed dogs are often labeled as pit bulls if they have certain physical characteristics, such as a square-shaped head or bulky body type

Some findings. read on

The wikipedia definition has been directly copied over so that some things can be outlined as they are of the date of copy and so that some of the discrepancies can be brought up such as:-

Wikipedia selectively quoting and a study with an unscientific approach

When I say wikipedia I mean the authors contributing to the crowdsoursing that is wikipedia and it is apparent that these individuals have a bias against Pitbulls:

The first paragraph of the wiki is an attempt to define a pitbull, the second paragraph however goes into a bit of unclear territory where the authors begin to group mixed breeds and “pitbull type” dogs.

Starting with > “Independent organizations have published statistics based on hospital records showing pit bulls are responsible for more than half of dog bite incidents among all breeds despite comprising 6% of pet dogs.[11][12]: p. 18, 49  Some insurance companies will not cover pit bulls (along with rottweilers and wolf hybrids) because these particular breeds cause a disproportionate rate of bite incidents.[13]”

ANALYSIS:

source 11 > This is an article from time.com, reading the article there is an unfortunate story about a 3 year old mauled by a “pitbull” – it does appear to be a “pitbull type”, sad as it may be but it is one case and does not backup the claim about 6% of pitbulls. If you do attempt to view the source of the claim the source is no longer there. URL: https://web.archive.org/web/20200513130829/https://time.com/2891180/kfc-and-the-pit-bull-attack-of-a-little-girl/

Source 12 > Pit Bulls for Dummies 2nd ed.

Source 13> Nowhere in the source article does it state anything about pitbulls ” because these particular breeds cause a disproportionate rate of bite incidents.” or any of the dogs mentioned, the closest thing in the article to this is quote “Those are the breeds that are more aggressive. They tend to be more protective of the property. When you step onto that property, you run the risk of being attacked by an animal that thinks you’re a stranger (who’s) going to harm someone on their property,”. Read the article and see what you think. Simply because an insurance company refuses coverage for a range of dogs this is not a strong article to use for the definition of a dog breed.

Source 14 > “Dog bite severity varies by the breed of dog, and studies have found that pit bull-type dogs have both the highest risk of biting and a tendency to produce the most severe injuries.^[14]“

The following snippet from the source in wikipedia (source 14) is used in the article to prove that “pit bull-type” dogs have both the highest risk of biting and a tendency to produce the most severe injuries, which is not true because as you see in the study pitbulls and mixed breed dogs are lumped together and this is the study they are using to substantiate their claim. The issue is that the author of this paragraph in wikipedia is saying pitbulls do xyz while using a study that clearly says pitbulls AND mixed breeds for their statistics, the author is leaving out the mixed breeds to make the claim. It is not scientific nor thorough enough to write about in a definite sense, below is the summary of the study.

Quote:

“Results

Bite risk by breed from the literature review and bite severity by breed from our case series were combined to create a total bite risk plot. Injuries from Pitbull’s and mixed breed dogs were both more frequent and more severe. This data is well-suited for a bubble plot showing bite risk on the x-axis, bite severity on the y-axis, and size of the bubble by number of cases. This creates a “risk to own” graphic for potential dog owners.” –  Essig, Garth F.; Sheehan, Cameron (February 2019). “Dog bite injuries to the face: Is there risk with breed ownership? A systematic review with meta-analysis”. International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology. 117: 182-188. doi:10.1016/j.ijporl.2018.11.028. PMID 30579079. S2CID 57740754. Retrieved February 23, 2022.

Furthermore in the same study :

In our sample, mixed breeds were amongst the most prone to biting and causing damage, yet we have little insight into what types of breeds were mixed. This presents difficulty in finalizing a conclusion based on breed alone because further study is required to determine whether a breed category could be applied. Furthermore, the term “pit-bull” is generic and descriptive of a type of dog that includes the American Pit Bull terrier, American Staffordshire terrier and the Staffordshire Bull terrier rather than a pure breed [60]. It is possible that people are describing the physical nature of the dog rather than a distinct breed. Neither the AKC, nor the United Kennel Club (UKC), acknowledges the “pit-bull” as a breed or group [61]. Certain physical characteristics, especially those that make a dog appear physically aggressive, may cause people to identify a dog as a “pit-bull”. Because of this broad generalization, and lack of registration as a “pure breed” it is not possible to know how many dogs in a given region would fall into the category of a pit-bull [62]. It is impossible to know how many mixed breed dogs were pit-bulls, pit-bull mixes, or fell into this category by physical description alone. Perhaps it is the described physicality of the dog rather than the DNA confirmed breed assignment that is most predictive of severe injury.

The ASPCA – American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and what they have to say about pitbulls

Some pit bulls were selected and bred for their fighting ability. That means that they may be more likely than other breeds to fight with dogs. It doesn’t mean that they can’t be around other dogs or that they’re unpredictably aggressive.  Other pit bulls were specifically bred for work and companionship. These dogs have long been popular family pets, noted for their gentleness, affection and loyalty. And even those pit bulls bred to fight other animals were not prone to aggressiveness toward people. Dogs used for fighting needed to be routinely handled by people; therefore aggression toward people was not tolerated. Any dog that behaved aggressively toward a person was culled, or killed, to avoid passing on such an undesirable trait. Research on pet dogs confirms that dog aggressive dogs are no more likely to direct aggression toward people than dogs that aren’t aggressive to other dogs. Source and further reading here.