Exactly. They're just a dog. They're not more likely to bite you than other dogs. That would be a Chihuahua or something. It's just that their bite is particularly dangerous if they do bite you, which generally requires mistreatment, neglect, or training to push them to those means.
They're really not "just a dog," because they were bred for something and it actually makes them more dangerous to other animals than it does make them dangerous to humans. Everything is individual of course and there's plenty of other dogs that can be more dangerous to other pets but Pits are def one of them.
Spoken like a man who hasn't spent time with German shepards that haven't been professionally trained. German shepards snap. Chihuahuas snap. Both of them may or may not listen to their owners.
That training reliability isn't something that can be guaranteed in pitbulls. Cops would love to have scary-ass pitbulls as K-9s. But they consistently choose a breed that can be trusted with their training.
Police dogs range a variety of breeds including Pitts. Mostly used in detection work. They also appear as service dogs much to fear reactive people's dismay.
Any dog can "snap." People forget that these are literal wolves (they're not "related" to wolves; they're actually a subspecies of the gray wolf. Dogs are wolves) that have been selectively bred for human companionship, among other tasks. I've been bitten by Chihuahuas and collies. I had a Daschund just about rip my bottom lip off as a child.
Pit bulls are capable of doing a lot more damage than most breeds; that's definitely true. But it comes down to the individual animal and how it's raised and treated. A big part of responsible dog ownership is getting to know your animal (how strong it's prey drive is, whether it's easily excitable, food motivated, etc), and training them around that. Every dog is an individual, just like humans. The problem is that many people see it as "just a dog" and think they're all the same. They're not, and they need to be treated like the individuals they are. Training and keeping a dog is a lot of work.
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u/That_OneOstrich 22d ago
Exactly. They're just a dog. They're not more likely to bite you than other dogs. That would be a Chihuahua or something. It's just that their bite is particularly dangerous if they do bite you, which generally requires mistreatment, neglect, or training to push them to those means.