I know there are many pit bulls that have been well trained and never have hurt anyone or anything. My good friend has one that is the sweetest, shy baby ever. It is much better behaved than any of my little dogs. But.... they have so MUCH
potential to hurt and destroy, it would be foolish not to have a healthy concern about them. I think it is irresponsible for any owner of a dog that has that kind of
capability to let them out in public without a leash. Too many times fear and confusion can cause a dog to lash out at whatever is near, out of charcter and not in their personal history maybe -- still, it CAN happen. A dog afraid of things like fireworks, might hear a car backfire and lash out. A dog afraid of strangers might take a child running as aggression and try to protect itself with its mighty jaws. I even read of one smelling the scent of a menstruating woman for the first time, then going into a rampage and killing the woman.
They are like a loaded gun. I would not twirl a loaded gun in public. I don't blame the gun, but don't think anyone needs to have it loose in public either.
So many pit owners say their dogs never hurt anyone and was the sweetest dog ever, right up to the moment it attacked a child, neighbor, or pet. Even the responsible pit owners get surprised. The irresponsible pit owners are most of the problem, but any of them can wind up trying to make excuses after their dog has done horrid damage to other living beings. Pit bulls, Rottweilers, and Presa Canarios are responsible for 65% of all dog bite human deaths, most of which are
children. And it is not just the loose ones that are doing the damage, over 60% of the dog-related deaths happen at the dog's home or a familiar place.
I really believe they all should be spayed/neutered. Man bred specifically to make them killing machines. That was man's mistake. The mistake should be corrected. It is not their fault, we did this. But there is only one answer and that is to stop the reproduction. JMO and I know it is not shared by all. I respect the opinions counter to mine, but stand firm in my own. A less attractive alternative might be to purposefully breed the strong jaws OUT of the breed. That would take some doing over
long periods of time. Unfortunately, I don't see pit breeders taking this project on.
I don't think any dog should be allowed to run loose. Most of the large dog owners around here think nothing of letting their dogs run around without a leash. (and we do have a leash law) Mine are always in a fenced yard. I had to go to a 6 foot privacy fence because there was a dog that could vault my 4 foot chain length! As it is I have to shovel mountainous loads of crap left by the neighbor dogs out of my front yard.
How can anyone think this is okay? This is one of the reasons I don't have a large dog, yet I still have to shovel this stuff because other owners cannot be bothered to walk their dog on a leash and pick up after it. Has anyone accidently mowed over a huge pile of dog crap? Peeyew! The other day, I had to remove the putrid remains of a rabbit that one of their big dogs had drug into my front yard, before that it was half of a deer.
Grrrr..... one of my huge pet peeves. Since they are all neighbors, I don't want to report them. Too many involved and I can imagine how that would go in a small neighborhood. So, I never let mine out without supervision, even in their own yard, and continue to shovel whatever their dogs leave in my front yard.
If everyone would just keep their own dogs in their own yards or at least on a strong leash in public places and then pick up after them, life would be a lot nicer for all.