Triple-Hinged Jaws of Doom.... And Other Myths About the Pit Bull by Christie Keith I was reading an online message board one day, and this caught my attention: "but, i do think that pit bulls are bred to be especially aggressive. it is their powerful bite that does the damage. they bite, grab on and do not let go." Upon reading this post, I was reminded of Lita, a sweet dog I had to find a home for when a friend became too ill to care for her any longer.
It's that whole myth of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, that the loving, well-trained pet could change at any moment into a ravening beast with triple-hinged jaws of death. Well, folks, it just isn't so. "Pit bull" is a category of dog, and which dogs belong in that category is a matter of some contention and dispute. Some would place the English bulldog there; certainly these dogs were bred originally to fight bulls. But there is perhaps no breed of dog on earth so sweet, calm, gentle and non-aggressive as today's English bulldog. Some would place the American Staffordshire Terrier there, and most dogs for sale in the newspaper classifieds identified as "pit bulls" are in fact AmStaffs. This is the breed, too, which in Britain is known as the "pit bull," while their own version of the breed, the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, is known as the Children's Nursemaid. Go figure. "Pit bulls" are any dogs of the breeds used to fight other dogs in pits. They were usually, but not always, created from some mix of terriers and bulldogs. The American Pit Bull Terrier, a breed recognized by the United Kennel Club (UKC) but not the American Kennel Club (AKC), is perhaps the truest representation of this type of dog: bred in this country to fight other dogs, and a combination of bulldogs and terriers. (The only catch is that there are dogs who are registered as APBTs with the UKC and as AmStaffs with the AKC.) There are a number of dog breeds that are often called pit bulls, most with no more claim to the name than having a short coat. Bullmastiffs, boxers, shar peis, Boston terriers, even many square-headed Labrador retrievers or greyhound mixes are often mistaken for pit bulls. A dog was killed a few years ago in England under its pit bull laws, all expert testimony and the dog's owner as well holding the dog to be a Great Dane/greyhound cross. So looks are indeed deceiving. Nor is there any scientific method for determining breed. Genetically, there is no difference between the tiniest Chihuahua and the tallest Irish wolfhound, nor indeed, with the wolf itself. Nor does the pit bull have a triple-hinged jaw capable of extraordinary feats of strength. As any owner of a ball-crazy Golden retriever will tell you, the clamp of the jaw is as much a function of psychology as physiology, and any dog can clamp down beyond the capability of a human to pry open. Are there rotten, mean, unpredictable dogs who would as soon eat your pet as look at it? You bet. Are there fearful, cringing, fear-biting dogs who can tear a toddler's face off? Sure are. Are all these dogs pit bulls? Not a chance. Any strange dog has the potential to bite or to be dog-aggressive, and it's best to have the same rules with the fluffiest cocker as with the most prepossessing mastiff: Don't run up to or touch a strange dog. Keep your own pet on a leash and don't let it run up to strange dogs in uncontrolled circumstances. Don't pet a strange dog without the owner's permission. Don't let your children play unsupervised with a dog, most especially a strange dog or a dog not used to kids. Sure, we all know the placid Newfoundland who lets all the kids play pony. We all also know the neighborhood bully who pokes the dog in the eye with a stick while giving a war whoop. So use your common sense and be cautious, whatever the breed of dog. Dogs don't need triple-hinged jaws to do damage to human flesh. Copyright 2005 by Christie Keith. Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
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Her mother had been a lab mix, and daddy was a traveling man, so no one quite knew what she was, but she certainly looked like she could have one of the breeds we call the pit bull in her. She was a docile, happy, well-trained dog, with a sunny disposition and not a bit of dog or people aggression, and I did find her a wonderful home, but never in my life have I had such trouble placing a dog.