by Lena Skov, MBA, KPA-CTP

I hope I will not offend those whoenjoy reality TV. I f there was a realityshow casting dogs only, Pit Bulls will bethe first to make the cut. There is somuch co n t ro ve rsy ! W h i l e d o in gresearch f o r t h i s a rt ic le , I w a soverwhelmed by the sheer number ofspirited opinions for or against Pit Bulls.Emotions range from love at any cost tofear of the name itself.If you watched the Olympicgames i n London, y o uwould agree tha t humannature is very competitiveand s o m e o n e m u s talways win. We competenot on ly b y way o f ou rpersonal strengths b u talso t h r o u g h l i v i n gcreatures tha t surroundus. It is with sadness forso many - Pit Bulls arest ill ' w i n n i n g ' t h edangerous breed contest.

We a r e t h e wo rld 'smost f ickle species. W ecrea te t r a d i t i o n s t opronounce them antiquated.We f o l lo w fash ions l o n genough to fill our closets. Weacquire n e w f r i e n d s t oaccommodate o u r ch a n g in glifestyles. Th e same applies t odogs. I n the past, we createdbreeds to fill specific roles in ourlives. We tweaked and will continuetweaking them until we find what weconsider perfection. Breeds go in andout of style with rare exceptions likeLabrador Retrievers who continue tohold f i rs t p lace according t o t h eAmerican K e n n e l C l u b ( A K C )registration s ta t is t ics . W e a l s opopularize our heroes and our villains:German S h e p h e rd s , Do b e rma nPinschers, Rottweilers, Pit Bulls and soon.

8

HE "PIT BULLTERROR"

Having a ske d my s e l f wh a t Ipersonally thought about Pit Bulls andto which side I belonged, I suddenlyrealized tha t m y opinion would b enothing more than that - an opinion. Asa graduate of Karen Pryor Academy forAnimal Training and Behavior, I knowthat the best way to form an opinion isthrough scientific research.So, here we go...

We h e a r s o mu ch abou t b i t estatistics. Th e re i s

s o m u c hi n f o r m a t i o nf loa t ing o u t

there, so

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many graphs a n d cha rts t h a t e ve nGoogle itself gets overloaded. Althoughthese sta t ist ics b rin g awareness t oreoccurring incidents - the percentagesare hard to take to heart. The ratios areinflated because it is extremely difficult toestimate how many dogs go unregisteredwith the AKC o r local authorities. Let'ssay there are 10 registered pit bulls and 6not registered. Two bites occur. I s theratio 20% or 12.5%? Additionally, many"small dog" bites go unreported due toinjuries th a t d o n o t require medica lattention. Just like with everything else,not a l l statements a n d stud ies a recreated equal, especially in te rms o fvalidity and reliability. Every time I see aresearch article quoted in print or on line,I buy its fu ll text from a professionalpublication.

Adding to the statistical challenge isthe actual definition of Pit Bulls. It is ageneric term used for the Bull Terrier,Staffordshire B u l l Te rr ie r a n dAmerican Staffordshire Terrier, a sthey are recognized by the AKC.Although a l l o f th e se b reedsbelong to the Terrier Group. theyare considered separate entitieswith s e p a ra t e s t a n d a rd s .Confusion goes even further ifone consults Merriam-Websterdictionary, " . . . a d o g ( a s a nAmerican Staffordshire terrier)of any of several breeds o r areal or apparent hybrid with oneor more o f these breeds thatwas developed and is now oftentrained for fighting and is notedfor strength and stamina."

In my opinion, the only way abreed can be labeled aggressiveis when th is characteristic i sgenetically proven. Some blame

people, others blame the dogs, someenvironmental conditions and still othersfault behavioral development. If all thingsstay equal only genetics can support theclaim.

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There wa s a n interesting study'conducted last year at an animal shelterof the British Columbia Society for thePrevention o f Cruelty to Animals (BCSPCA) in Vancouver, Canada. You maybe aware that the majority o f shelterdogs a rrive there d u e t o behaviorproblems. A s a resu lt , t h e s tu d yincluded more aggressive dogs thancould b e f o u n d a mo n g c a n in epopulations bought from breeders.

Over a period o f four months, therescue t o o k i n e igh ty-two d o g s.Granted, th is sample size was smalland it may o r may not have reflectedthe national level.The usefulness of this study was in itbeing hands-on with more than half ofadopters coming back for a face-to-faceinterview.

Forty dogs were considered Pit Bullsand forty-two consisted o f mixed-bredGerman Shepherd Dogs, Rottweilers,Labrador Retrievers, Rough Collies,Chow Chows, a Siberian Husky, a nAlaskan Ma la mu te , a Po in te r, aDoberman Pinscher, and a CatahoulaLeopard Ho u n d . A l l d o g s w e r eexamined and none showed any signsof being used in fighting.

Five dogs, including three Pit Bulls,had to be euthanized right away due toattempted biting during the normal careroutine. The remaining seventy-sevendogs were adopted. During the first twomonths, eleven dogs were returned tothe shelter due to aggressive behavior.Only one of them was a Pit Bull. Threedogs bit their owners breaking the skin.All three belonged to the mixed group.One P it Bu ll and three other dogsreportedly bit a stranger: one (not thePit Bull) broke the skin.

Along with aggression the study alsocovered a mu lt itu d e o f d if fe re n tbehaviors a n d habits. Interestingly,enough, P i t B u l l s s t a t i s t i c a l l youtweighed o t h e r b re e d s i n t h efollowing seemingly random categories:pulling on the leash, sleeping in owner'sbed, being taken t o dog parks andcuddling. P i t Bu lls a re definitely acuddly breed. I cannot help but laughwhen I s e e t h e ir 'whole-body-tail-wagging' with the tush swinging left andright at high speeds following the tail inan attempt to propel themselves evencloser to you.

I am diverging.. .back to the seriousmatters at hand.

The conclusion of the study was thatit "...provided no evidence of greater

aggression o r p o o re r c a re a mo n gadopted Pit Bulls compared to dogs ofother breeds" (p. 463).

A much larger study2 w a s p u b l i s he d i n

Applied A n ima l Behaviou r Scie n cejournal in 2008. It covered 30 breeds inresponse t o t h e Can ine BehavioralA s s e s s me n t a n d R e s e a r c hQuestionnaire (CBAR0). At the momentthe link to the questionnaire is still activehttp://vetapps.vet.upenn.eduicbarq/. I fyou a re reading th is article a t a laterdate, please visit the Center fo r theInteraction of Animals and Society on theUniversity of Pennsylvania's web site.

Eleven AKC breed clubs participatedin the survey contributing information on

Only 7% of Pit Bull ownersindicated that their dog either

bit or attempted to bite astranger. This number is only

slightly higher than theaverage 4.7%. With some

breeds, such asDachshunds, the numbersincrease into the twenties.

Aggression in other breeds,such as Akitas, Siberian

Huskies, and Pit Bull Terriersis more specific and is

directed towards other dogs.

1,521 dogs. We must remember thatthese a re t h e peop le wh o 'd irectlyinfluence the genetic pool o f dogs welove. Through their breeding programsthey mo ld th e future o f th e breeds,whether the ir selection i s based o ntemperament o r j u s t physique o r ,hopefully, b o t h . P e t o wn e rs a l s ocompleted 4,952 on-line surveys bringingtheir experience to the table. Among thebenefits of having two data samples wasthe ratio of spayed and neutered dogs,which is considerably higher among thepet population. T h i s information i sbeneficial even i f relevance betweenaggression a n d spaying/neutering st il lneeds to be studied further.

In t h e introduction t o t h e paper,researchers wrote, "Most o f wha t i sunderstood about breed differences inaggression comes from reports based onbite statistics, behavior clinic caseloads,and experts' opinions. Information o nbreed-specific aggressiveness derivedfrom such sources may be misleadingdue t o b ia se s attributable t o a

d isproport ionate r i s k o f i n j u r yassociated wit h la rge r and/or mo rephysically powerful b reeds a n d t h eexistence of breed stereotypes"(p. 441).

Highlights of the study showed thatsome b re e d s (e .g . , Dachshunds,Chihuahuas and Jack Russell Terriers)can be aggressive in most situations:owner related aggression, aggressiontowards a stranger or another dog.

Only 7% of Pit Bull owners indicatedthat their dog either bit or attempted tobite a stranger. Th is number is onlyslightly higher than the average 4.7%.With s o m e b r e e d s , s u c h a sDachshunds, the numbers increase intothe twenties. Aggression i n o th e rbreeds, s u c h a s Akitas, S ibe rianHuskies, and Pit Bull Terriers is morespecific and is directed towards otherdogs. T h e re se a rch e rs w e r e i nconsensus wit h Ro l l a n d Un sh e lm3concluding that "...among other breeds,Pit Bull Terriers, German Shepherds,Great Danes and Rottweilers were oftenthe aggressors in inter-dog conflicts" (p.456).

From the statistical perspective wecan conclude that Pit Bull's reputationas dangerous t o people h a s beenembellished. Having said this, my heartstill g o e s o u t t o those wh o h a vesuffered f rom dog attacks. I cannoteven begin to imagine the horror of thatexperience. I mourn those who did notsurvive.

When I wa s in my teens, I wa ssurrounded by a group o f stray dogswhose in t e n t io n s I c o u l d n o tunderstand. I grew up inside the ArcticCircle where winters were especiallytough for homeless dogs. I rememberhow strong my fear was; I broke into acold sweat and my heart was poundingin my eardrums.

I can also attest to trying to separatelarge breed dog fights (a fight thathappens in a regular household and notin an arena) while breathlessly realizinghow physically powerful these dogs areand how much we underestimate them.

Randall Lockwood in The DomesticDog: I t s Evolution, Behaviour a n dInteractions with People4 w r o t e t h a tIrish Wolfhounds and Grea t Danes,once known for their ferocity, were

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selectively bred to become, for the mostpart, quite docile breeds. L ineage ofnon -f igh t ing b r e e d s e v e n 5 0generations removed from fighting linesmay s t i l l p r o d u c e d o g s w i t hi n d i s t i n g u i s h a b l e p h y s i c a lcharacteristics, yet the behavior of thetwo dogs will be very different.

Some o f u s m a y a lso f in d i tinteresting that there are breeds where'show' and 'field' (hunting, tracking, etc.)stock showed opposite patterns when itcame to temperament. F o r instance,English Springer Spaniels b re d f o rconformation showed higher levels o fowner-directed aggression. O n t h eother hand, Labrador Retrievers bredfor field work scored significantly higherthan conformation bloodlines.

In conclusion, researchers agreedthat aggression i s a t least partiallyrooted in genetics while developmentaland environmental factors play a majorpart. I would like to share one lastquote, "This study suggests that it isinappropriate to make predictions abouta given dog's propensity for aggressivebehavior based solely on its breed."

So what does this all mean a t theend of the day?

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The underlying problem, of course,is not in the dogs but the human natureitself. If we were to ban Pit Bulls acrossthe nation, we would greatly reduce thenumber o f responsible, law-abidingowners a n d b reede rs w i t h g o o dintentions. B y do ing s o w e wou ldshrink t h e g e n e t i c p o o l a n dinadvertently condemn these dogs towhat they are feared for - fighting.

Hal He rzo g , a P ro fe sso r o fPsychology a t We ste rn Ca ro l in aUn ive rsity a n d a w e l l - k n o w nAnthrozoologist (Anthrozoology i s astudy o f human-animal interaction)writes in great detail about roosterfighting in his book, Some We Love,Some We Hate, Some We Eat. Hefound that "the most psychologicallyinteresting thing about rooster fightersis how boringly normal they are. Nearlyall the cockers I have known led -aside from their devotion to a brutalbloodsport - ordinary lives comple tewith mortgages, wives, children, andday jobs." 5

As long as humanity continues on,chances a re we wil l have ordinarylooking people among us who thrive onviolence and brutality, regardless o fwhether th e y b reed fighting dogs,roosters, bulls, or cockroaches.

We must learn how to exist in thesame wo rld . I d o n o t p ro p o secomplacency. I tru ly believe that weneed to do all that we can to help thosewho cannot help themselves, however,banning one breed or another is a

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temporary Band-Aid and an illusion o fsafety. We ban Pit Bulls, they continuewith Cane Corsi*, we ban Cane Corsi,they switch to wolf hybrids and so on.The only way dog fights can be stoppedis if we were to have laws strong enoughto force fighting dog breeders, trainersand organizers to abandon this sport.This day can only come if we achievesuccess in subsiding human aggression.

How do we live with it?We beg in wi t h o u r children b y

teaching them safety around dogs. Myhusband's breed of choice is the GreatDane. S o many times when I a m inpublic with my dogs, I see completelyunsupervised little kids run to my Danesand h u g th e m wh ile squalling withpleasure. Not only do they hug aroundthe neck, where my dogs can a t leastsee them, but worse, they hug their tailsor rear legs where they cannot be seen.I talk to every child about how to properlymeet a dog. Sometimes parents, havingcaught u p w i t h t h e i r k id s , l is t e nattentively but majority of the time theydo not.

The harder it gets, the harder weshould support reputable organizationsthat rescue Pit Bulls in need. They notonly save them to have a wonderfulfuture with a new family, but also helpremove the dogs from our streets thatare so far gone they are unable to havea normal life. No matter how sad, someof these dogs will be euthanized butsome may have a decent chance to liveout their lives in safety.

Sara Enos, t h e founder o f t h eAmerican P it Bull Foundation ou t o fC h a r l o t t e , N C ( w w w .americantoitbullfoundation.com) broughtto my attention during our brief interviewthat, "Responsible Pit Bull owners arenot the reason that children get bitten orthe r e a s o n o u r s h e l t e r s a r eoverpopulated with Pit Bulls. who willultimately be euthanized. Irresponsiblebreed o wn e rs h ip a n d l a c k o fconsequence a re t h e reasons th a tsociety is faced with dog related issues,not just Pit Bull related issues. This isthe reason t h e American P i t B u l lFoundation was formed - to promoteresponsible breed ownership througheducation,programming and assistance...

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Pit Bulls continued from page 10

Working with the youth and filling inthe blanks that some parents have leftout, giving the public ample opportunity toform educated decisions b a se d o nlearning from volunteers at a public event,and leading by example in the care givento the dogs we rescue are some of theways that we, a t the American Pit BullFoundation, strive to not only turn theimage of Pit Bulls around, but to pave theway for a safer society in which the dogsoccupy mo st households a s a familymember."

In closing, a llo w me t o pose th isquestion to you, "Is the fear of Pit Bullsjustified o r is i t sensationalized in themedia?" I n my personal opinion, Thereare bad Pit Bulls but they do not representthe breed.

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* Plural form of Cane Corso

References:

1. "Aggression, behaviour, and animalcare among pit bulls and other dogsadopted from an animal shelter", AMacNeil-Allcock, NM Clarke, RALedger, and D Fraser. Animal Welfare2011, 20: 463-468, ISSN 0962-7286.

2. "Breed differences in canine aggres-sion", Deborah L. Duffy, Yuying Hsu,James A. Serpell, Applied Animal Be-haviour Science 114 (2008) 441-460.

3. "Aggressive conflicts amongst dogsand factors affecting them", A. Roll, J.Unshelm, Applied Animal BehaviourScience 52 (1997) 229-242

4. "The Domestic Dog: Its Evolution. Be-haviour and Interactions with People",edited by James Serpell, CambridgeUniversity Press, 2008, p. 133.

5. "Some We Love, Some We Hate,Some We Eat: Why It's So Hard toThink Straight About Animals ",Harper Collins, 2010, p. 160-162.

Fail 2012

Lena Skov is a graduate of Karen PryorAcademy for Animal Training andBehavior. She is the owner and trainerat Understanding Our Dogs LLC, apremier in-home, force-free, science-based dog training and behaviormodification service covering areas ofNorth and South Carolina fromMooresville to Rock Hill and fromConcord to Shelby. For moreinformation please contact Lena at 704.-770-6858 or visitwww.UnderstandingOurDogs.com

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