Pitbulls are indeed dog agressive out of the womb unless they are socialized, this is a known fact. they instinctively know to go for the neck, the gameness only increases their ability to do damage. Unless you socialize a pit bull from a young age, it will most likely be very dog aggressive. You also don't have to teach a pit bull how to fight, they know how because its in their genetic makeup. i work with a pitbull rescue group, i work with the spca, i know my shit. You can chose to accept this or not. what we are dealing with is commonly referred to by experts as "prey drive," an instictive trait that was bred into bullies.
I disagree with that to a point.
The key is the temperment of the dog, correct socialization and it varies quite a bit from dog to dog and which "breed" of pitbull you are talking about---APBT vs AMSTAFF vs ABT vs Staffie vs the half a dozen other "pit bull" breeds. Considering only the APBT, I'd say they are a more "physical" breed than others when they are puppies. This physicalness is something that contributes to their use as a fighting dog, but doesn't dictate it. I really think there is a very strong degree of training/socialization involved with fighting dogs. I'll tell you why--and give you 4 examples, including two dogs that were very intimate in my own family.
I've spent nearly the last 15 years working with pitbull rescues across the country, from running one to doing what I do now as a consultant because my wife says I have to. A dogs ability to fight another dog is an innate behavior to a degree---all dogs are capable of showing aggression to other dogs, humans, or animals under certian conditons in certian situations----but even pitbulls as a breed have a large number of dogs that won't readily do it. The best example of this is the back yard street punk kids who steal peoples dogs out of their back yards to "fight them". I've seen, tried put back together, ended up watching die more than one pitbull---these are dogs that were without a doubt pure bred--who were ripped from limb to limb by a nonpitbull breed in fights like this or accidental encounters. That "innate" ability to fight isn't something that is genetic. The physical traits, the mental drive, the prey drive are and can be "enhanced" by humans to be put together to produce an extremely dog aggressive dog.
The converse of the example are the former "fighting" dogs I know of--including my own older female, who is very much a "game bred" dog, the dog aggressive male I had for years, and Kane who was somewhat of a legend in and around the neighborhood when I was in college ----who in the right household, with the right training, the right environment, did not fight with other dogs. I had what Id call a very dog aggressive male pit for several years, with 5 other dogs in my house. Fights were very rare, yet Teddy would flip out with dogs outside of my house. They key with him was being able to read his mindset and taking the time to prevent problems before they occured. I really do think the typical dog owning human is too lazy and too stupid to deal with a dog like that and as a result they end up putting the dogs in situations where bad things happen. Teddy was a great dog. He was also alot of work.
Finally, my grandmother took one of the dogs from our rescue when I was in veterinary school. This was an adult female who'd spent her entire life chained to a dog house being bred. She was a GREAT loving pet for my grandmother in her 70's. She also tolerated the other two dogs in my grandmothers house---including my aunts piece of shit Shihtzapoo monster. If there was ever a dog that should have been caused a dog fight, it was that thing. The dog that my grandmother adopted did not once attack, bite, or otherwise harm a dog she easily could have with reason. This is also a dog that did not have what anyone would think is a "good" or "normal" socialization period and had a pretty crappy life the first few years of her life, yet she was not dog aggressive in any way.
You're also missing the point of this. I'm not saying every dog is exactly the breed description, but there are factors at work that go down their genetic makeup that do indeed have a larger impact on their personality and behaviors than any amount of training, socialization or therapy.
I do agree with this. The problem is that people take breed descriptions as some sort of sacred scripture when they really are not. They are a description, a guideline, not a cut and dry THIS IS HOW THE BREED BEHAVES law. Each dog has its own individual personality that will dictate what their final behaviors are. A great example of this is a former patient of mine. This dog was one of the most dog aggressive, borderline human aggressive dogs I've ever seen. It had gone through behavior classes, it had been with multiple trainers, the owners loved this dog and would have done anything for it.... he bit me twice in the exam rooms.....he was a golden retriever. There is no way in hell I would have trusted that dog outside of the exam room without its owners holding it on a short leash.
The other problem with breed descriptions is the bias that people have with them. For whatever reason, humans tend to take their opinions on dogs and stand by that opinion---even if its completely warped and of base---and argue and argue and argue that they are correct, no matter how asanine, unfounded, and illogical what they are saying is. Its weird to me why dogs instigate this behavior in humans, but if you don't believe me, look through some of the threads on this board. Its there.
