alt Hacker News> Are pit bulls known for being docile?
Not really. Even "old school" working catch dogs in this breed may require a break stick to get the dog to release game. In addition, the dogs are strong.
And that's really the crux of the problem.
Dogs will be dogs. They can be the nicest animal on the planet, but at some point a dog will bite you--maybe you did something stupid, maybe the dog accidentally got underfoot and got kicked, maybe the dog is just sick, maybe something agitated the dog, whatever. A bite will happen. The problem with pit bulls is that when they bite the damage is much more problematic than with other breeds.
And this is the real issue. Because of their strength, pit bulls (and a small number of other breeds) account for a disproportionate amount of deaths and hospitalizations relative to other breeds.
It also doesn't help that these types of dogs are disproportionately owned by jackasses.
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You talking like a bite must happen. No it's not. Source: myself, we ve had a dozen of dogs. Among them : rotweiler, new foundlands, montagne de pyrénées, terrier, and dozens of chihuahua and spitzs
My dog bit me accidentally while playing, a few times. Every time, he apologized. (That is: he stopped playing, made a characteristic sound, and licked me to make sure I was OK.)
Pit bulls are more likely to bite and when they do, they hold the bite much longer than basically any other dog breed and they often require outside intervention to stop the second bite.
Once the dog has demonstrated itself to be dangerous, there is not much you can do other than euthanasia. The worst thing you can do is bring it to a shelter and let an unsuspecting family take the dangerous dog in. A lot of trouble would be saved by choosing a similar looking dog breed that isn't as aggressive or dangerous.
Wanna try a rotweiler ?
All dogs can be dangerous, even small ones can bite a finger out of your hand.
Either kill all the dogs or get people who own them to be responsible.