DriverX5,
I know what you're looking for... good luck in your quest. Those dogs can be great. I was speaking in response to ZsX who suggested you get a bull terrier.
It's funny how the Bull Terrier group always cries, "it's not a Pit Bull, it's a Bull Terrier. I'm sick of the bad
PR, etc. etc."
A) So, you're saying that APBT (Pit Bull Terriers) should be feared but your dogs should not.
B) Your right, your dog is not called a "PIT BULL".. But that does not negate the fact that the Bull Terrier was developed for PIT FIGHTING and other BLOOD sports like Bull and Bear hunting and killing. Hence the name "BULL".
-- I know a Bull Terrier is not the same thing as an Amer Staf, or APBT, but those are just names of the breed. They are still, PIT FIGHTING DOGS, regardless if the name PIT is attached to the breed name or not.
A PIT FIGHTING, BLOOD SPORT, dog is still that, regardless if the name "PIT" exists in the title or not. Just like a Standard Poodle is a WATER DOG, even though it's name is not, Standard Poodle Water Dog.
In response to Real Chef:
Oh brother:
Just cause you have a mixed breed dog that is well behaved does not mean the majority of owners who have them, have or own them responsibly.
We all know that Labs and Chi's and Poodles and every other breed, can and sometimes do bite or on rare occasion, kill. But again, Bull Terriers, APBT, etc. were dogs that were designed for their ability to kill, especially to kill other dogs or big mammals.
As far as nature outweighing nurture, I'm sure that every parent that has a child killed by a Bull breed thought the same thing. What's that quote I always read in the paper, "Family pet" "insert bull breed here" mauls child"..
"Our dog never showed any sign of aggression."
Any dog can bite or suddenly show aggression, but the damage that a Bull terrier is capable of inflicting because of what they were bred for is much more severe. BLOOD SPORT DOGS.. BLOOD SPORT DOGS.. BLOOD SPORT DOGS.. BLOOD SPORT DOGS.. BLOOD SPORT DOGS..
And all the breeding and kisses in the world ain't going to diminish the breeds ability to fight, mame and kill. It's in it's DNA. Just like it's in the DNA of a dog that points, to be a pointer.
So even if it's desire to hunt, kill and mame, has been REPRESSED, it still exists. And all those experts who argue that it's nurture are the same people who argue, the chicken came before the egg. There is no indisputable evidence that supports this claim. Quite the contrary. i can find many instances where a great family pet has snapped and killed.
You say you were bit by a Chi in the ankle. What if that attack came from a Bull Terrier? What damage would have been done as compared to that of a Chi? Would you rather be attacked by a Lab or a Bull Terrier? I'd take the Lab. I could kick the shit out of a lab, no problem... A Bull Terrier, I'm not so sure, it would probably maul me to death. Again, they were bred for their ability to fight, kill and because of it's muscle density and strength.
You ask me to open my eyes to the reality. The reality is, I've met some great Bull breeds. But I won't let them play with my dogs, I don't trust them and I have personally seen Bull dogs kill. An imagine I wish I could get out of my mind. (just last week an autistic woman with 4 Pit Bulls showed up at the local dog park. One of her dogs killed a 14 year old Daschund.) I also saw a Bull breed kill a mutt in Washington Square Park NY. And another Bull had to be put down 4 months ago because it attacked a puppy in another LA dog run. I missed this attack by minutes but saw the blood everywhere.
You ask me to open my eyes. Everywhere I look I see unqualified, untrained, people who own these dogs and don't understand, they don't belong in multi dog environments, they don't belong off leash. Their potential to kill is too great.
There is a reason why other breed owners like myself support BREED SPECIFIC LEGISLATION, it's not because of the rumors, it's because of what we know and have seen with our own eyes.