Originally Posted by chephy
Well, there are variables. Some breeds are known to be on average more aggressive than others - but pitbulls on average are LESS aggressive toward humans than most (unless, of course, you abuse them and train them to be mean). But they do have a high prey drive which means they're more likely to chase small animals (and love to play fetch
). They can also possess dog-aggressiveness which you can't train out of the dog that easily. It's not that most of them will go rabid and start a fight with any other dog, but if there is ever a brawl among dogs to figure out who's the leader, a pit bull won't usually back off. But while there are some general tendencies among various breeds, variations within the breed are huge, and a good responsible owner is what really makes a difference...
I quite like bull terriers (Staffordshire's are probably my favourite dog ever - little land piranha's with a heart of gold) and I can vouch for the generally more territorial nature of farm dogs. I usually judge a pitbull or Roti but what's on the other end of the leash. Camo pants, hat on backwards, gangsta chains? No, I probably won't be asking to pat the dog. My stereotypes run to the twolegged variety. Italy has restrictions on 92 breeds, but at least they ban ownership for delinquent types.