pit bulls can be wonderful family dogs in the right hands there are no bad dogs only bad owners. any breed can be dangerous with the wrong owner. the trouble with people getting these breeds is not doing there homework on them. if you tackel the fighting instinct from an early age no problem. the trouble today with the breed is that the origanal pit bull has been modified to be more muscular the origanals were more slender. once again irresponsible owners ruin it for every dog lover and owner i wouldnt be surprized if these people get the lovely staffy breed banned aswell and then they will find other breeds to have as weapons and to show of with.

Personally I think, if you feel you have to take precautions to protect the public from your dog, you shouldn't have that dog in the first place. This applies to any breed that shows aggressive tendences.

You mean any DOG who shows aggressive tendencies right? Because breed doesn't mean much when it comes to aggression. I've met aggressive dogs of all sizes and types.

Yes, any dog of whatever breed.

Real pitts were bred to be animal aggressive but a real pitt was never human aggresive or it would have been killed in a spot. In the pit there are two dogs fighting but there are also men standing around them. When they decide the fight is over they will separate the dogs - holding by the legs, collar...if the dogs turn on any man, even while still engaged in fighting the other dog it is killed, no mercy!
So stories about pitts mauling humans are just unbelivable...Clearly those dogs that attack people are not real pitts! They maybe pitt mixes or badly bred pitts but not the real deal! They ussually are mixes but the human aggressivnes does not come from pit blood!
Of course pittbulls tend to be dog aggressive, even females so intense socialization is necessary in order to have animal tolerant pit. But there are numerous other breeds that have tendencies to be animal aggressive. And than there are always exceptions in every breed - in positive or negative ways...
There exist today far more dangerous breeds than pitbulls (ancient guard dogs for example) and should than all be banned? I don't think that is anything but racism, sorry.

And as for should you own a dog that is a danger to other people or animals...Well frankly I think every human should decide that for himself! One of the primary functions of the dog was to protect its owner and the family. Sometimes people that live in cities forget that there are also parts of the world where you want to have a dog that is not friendly towards strangers...If you take necessary precautions to prevent your dog from hurting other people than there shouldn't be a problem.

I would rather, much rather meet an aggressive dog that is under control than an nonagressive one that is not anytime!!! Cause I had more problems with nonaggressive not under control dogs in UK than anywhere else especially with owners shouting they are OK. Well what if my dog had an operation and I don't appreciate their dog jumping on mine?

Pittbulls do have tendency to be animal aggressive, they can be dangerous. Other dogs can be too. It is how you deal with that tendencies that matter. Id you want a 100% friendly towards animals and people dog that will wag its tail when someone attacks you than choose appropriate breed and dog within that breed. Don't ban a breed just because of the media hyp and because you had some bad experiences with the owners of that breed. I have had more than enough bas experiences with westies and dacshunds - but I do not wish for them to be banned because inocent people and animals get hurt that way!

why? if you recognise that fact then to me you are being responsible....as long as you 'take precautions' and the dog is not aggresive with you or you family then i see no problem
what do you class as aggressive?
so should peeps only own toothless minidogs

I don't agree with this comment at all. It is possible to have a dog that can be aggressive and take all the necessary precautions to safeguard the public and other dogs.
I have 2 lurchers that can be aggressive to other dogs sometimes. I take that into consideration when out walking with them and since they have met other dogs and been under my control, they have become much better.
OK they're not aggressive to people at all but the same can be applied.
You are not giving most dog owners any credit for having control of their dogs are you?!!
If everyone were to live by your comment, the rescue situation in this country would be a whle lot worse than it already is.

If everyone were to live by your comment, the rescue situation in this country would be a whle lot worse than it already is.[/QUOTE

Of course there wouldn't be a problem at the rescues, it would in fact be alleviated. With all those agressive dog's euthanised people could then concentrate on all the gentle family dogs desperate for a home.

How do you define an aggressive dog?

Footloose - are you actually genuinely interested in this thread or are you just trying to wind people up? Coz if you are, it's working.
I find your euthanasia comment quite offensive.