By Colin Dayan, Vanderbilt University, via The Conversation
As recently as 50 years ago, the pit bull was America’s favorite dog. Pit bulls were everywhere. They were popular in advertising and used to promote the joys of pet-and-human friendship. Nipper on the RCA Victor label, Pete the Pup in the “Our Gang” comedy short films, and the flag-wrapped dog on a classic World War I poster all were pit bulls.
With National Pit Bull Awareness Day celebrated on Oct. 26, it’s a fitting time to ask how these dogs came to be seen as a dangerous threat.
Starting around 1990, multiple features of American life converged to inspire widespread bans that made pit bulls outlaws, called “four-legged guns” or “lethal weapons.” The drivers included some dog attacks, excessive parental caution, fearful insurance companies and a tie to the sport of dog fighting.
As a professor of humanities and law, I have studied the legal history of slaves, vagrants, criminals, terror suspects and others deemed threats to civilized society. For my books “The Law is a White Dog” and “With Dogs at the Edge of Life,” I explored human-dog relationships and how laws and regulations can deny equal protection to entire classes of beings.
In my experience with these dogs – including nearly 12 years living with Stella, the daughter of champion fighting dogs – I have learned that pit bulls are not inherently dangerous. Like other dogs, they can become dangerous in certain situations, and at the hands of certain owners. But in my view, there is no defensible rationale for condemning not only all pit bulls, but any dog with a single pit bull gene, as some laws do.
I see such action as canine profiling, which recalls another legal fiction: the taint or stain of blood that ordained human degradation and race hatred in the United States.
Bred to fight
The pit bull is strong. Its jaw grip is almost impossible to break. Bred over centuries to bite and hold large animals like bears and bulls around the face and head, it’s known as a “game dog.” Its bravery and strength won’t allow it to give up, no matter how long the struggle. It loves with the same strength; its loyalty remains the stuff of legend.
For decades pit bulls’ tenacity encouraged the sport of dogfighting, with the dogs “pitted” against each other. Fights often went to the death, and winning animals earned huge sums for those who bet on them.
But betting on dogs is not a high-class sport. Dogs are not horses; they cost little to acquire and maintain. Pit bulls easily and quickly became associated with the poor, and especially with Black men, in a narrative that connected pit bulls with gang violence and crime.
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That’s how prejudice works: The one-on-one lamination of the pit bull onto the African American male reduced people to their accessories.
Dogfighting was outlawed in all 50 states by 1976, although illegal businesses persisted. Coverage of the practice spawned broad assertions about the dogs that did the fighting. As breed bans proliferated, legal rulings proclaimed these dogs “dangerous to the safety or health of the community” and judged that “public interests demand that the worthless shall be exterminated.”
In 1987 Sports Illustrated put a pit bull, teeth bared, on its cover, with the headline “Beware of this Dog,” which it characterized as born with “a will to kill.” Time magazine published “Time Bombs on Legs” featuring this “vicious hound of the Baskervilles” that “seized small children like rag dolls and mauled them to death in a frenzy of bloodletting.”
Presumed vicious
If a dog has “vicious propensities,” the owner is assumed to share in this projected violence, both legally and generally in public perception. And once deemed “contraband,” both property and people are at risk.
This was evident in the much-publicized 2007 indictment of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick for running a dogfighting business called Bad Newz Kennels in Virginia. Even the Humane Society of the United States and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals – two of the nation’s leading animal welfare advocacy groups – argued that the 47 pit bulls recovered from the facility should be killed because they posed a threat to people and other animals.
If not for the intervention of Best Friends Animal Society, Vick’s dogs would have been euthanized. As the film “Champions” recounts, a court-appointed special master determined each dog’s fate. Ultimately, nearly all of the dogs were successfully placed in sanctuaries or adoptive homes.
Debating breed bans
Pit bulls still suffer more than any other dogs from the fact that they are a type of dog, not a distinct breed. Once recognized by the American Kennel Club as an American Staffordshire terrier, popularly known as an Amstaff, and registered with the United Kennel Club and the American Dog Breeders Association as an American pit bull terrier, now any dog characterized as a “pit bull type” can be considered an outlaw in many communities.
For example, in its 2012 Tracey v. Solesky ruling, the Maryland Court of Appeals modified the state’s common law in cases involving dog injuries. Any dog containing pit bull genes was “inherently dangerous” as a matter of law.
This subjected owners and landlords to what the courts call “strict liability.” As the court declared: “When an attack involves pit bulls, it is no longer necessary to prove that the particular pit bull or pit bulls are dangerous.”
Dissenting from the ruling, Judge Clayton Greene recognized the absurdity of the majority opinion’s “unworkable rule”: “How much ‘pit bull,’” he asked, “must there be in a dog to bring it within the strict liability edict?”
It’s equally unanswerable how to tell when a dog is a pit bull mix. From the shape of its head? Its stance? The way it looks at you?
Conundrums like these call into question statistics that show pit bulls to be more dangerous than other breeds. These figures vary a great deal depending on their sources.
Any statistics about pit bull attacks depend on the definition of a pit bull – yet it’s really hard to get good dog bite data that accurately IDs the breed.
Over the past decade, awareness has grown that breed-specific legislation does not make the public safer but does penalize responsible owners and their dogs. Currently 21 states prohibit local government from enforcing breed-specific legislation or naming specific breeds in dangerous dog laws. Maryland passed a law reversing the Tracey ruling in 2014. Yet 15 states still allow local communities to enact breed-specific bans.
Pit bulls demand a great deal more from humans than some dogs, but alongside their bracing way of being in the world, we humans learn another way of thinking and loving. Compared with many other breeds, they offer a more demanding but always affecting communion.
Colin Dayan is a Professor of English, the Robert Penn Warren Professor in the Humanities, and a Professor of Law at Vanderbilt University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
I’m missing part of the sole of a new Merrell shoe after a pit bull bit it while I was riding my bike. And I’m sure the poor mother from Honea Path, SC wouldn’t agree with this Karen. To quote the deputy, “She had bites from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet, including her whole entire body. It was one of the more gruesome animal attacks that I’ve ever seen in my career”. She lost both arms, and much more that my memory isn’t bringing back right now. The only way the dogs stopped attacking was when a bystander fired a gun and they let her go.
John, that’s Kyleen Waltman. The best article I have ever read about pitbull attack injuries were included in the Daily Mail exclusive article given by her sister.
From Daily Mail on May 3, 2022, about Kyleen W, attacked by a pack of pitbulls:
Kyleen’s sister interviewed: ‘When she passed out they were eating her alive. The dogs dragged her. They scalped her. Her skull was showing. They tore her left eyelid off.?
Pitbulls are the sweetest, most harmless, furbabies. They’ve never attacked anyone and are great with kids and the elderly. Never!
I’m guessing this is either sarcasm or willful ignorance. Most pitbulls are fine dogs, but to say they don’t hurt anyway is patently untrue. To this day they are still responsible for over half the deadly dog attacks in the US. And they are a small fraction of the population.
Oh so all the stories about Pitbulls killing their owners and helpless children are all lies??? You are so unbelievably ignorant !!!
Nipper is a fox terrier. Look at the shape of the head…it’s longer than wide. A Pit bull has a boxier head.
Thanks, Lynn.
To tackle the specifics about the untrue history of pitbulls, including in popular American culture, here is a direct SCATHING refutation at Animals 24-7:
“The Conversation” & the pit bull shit
My dog has been attacked by 2 pits in 4 yrs. Luckily he is a true canine companion- a Cane Corso – and could withstand the unprovoked attacks. Eff pit bulls… they are illegal here in Miami Dade yet get adopted out incessantly. Enough is enough with this BS breed.
Those are giant and terrifying dogs – the difference- they are smarter and don’t go psycho on their owners
My 55 year old daughter was killed by her beloved Pit. She had taken medication prior to a medical procedure on an ear. She fell. The dog attacked and literally broke her neck with his bite.
OMG. How horrible. I’m so sorry.
I had an amazing Pitbull for 14 years. Incredible family dog. I was hesitant to adopt from the shelter, but it was going to be euthanized as a puppy and it was the only dog in the shelter that didn’t bark and was very attentive to me. I immediately bought a book about raising Pitbulls and raised her right, never allowing her to use it’s jaws or play tug-of-war, etc. I raised a child with her and she was gentle and loving her entire life. BUT…. I never once didn’t worry that she might snap one day and I spent 14 years on alert. Moral of story… let this breed die out, there are plenty of other dogs that are incredible and less dangerous. Get a Papillon, like I have now. Stop getting a dog because you think it makes you look cool.
I have a Papillion! My 2nd one. They are the best.
Top Three Breeds Responsible for Fatal Dog Attacks
Pitbull – 185 deaths
Pitbull Mix – 41 deaths
Rotweiller – 26 deaths
The biggest issue is poorly trained dogs or specifically trained to fight. Untrained Pitbulls are just friendly. They are taught to fight or be ‘vicious’ …
Since 2016:
Top 10 Most Fatal Dog Breeds Table
Breed Deaths % of Total
Pit bull 284 65.6%
Rottweiler 45 10.4%
German shepherd 20 4.6%
Mixed-breed 17 3.9%
American bulldog 15 3.5%
Mastiff/Bullmastiff 14 3.2%
Husky 13 3.0%
Unknown/unreleased 11 2.5%
Labrador retriever 9 2.1%
Boxer 7 1.6%
It is unbelievably sad that you believe that. Go on Youtube and watch videos of pit bull puppies at the age of 4-8 weeks have to be separated from each other for fighting. By the same token, watch other breeds of the same age do things THEIR genetics tell them to do- hounds following trails, pointers pointing, retrievers chasing things. Fighting is in the genetics. It doesn’t make pit bulls bad. As the saying goes, it is what it is. But the instinct to chase/kill/bite/maul coupled with an incredibly powerful muscular dog plus owners who believe “its all in how you raise them” is why we have people mauled to death on an constant basis in this country.
Gimme some of what you are smoking. How about “AMERICA’S WORST DOG BREED”. That’s more like it!
I understand.people being aware of pitts they should be but I had a pitt bull and i worked out of my basement training people and my pitt was constantly around people and children i think its hais a lot to.how they are treated as. Puppies and socializing them with other dogs and people is vital but in saying this is understand the fear and its warrant
Everyone says this until their Pit Bull attacks and kills. “Oh my God, how could this happen??? It was the **SWEETEST** dog ever!”
It’s just willfully ignoring reality.
Pits are genetically unpredictable and it’s been proven hundreds of times by them attacking and killing their owners! Especially the children in the family and the fact that you are defending these vile animals is disgusting !
BS propaganda piece. There is literally a story every week about someone’s harmless pitbull killing or maiming someone. Usually elderly and children. They are killers. This would be like gun people saying that machine guns aren’t more dangerous then .22 bolt actions.
The analogy of a pit being like a .45 handgun is apt. I would not keep one in the house with children, definitely wouldn’t let them play with it.
Horrible analogy. All guns are tools designed to kill. Not all dogs are.
The analogy is perfect. Pit bulls are like a gun: designed to kill.
Only a pit bull owner would be incapable of understanding what was stated.
Your comment is ridiculous Pitbulls are genetically prone to be unpredictable…many kids and adults have been killed by then so stop being ignorant !
I was a bit hasty on my earlier comment. Someone above made an analogy about the PB being a .45 p….. vs. other dogs being a .22. I had that partly in mind when I replied.
Yet a handgun is an object that don’t decide to get up one day and murder or injure your family member with zero outsize stimulus. Keep both in there proper place.
Pit Bulls have no place whatsoever in a civilized society, this has been proven over and over again yet there’s still naysayers who got their heads buried in the sand. A parent placing their child in its presence is child neglect and reckless endangerment, plain and simple.
Isn’t that cute: a liberal arts PhD thinks she has a clue!
https://laws.com/mans-best-friend-or-worst-nightmare/
“Darla Napora was a passionate member of the Bay Area Dog Lovers Responsible about Pit Bulls Organization—a group committed to educating people as to the loving nature of Pit Bulls.
In an ironic and disturbing twist of fate, the subject of Napora’s efforts ended her life and the life of her unborn child.”
How horrible.
The famous RCA dog in first link wasn’t even a pit bull, it was a mixed Fox Terrier. But hey, the guy is a humanities professor, so that automatically qualifies whatever he says. smh.. this guy is a fkn id10t.
The famous RCA dog in first link wasn’t even a pit bull, it was a mixed Fox Terrier.
Bravo! Glad to hear you know the history.
Here is a direct SCATHING response to this Vanderbilt University prof’s article at Animals 24-7:
“The Conversation” & the pit bull shit
Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
I have owned two pitbulls, and I would not get any other dog but a pitbull. Each case is different my pitbulls were only loved and taught only love. They have the hugest heart. Yes they will protect you that is their job. I wonder what the statistics for German shepherds, chows Akitas, etc are. You can train any of these dogs to be mean! Yes myself I am going to stay with pitbulls and give them nothing but love hi how
They’re genetically unpredictable! That’s a fact! They’ve turned on Their owners even when they were loved on !!! A baby and a 3 y.o. sister were both killed recently by their own Pet Pitbull…so stop with your nonsense !!!
The beautiful thing is, Sande, that you don’t have to wonder! You can go look up articles on dog fatalities and see article after article and picture after picture of ugly pit bulldogs, with, yes, a GSD or Akita mixed in there once or twice every few years. Bull breeds cause the overwhelming amount of fatal dog attacks and maulings. No other breed or type of dog is even remotely close.
Found the problem.
Exactly, puppy mill with minimal socialization of the puppies. A disaster waiting to happen.
Author: I’m a professor and I have a pitbull that didn’t maul me.
World class logic?
The fool who wrote this article also compared black people to pitbulls.
How can someone so educated be so stupid? How many children have to die or be maimed before we realize this breed is trash?
Right?! This lady needs to get her money back from her university!!
The most recent data I could find was from 2018. Of human fatalities caused by dogs, 73% were caused by pit bulls:
https://blog.dogsbite.org/2019/05/2018-dog-bite-fatality-statistics-discussion.html#:~:text=Pit%20bulls%20inflicted%2067%25%20%2816%29%20of%20these%20attacks,attacks.%20Adult%20Fatalities%20Continue%20to%20Rise%20Metric%20Shift
Siegfried and Roy showed us that tigers can wear a tutu and dance. For years they “had no problems”. But tigers are bred to hunt and have the physical ability to kill. Why do you never see a news story about a Yorkie killing its owner? TWICE now I’ve been involved in a pitbull attack. 25 years ago I shot and killed one that was mauling a neighbor (she died), and 2 years ago I drove an owner to the hospital after he was mauled by his pitbull when he was trying to stop its attack on another dog. He lived, but had a chunk taken out of his face and arm and had so many deep puncture wounds he almost died from blood loss before I could get him to the hospital. Incredible that in my 50 years on this Earth, the only two times I’ve been involved in a dog attack involved pitbulls both times. Stop the delusional BS, nobody but roid-rage losers believe the “Pitbulls are nice” crap.