American Pit Bull Terrier. F. Favorito
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wrong breed for you. There are other breeds that can live in such an environment. You would be doing both yourself and the Pit Bull breed a favor if you would select one of those breeds instead.
The perfect owner for a Pit Bull Terrier is one who will return the devotion the dog will provide him. This owner will want the dog primarily for the fantastic companionship it will afford and not for the image it will exude. This owner will enjoy the exercise the breed demands as much as his dog itself will. This owner will understand the reputation by which the breed has become victimized and work to improve it. This owner will be in a position to take on a dog that may be with him for 15 years, without expecting the dog to deal with excessive change in its life. This owner will be one who can provide a very regular routine in all respects.
If properly introduced, socialized and supervised, American Pit Bull Terriers can get along with other family pets.
If you are this person, the Pit Bull may be a better choice from among pure-bred dogs than you may formerly have thought.
HIP DYSPLASIA IN PIT BULLS
The Pit Bull is a generally healthy breed and the closer a dog is to working stock, the healthier it will be. One situation that deserves special mention here is the condition of hip dysplasia as it relates to the working Pit Bull. While there is no doubt that this is a serious condition for many breeds, and selecting a pup should generally include questions about the condition of the breeding stock’s hips, in some situations this concern can become overdone. In the case of the working-stock Pit Bull, overemphasized concern is often the case.
Shortly after the United Kennel Club became very involved in showing their registered Pit Bulls in conformation shows, show Pit Bull breeders began having their breeding stock tested for hip dysplasia. An alarm was sounded throughout the United States because the vast majority of the Pit Bulls being tested were found to be very dysplastic. None of these dysplastic dogs showed any outward evidence of suffering from this condition, and all of the breeding stock from which these dogs had been produced had been hard- working, long-lived, super-athletic fighting dogs!
Hip dysplasia is a genetic fault that has been found in Pit Bulls. It can only be verified through radiographic observation.
There is a difference between what we can think of as “actual” dysplasia and “theoretical” dysplasia. If you will be selecting your pup from proven, highly game-bred, long-lived working stock, questions about medical evidence that the hips are tightly formed are not as imperative as they might be in other, especially larger, breeds.
VARIATIONS IN THE BREED
Earlier, we began to discuss the first divergence in type between the Pit Bull in its working form, as represented by dogs registered with the United Kennel Club and the American Dog Breeders Association, and the breed in its show form, as represented by dogs registered as American Staffordshire Terriers with the American Kennel Club. This divergence in type is common among breeds that are registered by show organizations but that remain in use in the field elsewhere, such as sporting breeds like the Labrador Retriever and English Setter. Rarely are successful show dogs also successful field or “working” dogs, especially in the US, where working ability does not affect a dog’s earning a championship. In the UK, on the other hand, the working and gundog breeds, for example, must qualify in the field before they can be considered full champions.
Although the pet Pit Bull is not used for working, his working instinct makes him a naturally active dog.
In the case of the Pit Bull, the situation has become even more complicated in recent years. Today we see at least three forms of the Pit Bull breed; these three forms can be labeled as the working (fighting) form, the show form and the “backyard-bred” form.
There is a large divergence in type among the Pit Bull breed—those that make the best working dogs would often not be successful in the show ring.
Working-form Pit Bulls, also referred to as the game-bred type, tend to be smaller, finer boned, more terrier-type dogs. Temperamentally, these dogs tend to be aggressive toward other dogs, but not toward people. In fact, years ago, the game-bred Pit Bull had the reputation of being one of the most useless of breeds for protection work because they were so reluctant to display aggression toward people.
Show-form Pit Bulls tend to be larger, more refined, bigger boned dogs with greater, more expansive chests and larger heads. Temperamentally, these dogs tend to be less dog-aggressive and not very aggressive toward people.
The “backyard-bred” dog tends to be larger than the working dog. It is not a refined-looking animal. It is not bred to last in long sustained dog matches and it is not bred to win any shows. It is generally bred to be attractive to those seeking a very macho-looking dog. Temperamentally, these dogs tend to be more aggressive toward people and often more outwardly aggressive toward other animals as well. After all, those who want a macho-looking dog are generally also in the market for a dog that will threaten others. Those who see a market in selling Pit Bulls to these people tend to selectively breed for this quality.
Acquire your pet American Pit Bull from stock that has been bred for temperament rather than fighting ability. Investigate the background of the parents and the breeder.
In selecting a Pit Bull for your own home, it is perhaps more important than with any other breed to do your homework carefully. The game-bred dog might not be the poor choice for a pet that you thought it to be. The show dog is often a fine pet. But the backyard-bred dog is what has given rise to the “Pit Bull problems” and negative reputation we have seen in recent years.
Some lines of Pit Bull produce dogs that are noticeably stockier and larger than dogs of other lines.
According to the standard, it is not important whether the dog’s ears are cropped or uncropped. Uncropped ears give the Pit Bull a softer look.
Breed Standard for the American Pit Bull Terrier
WHAT IS A BREED STANDARD?
Every breed of dog is guided by a standard, a blueprint of sorts that describes the breed’s physical properties and temperament, and the traits necessary for the task for which the dog originally was bred. Although Pit Bulls today are seen as pets, in the show ring and as guard dogs rather than in their original capacity as fighting dogs, the physical characteristics that made the dogs able fighters are what define the breed’s type, and these qualities of strength and athleticism should not be lost in today’s breed representatives. Standards are written by knowl-edgeable breed experts who hope to ensure the quality of their given breed for future generations. Breeders follow the standard when planning a mating, and show judges use the standard to evaluate dogs in the ring. Without such guidelines, specific