{"id":1338,"date":"2021-01-21T08:55:45","date_gmt":"2021-01-21T08:55:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/petpedia.co\/blog\/?p=1338"},"modified":"2024-02-18T15:54:53","modified_gmt":"2024-02-18T15:54:53","slug":"pit-bull-statistics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/petpedia.co\/blog\/pit-bull-statistics\/","title":{"rendered":"34 Pit Bull Statistics to Break Stereotypes (2024 UPDATE)"},"content":{"rendered":"
Nature versus nurture \u2014 it\u2019s a question as old as time. Are Pit Bulls genetically more aggressive than other dog breeds, as public opinion and some Pit Bull statistics seem to suggest?<\/span><\/p>\n Or have they been bred and kept by irresponsible humans who mistreat them and use them for cruel and savage purposes? Don’t discriminate against Pitties until you get all the facts.<\/span><\/p>\n Here are some astonishing statistics and facts that\u2019ll change your view.<\/span><\/p>\n You may think you have Pit Bulls all figured out, but the truth is that there is more to these dogs than brute force.<\/span><\/p>\n Pit Bulls are perfectly capable of being one of the most affectionate, cheerful, and playful pets, but only if they are given the right love and care.<\/span><\/p>\n People consider Pit Bulls to be a separate breed, but science and the AKC disagree. So, let\u2019s see where these dogs belong.<\/span><\/p>\n (AVMA, Today, Shaw Pit Bull Rescue)<\/span><\/p>\n First of all, Pit Bulls are not technically a breed. They\u2019re rather a type of dog which includes the following dog breeds:<\/span><\/p>\n The English Bull Terrier, Boxers, and the American Bulldog are just some of the breeds commonly misidentified as Pit Bulls.<\/span><\/p>\n While Pit Bull facts show that a muscular body and a broad head are standard features of Pit Bulls, it doesn\u2019t mean that all that have these physical characteristics are the same type of dog.<\/span><\/p>\n (Pitbullinfo.org, AVMA, NCBI)<\/span><\/p>\n The study, carried out in two shelters in California and Arizona, also found that 62% of dogs labeled as\u00a0<\/span>Pit Bulls had less than a 50% DNA concentration from Pit Bull-type ancestry<\/span>, Pit Bull facts and statistics show.<\/span><\/p>\n Identifying the right breed of dog in attacks and death is incredibly difficult. This is why the CDC stopped collecting breed-specific data in dog bite-related fatalities (DBRF) in 1998.<\/span><\/p>\n The fact that there\u2019s no official data to go by makes it even harder to separate myths from facts regarding Pit Bull attacks in the US.<\/span><\/p>\n (ScienceDirect)<\/span><\/p>\n Pit Bull facts and information on breed labels show that this type of dog is misidentified. When a dog is brought to a shelter, it is immediately assigned a breed to ease the adoption process.<\/span><\/p>\n The problem is that most of the time, people assign the breed labels based on personal opinion. Consequently, they often misidentify a breed.<\/span><\/p>\n Moreover, research has shown that animal professionals, such as groomers, breeders, and vets, correctly recognized a prominent breed of dogs in only a small portion of cases.<\/span><\/p>\n These stats show that visual identification of dogs, especially mixed-breed dogs, is next to impossible.<\/span><\/p>\n Pit Bulls are often portrayed as vicious, aggressive dogs that go around, bite, and maul people. It\u2019s true that some Pit Bulls do attack and bite people. But let\u2019s see the statistics and break some myths.<\/span><\/p>\n (AVMA)<\/span><\/p>\n This comprehensive report was compiled by the CDC, the Humane Society of the United States, and the AVMA. It reveals that Pit Bull-type dogs were implicated in a third of dog bite-related human deaths from 1981\u20131992.<\/span><\/p>\n However, the CDC dog bite statistics reveal that 25 breeds of dogs were involved in fatal attacks on humans during the 20 years.<\/span><\/p>\n The report also mentions that deadly attacks comprised a small portion of dog-bite injuries. Hence, the data presented in the study should not be used to identify a specific breed of dog as “dangerous.”<\/span><\/p>\n (Dogsbite.org)<\/span><\/p>\n Statistics on Pit Bull attacks for the following year show there were 48 dog bite-related deaths in the US in 2019. Moreover, 69% of them are attributed to Pit Bulls.<\/span><\/p>\n (Dogsbite.org)<\/span><\/p>\n According to the same analysis, Pit Bulls have killed more women than men. From 2015\u20132019, adult females made up for 66% of victims killed by Pit Bulls, as Pit Bull attack statistics reveal.<\/span><\/p>\n (AAHA, National Canine Research Council)<\/span><\/p>\n Second on the list were Pit Bulls (responsible for 22.5% of all bites), mixed breeds (21.2%), and German Shepherds (held accountable for 17.8% of all bites).<\/span><\/p>\n According to the study’s authors, “unknown” tops the list because it\u2019s so challenging to identify breeds based on just visual information correctly.<\/span><\/p>\n When it comes to the number of Pit Bull bites, statistics show evidence of the dogs’ genetics or pedigree in only 13% of the 38 reported cases of DBRFs in 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n (NCBI)<\/span><\/p>\n According to a five-year review of dog-bite-related injuries from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 50.9% of all attacks came from Pit Bulls.<\/span><\/p>\n Around 8.9% of injuries were inflicted by Rottweilers, while mixes from the two breeds were responsible for 6% of attacks.<\/span><\/p>\n When comparing Pit Bull attacks statistics vs. other breeds, this review ranks Pit Bull’s number one among 30 other offending dog breeds.<\/span><\/p>\n Nevertheless, it\u2019s important to mention that the report only reviewed a single pediatric hospital’s emergency room records in one state.<\/span><\/p>\n (Pitbullinfo.org)<\/span><\/p>\n This list includes Pit Bulls, as well as Akitas, Labs, and many others. Pit Bull attacks statistics put these dogs on the list with over 40 other breeds responsible for fatalities, including German Shepherds and Boxers.<\/span><\/p>\n Simply put, <\/span>all dog breeds can display aggressive behavior<\/span><\/a> and turn on humans, not just canines that are considered dangerous or “vicious.”<\/span><\/p>\n There are millions of Pit Bulls in the US. Sadly, they\u2019re mistreated and one of the most misunderstood dog category in America and worldwide.<\/span><\/p>\n (ANIMALS 24-7)<\/span><\/p>\n Pit Bull statistics suggest that Pit Bulls or Pit Bull mixes make up 5.8% of all dogs in the US. This means that one dog in twenty is a Pit Bull.<\/span><\/p>\n Around 54% of these canines are looking for a home, 31% of which are puppies, and 23% are put up for adoption after losing their previous home.<\/span><\/p>\n (ANIMALS 24-7)<\/span><\/p>\n Pit Bulls in shelters statistics reveal this number jumped to 31% in July 2019. Today, Pit Bulls and Pit Bull mixes make up 50% of total canine intakes in shelters.<\/span><\/p>\n (The Washington Post)<\/span><\/p>\n Dogs that looked like Pit Bulls but were labeled a different breed stayed in shelters for 13 days, while pups classified as Pit Bulls spend an average of 42 days in animal shelters.<\/span><\/p>\n (ANIMALS 24-7)<\/span><\/p>\n This means that there were over 1.3 million Pit Bulls for sale in 2019. This is 375,000 more than in 2018, in addition to the millions of Pit Bulls in shelters and rescues. Even sadder, most of the Pit Bulls for sale are the product of backyard breeding.<\/span><\/p>\n (ANIMALS 24-7, KC Dog Blog)<\/span><\/p>\n It is believed that around <\/span>800,000 Pit Bull-type dogs are euthanized in shelters<\/span><\/a> every year. In other words, Pit Bull death statistics reveal that about 40% of all dogs killed in animal shelters are Pit Bulls.<\/span><\/p>\n To end euthanasia, animal activists are pushing for bills ending the sale of <\/span>commercially bred puppies in puppy mills<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n The idea is that if puppy mills go out of business, people will have to adopt pets from the shelters. In turn, this will lower both euthanasia rates and the number of Pit Bulls in the animal shelters.<\/span><\/p>\n Myths and stigma around Pit Bulls are so common that people go into panic mode at the sole mention of their name.<\/span><\/p>\n (PLOS)<\/span><\/p>\n Participants in a study who were shown videos of canines labeled as Pit Bulls and similar dogs found the “look-alikes” more attractive. However, when the labels were removed, they found Pit Bulls more attractive.<\/span><\/p>\n (YouGov)<\/span><\/p>\n Moreover, statistics also reveal that Pit Bulls are the 19th most popular type of dogs in the US.<\/span><\/p>\n [visualizer id=”5974″]<\/span><\/p>\n However, as much as 51% of the American population still has a negative opinion of Pitties. On the other hand, 21% have a neutral opinion.<\/span><\/p>\n (The Washington Post)<\/span><\/p>\n An Orlando shelter did away with labels on dogs and discovered something amazing. Namely, Pit Bulls facts show that only 52% of labeled Pit Bull-type dogs were adopted. In comparison, 64% were adopted after the breed identification tags were removed.<\/span><\/p>\n Non-labeled Pit Bull-type canines also spent 1.5 days less at the shelter, and euthanasia rates went down by 12%.<\/span><\/p>\n (The Washington Post)<\/span><\/p>\n A 2016 study asked people to look at Lab, Border Collie, and Pit Bull photos and then assess the dogs’ approachability, intelligence, aggression, and trainability. Pit Bulls ranked lowest in all categories, except in trainability and aggression.<\/span><\/p>\n The sad truth is that Pit Bulls are some of the most tortured, maltreated, and abused dogs on the planet. They\u2019re often bred for illegal dog fights. Inhumane conditions in which people keep them are just the tip of the iceberg.<\/span><\/p>\n (PETA)<\/span><\/p>\n In addition to thousands of Pit Bulls mistreated and abused by their owners, many of them die every year in dogfighting rings.<\/span><\/p>\n Some bad facts about Pit Bulls show they\u2019re usually kept chained and are starved to trigger their survival instincts and encourage aggressive behavior. The ones that survive the fight are kept and bred for profit.<\/span><\/p>\nWhat Are the Key Pit Bull Facts and Stats Everyone Should Know<\/b><\/h2>\n
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What Is a Pit Bull Breed?<\/b><\/h2>\n
1. The AKC doesn\u2019t recognize Pit Bulls as a separate breed of dog.<\/b><\/h3>\n
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2. A study found that dogs classified as Pit Bulls only had 43.5% DNA from Pit Bull-type ancestry.<\/b><\/h3>\n
3. Breed labels at animal shelters are wrong 75% of the time.<\/b><\/h3>\n
Pit Bull Bite Statistics<\/b><\/h2>\n
4. Pit Bulls and Rottweilers were responsible for 60% of human deaths by dogs in the USA from 1979\u20131998.<\/b><\/h3>\n
5. Pit Bulls and Pit Bull mixes are believed to have killed 33 Americans in 2018.<\/b><\/h3>\n
6. Pit Bulls are reported to have killed 346 Americans from 2005\u20132019.<\/b><\/h3>\n
7. A 2019 study shows that of all breeds responsible for dog bites, \u201cunknown\u201d is number one.<\/b><\/h3>\n
8. Two-thirds of dog bite-related injuries in a Philadelphia hospital involved two breeds of dogs \u2014 Pit Bulls and Rottweilers.<\/b><\/h3>\n
9. Over 47 breeds of dogs have been implicated in fatal dog attacks between 2016 and 2020.<\/b><\/h3>\n
Pit Bulls in the US by the Numbers<\/b><\/h2>\n
10. There are around 4.5 million Pit Bulls in the US.<\/b><\/h3>\n
11. Pit Bull-type dogs and Pit Bull mixes accounted for 22% of all dogs put up for adoption in shelters.<\/b><\/h3>\n
12. Dogs labeled as Pit Bulls spend three times longer in shelters than other dogs.<\/b><\/h3>\n
13. Facts about Pit Bulls show that 7.9% of dogs advertised for sale in 2019 were Pitties.<\/b><\/h3>\n
14. Half of all Pit Bulls are euthanized in shelters.<\/b><\/h3>\n
Discrimination, myths and facts about Pit Bulls<\/b><\/h2>\n
15. Discrimination against Pit Bulls is so prevalent that the name alone puts people off this type of dog.<\/b><\/h3>\n
16. 25% of the US has a negative opinion of Pit Bull, statistics and studies show.<\/b><\/h3>\n
17. Removing labels helps dogs get adopted.<\/b><\/h3>\n
18. People don\u2019t trust Pit Bulls, surveys show.<\/b><\/h3>\n
Pit Bull Abuse Statistics<\/b><\/h2>\n
19. Pit Bulls are the most abused dogs in the world.<\/b><\/h3>\n
20. Pit Bulls are the types of dogs most commonly used in dogfights.<\/b><\/h3>\n