Originally posted by: MichaelD
10 years ago my brother bought a pit bull puppy and raised it with love. Sure; he played rough with it. "Throwing the dog around" takes on a different meaning when said dog can dislocate your shoulder without trying.
3 years later, the dog was one of the biggest pits I've ever seen. 90-something pounds, IIRC. Solid as a rock. Head the size of a bowling ball. :Q
Said dog was the sweetest thing ever. It would lick you to death. Sure; if you were playing tug of war with it's favorite rope toy (you could tie a battleship with this rope) you could get accidentally bitten. I did, and I asked for it by rough housing with the dog. But it let go and didn't rip my arm off.
7 years ago, my brother got married. Since then, he's had FIVE (5) children. The pit has been in the house the entire time. I have watched 4 different 2 year olds jump on the dogs head, poke it in the eyes, yank on it's ears. The poor dogs howls in pain and runs away. It's never so much as nipped one of the kids.
IN FACT, said pit will sit in the unfenced front yard and WATCH the kids. Said pit makes a hell of a racket should any of the kids get anywhere near the street OR if ANYONE comes near the house. My brother (who is a cop, BTW) will let the dog watch his kids while he's inside watching TV. Having this dog bark at you (and bear its' teeth) will make a grown man soil his shorts.
I will admit that the dog HAS had a go at another dog (I think it was a Rot) that had escaped it's owner and wandered into the neighborhood. Luckily, my brother got them separated with no major damage to either dog. But for the most part, the pit is well-tempered and wont' chase other dogs. Especially if the kids are outside.
Sorry for the epic discourse; I just wanted to say that it's not the BREED. It's the breeding and the upbringing that determines a dog's behavior.
Oh, and Michael Vick is a POS.

I'm SO GLAD he got burned. He won't do more than a year in jail, but his career is over. The Message to pro athletes has begun. Next Up: Roid Ragers And The People Who Cover For Them.