I KNEW several sweet slobbery Pitbulls; knowing the breed as I do I would NEVER own one. The ones I killed were running loose and harassing me on my driveway; harass me = clear and present danger to my mom and sisters = dead dog.
Pitbulls have a history of attacking and killing not just strangers; but members of their own family. Witness the little girl above. They are a highly “game” dog that strives for dominance, and sometimes thinks it needs to enforce or establish this dominance via the bite.
And Chows ARE notoriously vicious as well. I would never have a Chow as a “nanny dog” either.
The fact that there are other types of vicious dogs doesn't mean that Pittbulls are not vicious.
I didn't need media coverage to let me know that Pittbulls are vicious killers; all I needed was to grow up in my hometown where the things ran amok, attacked livestock, attacked people; and often as not ended up SSS.
A bit of balance is necessary in the coverage. I think there is FAR TOO MUCH hot-headed emotional bias going on against this type of dog in particular. You don’t want to own one - fine. No one is forcing you. As for the “nanny” comment, you are arguing a historical fact. I have said REPEATEDLY on this and other threads that responsible ownership is what is needed rather than an emotional backlash against a specific breed or type of dog. I would not personally leave a child unsupervised with ANY domesticated animal (cat or dog). Children have a way of making sudden movements which can startle the animal which will then act defensively with teeth or claws. This is simple common sense and is even more important when dealing with a powerful dog. HISTORICALLY, however, people HAVE used Pits and other types as nanny dogs. You may disagree with their having done so, but it doesn’t make it less so - and most have done so without incident. If you choose to go ahead and argue a historical fact, be my guest. Good luck with that.
The “Pit bulls are naturally vicious” mantra does not make it so - despite the endless repetitions by many here and the total denial of studies suggesting the contrary.