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If that were true there would be no difference in our ability to train wolves and dogs.

Not relevant at all... dogs are wolves that have been selectively bred over thousands of generations for their ability to handle domesticated life.

The marketing crap they have on pit bull excuse and marketing sites is just that. It's a nice pitch. Doesn't make it ~true~. If you look on the American Kennel Club - Staffordshire Bull Terrier page... it says they are "particularly good with children". Just think about that for a minute.

It's propaganda. It's the political correctness of the dog world. They are trying to change the dog through better marketing. And it's dangerously and knowlingly false.

Partially because of this selective breeding which culled out "man biters", this breed became well known for its loving devotion and trustworthy nature with humans."

While some truly whacked out dogs that were too viscous to handle were culled for management reasons, that doesn't mean dog aggression is a different instinct. Only that some are too aggressive to even manage well enough to fight. The dogs were not loyal loved companions, they were expendable pawns.

Many participate and excel in various dog sports and activities, including Obedience Trials, Search and Rescue work, Agility Trials, Flyball and Frisbee Competitions, and Weight Pulling events.

They don't 'excel' as a breed, in any of these sports, they are not easier than a Golden in obedience, they are not better able to search and rescue than a GSD or a Lab, they are not near as fast as a Border Collie, and they can't pull as much as a Malamute or a Greater Swiss.

The only thing they're really the best at is what they were bred for. Fighting.

>The marketing crap they have on pit bull excuse and marketing sites is just that. It's a nice pitch. Doesn't make it ~true~. If you look on the American Kennel Club - Staffordshire Bull Terrier page... it says they are "particularly good with children". Just think about that for a minute.<

Please cite for me, if you would, an account where an AKC registered Staffordshire Bull Terrier, NOT a UKC pit bull, nor an unregistered pit bull type dog, has ever been proven to have killed anyone, much less a child.

The dogs doing the maiming and killing are not registered animals, and they are not Staffordshire Bull Terriers.

Now that you've basically called me gullible and irresponsible...let me just say that my dog is "particularly good with children;" 9 years and two kids (and about a dozen nieces and nephews visiting) and three cats. Far better with children than my sister's welsh corgi, or my mother-in-law's Jack Russell, just to name two dogs I have seen "with children" first hand.

I hope you don't mind if I defer to my 40 years of experience with pit bulls/Amstaffs over your "expertise."

The older I get, the less impressed I am with "experts."

"dogs are wolves that have been selectively bred over thousands of generations for their ability to handle domesticated life."

Selectively bred for what? Define "domesticated life." Is it the wolf's inability to get along with other wolves that make a wolf "undomesticated?"

Actually wolves get along very well within the pack structure. It is their inability to get along with people that makes a wolf undomesticated and unamenable to training.

This confirms that dog on dog aggression is not the same as dog on people aggression.

"They don't 'excel' as a breed, in any of these sports...
and they can't pull as much as a Malamute or a Greater Swiss"

The popular sport of weight pulling is open to all breeds, but especially suits dogs bred for draft work, such as the Saint Bernard, Greater Swiss Mountain Dog, Alaskan Malamute, and Samoyed. Weight pulling also attracts owners of physically powerful breeds such as the American Pit Bull Terrier and the American Bull Dog.

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=2198&S=1&SourceID=47

I have seen weight pull competitions at ADBA dog shows, and the dogs are able to pull much greater amounts of weight. The "sled" is on wheels which rolls across a track like a railroad car. The dog can only pull in one direction, and there is no need to break the sled free. But once it starts rolling, there is a definite advantage in going smoothly with the forward momentum, and not letting the sled stop. I have seen Pit Bulls pull weights upwards of 1,000 pounds easily this way, whereas the winter weight pulls often max out at around 800 pounds.

http://www.dogscouts.com/weightpull.shtml

Weight pulling is a dog sport involving a dog pulling a cart or sled loaded with weight a short distance across grass, carpet, or snow. Many breeds participate in this sport, with dogs being separated into classes by weight. Sleddog and pit bull breeds excel within their respective weight classes, having been historically bred to pull sleds and plows, respectively.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weight_pulling

Dog's Name Owner's Name Dog's Breed Weight Class Order Pulled Dog's weight Weight Pulled Time Pulled (Sec.) X Dog's Weight Event Points

Cat Bonacorsi Pit Bull C-100 39 96 1400 15.24 14.6 23
Cash Russell Malamute C-100 46 90 1200 6.18 13.3 22
Kali Weiman Akita C-100 47 96 1200 8.85 12.5 21
Hoover Shepherd Makenzie Rvr C-100 38 88 1000 6.09 11.4 20
Sprite Russell Malamute C-100 55 88 1000 6.55 11.34 19

http://www.tsamc.org/tsamc/past_years/9899/dells_results.html

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I answered you on your terms. But the fact is your logic is preposterous. 90% of all dog breeds should be eliminated if the criteria is being "the best" or excelling at anything.

But the fact is that Pit Bulls do excell.