When people ask me whether I’m a dog or cat person, my instant response is dog. Dogs are loyal companions who will stick with you no matter what others think of you. They give you all their love and attention, that is unless they’re mistreated.
I used to be scared of big dogs when I was younger, especially pit bulls. People told me they were ferocious dogs who would bite or do worse. Thus, I was told to stay away from them.
One of the reasons why pit bulls have the bad reputation they have is because they’re the main breed used for dog fighting. Dog fighting is a “sport” where dogs are bred and conditioned to fight against one another. In this case, it is humans who are conditioning the dogs to not only harm each other, but themselves as well. In fact, they often develop deep wounds and scars as well as broken bones due to the inhumane sport. However, to break such stereotypes, there are numerous organizations and people who are displaying pit bulls as kind and loving creatures.
A popular YouTube channel–Dark Dynasty K9s–is known for having the world’s biggest pit bull, Hulk. They specialize in breeding and training guard dogs, with Hulk being the face of their organization. At a first glance, these pit bulls may seem aggressive and violent. However, there are videos that show them running around and living their life as normal dogs, proving that these dogs not only can be house pets, but can work to ensure the safety of their owners as well.
Pit bulls are faced with many negative stereotypes that have caused thousands, if not millions of them to be put down. People don’t want to adopt “aggressive” dogs. However, pit bulls aren’t born aggressive. It is a person’s responsibility to take care of and train them to be the loyal and trusting dogs they can be, same as any other little white dog or happy golden retriever.