Preface The APBT will surprise you. It doesn't matter if you have years of experience with dogs or have never owned a dog before; the APBT will surprise you. Because of the many highly derogatory things that have been said and printed about this breed, the real APBT will surprise you. This book is not a piece of public relations literature about this breed. It is not designed to gloss over the negatives and accentuate the positives about the APBT. This book's goal is truth, and sometimes that truth can be revealed only when the interaction between a specific dog and a specific human being has played itself out. So, prepare to be surprised. The APBT is not the dog you may perceive it to be and owners of the APBT may not be what you imagine them to be. One thing is also certain; if you read this book and then take time to get to know this breed, you won't be who you were when you started the process. Now, that's a surprise! An old English proverb seems to fit the American Pit Bull Terrier, "Give a dog a bad name, and hang him. The virtues of the dog are his own, his vices, those of his master." This APBT would do well to look over its shoulder with all the hype and misinformation that has been put out about the breed. The Pit Bull Song By W.W. Schnipp Copyright© 1995 Quillian Publishing Company, BMI I stopped at a little roadside cafe in a new town hopin' to change my luck I heard a small boy holler at me as he climbed upon my truck He said mister, is that a Pit Bull that's riding up front with you? My mother says they're real mean dogs mister, is that true? I said I suppose Pit Bulls can be mean but that's not how this one gets his kicks this Pit Bull is a very smart dog and he's too busy doing tricks Then he asks, mister, mister, can I pet him? I said what would your mother say? why I'll even have him do some tricks if your mother says it's OK When the boy brought his mother I nearly fainted in the street she had to be the most beautiful woman that a man could hope to meet So I whispered to Rocky, my Pit Bull put on the best show of your life I bet she's a single mother and I bet I can make her my wife Rocky soared through the air catching Frisbees did a flip, he climbed a tree by the time Rocky pulled the truck with his teeth the boy's mother was holding hands with me Now there's a cottage in the country it's the place we all reside I wouldn't have a wife and boy that calls me dad If I didn't have that Pit Bull by my side. Chapter One The APBT— A New View An APBT Scenario The little girl, about four years old, was playing in the backyard of her suburban Florida home. She had carefully arranged her dolls for a tea party. Her mother was watching her out of the kitchen window. So intent was the child in her pretending that she sensed nothing amiss, no danger. In this same suburb, two or three houses up the street, lived a powerful American Pit Bull Terrier. Seven years old, a muscular 45 pounds, he was covered with scars from his years as a fighting dog. Retired from the pit, the dog lived his life in his new home in comfort. At times, this pit veteran would escape from his backyard, and today was just such a time. The dog jumped up on an outdoor grill and from there he cleared the fence. As he walked down the street, he saw the movement from the little girl's backyard and moved in that direction. The child didn't see him enter her yard. She didn't see him fixate on her. She didn't see the intent look in his eye. She didn't see him when he started his charge toward her. The child's mother saw the dog hurtling toward her daughter, but she didn't have time to call out. The little girl looked up and saw the rapidly approaching dog. She screamed as the animal leaped toward her. The dog jumped over the little girl and landed squarely atop a large rattlesnake coiled only a few feet away. Though bitten by the rattler, the dog easily killed the snake and vigorously shook the still- writhing body. The child's mother ran to gather up her crying child and the dog dropped the snake and ran over to the little girl and began covering her face with licks of affection. The child's mother arrived and saw the child, the dog, and the twitching snake. She embraced the child and the dog, an old family friend. Hype About APBTs Perhaps you had envisioned a different ending to this short and true story. If you did, you may have People who know the APBT understand that properly bred dogs of this breed are the least likely of all dog breeds to be h uman-aggressive. succumbed to the hype and fright-writing that has surrounded the American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT) over the past couple of decades. If the dog in this true scenario had been a Saint Bernard, a Beagle, or a Collie, would you have similar apprehensions about what was going to happen? Probably not, APBTs (and kindred breeds) have been the victims of more bad press, rumor, innuendo, myth, and fathomless fear than any dog breed in history. For some reason it has been easier, certainly in the past 15 or 20 years, to believe the worst about the APBT. That was not always the case. For nearly a century, this breed was accepted as a valued family pet. True, it generally had to be watched around certain other kinds of dogs, but no more so than other large or powerful breeds. For many ordinary Americans, especially in the tense times before World War I, the APBT epitomized the American spirit of strength and independence. Some time in the early- to-mid-1970s this public acceptance changed. An often wrongfully accused old family friend suddenly became Public Enemy Number One. This book is not about the "pit bull." This book is about the American Pit Bull Terrier. The two are nor the same. "Pit bulls" can be almost anything. They can be poorly bred pit fighting dogs, poorly bred American Staffordshire Terriers, poorly bred Staffordshire Bull Terriers, poorly bred APBTs, mixed dogs of some bull breed heritage, or just short-haired and thickset mongrels with an attitude. This book is about a great and misunderstood American canine treasure, a breed of dog that has conquered more obstacles than any other breed of dog in the history of the human-canine relationship. It is about a breed many consider the best all-around dog to ever exist, a breed with a long and distinguished history as one of the gentlest and most versatile of family pets, the bravest of war dogs, and the staunchest defenders of children. This book, without a hint of apology, is about the American Pit Bull Terrier. From a heritage as a fighting dog, the American Pit Bull Terrier has become one of the best ail around dogs in the world. The APBT as a Family Pet and Companion The APBT is a dog of extremes. It is extremely strong, extremely powerful, and extremely loyal. It evokes extreme reactions, positive and negative. An alert and intelligent breed, the APBT has not only participated in, but has also excelled in, almost every activity in which dogs can be involved. In obedience, agility, therapy work, hunting, Schutzhund, weight-pulling contests, and candidly, in the dog-fighting pit, the APBT has continually surprised those who know the breed best and has amazed the uninitiated. How- ever, this beautiful, powerful, bright, clownish, controversial dog has done its best work as a family pet and companion animal. As serious students of dogs, breed experts and anyone who has spent any length of time with a good APBT will readily testify that this breed, properly bred and properly socialized, is the least likely of all breeds to bite a human being! Many self-anointed guardians of all-things-canine may not accept this fact, but their lack of acceptance does not make the fact less true. Historically, when they were pit fighting dogs, APBTs were bred never to attack humans. Their owners killed dogs that did not conform to this strict ideal. Appear Size There is some degree of diversity in appearance among APBTs. APBTs can range in size from 30 pounds to 75 pounds (14 to 34 kg). Some breeders, as they have in so many other breeds, have even produced giant versions of the APBT, approaching 100 pounds (45 kg) or more. Some of the original pit fight- The American Pit Bull Terrier is a superb canine athlete, a strong and brave companion, and a clown at heart. ing dogs imported from the British Isles were very small by today's standards. In the pit, some of the greatest fighters of all time weighed less than 35 pounds (16 kg). These dogs gave rise to the popular expression, "It is not the size of the dog in the fight; it's the size of the fight in the dog." Color The APBT can be any solid shade or combination of colors.