But why listen to us?
Here's a paper from the Journal of Veterinary Behaviour by Stephen Collier that presents data and an analysis which reaches the same conclusion.
The abstract:
After more than a century as an uncontroversial dog (Jessup, 1975), the
American pit bull terrier has developed a notorious reputation as a
dangerous breed since 1980, with consequent restrictions placed upon it
by jurisdictions in Australia and elsewhere. Studies in the United
States have indicated that the “pit bull” is responsible for a
significant number of human fatalities resulting from dog attack, but
the data on which such studies are based are flawed by methodological
shortcomings. Using absolute numbers of dog attacks by breed in
Australia, data on attacks on human beings reveal the pit bull terrier
to be exceeded by several other breeds. Regardless, the primary problem
is that reliable data do not exist for the number of attacks relative
to breed population. Of 19 human fatalities in Australia over the past
two decades, none has involved a dog verified to be an American pit
bull terrier. The evidence does not sustain the view that this is a
uniquely dangerous breed, and breed-specific laws aimed to control it
have not been demonstrated by authorities to be justified by its attack
record.
The entire paper is available at no cost here.
