Hi from a lurker, and now, a first poster.
Quote:
Originally Posted by capnhowdy
I don't think there's an accurate test to measure bites/jaw pressure. The root of the problem is that most dogs 'cut and run' wits, bite and release. The PBT wants to hang on a while, thus the mega meat-fest. This is expected from an animal bred to bring down a 1500 lb bull.
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No, no! They have and use bite meters (digital
), to measure the strength of the dog's biting and holding strength.
And Pit Bull's were not bred to fight bulls. Bull "baiting", where the dogs tried to hold a bull by the nose or throat until it collapsed from lack of air, was done by a forerunner to the Pit Bull Terrier. Baiting lost interest to the "sport" of dog fighting. Fighting is what the Pit breeds were bred for. The white Bull Terrier you saw with all the quills in it, had a
narrower head, and shorter legs. Because of that, it fared badly in the fighting ring, and was retired, as a breed.
The strength of a dogs bite is proportional to the
width of their skulls. More skull width, allows more jaw muscle and jaw bone mass. The strength of a muscle is roughly proportional to it's mass, unless deliberate hypertrophy training (think physique champs), has been done.
APBT and Staffordshire Terriers are very strong, overall, will a high threshold for pain and "game-ness" (once started, they don't stop). Their biting strength is not better than that of breeds with wider heads, however.
Top of the list for biting strength:
1) <<Mastiff>> breeds of all types.
2) The massive dogs: Akita, St. Bernards, Wolfhound, Great Dane, Rottweiler, etc.
3) The large dogs: <<German Shepards, Belgian Shepards>>,
4) Medium sized: <<Staffordshire Terrier, Belgian Malinois>>.
#1 have been measured at 500 psi. #2 get to about 400 psi, #3, can get to 350 psi, #4 are about 290 psi.
The <<breeds>> were the one's measured for bite strength, as part of their K-9 work training or testing, or owned by K-9 trainers, and very well motivated. I added the others where I believe they fit, although I haven't seen their bite strength tested.
The Pit Bull Terrier is not a super strength biter, but through their selective breeding, the breed is very tenacious once it starts fighting, very muscular in general, aggressive in style, and has a higher pain threshold than most dogs. They're ideal for dog fighting because they can be readily kept, transported, and "broken" (using sticks designed for it). Much cheaper and safer than trying to work with a larger breed of dog.
It's interesting to note that some breeds of mastiff's are still being bred to instill a temperament of "loathing" for any strangers, including the "Presa Canario" mastiff.
As much as I like good Pit Bulls (and they are sweet, if socialized when they're young), I don't think most people should own them (or mastiffs), and the cities are wise to ban them.