Its long, but shows an unbiased opinion of dog breeds. The study may be found on the link below.
http://www.animalfarmfoundation.org/pdf/DowdAPBTbehaviormanuscriptV4format.pdf
Temperament assessment related to breed groups S.E. Dowd 2006
Assessment of Canine Temperament in Relation to Breed Groups Scot E. Dowd Ph.D. Matrix Canine Research Institute. PO BOX 1332, Shallowater, TX 79363, sdowd@canineresearch.org , MATRIX CANINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE . Abstract Breed specific legislations (BSL), are laws that discriminate against dogs of specific breeds and breed groups. BSL similar to human racial profiling is based upon the premise that certain breed types are more dangerous to humans because of genetic temperament predispositions. The American Pit Bull Terrier and the American Staffordshire Terrier are the breeds most targeted by BSL. In the current study, the temperaments of over 25,000 dogs, of various breeds, have been evaluated including 1136 dogs from the pit bull group and 469 American Pit Bull Terriers. Using results of a rigorous pass-fail temperament test, designed to evaluate characteristics such as human aggression, these analyses statistically evaluated the proportion of dogs categorized by breed groups (e.g. sporting, pit bull, hound, toy, terrier) passing. Interestingly, results show that the pit bull group had a significantly higher passing proportion (p < 0.05) than all other pure breed groups, except the Sporting and Terrier groups. These groups however, did not have a statistically higher passing proportion (p = 0.78) than the pit bull group. This study has provided data to indicate the classification of dog breed groups with respect to their inherent temperament, as part of BSL, may lack scientific credibility. Breed stereotyping, like racial profiling, ignores the complex environmental factors that contribute to canine temperament and behavior. Introduction “Pit bull and pit bull type dogs, including any dog that possesses physical characteristics of pit bull and pit bull-type breeds†is a common phrase found in much current legislation. This language is both vague and open to interpretation. The term “pit bull†is an unofficial breed group, usually encompasses between 4 and 10 individual, pure breeds of dog, including the American Pit Bull Terrier and American Staffordshire Terrier among others. Thus, in most previously reported statistics related to dog bites and deaths (Sacks et al., 1989; Sacks et al., 1996a; Sacks et al., 1996b) pit bull-types including dogs of questionable genetic background have been grouped together by the nondescript term “pit bullâ€. In these publications, these compiled groups of breeds, termed “pit bullsâ€, were compared statistically against individual breeds. In addition, the authors of these studies have noted within the publications that their statistics could not be normalized using the population of dogs in question. These facts invalidate the results of these studies in relation to the noted pit bull group, from any reasonable epidemiological or public health perspective. Ultimately, by creatively grouping many pure breeds of dog under a non-precise term “pit bullâ€, such analyses artificially created larger populations of animals promoting bias in the results of these studies the true problem with any dangerous dog, of any breed, is more likely that of environment, nurture, and careless ownership, which are not addressed by BSL.
[/B].This resulted in a required sample size of 16,588 dogs (Thompson, 1992). Thus, with over 25,000 dogs tested, we had a sample size that could easily be 8
The total number of dogs evaluated in this study was 25,726, the total number of dogs passing the test 20,848, and the total failing the test 4,878. The average percentage of all dogs passing was 81.71%. Total dogs failed Percentage passing Sporting 3181 2719 462 85.48% Pit Bull 1136 960 176 84.50% Mixed 680 579 101 85.10% APBT 469 391 78 83.40% Terrier 1860 1526 334 82.04% Working 9111 7341 1770 80.57% Herding 7885 6319 1566 80.14% Toy 529 421 108 79.60% Hound 1379 1062 317 77.01% All 25726 20848 4878 81.04% The results of statistical analysis for the breed groupings are provided in Table 2. The group that had the highest proportion of breed groups passing the temperament test was the sporting group (85.48%), followed by the pit bull group (84.50%). The groups that failed, with the lowest proportion of dogs passing the temperament test, were the toy (79.01%) and hound groups (77.01%). The groups were compared to determine if there was a significant difference in the proportion of dogs from each group that passed the temperament test. It was found that there were no significant differences between the proportion of dogs passing in the two groups with the highest passing percentages (sporting group and the pit bull group). Both of these breed groups performed significantly better (p > 0.05) than all other groups. In addition to comparison of breed groups the American Pit Bull Terrier as a single breed was considered separately. The American Pit Bull Terrier is the breed that, because the phrase “pit bull†as part of its name, has been most readily associated with the seemingly catchall category of “pit bull and pit bull type†in relation to BSL. As a pure breed analyzed on its own merit, the American Pit Bull Terrier evaluations showed there was no significant difference even with the group with highest proportion of dogs passing (Sporting Group). As noted the sporting group contains some of the more publicly accepted (as dogs of stable or good temperament) including Golden Retrievers and Labrador Retrievers. More notably, the American Pit Bull Terriers showed significantly higher proportion of dogs passing the test than hounds, herding, working, and toy groups (Table 3). Table 3. This table provides the results of the z-test and the significance of the test against the null hypothesis. Comparisons z value p value Conclusion APBT vs. Toy 1.5324 0.0627 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Work 1.4965 0.0673 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Sport -1.2 0.8849 No difference APBT vs. Herding 1.709 0.0437 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Terrier 0.6725 0.2506 No difference APBT vs. Hound 2.9 0.0019 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Mixed -0.817 0.793 No difference PBG vs. APBT 0.5682 0.285 the failure of BSL as a logical solution to ownership problems because the vast majority of pit bulls and APBT are shown to be of good temperament. Plomin et al. (1990) remarked that behavioral differences exist not only between species but also between individuals of the same species. As an example that is easy to digest, we can assume for instance that almost all Golden Retrievers are friendly toward humans. However, Golden Retrievers can be raised in such as way to make them aggressive toward humans (Edwards, 1991; Knol et al., 1998; van den Berg et al., 2003; Kwant, 2004). In support of the current data, a study by Böttjer (2003) evaluated aggressive behaviour of 347 dogs belonging to the American Staffordshire Terrier, Bullterrier, Staffordshire Bullterrier, Rottweiler, Doberman Pincher breeds, and a catchall pit bull group. Only 3.75% of the dogs failed the Temperament Test and were therefore noted as having dangerous aggressive behaviour (not toward humans) towards other dogs. The assessment of the breeds groups showed that neither the pit bull group, nor the American Staffordshire Terrier, displayed a significant difference between the single breeds and breed types. The results of the Böttjer study, like the current study, showed that the BSL assumptions based upon inherent differences in “dangerousness†across entire breeds was not justified. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 1997; CDC, 2003) has indicated that BSL has no merit. They indicate that “Dangerous dog lawsâ€, which focus on individual dogs, regardless of breed, that have exhibited harmful behavior (e.g., unprovoked attacks on persons or animals) are both logical and enforceable without violating the rights of citizens or declaring individual animals guilty even though the majority are of sound temperament. The CDC indicates that the most logical approach is to place primary responsibility for a dog’s behavior on the owner, rather than the dogs breed. The CDC indicates that legislation and programs focused on ownership responsibility as well as owner and child education are the keys to a safer canine population. The American Veterinary Medical Association (2001) Task Force on Canine Aggression and Human-Canine Interactions also state that Breed Specific Legislation has no merit and that targeting those individual dogs, of any breed, that commit acts of aggression, The current study has statistically shown, based on a defined temperament test, that the classification of dog breeds and dog breed types (breed groups), with respect to their aggressiveness toward humans is not supported scientifically.
http://www.animalfarmfoundation.org/pdf/DowdAPBTbehaviormanuscriptV4format.pdf
Temperament assessment related to breed groups S.E. Dowd 2006
Assessment of Canine Temperament in Relation to Breed Groups Scot E. Dowd Ph.D. Matrix Canine Research Institute. PO BOX 1332, Shallowater, TX 79363, sdowd@canineresearch.org , MATRIX CANINE RESEARCH INSTITUTE . Abstract Breed specific legislations (BSL), are laws that discriminate against dogs of specific breeds and breed groups. BSL similar to human racial profiling is based upon the premise that certain breed types are more dangerous to humans because of genetic temperament predispositions. The American Pit Bull Terrier and the American Staffordshire Terrier are the breeds most targeted by BSL. In the current study, the temperaments of over 25,000 dogs, of various breeds, have been evaluated including 1136 dogs from the pit bull group and 469 American Pit Bull Terriers. Using results of a rigorous pass-fail temperament test, designed to evaluate characteristics such as human aggression, these analyses statistically evaluated the proportion of dogs categorized by breed groups (e.g. sporting, pit bull, hound, toy, terrier) passing. Interestingly, results show that the pit bull group had a significantly higher passing proportion (p < 0.05) than all other pure breed groups, except the Sporting and Terrier groups. These groups however, did not have a statistically higher passing proportion (p = 0.78) than the pit bull group. This study has provided data to indicate the classification of dog breed groups with respect to their inherent temperament, as part of BSL, may lack scientific credibility. Breed stereotyping, like racial profiling, ignores the complex environmental factors that contribute to canine temperament and behavior. Introduction “Pit bull and pit bull type dogs, including any dog that possesses physical characteristics of pit bull and pit bull-type breeds†is a common phrase found in much current legislation. This language is both vague and open to interpretation. The term “pit bull†is an unofficial breed group, usually encompasses between 4 and 10 individual, pure breeds of dog, including the American Pit Bull Terrier and American Staffordshire Terrier among others. Thus, in most previously reported statistics related to dog bites and deaths (Sacks et al., 1989; Sacks et al., 1996a; Sacks et al., 1996b) pit bull-types including dogs of questionable genetic background have been grouped together by the nondescript term “pit bullâ€. In these publications, these compiled groups of breeds, termed “pit bullsâ€, were compared statistically against individual breeds. In addition, the authors of these studies have noted within the publications that their statistics could not be normalized using the population of dogs in question. These facts invalidate the results of these studies in relation to the noted pit bull group, from any reasonable epidemiological or public health perspective. Ultimately, by creatively grouping many pure breeds of dog under a non-precise term “pit bullâ€, such analyses artificially created larger populations of animals promoting bias in the results of these studies the true problem with any dangerous dog, of any breed, is more likely that of environment, nurture, and careless ownership, which are not addressed by BSL.
[/B].This resulted in a required sample size of 16,588 dogs (Thompson, 1992). Thus, with over 25,000 dogs tested, we had a sample size that could easily be 8
The total number of dogs evaluated in this study was 25,726, the total number of dogs passing the test 20,848, and the total failing the test 4,878. The average percentage of all dogs passing was 81.71%. Total dogs failed Percentage passing Sporting 3181 2719 462 85.48% Pit Bull 1136 960 176 84.50% Mixed 680 579 101 85.10% APBT 469 391 78 83.40% Terrier 1860 1526 334 82.04% Working 9111 7341 1770 80.57% Herding 7885 6319 1566 80.14% Toy 529 421 108 79.60% Hound 1379 1062 317 77.01% All 25726 20848 4878 81.04% The results of statistical analysis for the breed groupings are provided in Table 2. The group that had the highest proportion of breed groups passing the temperament test was the sporting group (85.48%), followed by the pit bull group (84.50%). The groups that failed, with the lowest proportion of dogs passing the temperament test, were the toy (79.01%) and hound groups (77.01%). The groups were compared to determine if there was a significant difference in the proportion of dogs from each group that passed the temperament test. It was found that there were no significant differences between the proportion of dogs passing in the two groups with the highest passing percentages (sporting group and the pit bull group). Both of these breed groups performed significantly better (p > 0.05) than all other groups. In addition to comparison of breed groups the American Pit Bull Terrier as a single breed was considered separately. The American Pit Bull Terrier is the breed that, because the phrase “pit bull†as part of its name, has been most readily associated with the seemingly catchall category of “pit bull and pit bull type†in relation to BSL. As a pure breed analyzed on its own merit, the American Pit Bull Terrier evaluations showed there was no significant difference even with the group with highest proportion of dogs passing (Sporting Group). As noted the sporting group contains some of the more publicly accepted (as dogs of stable or good temperament) including Golden Retrievers and Labrador Retrievers. More notably, the American Pit Bull Terriers showed significantly higher proportion of dogs passing the test than hounds, herding, working, and toy groups (Table 3). Table 3. This table provides the results of the z-test and the significance of the test against the null hypothesis. Comparisons z value p value Conclusion APBT vs. Toy 1.5324 0.0627 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Work 1.4965 0.0673 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Sport -1.2 0.8849 No difference APBT vs. Herding 1.709 0.0437 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Terrier 0.6725 0.2506 No difference APBT vs. Hound 2.9 0.0019 APBT higher pass rate APBT vs. Mixed -0.817 0.793 No difference PBG vs. APBT 0.5682 0.285 the failure of BSL as a logical solution to ownership problems because the vast majority of pit bulls and APBT are shown to be of good temperament. Plomin et al. (1990) remarked that behavioral differences exist not only between species but also between individuals of the same species. As an example that is easy to digest, we can assume for instance that almost all Golden Retrievers are friendly toward humans. However, Golden Retrievers can be raised in such as way to make them aggressive toward humans (Edwards, 1991; Knol et al., 1998; van den Berg et al., 2003; Kwant, 2004). In support of the current data, a study by Böttjer (2003) evaluated aggressive behaviour of 347 dogs belonging to the American Staffordshire Terrier, Bullterrier, Staffordshire Bullterrier, Rottweiler, Doberman Pincher breeds, and a catchall pit bull group. Only 3.75% of the dogs failed the Temperament Test and were therefore noted as having dangerous aggressive behaviour (not toward humans) towards other dogs. The assessment of the breeds groups showed that neither the pit bull group, nor the American Staffordshire Terrier, displayed a significant difference between the single breeds and breed types. The results of the Böttjer study, like the current study, showed that the BSL assumptions based upon inherent differences in “dangerousness†across entire breeds was not justified. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 1997; CDC, 2003) has indicated that BSL has no merit. They indicate that “Dangerous dog lawsâ€, which focus on individual dogs, regardless of breed, that have exhibited harmful behavior (e.g., unprovoked attacks on persons or animals) are both logical and enforceable without violating the rights of citizens or declaring individual animals guilty even though the majority are of sound temperament. The CDC indicates that the most logical approach is to place primary responsibility for a dog’s behavior on the owner, rather than the dogs breed. The CDC indicates that legislation and programs focused on ownership responsibility as well as owner and child education are the keys to a safer canine population. The American Veterinary Medical Association (2001) Task Force on Canine Aggression and Human-Canine Interactions also state that Breed Specific Legislation has no merit and that targeting those individual dogs, of any breed, that commit acts of aggression, The current study has statistically shown, based on a defined temperament test, that the classification of dog breeds and dog breed types (breed groups), with respect to their aggressiveness toward humans is not supported scientifically.
