We have a ten yr old mostly pit mix. Got her when she was four or five. She had obviously been encouraged to fight and she was pretty darn good at that. Took me about 18 months for her to understand that I did not want her to fight every dog she came across, nor to chase every dang deer in the yard.
After the 18 months she was the most smart, loyal and obedient dog I have ever owned. Simply a great dog. But there is no doubt in my mind that if I wanted her to go after another dog or another human, she would do it. Simply because she thought that's what I wanted her to do. One time I had a black lab run at me from about a 100 yards out. My dog got in front of me, was in a quivering rage, got ready but didn't attack because I told her "no." I was astonished but she heeded my commands.
So, a wonderful dog, but I will never own another. They are capable of independently assessing a situation and taking action without command. When they do take action, all hell breaks loose and they seem to lose their mind.
My wife has owned a couple of pits. Same story. Smart, loyal, obedient, affectionate and playful. BUT, they need to have master who is truly in control and truly the alpha dog. If the master is not the alpha dog and the one in control, then the dog is the alpha and that is a bad situation waiting to present itself.
