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Are certain dog breeds more
dangerous than others?
Whether or not certain dog
breeds are more dangerous than
others has been the subject of
considerable discussion among
ethologists and veterinarians,
especially with regard to the
usefulness of breed-specific
legislation as an attempt to
protect a community’s citizens
from dog attacks/bites.
Breed-specific legislation is
based on the assumption that
there are genetic differences
among breeds with regard to
their
dangerousness/aggressiveness.
However, many veterinarians and
ethologists oppose
breed-specific legislation,
arguing that the genetic make-up
of an individual animal is only
one of many components that may
enhance its aggressiveness.
Factors that may influence the
specific danger of a dog
bite/attack imposed by an
individual dog include (1) the
temperament and (b) the body
characteristics of a dog, (3)
the individual personality of
the dog owner, (4) the specific
circumstances of a bite
incident, and (5) the individual
personality of the victim4.
Breed-specific legislation is
based on the assumption that the
first two criteria,
characteristics of the animal
itself, are the most important
factors that influence the
potential danger imposed by
dogs. If this was true,
comprehensible differences in
temperament and/or body
characteristics among dog breeds
would be expected. For example,
we would expect that all pit
bull-type dogs differ
significantly in their
temperament from other breeds.
Just operationalizing the notion
of temperament is complex. The
temperament of a dog is defined
as the sum of all his inherited
and acquired physical and
psychological traits,
characteristics and abilities,
which determine, shape and
regulate the dog’s responses to
his environment3.
Experiments investigating
temperament differences among
breeds must be based on
objective temperament
evaluation, which proves
extremely difficult, since the
environment is a variable
difficult to control and
standardize. This is also true
for the investigation of
specific temperament traits such
as aggression4.
Aggressive behavior in dogs is a
species-specific trait which is
genetically firmly established,
because it has been highly
influenced by natural selection
during evolution as well as by
artificial selection through man
(e.g., selecting for
inter-specific aggression in
most guarding breeds and
so-called fighting dogs)2.
However, the fact that the
aggression level of members of
certain breeds can be increased
(or decreased) through
artificial selection does not
prove that aggression itself is
a highly hereditary trait4.
In most cases, dogs that have
been selected for high levels of
aggression are raised in a very
aggression-stimulating
environment. Unfortunately, the
blame for aggressive behavior in
these dogs is usually solely
placed on their genetic make-up,
while environmental factors are
often ignored. Environmental
and learning effects however,
are always superimposed upon
genetic influences1.
Thus, early isolation and
neglect as pups (e.g., in
so-called “puppy mills”),
training to attack other dogs
and humans, and a low-stimulus
environment with inappropriate
exercise are factors that
“create” dogs with social
deficits (i.e., lack of
appropriate interdog
communication) which have an
unstable position in their group
(unstable dog-owner
relationship), and are hard to
influence. Aggression in these
dogs is rather a symptom of a
behavioral disorder than a
regulative species-specific
behavior1.
The “dangerousness” of a
particular breed is also often
blamed on certain physical
characteristics, which are
generally easier to evaluate
than temperament, since most of
them can be measured. They
include parameters such as body
weight and height, power, jaw
strength, pain threshold, as
well as age and sex of the dog.
Body weight, height and length
are measurable parameters which
vary immensely among breeds.
Power and speed also differ
among breeds. However, the
power of a dog is not only based
on his genetic make-up, but also
depends on his training
condition. Jaw strength is
another measurable parameter.
Although certain dog breeds such
as rottweiler or American
Pitbull Terrier have the
reputation of stronger jaws than
others, valuable scientific
studies showing significant
differences in jaw strength
among breeds do not currently
exist4. It is
obvious that a larger and more
powerful dog can potentially do
more harm than a smaller, weaker
dog. Even a friendly greeting
behavior such as jumping up on a
person can become a potentially
dangerous situation, depending
on the size of the dog. It is a
fallacy to assume that all
members of large breeds are
generally more dangerous than
all members of small breeds. It
is not the breed of an
individual dog that makes a
situation dangerous, but rather
the circumstances involved.
The sex of the dog is another
body characteristic that plays
an important factor in
aggressive behavior. It has
been shown that a majority of
dog bites is inflicted by intact
young males5. Thus,
intact male dogs are,
independently from their breed,
potentially more dangerous than
female dogs. Other physical
characteristic influencing a
dogs the tendency toward
aggression include a dog’s pain
threshold, as well as the
animal’s age and overall health2.
No valuable scientific method is
currently available to
objectively evaluate differences
in pain tolerance among dog
breeds4. Health
conditions that may elicit
aggressive behavior can occur in
all breeds and do not justify
indiscrimination of certain dog
breeds.
In summary, “the classification
of dog breeds with respect to
their relative danger to humans
makes no sense, as both, the
complex antecedent conditions in
which aggressive behavior
occurs, and its ramifying
consequences in the individual
dog’s ecological and social
environment are not considered”1.
Dr. Cornelia Wagner, DVM,
MS
October 18, 2001
References
1Feddersen-Petersen,
D. U. (2001): Zur Biologie
der Aggression des Hundes.
Dtsch. Tierärztl. Wschr. 108
(3), 94-101.
2Lockwood, R.
(1995): The ethology and
epidemiology of canine
aggression. In: Serpell, J.
(ed.) The domestic dog: its
evolution, behaviour and
interactions with people.
Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, UK.
3Seiferle, E.
(1972): Wesensgrundlagen und
Wesensprüfung des Hundes. Cited
in: Feddersen-Petersen, D. U.
(1992) Hunde und ihre Menschen.
Frankh-Kosmos, Stuttgart,
Germany.
4Stur, I. (2000):
Zur Frage der besonderen
Gefährlichkeit von Hunden auf
Grund der Zugehöhrigkeit zu
bestimmten Rassen. http://www.hund-und-halter.de/arbeitspapiere/arbeitspapiere-uebersicht.html
5Wright, J. C.
(1985): Severe attacks by
dogs: characteristics of the
dogs, the victims and the attack
settings.
Public-Health-Reports 100,
55-61. |
