Thank you for your answer! It was very informative and got me thinking. I think the issue some people have with Pitbulls being a very active, often intense dog, is that other people try and use it as an excuse to have the Pitbull and other bully breeds all banned or disappear.
I feel the myth of the nanny dog has hurt the breed as a whole, tho so has people who see their dog as just a object with no training. You mentioned that they are dog aggressive, but are there any breeds that a Pitbull can work well with? Or a most effective way of having them not be aggressive towards other dogs?
And regarding the Bully breeds as a whole, how do you feel about each or specific ones? As some are known to naturally be more intense than others, and do you feel there should be more classes for them, rather than calling all a Bully breed?
Something we must remember is that pit bull type dogs are only the most recent dog breed to go through this. They are absolutely not alone (before current day it was German Shepherds and Rottweilers that held this stigma) and most breed ban lists for apartments include huskies, malamutes and other primitives. I think breed bans are ridiculous frankly and I think the fear the pit bull will disappear is unfounded. Yes, they might not be as prominent or popular, but in my opinion that is a good thing, because then they might be owned in majority by people that can properly manage them.
Pit Bulls are by design dog aggressive. They are bred to see other dogs as prey as this is the drive that causes them to fight. Which is what they were bred for. There are many other dog breeds that are also genetically dog aggressive for various reasons be it guardian work or just in general primitive dog things (primitive dog breeds tend to be same sex aggressive). Dog aggression can be on a sliding scale of very to none at all and can also be indiscriminate between other dogs or gender specific. Most adult dogs of a majority of dog breeds are dog selective to a degree (meaning they don't adore all other dogs indiscriminately and only have a few close dog friends they mesh well with). The most affective way to have a pit bull not be aggressive towards other dogs is to manage them so they do not get the opportunity to be aggressive towards other dogs. This means no dog parks, muzzle training, reactivity training, probably not letting them off leash etc. The best type of dog to pair with a pit bull is a human being (the pit bull is supposed to be very soft with people).
I think "bully breed" is simply an overarching term for a bunch of related dog breeds, much how we use "spitz breed" to describe various types of northern dogs with different purposes that have a double coat, pointy ears, and a curling tail. The various breeds that fall under the bully category (and which breeds fall under this category changes depending on who you ask) are classified in breed registries depending on their original purpose. I don't think they need new classifications because this is how many related breeds that aren't the bully type dogs are broken down. (For example, both Greyhounds, English Foxhounds and Norwegian Elkhounds are in the hound group, but look distinctly different. They are however classified all as hounds due to their purpose, which is being used for hunting. A Norwegian Elkhound, Alaskan Malamute, and German Spitz are all spitz type dogs, but also serve very different purposes and are thus classified differently. The American Pit Bull Terrier and the French Bulldog are both commonly classified as "bully dogs" due to their history, but we can all agree they always have and still do serve different purposes).
The American Pit Bull Terrier is a recognized breed (UKC) with a breed club, breed events etc. and is in the Terrier group. I'm linking the standard HERE so everybody can get a good sense for what the breed should be.
