"YES 100%. My dog and my daughter are born on the same day. They believe they are siblings...I guess they kind of are." - discoveringranchlife
"Yes I trust them completely around my children. Just as my kids are a reflection of me, so are my pits. I raised them right to respect everyone. The kids know to respect everyone. The kids know to respect the pits and vice versa. Any dog, if raised to be mean and aggressive and treated bad, will be exactly that. There is nothing wrong with Pit Bulls or bully breeds. It's just a stereotype." - nisee_baby87
"I trust my boys (8 and 3) around any child, any age. Supervised with little ones because my guys are pretty big (over 100 lbs), I don't want anyone to get stepped on or pushed over. Some children I don't trust to be nice to my boys, so they (the children) get supervised." - jaketheamstaff
"Yes I do. However, it took some time. He came as a foster from someone we knew well. We'd been around him quite a bit but I still wanted to really get to know him and any triggers he may have. Does he take food gently? Does he jump on people? Is he food aggressive? How dog social? etc... His only issue is too much affection and not knowing when to stop. We're working on it but he's much better now." - pamddavidson
This last response is a great answer because no matter how big or small, or how much you trust your dog, at the end of the day he is still an animal and caution must always be exercised when caring for young children and babies especially. Such tiny, delicate humans need us, their parents to ensure their safety and be good role models. By teaching your children from an early age how to and how not to interact with a dog you are instilling in them the proper ways to behave around any dog, which may be the leading factor in an avoidable circumstance.
All of the responses have left me with a sense of pride in the fact that so many of you out there are wonderful parents and you feel confident raising your children with a Pit Bull. A Pit Bull is just a dog. He wants to lick you, love you, receive praise from you and live a normal life with his pack, you, his family.
I've read of unfortunate circumstances where a dog has in fact attacked a child and you know what the most common reasons are?
1) The dog was left unsupervised with the child.
2) The child aggravated the dog by pulling on his tail or any such behavior.
3) The dog was not trained.
These three things are imperative in the protection of your young. Obviously the first should come as no surprise. Now the second reason is the avoidable one that was stated earlier. Any and every dog owner should do a little research and get to know the mannerisms of a dog. You should know what behaviors to look for in a dog to tell if he is angry or getting aggravated. Some dogs don't mind having their tail or ears pulled while this may cause another dog to growl or even snap. Some dogs are food aggressive, some don't like to release their toys or treats to you. If you know what bothers your own dog you can teach your child and if you generally know the early warning signs or body language a dog gives off, you can avoid a mishap with a stranger's dog. Since dogs do not speak, their body language is an instant indicator of their mood. So please, do you research. While the following is just a short list of what to look for, it may be all you need.
Here are just a few warning signs of a dog in an aggressive state:
1) Retracking of the lips and showing teeth ( may be accompanied by growling)
2) Ears pulled completely back
3) "Flagging of the tail" (raising the tail making it high and rigid and moving it back and forth)
4) "Whale Eye" (when a dog doesn't look directly at you but from the corner of his eyes and you see more of the whites of his eyes)
The third reason is extremely important. Some people decide to get a cute little puppy but either do not know how to train a dog or just do not follow through with any training. That right there is losing the battle when it comes to Pit Bull owners especially.
If you are planning on owning a Pit Bull, or already do, and you haven't trained him or decide that you don't want to bother with it then you are the problem and you should not be allowed to own any dog. You are the reason why these dogs are under such extreme prejudice, like Breed Specific Legislation, which has caused the death or removal of so many dogs and has caused heartbreak for families all around the world. Having a dog in your backyard that doesn't have any social skills and doesn't know any commands is a recipe for disaster.
Dogs like this develop aggression and a strong desire to guard their territory from any and everyone. Many of these types of dogs are the reason that attacks happen, so please, please, please train your dog! It is not that hard, it just takes repetition. There are classes you can take your dog to, videos, articles, books, dog trainers... there's NO excuse! You wouldn't want an untrained dog around your baby would you? Well neither does anyone else and you definitely wouldn't want to be the reason for someone else's heartbreak.
