Cross Breeds

Are some types of dogs naturally violent?

I was having a conversation with my brother about different types of dogs and how they act and he brought up the subject about how some dogs who are naturally violent get 'put to sleep' when they bite someone. This brings me with this question. Are some dogs (breed-wise) naturally violent OR are they violent due to the way they were raised?

Public Comments

1. I think that in some bloodlines like with APBT they have made them more and more dog aggressive for the purpose of fighting. I read somewhere a long time ago they used to be human aggressive but they've bred that out of them. A lot of the time its how they are raised as well.
2. No dog is 'Naturally Violent' it is always the owners who make there dogs aggresive...
3. They are violent due to the way they were raised. No dog is born hating humans. You raise them to do that.
4. i agree wit Mariyah
5. nature & nurture. genetics & how you raise them. EXAMPLE: there was some famous cutter horse he had amazing drive however he had been gelded. the owner cloned him and used the clone as a stud. the clone cant work like the original, he is fat and doesnt react well to a saddle. he was not raised like the original. but they share the same genetics
6. no dogs are not natrully violent most people think they are but they are not dogs act to how there owners want them to act most dogs that fight or are aggesive is because their owner trained them to be
7. I wouldn't use the term "violent." But genetics do play a HUGE role in behavior, yes. Otherwise we wouldn't have the many breeds we do today. Terriers have a huge prey drive because for CENTURIES they where used to hunt rodents. Hunting dogs still maintain the behaviors needed for hunting (soft mouths in the retrieving dogs for example.) Herding dogs still want to herd. Are there exceptions to the rule, of course (especially among show and pet lines.) The American Pit Bull Terrier was bred to be a dog fighter. So yes, dog aggression is a high probability. However HUMAN aggression was NOT a breed trait and was bred OUT of the dog. The "pit bulls" you see today are not true APBTs - many are mutts (American Bullies) and are being irresponsibly bred (in some cases for "game" behaviors.) And yes, sometimes the only choice IS to euthanize a dog that bites or has bitten. Has nothing to do with breed, but a poorly bred animal with unstable temperament likely won't be placed and very few people can/will work with it. Genetics can't be changed and it's too much effort 90% of the time to try to manage the resulting behaviors. Again: NOT BREED SPECIFIC.
8. No dog is naturally violent. Some can be violent through blood but even Dobermans are nice. and usually it's the owner/breeder.
9. Both genetics and the way they are raised comes into play. (So both nature and nurture) Temperament is genetic. Personality is influenced by temperament, but varies with life experience. I would not base this to breeds solely, however I would say that 2 aggressive dogs bred together would theoretically produce aggressive pups. In a study a few years back they bred 2 aggressive mice together, and separately bred 2 loving/nurturing mice. At birth they switched the babies around so that the aggressive mother had the nurturing mother's offspring. And the nurturing mother had the aggressive offspring. The majority of the mice still portrayed their genetic temperament even with the reversed parenting.
10. no dog is naturally violent. it is how your raise, train, treat, and socialize the dog. if you treat a dog like crap it wont be as well behaved as a dog that is treated right.
11. there are some breeds that r more prone to aggressiveness than others but no dog is naturally born with enough violence to be put to sleep, when they have gotten to that point its becuase they were trained/raised that way or they were not given enough attention
12. no dog is born a killer, it was the way they were raised that cause them to have violent behaviors.
13. No dogs are violent unless the owner didn't treat the dog right.
14. You know unlike others... i think some dogs, not dog breeds, are born violent. I adopted two sister shih-tzus from an adoption center, they were both 2 months old. We raised them both the same with love and affection. one of them would always be violent towards cats, kids, and adults that weren't in our family. just a story.