Monday, July 6, 2009

Does a Pit Bull Type Dog "REALLY" have a 2000 PSI Bite Force?

Last week I was a caller on one of Spider Jones radio shows on CFRB. I knew Spider was doing a show on breed specific legislation, commonly known as "BSL". I had kind of assisted on getting the show on air. Dawne Sweeny, from the DLCC was Spider's "go to person" on the subject and did an outstanding job representing, "The Dog Legislation Council of Canada" and spoke of her twenty years plus "hands on" experiance dealing with dogs and especially pit bull type dogs.

While waiting "for my turn on air" to speak on Canadian fatal dog attacks and hopefully fit in that I have had pit bulls in my life for about 20 years, a woman came on and said she had read many books about dogs and put herself up as a "kind" of expert. Even I was "biting" into her self proclaimed credentials when she did it! Yes, I am talking about spewing off a study about "pit bulls having a bite force of 2000 per square inch (PSI). You've heard it said before and sadly, I've heard it said... way to many times.

Now is this possible?

Firstly there has never been a fully documented completed study on the bite force per square inch of domestic dogs that can be found by credible professors. The statement this woman uttered has been totally unsubstantiated in scientific literature. One domestic dog study was tried but never got past the pilot stage due to the difficulty in getting "accurate" readings from the 22 dogs tested. It was called "Measurement of Bite Force in Dogs: A PILOT STUDY.

So, considering the above, let's compare one of the strongest PSI's ever recorded and do some comparisons. University of Florida zoologist Kent Vliet, has been quoted as saying. "Bite force is linked to the size of the animal" and it sounds like just old "common sense" to me.

Now here is some FACTS.

A alligator named Hercules was clocked at 2,125 PSI. It's bite was compared to a mid-size sedan falling on top of someone. Hercules weighed 665 pounds and was 12 and a 1/2 feet long.
Now to put things into prespective here; an "average" pit bull type dog weighs in around 65 pounds and is normally around 3 to 4 feet long without the tail.


Is anyone paying attention here?

Now let's compare Lions. On average, a male lion can reach 6 to 8 feet long and weighs anywhere from 270 to as high as 500 pounds. It is "estimated" that lions have a average bite force from approximately 600 to 950 PSI. Quick, let's go back to that average pit bull type dog weighing around 65 pounds and being in or around 3 to 4 feet in length. Now, let's put our "thinking caps" on.

Considering the above, how can anyone, with even a quarter of a "working brain", even remotely contrive that a average pit bull type dog's bite is 3000 PSI or even 2000 or even 1000 PSI?

DUH?

Attached is a video showing three larger canine breeds being tested for bite force. This bite force competition was between a German Shepherd, a Rottweiler and a Pit bull type dog. Each dog was tested twice with the highest of the bite force used. The final results of this particular test will probably amaze many. The shepherd came out with 238 PSI, the rottweiler 328 and the pit bull? It's average was actually the lowest of the three dogs with 235 PSI.
http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/bite-force-competition-between-rottweiler-german-shepherd-and-pitbull/17469413

It is really time to dispel the many myths of pit bull bites. ( I'll go into the "locking jaws" myth at another time). Sometimes people just need to use plain good old common sense. Next time you hear someone repeating this myth, force them to really think about what they are saying and use the comparables given.

If we can't educate them, the least we can do is embarress 'em.

http://animal.discovery.com/reptiles/alligator/
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Who_has_greater_bite_force_tiger_or_lion
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Wild-Animals-705/f/BITE-FORCE.htm

41 comments:

  1. Those demonizing dogs by breed and using inaccurate data to support their claims have negatively impacted of so many people and their dogs.

    A German Shepherd/Akita mix dog tore up my "pitbull"'s face, neck, throat and head.
    Iwil send you the photos of my maimed dog. That dog had not a mark on him.

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  2. Well said! I saw the bite report on the three breeds when it came out and was not surprised. Excellant ananlysis with the Lion and Alligator; sometimes it just takes a simple thought to put you back into reality with "statistics" that get thrown around.

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  3. I love that comment at the end! People ARE ignorant to quote Specs. Good on them and good for you for trying to dispell a few myths about the pitbull. Educate educate educate dammit.

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  4. im so glad somebody is still down to earth. i keep hearing that pitbull # go up and up, it goes from 1000 psi to 2000 psi and now 3000 psi. that would take your arm clean off!

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  5. test de morsure vigueur: pit-bulls: 107 et près de 127 kg

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  6. test bite force: 2 rotweilers: 149kg and around 160kg ; american bulldog: 138kg ; germany shepherd: 108kg ; malinois shepherd: 88kg ; 2 tosa-inus: 150kg and 251kg(556psi) ; wolf: 183kg = 406psi(can best do!) ; wild lycaon: 144kg ; spotted hyene: 360kg at 453kg ; 2 lions: 313kg and + of 400kg ( 2 pit-bulls: 107kg and around 127kg ) I think that this resultats are true !

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  7. whatever they said up there is true. and people need to stop the lieing and making up bullshit about pitbulls. and help save some lifes out there they need you.

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  8. bite force is linked to the size of an animal - tip of a needle exerts more force to the ground then a tank.and how do you know that pit bull wonted to bite load cell.try to put load cell in another Pit bull and then do the measurements.i had a Pit bull that could open jaws to bite basketball (ears almost touching on the top of the head) and it could puncture that ball with no problem at all.what would be the force on her back toots.you agree that there is a difference where the force is measured, right?i would rather bee bitten by a German Shepard or even Rottweiler then a Pit bull.they will let go if you punch them hard enough.

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    1. Bull, ANY DOG will let go, if you harm it. I know, I had a rott and many pits, and I train animals, DAILY! My chi punctured a basketball, lol. That means NOTHING!! I hate when people state what they believe to be the truth. You can tell they are mimicking what they read. :(

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  10. I dnt agree with the tests done, for me their wasn't any concrete stats done! The pitbull tested was in no way adlist for me, the creme of the crop my pit weighs 90 pounds and hangs on a spring pole for over 15 minutes lol and pulls 560lbs sled work please test him lmao anyways, I believe in saving the breed they deserve better. Dog trainer and certified pitbull breeder

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    1. Then your pit bull is a mutt and cross bred. The average pit bull weighs anywhere from 45 to 65 pounds. You most likely have an American bully which is a backyard breeders pit bull.

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    2. If you are breeding pits, I feel sorry for your pits. It's people like you that CAUSE many deaths to occur, sadly. You are increasing the numbers, and by doing so, you are causing them to be disproportionate to the rest of the breeds, which is what elevates the number of bites reported. You are not a dog trainer, you are perpetuating the problem! If you have a dog hold onto a spring pole, you are INJURING THE DOG'S MANDIBLES. Go check with a vet, instead of spewing stuff that is BAD for dogs.

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  11. What a scumbag if ur dog is attacking others like that then hat dog definetly ended up with the wrong owner .i feel sorry for both of them dogs.u should be shot in the head. Scumbag.ur the reason these dogs have the Rep that they have. Pathedic

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  12. I love my Pitts and mastiffs, been a Pitt owner for 14 yes. Best dogs in the world seriously

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  13. AnonymousApril 14, 2012 8:02 PM
    I dnt agree with the tests done, for me their wasn't any concrete stats done! The pitbull tested was in no way adlist for me, the creme of the crop my pit weighs 90 pounds and hangs on a spring pole for over 15 minutes lol and pulls 560lbs sled work please test him lmao anyways, I believe in saving the breed they deserve better. Dog trainer and certified pitbull breeder.

    Yes it does matter where the dog bites with the front will be significantly weaker than the back teeth so very good point. But i still think they would never reach even 1000 psi. But the bite force from the other dogs might be wrong to because when dog fighting was legal they dominated all breeds even wolfs, german shepards, and rotts. If not other dogs would have been used to fight. Pits out manuvered and out lasted and beat ALL breeds ever. thats why they call them PITbulls google it. they were the master of the ring. even in weight pulls nothing can beat the pitbull consistently. out of 10 pulls pit take at least 7 or 8. In the ring pits have 10 to 1 odds of winning because of their strength and their shorter size.

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    1. They're called pitbulls because they were bred to antagonize bulls in the pit and they did, not because they're aggressive, but because they aims to please. If their master wants them to go fight the one ton horned beast, they will. They were literally bred to get their shit ruined and still listen.

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    2. Most dogs were bred to FIGHT, HUNT, PROTECT, etc. This breed was no different than the majority of dogs.

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  14. look up the weight pulls of king corso vs pitbull the pit will beat the corso and the corso out weights the pit by 50 or more pounds. how that for heart and agility.

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  15. I got my brother a pit even though my mom didnt want me too cause my youngest brother was 3 & she thought that they were dangerous. about a year later ( we also had a baby german shepard & a baby heeler all the same age as the pit when this took place) my mom ask me to look after my baby brother so he starts running to where im at & he trips skins his hands & starts crying the pit & german shepard reached him before I did & started licking & then started crying with him all the while trying to console him. me & my heeler get to him my heeler licks him & runs off too chase the horses I dust him off & the 2 "killers" follow me to make sure he is ok. So I have seen these killer dogs with a hepless kid & refuse to belive that they are dangerous all by themselves. They are like guns its the asshole behind them that makes them dangerous.Im sorry about any misspelt words. thank you for reading.

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    1. Bingo, Krystal. Too bad so many believe the hype.

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  16. what a load of crap you have written..sounds like you don't have a quarter of a working brain! Length and weight of an animal has little to no bearing on forces of bite..go learn some year 10 anatomy and physics you dope!

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  17. What's the jaw strength PSI of a humpback whale? Or an elephant? A bull?

    Now, on a separate note, I see a lot of stories about how gentle your pits have been. I see these amazing stories. Mine is a little different. Mine gave me scars. Family dog, smothered with love, never showed aggression, until I had the audacity to spar my older brother toy light sabers. He jumped the toddler gate in the kitchen and got to me in about 3 leaps. All I remember is trying to scream for help and my brother trying to pull him off me. I woke up in the car with my mom running me to the hospital with my brother holding towels on my face and neck. I cried when I was found out someone put a bullet in his head. He was my dog. But it still makes me sick hearing people say everyone is ignorant about certain breeds. I'm not ignorant. I'm realistic. He may have been an exception to the rule, but you won't see this happen from most other breeds. These breeds have the capability to do damage over most breeds. So please, stop pushing unrealistic optimism and ignorance, and tell people the reality. If you have a dog that has the physical power to cause harm, it is possible for that dog to cause physical damage and harm. That is reality. Anything less than that is a disservice to society.

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    1. Bad owers rise bad dog sorry to say

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    2. That's because you know nothing about a pit, sorry to say. YOU DON'T PLAY FIGHT IN FRONT OF ONE, as he will THINK YOU ARE HARMING the other PERSON and he will go to defend. You holding a light saber to another person indicates to him that you are SERIOUS and you could HARM SOMEONE! You see, your dog was killed because of YOU!

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  18. Bad owners rise bad dog.

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  19. Bite strength/PSI is also dependent partly on jaw musculature and size in relation to the body. Neck, shoulder & chest size and configuration too. Pits and other bulldogs were bread for gripping, and with all that structure and musculature supporting the mouth and jaws, they do that legendarily well.

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    1. MOST DOGS WERE BRED TO PROTECT, FIGHT, GRIP, GRAB. HUNT, etc. Look it up, if you don't believe me. It's in wikipedia...all over the place.

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  20. People painting pits and other bulldog breeds as angels are just as incorrect as painting them all bad. If you want to own one, fine - just know what you own and don't be in denial, or on some kind of campaign to FORCE everyone to love them and paint them all angels. I'm tired of pit owners FORCING their dOgs on me and my dog - and getting pushy, nasty, defensive, vindictive and aggressive (I mean pit OWNERS!) toward me if I'm nOt in LOVE with their pit or I'm careful and vigilant. Always respect another person's personal comfort level and STOP PUSHING. It's the best you can do for the lOve and acceptance of your breed. Stop taking people's caution as a PERSONAL INSULT. Stop overly-identifying with your dog - or the underdog. It's about the dogs, nOt you and your ego. I appreciate considerate, polite and respectful pitbull owners. That's the beginning of getting your breed more acceptance. Those owners are rare, though, in my experience. Most of them are defensive bullies themselves.

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    1. The problem is people are ATTACKING the pits, not vice versa. If your dog was attacked, you might feel the same way as they do. Picture yourself walking down the street with your pit and someone walks up to you and attacks your dog. You don't have to love them, but just like you want to be able to love your dog without being attacked, pit owners want to be able to have their dogs without being attacked too, but society won't allow that. That's not ego, it's defense against falsehoods which the media and people are claiming.

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  21. Teeth are pointed, they have very little surface area o when you are measuring POUNDS PER SQUARE INCH... you are measuring a very small area .. while you can't pound a cinder block through a piece of wood, you can pound a nail through one because it is also pointed.

    Doesn't take much pressure at all for a tooth to go through human flesh but if it makes you feel better to play stupid games with numbers go ahead... almost all of the people killed each year are killed by pits and almost all of the people hospitalized from dog bites are bit by pits, if you want to take that risk it is up to you, but if that dog gets out expect someone to kill it.

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    1. Look, I have NEVER in my life written anything on an onlibe blog but when I read this page I was completely mortified by some of your guys dumbass comments. If you don't actually KNOW what you are taking about then just shut the hell up! As for the dickwad who said that most all the hostpitalised dog attack victims were bitten by pits... dude you really need to shut that hole in your face and do some research. Most attacks happen from other breeds such as weiner dogs, jack russels, and most of thse stupid little yapping ankle biters, and this might catch a dumbass like yourself off guard but the infamous "family" dog the GOLDEN RETRIEVER has quite the unknown track record for spontaniously or seemingly for no reason biting people of all ages and sizes. But nobody ever hears anything about THAT do they?... It's only the pits, rots, and shepards who are shunned upon due to there size, strength and physical attributes. There was at least ONE smart person on this page though, that's the one who said IT'S ALL IN HOW YOU RAISE THEM. I have said that from day 1. They are like children, if you show them love, time, effort and discipline they will turn out great. Now sure, even with children sometimes you get an occasional bad apple that will continue to be that way forever despite your efforts or affection but in all the other 99.9% of the time they are just like children. My pit loves anything and everything including cats. As a matter of fact the smaller the better. She even tries to mother other little animals that aren't even her own. She is wonderful with little kids and is the most gentile and careful dog I have ever seen. You can take her toy or a treat or anything else away from her right out of her mouth and she won't snarle, growl or bite. You can play as ruff as you want with her and she's just fine with it, as a matter of fact she loves it. She is so gentile and well mannered that she will literally take bites of a burger or whatever else right out of your hand... literally bites... just like you and me, being cautious and gentile enough not to nip your fingers. All of this is possible due to THE WAY SHE WAS RAISED. So as for you pathetically ignorant assholes out there who THINK they know what they are talking about, just do us and the breed a favor and just shut the hell up and go get either some personal experiences with the breed or some goddamn education on the subject you ignorant chumps. Bottom line... you want a good dog, then raise it right and treat it well, reward good behavior with lovins and discipline for the bad. It's not hard at all, it just takes time, effort and love. Life itself demands those things from each and every one of us. If you are incabable of the few things I listed then you truely have NO need for a dog or even children for that matter. So all you idiots out there, I hope you actually learn something from this and pull your heads out of your asses and stop being so goddamn ignorant. As for the person who said that it's all how they're raised, congratulations for having your head out of your ass and actually thinking about the subject logically. Thank you. Honestly pitbulls are extremely sweet, loving, loyal, dependable, caring and intellegent dogs. Everything I said here has been in there defense. They don't deserve there rep ONE BIT... It's just because of the assholes who raise them to be vicious and mean is the reason why they have that rep. I'm done now I just had to set the idiots straight.

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    2. Regardless. the majority of bites are INCORRECTLY done, and because of such, the stats show way more than they should. For instance, I own a pit. My vet will tell you that she is NOT A PIT, she is a terrier. She is, logically, much smaller than a real pit. However, she LOOKS like a pit. Many people think she is one, but not according to my vet. She says, "she only looks like one, but that doesn't make her one." This is exactly the problem. So, I have to do a DNA on her, in order to find out for sure. Do you think most will do so? No, it won't happen, because they are EXPENSIVE to do. Thus, most will just either take the word of their vet or they will assume they are a pit, regardless of the facts. If they get bit by their dog, even once, they will say the dog is a pit. Everyone will believe it, and poof, the fallacy is set. This is what is REALLY OCCURRING. I did a test to see if most animal control officers knew what a pit was. I found that 65% of them couldn't identify a pit correctly. If you don't believe me, go to any animal control site, and take a few pics of the actual breed. Then, take note of what the animal control says they are. You will find an abundance of incorrect breeds being deemed as pits or incorrectly identified, completely. That's the problem, and what's causing all the confusion.

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    3. You are ignorant. You're telling me that my pit bull has pointer teeth than any other dog out there? Even if they did the breed itself doesn't deserve to be forced out of their homes to be euthanized. Dogs especially pits DO NOT have a stronger bite force PSI than a fully grown male lion PERIOD!

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  22. SACRIFICE ALL PIT BULS…PLEASE.

    Dog Attack Deaths and Maimings, U.S. & Canada, September 1982 to December 31, 2013
    See chart-scroll down.

    http://www.dogsbite.org/dog-bite-statistics-study-dog-attacks-and-maimings-merritt-clifton.php


    http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/7/prweb9692432.htm

    http://www.dogsbite.org/dangerous-dogs-pit-bull-faq.php

    http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1058122/posts

    http://www.livescience.com/27145-are-pit-bulls-dangerous.html

    http://bernews.com/2013/12/statistics-dog-attacks-interactions-by-breed/

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    1. Please read my last post, as this explains this. Additionally, dogsbite.org is a FALLACY, right from the start. The owner was bit by a pit, or so she thought. She takes ANY BITE and claims it was a pit that bit someone. I took her own CITED info and proved it to be FALSIFIED!! I can easily prove it time and time again. For proof of this, look at the very front of her site, where she claims a pit can LOCK its jaws. It's a fallacy, right off the bat! The numerous bites she lists, are not identified PITS, only what she WISHED WERE PITS. She uses every bite and says IT'S A PIT! I also showed her stats to be off, based on her 'own' reported study, believe it or not.

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    2. Oh, and real pain, so that you know, 1982 to 2013, the deaths that occurred by pits, when you calculate it correctly, were less than 1 person killed oer year, due to a pit over the 31 yrs the study was done. Think about that. I can show this, statistically, and back up my claims 100% of the way, if you would like to see this.

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  23. You’ve got some interesting points in this article. I would have never considered any of these if I didn’t come across this. Thanks!. gv american bully

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