PitbullHero - Pit Bulls Explained

While the American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT) is a formally recognized breed, the broader label of "pitbull" is a generic and informal term used to loosely describe dogs solely based on their physical resemblance to various bully-type or bulldog-type breeds.
By DNA, there are four unique breeds that are commonly included in the modern pitbull-type category - the American Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, and the American Bully.
PitbullHero uses the term "pitbull" as an all-inclusive term to describe dogs that are members of the four unique breeds in the pitbull-type category, a large variety of pitbull-type mixes, and many other breeds and mixes that can be labeled as "pitbulls" due to their appearance. We intentionally use the term "pitbull" (as one lowercase word) in this manner because in contemporary usage, it no longer represents a specific or formal breed. Instead, the term "pitbull" has evolved into a generic term used to describe many different dogs solely based on their physical appearance, irrespective of their lineage or DNA.

The majority of dogs visually identified as pitbulls (by shelters, owners, and the media) do not have DNA signatures from any of the breeds commonly included in the modern pitbull-type category.
Of the dogs that do actually have DNA from pitbull-type ancestry, the majority have less than a 50% DNA concentration from pitbull-type ancestry and are therefore by definition mixed breed dogs.
These high rates of misidentification can unfortunately lead to exceedingly inaccurate statistics about dog bites related to pitbulls and breed-specific risk. Fortunately, these inaccurate and misleading statistics quickly fall apart when taking into account evidence and conclusions from recent scientific studies on canine DNA.

Dogs labeled as "pitbulls" are the most popular dogs in the U.S. - more popular than Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, German Shepherds, Boxers, Huskies, Rottweilers, and many others.
According to a leading canine DNA testing company, the #1 most common breed found in DNA tested dogs is the American Pit Bull Terrier - twice as common as German Shepherds, the second most common breed, and almost 3x as common as Labrador Retrievers, the third most common breed.
A recent analysis of over 200K veterinary and pet expert interactions found that pitbulls are the most popular dogs in at least 21 states and the most popular dogs in the U.S. overall.

In addition to being the most popular dogs in the U.S., since 2018 over 100 cities have repealed their ineffective and discriminatory bans (aka BSL or breed-specific legislation) against pitbulls including in Denver, CO where voters repealed the city's 31-year-old ban against pitbulls by a wide 66% majority.
Pitbulls have been popular in the U.S. since the early 1900s when they were prominently featured as national mascots on military recruitment posters during World Wars 1 and 2 and were proudly considered "America's dog".
Given their popularity and positive temperament, BSL is a trend in decline as cities and towns all across the country are repealing BSL while almost no municipalities are enacting new breed-specific bans.

"Pitbull" Explained