A dog is a dog.
Is bull, meaning you don't know what you talking about. Just because we call it a "dog" doesn't mean its characteristics change. Many "breeds" or "dog" are closer to a wolf or coyote than other "breeds" of "dog". A dingo is technically a "breed" of "dog". That said, a "dog is not a dog".
I said that in response to the ridiculous comparisons to other animals. Clearly I know that different breeds have different qualities. If you read my whole post, I would think that was obvious.
While people may think being bred to fight other dogs matter, thats something you train not something you breed. You breed them to have good fighting qualities, muscle mass and teeth. What they fight is training. The damage they can do is genetic. There is no "only fights dogs not humans" gene you can carefully increase through selective breeding.
You do breed animal aggression into them, it is more than just muscle and teeth. My rat terrier has never been trained to attack small animals, but he does it. It's in his instincts. Similarly Labs will often want to carry things, collies will often try to herd children, corgis will naturally nip at heels, even though they were never taught to do it. My dog doesn't do those things. If you think that instincts aren't bred into dogs, that the only thing we breed is their size and teeth, then why would a pitbull have a different temperament than a pomeranian? Why do rat terriers attack small things, but not large ones? It's because instincts are specific. Plus, most registere AmStaff breeding lines have been breeding out any kind of aggression for decades now.
I too am a dog person, I grew up with dogs, half my family breeds dogs (Labs, Sheps and completely unrelated, Dats). I worked with the breeders alot, I even got to wear the attack suit (fun in a "he can't bite through this right?" kind of way. And I can tell you, a Shep is not anywhere near as muscular as a Pitbull.
No offense, but I get the impression you're a dog lover who hasn't spent much time looking into breeding. Different specimens from different breeds will have different muscle masses. If dog bites are the concern than a comparison of bite strength seems to be the only important thing.
Seriously, you ever touched a pitbull? They are hard, rock solid muscle. Even a rott you can poke the squish with your finger. 120lbs of pure muscle is alot more than the 150lbs of lab I grew up with.
I grew up with pitbulls. Our family pet was a lazy dog in general and very pudgy in her old age. She was not pure muscle by any means. My mom used to always give her "treats" (her favorite was rice pudding). Your 150lb lab proves there is a lot of variety in a breed considering the fact that a registered lab should only weight about 80lbs!
Now when I say "pit bull" I realise its not a specific breed. And some types of related breed are pretty friendly, while some "not technically" pitbulls (but closely related and usually included in the legislation) are not.
Bull terriers for instance, not technically pitbulls, but are at the top of the list for dogs I would consider you needing a license for.
An Argentie Dogo (also not pit bulls)..thats iffy, some of them have been poorly bred for fighting.
Staffies (American and Bull) are good family dogs, that being said they are very dangerous if you get a bad one (just as some people are born with mental disorders so are some dogs, and no amount of training can fix that)
This is the problem. Everyone has a different idea for which breeds should be included, which shouldn't, which ones are really bad, which ones are just bad if raised improperly... Many Staffies are dually registered as AmStaffs and APBTs. You say they are good family dogs (I agree btw), but someone else would see it and be terrified by it immediately. I am all for requiring licenses for ALL large breed dogs.
And for gods sake, there is no need for a Presa, I've only met one, but even the proffessional trainer who owned it said it should be banned, the thing was just a loose cannon, Im pretty sure it got put down.
Any big dog with an unstable temperament should be put down. I recognize the difference there. If my current dog weighed 120lbs, he would have been put down too, but obviously it's easier to control him an ensure he won't bite anyone.
To claim "A dog is a dog" is insane. Different breeds exist because a dog IS NOT a dog.
Again, I thought that was obvious that I was responding to the notion that a dog was the same as another species. I know that different breeds have different characteristics. Read why I like AmStaffs over some of the other breeds I mentionned and I would think that was pretty clear.