Pit Bull: The Battle over an American Icon

Pit Bull: The Battle over an American Icon

The hugely illuminating story of how a popular breed of dog became the most demonized and supposedly the most dangerous of dogsâ€”and what role humans have played in the transformation. Â

When Bronwen Dickey brought her new dog home, she saw no traces of the infamous viciousness in her affectionate, timid pit bull. Which made her wonder: How had the breedâ€”beloved by Teddy Roosevelt, Helen Keller, and Hollywoodâ€™s â€œLittle Rascalsâ€â€”come to be known as a brutal fighter?

Her search for answers takes her from nineteenth-century New York City dogfighting pitsâ€”the cruelty of which drew the attention of the recently formed ASPCAâ€”to early twentiethâ€‘century movie sets, where pit bulls cavorted with Fatty Arbuckle and Buster Keaton; from the battlefields of Gettysburg and the Marne, where pit bulls earned presidential recognition, to desolate urban neighborhoods where the dogs were loved, prizedâ€”and sometimes brutalized.

Whether through love or fear, hatred or devotion, humans are bound to the history of the pit bull. With unfailing thoughtfulness, compassion, and a firm grasp of scientific fact, Dickey offers us a clear-eyed portrait of this extraordinary breed, and an insightful view of Americansâ€™ relationship with their dogs.
Country USA
Manufacturer Vintage
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2016-05-10
Format Kindle eBook

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