Of course any bad dog is likely to be called a "pit bull mix" regardless of appearance, like any rifle mentioned in a news story is an "AR15 assault weapon," to

Of course any bad dog is likely to be called a "pit bull mix" regardless of appearance, like any rifle mentioned in a news story is an "AR15 assault weapon," today, or was an "Uzi" years ago. Pit Bulls (and a couple other terrier breeds) have a unique relationship with pain. Many individuals of these breeds do not react to pain the way we expect, for them just its another sensation and not worth avoiding. This leads to training problems and communications problems. People expect that a nose flick communicates "stop that", but instead it tells the dog "violent responses are part of civil discussion."