Fatal attacks are rare exceptions
At least 36 breeds of dogs have killed a human in the United States since 1965.
But no other breed killed as often as the pit bull, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which studied fatal dog attacks 1965-2001.
"It's usually a perfect storm of a bad owner with an unsocialized dog and an unsupervised child," says Randall Lockwood of New York-based American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Experts say the number has more to do with the popularity of a particular breed among people who want the dog for a negative function (attack dog, guard dog, noisemaker in the front yard).
Dog attacks among the 73 million canines living in the United States are rare, experts say.
You have a greater chance of dying from a car wreck, drowning or falling off a bicycle than you do of dying from a dog bite, according to the National Safety Council.
And it's even more rare that a well-treated, properly socialized family pet did the killing.
"People hear 'pit bull' and they think monster, but to blame the breed just lets man off the hook," said Karen Delise, author of "Fatal Dog Attacks."
Delise finds that fatal dog maulings have a pattern of happening once every 10 to 15 years in big cities.
She notes that there hasn't been a fatal pit bull attack in Denver since the city banned the breed in 1989. But there also hasn't been a fatal dog attack in Dallas or Portland since 1986 and neither city banned pit bulls.
There hasn't been a fatal pit bull attack in Memphis since Betty Lou Stidham was mauled by her neighbor's pit bulls in 1990 even though there's not a ban on the breed.
After studying fatal dog attacks for more than 20 years, Delise said what she finds most amazing is the number of pit bulls that are mistreated, unsocialized and abused that never bite a soul.
"These poor dogs withstand unimaginable abuse and neglect, live their whole lives chained up and never hurt anyone. To me the question is not why they attack, but why they don't attack more?"
-- Cindy Wolff: 529-2378
Fatal Attacks
A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studied 436 known fatal dog attacks 1965-2001 and found pit bulls killed more often than other breeds.
Pit bulls: 90
Mixed breed: 71
Rottweiler: 54
German shepherd: 40
Siberian husky: 21
Source: CDC as cited in the book "Fatal Dog Attacks"