12 Reasons Pit Bulls Are the Best Guard Dogs

Natural Protective Instinct

Like other traditional guard dogs, pit bull breeds have a natural protective instinct that propels them to stand in between danger and the person or people they love. Female individuals of pit bull breeds may become especially protective of young children or other animals they deem their “children.”

Eugene Klimaszewski, the president of Mammoth Security, knows what it takes to keep a family safe. Not only has he worked in security for several years; but he also owns a pit bull and knows first-hand how great they are at protecting what they love.

“[Pit bulls] combine courage with a natural instinct to protect, making them excellent at sensing potential threats and serving as deterrents,” he said. “Their protective nature is bolstered by their remarkable emotional intelligence.”

High Emotional Intelligence

Did you know that dogs have several types of intelligence? Not only do they have “normal” intelligence that aids in problem-solving, they have obedience, instinct, and emotional intelligence. The latter has to do with empathy — and pit bull breeds are kind, sensitive souls who can detect a shift in feelings.

“Pit bulls are keenly attuned to their family’s emotions and can react appropriately to various situations,” Klimaszewski said. 

The loyalty and empathy pit bull breeds have for their families does beg for boundaries, according to Klimaszewski. “It’s essential to foster this protective instinct through proper training and socialization. This ensures that their protective nature is guided by obedience and control.”

Alertness

Guard dogs need to maintain an alert attitude if they’re going to guard anything. Pit bull breeds are great at keeping one eye on potential threats and another on having fun. The emotional intelligence, coupled with their empathy, loyalty, and clear training boundaries create a great guard dog that can decipher threats to safety from a friendly neighbor or the mailman dropping off a package.

Steadfast Loyalty

Among the lists of the most loyal dog breeds, you’ll find at least one of the previously mentioned pit bull breeds. Despite being raised as a worker, not a companion, pit bull breeds remain happiest when they’re next to their owner — whether they’re completing a task or relaxing on the couch.

Loyalty is a double-edged sword, though, and nearly no other dog breed group understands that as well as the bully breeds. Responsible ownership is non-negotiable with a dog that places its full loyalty in its owner; they work to keep you safe and trust you to do the same.

Intimidating Bark

Dogs can prevent home break-ins. While there’s no hard and fast rule about the type of dog that prevents the most break-ins, bully breeds and other muscular, deep-bark dogs have a much better chance of scaring off an intruder over a toy breed like a Chihuahua or a Yorkshire terrier.

According to research conducted by CNET, burglars would prefer less noise. Louis Wood, a private security firm owner from San Antonio has heard “multiple accounts from burglars who say that all things being equal they will always opt for a house without a dog.” 

Even technology follows the commonly-held belief: since 2021 Amazon’s Alexa allows users to enable a “barking dog” routine that sounds dog barks when a linked camera device perceives a human’s movement outside of the home.

Trainability

Because pit bull breeds have so much loyalty and eagerness to please their owners, they’re exceptionally trainable. Take, for example, a personal anecdote from dog trainer and chief editor of TrainYourGSD.com, Andrew Garf.

“I’ll never forget the first pit bull I ever trained — a sweet girl named Rosie who was a complete velcro dog when it came to her eight-year-old owner, Cole. She followed him everywhere, constantly checking in on him. 

“One afternoon, Cole was bouncing on the trampoline when he lost his balance and took a bit of a tumble. Before his mom could even react, Rosie was by his side, gently nuzzling him to make sure he was okay. Whenever he sniffled from a skinned knee or had a nightmare at night, Rosie was there to comfort him. It was clear she had appointed herself his protector.”

This reaction comes from both consistent training with boundary practice and a deep, mutually respectful relationship between the pit bull and its owner.

Best of Both Worlds

Though pit bull breeds have a fierce reputation as protectors, guards, and strong canines, they’re goofy and fun, too. These dogs work hard and play harder, providing the best of both worlds to families. It means they can turn on a dime from fun to alert — keeping families and young children safe during playtime.

Meg Marrs, a dog trainer, animal shelter volunteer, the owner of the dog care website K9 of Mine, and the proud owner of a pit bull shared her two cents on why pit bull breeds’ personalities make them great guard dogs. 

“Pitties are great security dogs because they can be quite intimidating with their barks and posturing, but are often complete sweeties with their people and many are known for being huge cuddle bugs.”

Loving Nature

Garf weighed in again with a comment about the pit bull breed’s loving nature. “As a trainer, I always encourage families to establish rules, boundaries, and socialization early on. Pit bulls have so much love to give, so nurture this gentle side too — not just their protective instincts.” 

The downside can be they are *too* vigilant about possible threats from guests, loud noises, and other animals. A poorly-trained pit bull breed individual may accidentally injure a child it protects if it doesn’t understand boundaries. However, some extra TLC and training help keep their anxiety and overprotectiveness in check.

Strength and Athleticism

On average, pit bull breeds have stocky, athletic builds. These dogs are made of muscle — and look like it. Most pit bull breeds find their origins in the fields and farms of humans hundreds of years ago. Employed as stock dogs, catch dogs, farm guardians, and farmhands, bully breed evolution has maintained the dogs’ solid build for a range of impressive strength, endurance, and agility showings. 

Obedience

The sad reality remains that pit bull breeds developed their negative public opinion from irresponsible owners. Because these owners in the 1980s usurped the breed’s loyalty to force dogs to fight each other, misinformed media saw their action and branded the dogs aggressive and dangerous. The true danger in the situation, however, was the humans’ cruel twists of pit bulls’ pure, innocent loyalty.

Pit bull breeds will put themselves in danger for the ones they love. Their extreme loyalty knows nearly no bounds — and will guide a canine’s actions and reactions to a multitude of situations. Pit bulls make great guard dogs for responsible owners who train their canines to protect them because they’re able to differentiate a threat from a friend and act in the best interest of their family.

Confidence

The American Kennel Club defines the American bulldog — one of the breeds considered a pit bull breed” as loyal and self-confident. Confidence is key in a guard dog because it enables the canine to make their own decisions. To protect others, they must trust themselves and their reactions to situations.

Confidence is both inherent in a dog’s personality and supplemented by the owner. Pit bulls who receive proper training and socialization can become more confident in the actions they take on their own because they base those decisions within the boundaries they’ve learned to obey from their owner.

Well-Rounded Intelligence

As mentioned above, dogs have more than one type of intelligence that humans measure to roughly decide how “smart” a breed is. Pit bulls rank high in every type of intelligence, making them both excellent companions and easy-to-train partners. Coupled with their eagerness to please their owners and loyalty, pit bulls understand hundreds of commands and catch on quickly to new tricks taught to them.