Worlds most dangerous dogs

Dogs have lived alongside man for thousands of years since the first wolves were domesticated. There is little doubt this relationship has been hugely beneficial to both, leading to dogs being commonly referred to as “man’s best friend”. But over recent years there there have been a steady stream of stories in the media cataloging what appears to be an increasing trend of horrific attacks. Based on one UK survey (Hospital Episode Statistics) dog attacks resulting in hospitalisation are up over 300% in 20 years.

Whilst there is nearly always a reason for a dog attacking, these incidents show that certain dog breeds are capable of being deadly. This is recognised by the fact many of these breeds are banned in countries throughout the world.
The breeds listed below are those which have been involved in numerous incidents. I haven’t just taken the statistics for which breed has been responsible for the most hospital admissions; this list based on the potential and temperament of various dog breeds. There a three ingredients to a fatal dog attack; size and power of the dog, aggression and not to be overlooked a reason – usually lack of training and maltreatment…

10. Cane Corso

Cane Corso

This large breed of Italian mastiff is a descendent of the dogs Roman soldiers used in wars. It has a sleek muscular body weighing up to 50kg (110lbs). The business end of the Cane Corso is its large, intimidating head with powerful jaws. One look would tell most people that this is a dog that could inflict a good deal of damage. The Cane Corso generally has a good temperament but is protective and suspicious of strangers. Therefore training and early socialisation are essential.

This dog is restricted in several US states and European countries.

9. Wolf-Hybrids

Wolfdog

I imagine the name itself here is enough to start alarm bells ringing! Often referred to as wolfdogs these dogs are at least half wolf and as such may be virtually indistinguishable from a pure wolf.
Behaviour varies according to the dog / wolf content. Wolf-like traits make the animal less likely to attack protectively but they retain a strong prey drive making them a real risk around other small pets, and potentially young children.

The cross-breeding also has implications on how aggressive the hybrid will be. Crossing with a dog with a protective nature, e.g. a German Shepherd can breed out the wolf’s shy retiring nature, making a less predictable more dangerous dog.

Weighing in at up to 55Kg (120lbs), with power and intelligence of a wolf – in the wrong setting these dogs have the potential to be dangerous.

8. Neapolitan Mastiff

Neapolitan Mastiff
© Philip Thompson (Anacronimso Mastino UK) via Wikimedia Commons

On size alone this massive mutt has the ability to intimidate. Reaching up to 90kg (200lbs) that more than an adult human. It was a Neapolitan Mastiff that played the part of “Fang”, Hagrid , the half-giant’s dog in the Harry Potter films. The large mastiff-type head is complemented with an equally large body in which the musculature is barely hidden by thickly folded skin.

The Neapolitan Mastiff is thought to be the direct descendant of the ancient Roman Molossus used for both war and the bloodthirsty arena. In essence this dog was bred to be a capable killer making it a popular guard dog and defender. That said, these are generally calm and loyal dogs but correct training and socialization is essential. As is a firm owner – these dogs have and can kill.

7. Fila Brasileiro

Fila Brasileiro

Also known as the Brazilian Mastiff this is another very large powerful dog. Weighing up to 75kg (170lbs) the Fila Brasileiro was bred as a hunting dog trained to restrain but not kill its prey. During the days of slavery the Fila was allegedly used to return fugitive slaves, unharmed, to their masters. More recently it has become a popular guard dog.

What separates the Fila from other big mastiff type dogs is its temperament and potential for aggression. The dog is banned the UK, Norway, Israel and Denmark to mention a few along with being restricted in many more. It is often said that the Fila Brasileiro can be highly aggressive towards strangers if not correctly trained. Given the name Ojeriza, this behaviour may be desired by some owners but can make this a particularly dangerous breed.

6. Dogo Argentino

Dogo Argentino
© Christian PInatel de Salvator – via Wikimedia Commons

Although a little smaller than the mastiffs and the Dogo Argentino makes up for it in power. This agile and muscular dog was bred as a big game hunter’s companion able to bring down wild boar and pumas. The Dogo originated from the Cordoba Fighting Dog which was crossed with Great Dane amongst other breeds. The resulting dog is 60kg (130lbs) of lean muscle recognisable with its short white coat.

It is said that the aggressive traits have been largely bred out of the Dogo Argentino and it can even be a good family dog. However, the potential is there for this dog to attack with lethal consequences and as a result it is banned in many countries including the UK and Australia. The fact that it is a breed preferred by dog fighters further cements its reputation as a dog to be feared.

5. Rottweiler

Rottweiler

The Rottweiler is a medium to large sized dog with a stocky powerful body. It used to be known as the butcher’s dog but that was due to it working with livestock and pulling the carts to market rather than anything more sinister. I remember a few years back when this was definitely the scariest dog around. Alongside some of the more exotic, bigger breeds the Rottweiler seems to have lost some of its edge. The fact remains though, that Rottweilers are capable killers and the statistics reflect this. As a more common breed the numbers are bound to reflect badly on the Rottweiler, and they do. In the US it has consistently been the second most frequent dog to attack causing death or serious injury.

4. Caucasian Ovcharka

Caucasian Sheperd Dog

This enormous dog goes by several names including the Caucasian Shepherd Dog. It was bred to defend sheep flocks on the edges of the Soviet Union from thieves and, well, anything! A big dog can weigh anything up to 90kg (200lbs) with huge paws and equally intimidating set of jaws. Their thick fur hides a powerful muscular frame. Virtually fearless and able to exhibit ferocious behavior these dogs have long been a favourite for hunting bears. This is also the breed of dog used to patrol the border between East and West Germany during the Cold War.

Accompanying this size and power is a strong will and a loyalty which will see the dog attack practically anything when it feels its owner is under threat. Still favoured amongst dog fighters in Russia this dog is banned in some countries and restricted in others.

3. Tosa Inu

Tosa Inu
© Pleple2000 via via Wikimedia Commons

This huge Japanese dog was bred as a fighting dog. It varies in size but the biggest Tosas weigh in at a massive 100kg (220lbs) justifying the nickname of the “Sumo mastiff”. Over the years the breed has been crossed with mastiffs, Great Danes, Bulldogs, St Bernards and Bull Terriers. It tends to be significantly smaller in Japan but has been bred for size in the West.

The danger posed from this dog comes from its size, strength and fighting credentials. Usually a very calm breed, good training and an experienced owner is essential for the Tosa. Without this the potential for this dog to do damage is unlimited and fatal attacks have occurred. For this reason the Tosa Inu is banned in a whole list of countries.

2. Presa Canario

Perro de Presa Canario

The Perro de Presa Canario or Canary Dog is one of the most intimidating looking dogs you will find. Its enormous, square head is almost as wide as it is long. It has the body to match too; big boned and muscular the Presa Canario can weigh around 60kg (130lbs). Bred as a fighting dog they retain a good degree of this aggression making them only suitable for experienced dog owners. If not shown absolute authority the Presa Canario can be an extremely dangerous dog. It is also said they gain aggression in numbers as they are pack dogs. This is certainly borne out by a number of fatal attacks most notably that of a San Francisco woman who was torn apart by a pair of these dogs owned by her neighbour.

The Presa Canario is banned in many countries.

1. Pit Bull

Pit Bull

Barely a week goes by without a story of an horrific attack involving a Pit Bull does not feature in the news somewhere. Is the Pit Bull actually the most dangerous dog in the world, possibly not. However, in the face of overwhelming statistical evidence it it difficult to argue that this dog is not the most likely to attack you. Studies have consistently showed that Pit Bulls have been responsible for nearly a half of all recorded attacks including many fatalities.

It is worth pointing out that Pit Bull is an umbrella name referring to any number of dogs with particular physical characteristics. Even the experts can disagree as to what constitutes a Pit Bull but in general the dog is very stocky, muscular with a squarish head and powerful jaws. Despite being the smallest dog on the list, weighing less than 40kg (95lbs) the Pit Bull makes up in power, agility and ferocity. These dogs were bred for the pit (fighting) and more recently to look intimidating.

Of course much of the dogs reputation is the result of irresponsible owners. The worse the reputation the worse the owner and so it goes on. Perhaps another point in defence of the Pit Bull is many of the animals involved in attacks are crosses with other breed such as boxers.
At the end of the day this is the most notorious dog on the planet at present and is banned in too many countries to list. On that basis I’m giving it the top spot.

171 thoughts on “Worlds most dangerous dogs”

  1. DO YOU NOT READ!? Quote ;
    ‘Whilst there is nearly always a reason for a dog attacking, these incidents show that CERTAIN DOGS ARE MORE CAPABLE OF BEING DEADLY’
    ‘The danger posed from these dogs comes from there size, strength and fighting credentials and what there originally bred for. Usually most are very calm breeds, good training and an experienced owner is essential’
    ‘The breeds listed below are those which have been involved in numerous incidents. I haven’t just taken the statistics for which breed has been responsible for the most hospital admissions; this list BASED ON THERE POTENTUAL and temperament of various dog breeds. There a three ingredients to a fatal dog attack; size and power of the dog, aggression and not to be overlooked a reason –USEULLY LACK OF TRAINING AND MISTREATMENT as most are owned by people who are uneducated or buy idiots who buy them because they want them to be be aggressive!’

    Not one breed of dog on this planet is bred or born to attack humans! Its hour fault when a dog bites or kills someone not the dog! We genetically bred all the the breeds above for either fighting, guarding or taking down other animals. As well its us that breed these dogs and us that choose what bitch is to be mum! Let a female have puppies who shows behaviour like barking at other dogs, aggression towards strangers etc then her pups also learn this behaviour and before there even sold now have an unpredictability.
    Any breed of dog has the potential to kill us! The only difference with these dogs is what WE have bred them for and there’s no legal, qualification or experience laws on who can own these dogs!
    I’m one of a dozen people in my country who have a licence to own dangerous breeds and I have a kennel full – 2 Dogo’s / 5 Pits and 1 Dogo mix. All of them have attacked people and removed by police. 5 of them were taken off of gang members who were deliberately encouraging there breeding behaviour! Yet all 8 of them since being with someone experienced, knows what there doing and shows them love, respect, leadership, structure and correct ways to discipline have never shown any more aggression towards people! I even have a weekend couple who comes to pick each one up at a time, drives them to the privet land I use, walks and plays with them. In the 3yrs they’ve been doing it not one problem!

    I get sick to death of people blaming the dogs then putting them to sleep all because of what we have caused! Just like kids its how you raise them and the environment they live in!

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    • I too have owned pitbulls in fact I had one that weigh 225 lb and he was the most gentle dog ever. A good family dog good around people never barked never caused the problem however my son had a little bully pit weighed about 35 lbs and that dog was pure trouble and not because of how he was raised because of these two dogs were raised together but he had that aggressive nature and he would attack a hundred and twenty-five pound pit and therefore a dog bite would break out so yes it is and how you handle your dog and train your dog however bully pit he was me no matter what you did he wanted to be the dominant male dog and we could not stop him from trying to fight with the other people we had to literally keep them separated so I agree with it goes on how you train the animal but there are some dogs just by Nature are just downright aggressive because they were raised the same

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    • I am so tired of reading crap about pitbulls from ignorant.people, rehashing.things.they have.read. Ask me any question about a pitbull and I can answer it from personal knowledge. Also, pretty good.knowledge of working dogs ,patrol/detector.work. Having some minor experience and being decorated and my exploits publish in Guinness Book of Records for a while. Pitbulls are athletic with great endurance capabilities. But, none of which makes him the most dangerous dog in the world, which he is. All the stuff about how they are.raised, their owners and numbers applies.to.any breed. I just see no need in trying to educate the stupid and dishonest.

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  2. These dogs are all really ugly to me also. I’ve known very sweet pits and very aggressive ones. Even if it’s a sweet one, they have been bred to be fighting dogs and I think they always have some of that trait. I was a mail carrier for 12 years and had to interact with many dogs. My worst bite was from a 1/2 basset hound on a leash.

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  3. Everyone puts the impetus on the owners, so I will be shooting the owner first if their dog attacks anyone I know … then I will put the dog down for good.

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  4. DO U PEOPLE READ OR LISTEN TO THE NEWS PIT BULLS ETC VICIOUS DOGS LIKE THAT HAVE KILLED OWNERS CHILDREN ALL THE TIME THEIR TEETH COULD KILL A HUMAN IN SECONDS AND IT DOES HAPPEN ALL THE TIME WHY SHOULD I TAKE A DEADLY CHANCE AND HAVE ONE WHEN I CAN HAVE POODLE A CHICHUA A SILKY ETC THESE BEAUTIFUL DOGGIES ARE ANGELS NOT KILLERS

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  5. Deep inside the world of all living creatures of this world since the beginning of time is the certainty of DNA will always be there.
    Without a doubt some living creatures are naturally extremely gentle and loving and some living creatures are natural born killers.

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  6. you guys are such ass holes. PIT BULLS ARE GOOD DOGS ALL DOGS ARE GOOD DOGS ITS ONLY THE PERSON WHO TAKES CARE OF THEM MAKES THEM GO CRAZY EVEN STILL A DOG IS LIKE A HUMAN AND IF A DOG ATTACKS YOU THAT MEANS THAT YOU MAY HAVE SCARED THEM!!! ITS BECAUSE OF PEOPLE DOGS BECOME HOSTILE DOG YOU KNOW HOW MANY PIT BULLS AND OTHER DOGS HAVE BEEN HURT BY HUMANS?!?! YOU CANT BLAME THEM IF THEY HURT YOU BECAUSE WE HURT THEM FIRST.

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      • Where does anyone blame the dogs? This list is just a list of what are POTENTIALLY dangerous dogs. Don’t see anyone defending tigers or sharks in my other articles despite they kill a lot less people that dogs do every year.

        I have a dog. I love him and know he wouldn’t harm a hair on mine or my kids head. But that doesn’t mean he couldn’t rip your face off. At the end of the day he is still POTENTIALLY dangerous.

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    • Agreed – I adopted an abused Chihuahua that’s mean as piss. I also have a pit bull rescue that’s just a big sweetheart. Owners and abusers are to blame. Not DNA.

      Reply

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