Bully Breeds

So, I know a bunch of people who like to talk about how nice bully breeds (dogs like pit bulls or bull terriers) can be.

Which is totally true.  And there is a reason that pit bulls are also called "nannie dogs".  So whatever.

But, it has me wondering how this breed came to have both the traits of "likes kids" and "huge jaws."  So what is the "point" of a pit bull?  According to Wikipedia pit bull "type" dogs are crosses between terriers and english bulldogs.  They were used in the US for catching animals, hunting, driving livestock, and as family pets.  I guess the idea is that they are "all-purpose" dogs.  And then they started to be used in dog fighting (ugh).

So, generally speaking, does it make sense to have an "all-purpose" dog?  There are groups of breeds that have specific qualities (companions, herders, terriers, etc.) that are generally good at one or two things.  And of course there are mixed breeds which could have any mix of skills etc.

Rat terriers are similar to pit bulls in their "all around usefullness".  They hunt, catch vermin, and are very human oriented.  They were farm dogs.  (Gloria is .5 rat terrier).  So, I'm going to think of pit bulls as "giant rat terriers" (even though this doesn't quite make sense) in regards to their appeal.

I would think that most pit bull owners keep them primarily as pets, and don't do much catching or hunting with them.  So next question is what makes a pit bull different from other  people-oriented dogs?

1.  They are "large" dogs
2.  They have a distinct appearance
3.  Athletic
4.  Short fur
5.  not hyperactive?

What are other dogs with some similar traits?
1.  Labs
2.  Retrievers
4.  Rat terriers (deckers)
5.  Dalmations

Okay, so we can get rid of labs and dalmations as being too hyperactive.  So what is the difference (in a pet) between pit bulls and retrievers and decker rat terriers?

Types of retrievers

1.  Labarodor
2.  Nova Scotia Duck Tolling
3.

OOH, Animal Planet made it easy!  There is a breed "matching" quiz and I tried to get a pit bull, and these are some of  the breeds it came up with (besides Staffordshire terrier (pit bull-type)):

1.  American Water Spaniel
2.  Chesapeke Bay Retriever
3.  Curly Coated Retriever
4.  Plott Hound
5.  Italian Spinone

Wow, the Italian Spinone sounds like a pretty awesome dog.  Reading more about pit-bull dogs on that site, it sounds like they are very protective.  I'm not sure why that would be regarded as positive in a family dog though...

Okay, so now I want to give some love to the rat terrier...

Okay, I love ratties, and I think that any pit bull lover would also love a decker rat terrier (large rat terrier).  Here is info about deckers;  http://deckerratterrier.nrta.com/index.shtml

Quality 1. A capable utility/hunting dog. 
Quality 2. A wonderful family companion. 
Quality 3. A watch dog with keen alert senses picking up intruders very quickly.

Deckers have all the qualities people like in pit bulls except the face isn't smooshy and the ears aren't floppy.  As far as I know, they don't have the capability of biting as hard as a pit bull, but

In conclusion: Rat terriers are awesome.  Nothing wrong with pit bulls, but I don't know that there is much of anything particularly special about them either.

Are boxers considered "bully-breed"?  They seem to be pretty similar and have the strong bite.  eh....