Pittbulls! The black people of the dog world. They disproportionately attack innocent stand biers and will chew off little Timmy’s nose. If you see a guy walking a pittbull, you go to the other side of the street.
In all seriousness, pittbulls are great dogs and make a great pet. Sure, I wouldn’t let my kid play with it, but in my drug peddling days they were the closest thing I had to home security. I’m all reality pittbulls really aren’t anymore dangerous than a German Shepard, it’s their past that is really dangerous.
If your dog is making eye contact with you, it’s not connecting with you. It’s actually debating whether or not to kick your ass, and the longer you stare back the more his choice will lean towards yes. I personally made this mistake and now I have an ugly ass scar on my arm. In this situation, just look away for a while and it’ll likely lose interest.
If your dog looks like its smiling, it’s not because it’s happy to see you. In fact it’s quite the opposite. Your dog is basically saying “fuck off I’m obviosly uncomfortable.” Think of it this way, a dog’s only weapon is its teeth and when it’s showing them off it’s not much different to holding a knife to your head. If you find yourself in this situation back away from the dog slowly, facing it, and simply leave it alone.
When it comes down to it, it’s really just about the dog’s body language.
Highly trainable dog breeds like Golden Retrievers, Labrador Retrievers, German Shepherds and Collies are more kid-friendly than some other breeds.