Canine aggression came into the public eye in the United Kingdom in the late 1980s prompting enactment of the UK Dangerous Dogs Act , which prohibits four breeds or “types” of dogs. The act faced strong opposition surrounding correct identification of prohibited dogs. A questionnaire was distributed to the public via an online platform, especially targetting those who have worked with dogs. The questionnaire assessed respondents’ abilities to identify the four banned types of dogs from other breeds and their capability to identify Pit Bull Terrier types from other similar dog types. Identification of both banned breeds, F(1, 20) = 57.746, p < .001, and bull breeds, F(1, 20) = 9.293, p = .006, was significantly lower than identification of other breeds. Recognition of Pit Bull Terrier types from similar types of dogs was generally poor, although people in a dog-related profession, as opposed to those in other professions, could correctly distinguish more pit bull-type dogs (U = 46,164.0, n₁ = 187, n₂ = 575, p = .003). Findings suggest public understanding of dangerous dogs is poor, and it may impact societal perceptions of dogs more widely.

在1980年代后期，犬类侵略在英国引起了公众的关注，促使英国颁布了《危险犬类法》，该法禁止四种犬种或“类型”的犬类。该法案面临围绕正确识别违禁狗的强烈反对。通过在线平台向公众分发了问卷，尤其针对那些与狗打交道的人。该问卷评估了受访者从其他品种中识别出四种被禁止犬类的能力，以及从其他类似犬种中识别出斗牛梗类型的能力。鉴定两个被禁品种F（1，20）= 57.746，p  <.001和公牛品种F（1，20）= 9.293，p = .006，明显低于其他品种的鉴定。尽管与狗相关行业的人员相对于其他行业的人员可以正确地区分更多的斗牛型狗，但从相似类型的狗中识别出斗牛梗的类型通常较差（U = 46,164.0，n ₁  = 187 ，n ₂  ＝ 575，p  ＝ 0.003）。研究结果表明，公众对危险犬只的了解很差，并且可能更广泛地影响社会对犬的看法。