American Pit Bull Terriers are difficult dogs to raise-they want a lot of care and attention. Neglected Pit Bulls may become aggressive and enter into fights with other dogs and even humans. Since the 1980s there have been many incidences of scrapes, even mauling cases, involving Pit Bulls. Though the culprits of these violent attacks were a handful, there has been enough bad publicity for the episodes and it has created a phobia for Pit Bulls among the people. The last twenty years have been very difficult for Pit Bulls, what with governments banning them from their cities (Manitoba, Ontario being examples), people turning them loose in the streets or abandoning them at rescue shelters.

This is where Pit Bull rescue shelters come in. These are voluntary organizations, which take in stray and abandoned Pit Bulls, nourish them, care for them and even train them until they find an equally loving and caring owner to adopt these pets. Pit Bulls taken up by shelters are spayed and neutered, vaccinated for heartworm and given other vaccinations as may be required.

Pit Bull rescue shelters operate widely on the Internet. There are various organizations like the Pit Bull Rescue Central, Bay Area Dog-lovers Responsible About Pit Bulls (BADRAP), among many others who have their hearts in the right places when relocating Pit Bulls is concerned. These organizations accept Pit Bulls from people who may wish to abandon their dogs for whatever reason, treat them and then scout for proper homes to relocate them. Most of these organizations screen the applicants of people who wish to adopt Pit Bulls, even visit their homes and cross-check with their veterinarians.

In today's fad-driven world, people are opting for dogs that may be bred for their looks or certain other traits. However, Pit Bull rescue teams cannot emphasize enough how much better it is to take in a rescued dog than a bred dog. For starters, it is morally better to give a home to a dog that has been rescued from some unfortunate circumstances in the past. Rescue dogs are already spayed or neutered and treated for vaccines. Most of the rescue dogs are already trained under previous owners. And needless to say, rescue dogs look upon their new owners like a messiah and will be totally loyal to them. To add icing on the cake, rescue dogs are very cheap, less than $150, while the costs of purchasing a bred dog could go up to $5000.

But there are some strings attached. As most of the dogs picked up by rescue shelters are stray or abandoned, there may not be documentation on them. Rescue homes would not know the lineages and past histories of most of their dogs. However, these are minor things when you consider the bigger picture of giving a homeless dog a home.