Famous Pit Bull Owners [8 Celebrity Pit Bull Terrier Owners with Pictures]

Pit Bull Terriers have long been misunderstood, often facing unfair stereotypes and breed-specific bans. However, many well-known figures—ranging from Hollywood stars to athletes and historical icons—have embraced these loyal, loving dogs and worked to challenge the misconceptions surrounding them.

Also Read: 21 Celebrity Jack Russell Owners, 20 Celebrity Scottie Owners, 23 Celebrity Boston Terrier Owners, 25 Celebrity Westie Owners

Whether through public statements, fostering rescues, or fighting against breed discrimination, these famous pit bull owners are helping to reshape the public perception of this often-misjudged breed.

1. Kaley Cuoco

Kaley Cuoco is an American actress famous for The Big Bang Theory. She is an avid animal lover with many rescue dogs, including pit bulls​.

Cuoco is a vocal advocate for the breed – in 2017 she publicly defended her pit bull puppy Blue after a building denied the dog entry due to its breed, expressing frustration at the prejudice pit bulls face “every single day”​.

She often uses social media to celebrate her pit bulls (like Blue and another named Todd) and to combat stigma against them​​.

2. Tom Brady

Tom Brady is an American football quarterback widely regarded as one of the NFL’s greatest players. Off the field, Brady has multiple dogs, including a pit bull named Lua​.

Brady has described Lua as “a great family dog” who doesn’t have “an aggressive bone in her body”, noting that if an intruder came by, his pit bull would probably “lick someone to death” rather than attack.

His comments highlight the gentle, loving temperament of his pit bull in contrast to the breed’s tough reputation.

3. Rachael Ray

Rachael Ray is an American celebrity chef and television personality. She had a beloved pit bull named Isaboo for 15 years and frequently spoke about her dog’s gentle nature.

In 2020, Ray announced Isaboo’s peaceful passing and reflected that this pit bull “taught us more about unconditional love, empathy, and understanding of one another than we could have ever imagined”.

Ray has long been an advocate for pit bulls and used Isaboo’s story to encourage pet adoption and challenge negative stereotypes about the breed​.

4. Jon Bernthal

Jon Bernthal is an American actor best known for his roles in The Walking Dead and Marvel’s The Punisher. He owns multiple pit bulls and even brings his dogs (Boss and Venice) with him to every film set​.

Bernthal has said he wants to “change people’s idea” of pit bulls by showing how respectful and well-trained his own dogs are.

5. Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States (1901–1909) and was known for his love of animals. Among his many pets was a bull terrier named Pete, often regarded as one of the first “First Pit Bulls” in the White House​.

Roosevelt adored Pete even though the dog had a mischievous streak – at one point Roosevelt wrote that Pete had killed some squirrels, but “loves us so and is such a ridiculously affectionate, fighting bulldog that we have not the heart to get rid of him.”​

Pete’s rambunctious behavior (which even included nipping at dignitaries) made headlines, but Roosevelt’s ownership of a pit bull-type dog is a reminder that the breed was once a normal part of American family life at the highest level​.

I was unable to find a picture of Roosevelt with Pete. He is pictured above with his dog Skip.

6. Helen Keller

Helen Keller was an American author and activist, famous as the first deaf-blind person to earn a college degree. Keller was also a lifelong dog lover.

In 1902, while she was a student at Radcliffe College, her classmates gifted her a bull terrier named Sir Thomas (nicknamed “Phiz”) – a dog who immediately bonded with Keller and would patiently attend lectures by her side​.

Keller cherished Phiz, and this devoted pup is often cited as a historical example of a pit bull-type companion providing loyal friendship​​.

Helen Keller’s affectionate relationship with her dog helped demonstrate the loving nature of the breed long before pit bulls had a controversial reputation.

7. Mark Buehrle

Mark Buehrle is a former Major League Baseball pitcher (a World Series champion with the Chicago White Sox). He is a devoted dog owner with four dogs – one of them a rescued pit bull named Slater​.

Buehrle became an advocate for pit bulls during his career, especially when he joined teams in cities with breed bans. Upon signing with the Toronto Blue Jays, he learned Ontario’s law banned pit bulls, meaning Slater wasn’t allowed to live there.

Buehrle spoke out against the ban as “a discriminatory law”, saying a dog shouldn’t be banned “just because of the way it looks”.

In fact, Buehrle chose to have his family stay in a different province rather than be separated from Slater, drawing attention to the unfairness of breed-specific legislation​.

8. Sir Patrick Stewart

Sir Patrick Stewart is a renowned British actor (of Star Trek and X-Men fame) who has become an outspoken pit bull champion in his later years.

After initially being apprehensive about pit bulls, Stewart was won over by a neighbor’s dog and began fostering rescue pit bulls with his wife at their Los Angeles home​.

He fell in love with one foster dog, Ginger, and hoped to adopt her, but due to the UK’s “draconian” breed-specific ban Stewart decided Ginger should stay in the US where she later found a forever home​.

Stewart continues to advocate for pit bulls – he has appeared in public service videos (even hugging a pit bull named Orson) to call for an end to dogfighting, and he campaigns to overturn breed bans, saying “I’m passionate about these [Pit Bull] dogs”.