00:07The giant pit bull bears the reassuring name of Hulk and lives in the US state of New Hampshire,
00:13six hours by car from New York. The GPS leads us to a farm. Now we want to find out
00:20what this
00:20monstrous dog is really all about. On the way to the front door, we already come across a lot of
00:26pit bulls, a dog breed, the ownership of which is prohibited or restricted in many places in Germany
00:31because pit bulls are considered to be aggressive and dangerous. With all this barking here, I'm
00:38curious about what to expect. We have an appointment with Hulk's owner, with Marlon. He lives here with
00:51his wife Lisa and three-year-old son Jordan. The family runs a professional dog breeding
00:56business. But one is missing.
01:00So, where's Hulk?
01:03Hulk! Come on, Miguel!
01:08There he comes.
01:10There he is.
01:13Do I have to be careful here?
01:15No, no, absolutely not. Very, very friendly. Happy dog.
01:21Hulk's head is really huge. Even normal pit bulls cause anxiety in many people. But Marlon's
01:27son Jordan is not afraid of Hulk at all. Because the upbringing is the key in whether a pit bull
01:33becomes a dangerous biter or a tame family dog.
01:39Hulk isn't the least bit interested in us. He's used to cameras. In the USA, he's a star.
01:45I get offers from people who buy them all the time. I mean, I've been offered a million dollars
01:49at least five times at this point. Which, to me, it sounds like it's a lot in the sense for
01:56a dog. But in terms of business, he's a multi-million dollar commodity.
02:01A dog worth millions? Unbelievable, but true. Two-year-old Hulk has a Facebook page, a book contract,
02:08and a TV show in his pocket. His puppies are worth tens of thousands of dollars.
02:17Although Hulk is not the largest dog in the world, he's 25% bigger than normal pit bulls. By far,
02:24the largest one of his breed.
02:27Some passers-by prefer to avoid the giant dog. Others remain calm. Even here in the US, where pit bulls
02:33are always an issue.
02:42You've never seen anything like that before.
02:45He's so gorgeous!
02:50He's huge! I don't know what else to say.
02:55He looks friendly. He's got a huge face, though, in his tongue.
02:58Big smile on him, right? When you've first seen him?
03:01Right.
03:07No, this pit bull isn't particularly terrifying. But how was he brought up?
03:13Hulk eats a kilo of dry food daily, two cans of wet food, and one kilo of raw chicken meat.
03:20All with a side of protein powder.
03:25By the way, he's still not fully grown. During the next year, Hulk could gain another five to ten kilos.
03:33On their farm, Marlon and Lisa have been breeding XXL pit bulls for five years.
03:38They're also known as American bullies.
03:41Significantly larger males are mated with particularly stocky females.
03:45The result? Hardly a dog here weighs less than 60 kilos.
03:51Hulk's size was planned, but that he would become so huge is a unique quirk of nature.
03:57I wouldn't say luck, but, I mean, it's...
04:00Eh, well, maybe the dog gods, you know, decided to bless you.
04:04You know, he functions very well amongst the pack and other dogs, as you can see.
04:07He functions very well with people. He's great with people. He's a great ambassador.
04:11And, you know, when he needs to turn on and work, he goes to work.
04:15What Marlon means by work, we find out right away.
04:19Because the breeder trains all of his dogs every day.
04:22Also Hulk, his most precious creation.
04:28Marlon has put on a so-called bite suit.
04:31We're very surprised. Hulk was very nice a few minutes ago.
04:41But now, he's really going against his own master with all his might.
04:47Hulk out!
04:52Hulk finally releases him.
04:54You know, I mean, it effectively feels like your arm is crushing.
04:58You know, I mean, that's what it feels like.
04:59That's the best way I can explain it, you know.
05:02I feel like you put your arm in between a vise and just squeeze it down as hard as you
05:05can.
05:05That's what it feels like.
05:07And we begin to realize Hulk isn't just a cozy dog.
05:12He's brutally strong. Also because of his size.
05:20And we wonder, is that the innate aggressiveness with which pit bulls are repeatedly associated?
05:26Or is it just a game between a dog and his owner?
05:30We enjoy dogs that have jobs.
05:32And so to see.
05:33If you can't tell, he's happy.
05:35He loves to do it.
05:36He loves to work.
05:36As much as he loves to walk around and schmooze with the public.
05:40I mean, you know, he's a dog.
05:41And you can't forget that, you know, these dogs are gladiator-type dogs.
05:44You know, I mean, they like to be physical.
05:46They enjoy this kind of thing.
05:48So, you know, in order to let a dog live a full life,
05:51you know, it's important to let him be an animal.
05:52And, you know, this is part of being an animal for him.
05:54And he enjoys it.
05:55And, you know, that's what it's all about.
05:57The attack training with Hulk, according to Marlon, is only a game.
06:02For the breeder, Hulk is and remains a family dog who wouldn't harm a fly.
06:08But there are some quite different pit bulls here on the farm.
06:12Because Marlon also trains so-called guard dogs that look after private individuals and VIPs as bodyguards.
06:23A controversial method.
06:26After all, there have been fatal incidents involving aggressive pit bulls, both in the US and in Germany.
06:34Back home, the breeding and keeping of this breed is therefore mostly prohibited.
06:40Marlon's exhibition dog is Ace.
06:42Ace trains every day for hours, as if he were a high-performance athlete.
06:50All right, sir, we need you to step out of the car, please.
06:53We're allowed to watch him in an attacking exercise.
06:57The situational game, a bad guy sits in the car and doesn't want to get out.
07:01But the dog is supposed to attack him now.
07:05And Ace does so without holding back.
07:10Even though he knows the trainer in the car, on command, the dog attacks.
07:16You know, he's deemed him a threat. He's fired up.
07:18You know, we're running through the exercise.
07:20And to be honest, part of it is he knows right now he's playing a game in a certain sense
07:25and he's excited.
07:26You know what I mean? That's part of what it is. He loves to do this.
07:28I mean, you'll see the tail going when he's in there.
07:31And he's just happy. That's what they like to do.
07:33And without the muzzle, if you're running this right now, would he...?
07:35Absolutely. Without the muzzle, we would 100% be on our way to the hospital.
07:39You know, this dog means business and he will bite anything that he's told to at any time.
07:44Takamese!
07:48The truth is that these dogs sell mainly because of their aggressiveness.
07:53Marlon charges up to $30,000 for his guard dogs.
07:56They're spread all over the farm, even inside the house.
08:05Incomprehensible for us. After all, the family lives here too.
08:09Isn't the mother, Lisa, worried about her three-year-old?
08:14It's completely on how you raise them.
08:16We have been doing this for so long now that, you know, we're professionals at what we do.
08:20We understand dog behavior and psychology.
08:23We know how to raise them properly. They're very balanced, stable dogs.
08:26That applies to Hulk for sure. An absolutely laid-back dog, unlike the hyperactive guard dogs.
08:36And like a proud young dad, Hulk likes to play with his children.
08:44Because, yes, even though he's only two, Hulk is already the father of several puppies.
08:52The pit bull is mated up to four times a year.
08:55And since he has cult status, the price of the puppies has skyrocketed.
08:59His newest puppies are only ten days old.
09:04Seven adorable pups, all family dogs, for which Lisa can claim up to $15,000 per puppy.
09:13So, out of the whole litter, there was only one female that was born.
09:17And she's going to be going to Japan.
09:19So, this is her.
09:22She's got a long trip.
09:23There's a lot of rules about shipping to Japan.
09:26They have to wait a long time before they can fly.
09:30So, she'll be with us for a long time, for about six, seven months.
09:34But will the puppies grow as big as their father?
09:37They can't be exported to Germany due to the pit bull ban.
09:41But in many other countries, the young dogs have an amazing market for themselves.
09:46That's what makes Hulk a real gold mine for his owners.
09:50Hulk will absolutely never be for sale.
09:53Not for a million, not for a billion.
09:55Doesn't matter.
09:57I'll keep them forever.
09:59We believe him.
10:00The biggest and probably most famous pit bull in the world, Hulk and his American family.
10:07That was the story behind the picture.
