I like small house dogs. I tend to get the long haired type of a normally short haired breed. I have a long haired doxie now and had a long haired chihuahua.
I prefer Labrador retrievers and German shepherds, but I would easily have a mixed breed as long as one of the breeds was not a pitbull. My sister had a Lab/Sepherd mix who was a wonderful dog and a Lab/Corgi mix who was a little on the testy side.
German Shepherds are my favorite, but the two I have now are Shepherd/Pit mixes. I ended up with them because I got calls that they were about to be given away in Pontiac...meaning they would have ended up as bait for dog fighting. They favor their Pit heritage...and are the sweetest, most loving dogs that have ever adopted me.
I understand that pits can be sweet and cuddly, but I don't trust them, so I wouldn't have them. I applaud your rescuing them under those circumstances, though.
My favourite breed is a collie, currently I have an American Staffy bitch - and I think there could be some pit in her judging by her size, she's a big girl. And a sook, too friendly if anything. Not clever, bull terriers aren't, but affectionate. I've always maintained that there is no such thing as a savage breed, just savage owners.