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| Bully for the Bull Terrier: Britain�s Jolly Good Companion By Sharon Pflaumer Tough Blood The Bull Terrier is a single breed with two varieties of coat color, white and colored. It primarily springs from an 1835 crossbreeding of the old-fashioned Bulldog and the now extinct White English Terrier, which was very similar to the Manchester Terrier. The bloodlines of the Dalmatian were added to this mix, and the influence of these three breeds still is evident. Some examples of this are the Bull Terrier�s strong jaws, deep brisket, barrel ribs, heavy bones, close coat, and coloration of fawn, which suggest Bulldog features. Its whip tail, straight legs, small dark eyes, clean outline and white coat color are reminiscent of the White English Terrier. Finally, the legginess of the Dalmatian, as well as the Dalmatian�s movement, are both still recognizable in many Bull Terrier specimens. Height and weight values are not listed in the standard, but according to the �Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds� by D. Caroline Coile, Bull Terriers generally stand between 21 inches and 22 inches tall, with males weighing 55 pounds to 65 pounds and females 45 pounds to 55 pounds. The Miniature Bull Terrier is a separate breed that stands between 10 inches and 14 inches tall and is simply a smaller version of its larger cousin in both looks and temperament. In the early 1900s, the Bull Terrier�s distinctive, egg-shaped head was first seen in England in the male line down from Bloomsbury Czar, sire of Eng. Ch. Oaksford Gladiator. Gladiator was born in 1917 and is described as �the first markedly downfaced Bull Terrier� by L. Cabot Briggs in his book, �Bullterriers, the Biography of a Breed,� published in 1940. �While today�s Bull Terriers [once known as the Half and Half or the Bull and Terrier] are far removed from the pits of 19th-century England and [are] no longer commonly used to dispatch vermin, some of them still can be unfriendly toward other animals. Puppy buyers should be aware of this heritage and the necessity to nip any sign of an �attitude� in the bud. For example, it may seem cute when a tiny puppy goes after the big dog living next door, but when the puppy matures into a powerful adult dog that can�t get along with neighboring pets, he is a lawsuit in the making,� Bartell warns. �To offset any inherent dog aggressiveness, puppies should be properly socialized. One of the best ways to do that is to take them to puppy kindergarten and beginning obedience classes,� Bull Terrier expert Lynne Myall advises. �Owners also should avoid situations outside of class where there is the potential for confrontation to occur. If Bull Terriers are challenged, they remember. One skirmish can set the stage for a pattern of repeated behavioral problems.� In addition to being an AKC judge for the breed, Myall is active in regional Bull Terrier, all-Terrier and all-breed clubs, and she is a strident opponent of breed-specific legislation. To their credit, she and her husband, Dr. Robert Myall, have bred some stellar dogs. For example, Am./Can. Ch. Iceni Incantation, ROM, CGC (Canine Good Citizen�), took Best of Breed at Westminster in 1997 and went Best of Opposite Sex at the BTCA national specialty the same year. Her uncle, Am./Can. Ch. Iceni Taliesin, ROM, won the national specialty in 1993. A full littermate, Am./Can. Ch. Iceni Isis, ROM, won the coveted Silverwood trophy in the United States in 1997. Am./Can. Ch. Iceni Sweet Mischief Maker won the Eva Weatheril Brood Bitch trophy in 1996 and 1997. Can. Ch. Jebt�s Royal Reagh at Iceni won the Raymond Oppenheimer National Stud Dog trophy in 1997, and Am./Can. Ch. Iceni Islay, ROM, was the top white Bull Terrier in agility in 1999. According to Myall, �A liveliness to respond to ground-covering animals is usually predictable due to the breed�s ancestry. [Therefore,] owners would be wise to use caution in keeping rodent-type pets like gerbils or guinea pigs. However, most Bull Terriers can live fairly peacefully with other animal companions when they are supervised [and brought up with them from puppyhood].� Although a hereditary potential to be aggressive may be present in some dogs, no reputable breeder deliberately breeds for it today. Puppy buyers can run into serious trouble in this regard, however, if they purchase a puppy mill-bred dog or one bred by a novice breeder lacking breed knowledge. �Puppy mill and inexperienced breeders typically don�t have the background to correlate the individual puppy�s temperament to that of the individual owner,� Myall says. �Matching ownership with puppies is very important with Bull Terriers. Temperament testing is one way to accomplish this. Temperament testing can tell you if a puppy is shy, confident or dominant. If a puppy is shy, the dog should be placed in a home where it will be nurtured and confidence [is] encouraged. A confident puppy would do well in a show home. [Likewise,] a dominant dog should only be placed with an experienced Bull Terrier owner.� |
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