Dog Breeds 101: Staffordshire Bullterrier
The Staffordshire Bullterrier was initially bred within the United Kingdom originally being used for bear or bull fighting due to their small, stocky and powerful build. The Staffordshire Bullterrier was a mixture of breeds that had proven themselves as fighters and then owners attempted to breed agility and intelligence into them, after many generations of breeding, the Staffordshire Bullterrier was born.Many common nicknames for this particular breed included Staffy, Staff and Stafford for short. Although these were initially used as fighting animals they are a very popular house pet in today’s society. They do have a boisterous temperament especially when young. They are now bred to be loving and friendly towards other dogs and people.
The average Staffy stands around 14 to 16 inches from the ground and weighs in at 28 to 48 lbs, depending on their build. They often come in different shades of brindles, blacks, reds, blues or whites, and can also may be multicolored with any of these colors and white. Bull dogs can be very high maintenance, especially at a young age as they need constant attention to avoid any destructive behavior to everything in sight.
Due to their natural instinct of a fighter they sometimes have aggression towards other dogs and potentially other people. Staffordshire Bullterriers are stubborn in the fact they may not start a fight with other dogs but will not have the tendency to back down to one either.
Staffys have been the result of a few fatal attacks on humans in the past so have received a negative impression and said to be a danger to the public. The problem lies when people cannot distinctively tell the difference between the different Bullterrier breeds giving a false impression of the Staffordshire Bullterrier.
Owners are expected to keep them under control in any public environment, so it is strongly recommended that you make sure you are able to train your animal and keep them under control before considering ownership of a Staffordshire Bullterrier.
Filed under: Dog Breeds
