Description

The American Bulldog is a completely different breed. Although the American Bulldog has a shared British heritage with the original Bulldog, today it is a taller, longer-legged dog that looks little like the Bulldog of today. This breed developed in the American colonies with early settlers and was used as a hunting dog, herding dog, and companion. The American Bulldog has been used to hunt everything from squirrel to bear, and has been skilled to herd cattle and guard stock and properties. The American Bulldog should be assessed as a working dog, and overstatements or faults should be reprimanded in a ratio to how much they interfere with the dog’s capability to work. The Bulldogs have a very unique appearance. The perfect Bulldog must be medium size with a heavy, thick-set, low-slung body, a massive short-faced head, wide shoulders, and strong legs. Most males are in the 55- to 65-pound range, and females would be in the 45- to 50-pound range. The Bulldog, of course, has a very distinctive head. His skull is quite large. So large, in fact, that the circumference of the skull in front of the ears should measure at least as much as the height of the dog at the shoulders. The cheeks are well rounded and bulge sideways past the eyes. There is an indentation between the eyes, dividing the head vertically. The eyes should be placed at the point where the forehead and the cheeks meet. They are round and very dark. If the eyes of humans are windows to our souls, the eyes of the Bulldog are certainly windows to his personality; they portray kindness, gentleness, and interest. The ears should be set high on the head and wide apart. The ears are small and thin, commonly referred to as rose-ear because of the shape. The rose ear folds over and back, revealing the inside of the burr. Erect ears and button ears are considered undesirable. The face is short, with a broad, short muzzle that is turned upward. The nose is large, broad, and black, and the tip is set deeply between the eyes.  The tail may be either straight or twisting, but never bent or wavy. It is short and hung low on the back, with a thick root and a fine tip. The dog carries it down. The tail is never docked. It may appear too long at birth, but puppies grow faster than their tails.

Coat Description

The American Bulldog’s coat is short, smooth and fine. The preferred colors are red brindle, any other brindle, solid white, solid red, or fawn (brindle is a color pattern in which black alternates with another color to produce a striped effect). Piebald (a pattern with comparatively large patches of two or more colors, one of which is usually white) is also allowed. Only solid black is considered objectionable in the breed standard. But, like beauty, the preferred color is really in the eyes of the beholder. And Bulldogs can be found in many different colors and shades of color.

History of the breed

Bulldogs in England were initially working dogs that herd and wedged cattle and watched over their masters' possessions. Long ago, the breed was used in the arduous activity of bull baiting. With the ruling out of the sport in England in 1835, the original type of Bulldog were nowhere to be found in Britain and was replaced with the less athletic dog we now know as the English Bulldog. Yet the original Bulldog was conserved by immigrants who brought their working dogs with them to the American South. By the end of World War II, the last leftovers of the working English Bulldog were disappearing in the U.S. Thanks to the breeding programs of John D. Johnson and Allen Scott, the breed was brought back from the precipice of extermination. The American Bulldog was acknowledged by the United Kennel Club in 1999 in the rare, working class.

Temperament

Bulldogs, especially Bulldog puppies, can be silly creatures. With a perpetual smile on their faces, Bulldogs love to have fun. And when their owners laugh, Bulldogs get even sillier, wiggling the back half of their body, walking sideways, and panting with joy. But Bulldogs are also devoted, dedicated companions who know no fear and will protect their people at all costs. The Bulldog today is first and foremost a companion. This is not a dog to be left in the backyard for hours at a time. Rather, he deserves a spot on the floor at your feet, or better yet, a place on the sofa right next to you.  Bulldogs are loyal, affectionate companions who will greet you with a smiling face and wiggling body each time you come home—and it doesn’t matter whether you’ve been gone five minutes or five hours. Bulldogs are great family dogs, and although puppies can be clumsy and rowdy, the breed is known to be very patient with children. The American Bulldog is a gentle, caring family friend who is bold enough to face an irate bull or an individual burglar.

Health issues and concerns

Bulldogs generally live from 10–12 years, and tend to be well-built, physically energetic, and often hale and hearty. Some health problems in American bulldogs are frequently noticed within certain inherited lines, and are not frequent to the complete breed, while others, such as Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis (NCL), heart or kidney disorder and thyroid, skin infections, ACL tears, hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, entropion, ectropion, and bone cancer are widespread amongst the worldwide populace of American Bulldogs.

Grooming

Because American Bulldogs were bred to work on farms to guard against intruders, hunt vermin, and chase wayward cattle and hogs, it's no surprise they don't require a fussy or fancy grooming regimen. But there are still a few basics to remember for optimal health and grooming. The one thing you do have to keep in mind is their ears. "They have to get cleaned out a lot, or they can get a yeast infection," Another area to watch: the mouth. Food can get trapped in the pockets of the mouths of dogs with pendulous lips or tight faces; this can lead to tartar and tooth decay. To avoid that, brushing the teeth often is highly recommended — every couple of weeks, or even daily if food collection seems to be a problem. Like many white-coated, short-haired dogs, American Bulldogs have sensitive skin, often susceptible to allergies. Hence, bathing them at least once every two months is required as long as they haven't found a mud puddle to roll in.

Exercise

American Bulldogs require a least one hour of exercise on a daily basis, rain or shine. If the dog is kept outdoors, it’s not a hitch, but, if he is an indoor dog, he must get this exercise. Daily walks or runs in an enclosure would be adequate, but they are compulsory. In view of the fact that this dog has the intrinsic personality to toil, they need the work outs to release some of that pent up energy.

Training

Bulldogs have a reputation for being difficult to train. This usually comes about because the owner or trainer tried to use very forceful or rough training techniques. Bulldogs have a very well-developed sense of what is fair, and rough training techniques will cause the dog to rebel or stop trying. If you try to gain the dog’s cooperation instead and find out what motivates the dog (food rewards, toys, verbal praise, or a play session), you’ll find out that Bulldogs are very trainable. Many Bulldogs have competed successfully in many dog sports, including competitive obedience, agility, and fly ball. Bulldogs have also served as wonderful therapy dogs. If Bulldogs have a weakness, it is that they are not always as willing to please their owners as they are to please themselves. Bulldogs know what they want— comfort, a chance to snooze in the sunshine, food, or a favorite toy. Repeating obedience commands or exercises isn’t always on the Bulldog’s list of favorite things to do. So it’s the wise owner who learns how to motivate their Bulldog so they can gain his cooperation.