The Bull Terrier
is the gladiator of the canine race, who has earned the
title "the white cavalier." The Bull Terrier was
developed in England early in the 19th century primarily
for bull baiting, but was also used extensively in the pits
against dogs, badgers, and vermin. In keeping with these
pursuits, the breed is noted for its courage, resistance
to pain, and quick thinking - qualities that were inherited
from the breed's immediate forbears, the Bulldog and the
Terrier. The original name for these feisty cross - breeds
was, quite logically, the Bull and Terrier.
It is reported that the early dogs were
an inconsistent lot, blocky headed and variously coloured.
But, as breeding progressed, the terrier characteristics
predominated. More all - white dogs were being bred, heads
became smoother and legs longer. Then, after the abolishment
of the bull baiting and dog fighting in Britain in 1835,
breeders turned their attentions to the gentler art of
breeding dogs for show.
The developer of the present - day Bull
Terrier is acknowledged to be James Hinks, who had been
experimentally crossing the gamest of his Bull and Terriers
with the white English Terrier and the Dalmatian to produce
a strain of all - white dogs he called Bull Terriers.
A female of Hinks' breeding, Puss, first of this new breed
to be shown, made her debut in 1862. Hard-line Bull and
Terrier enthusiasts scoffed at Hinks' refinement, claiming
he had destroyed the breed's pugnacity. Despite the fact
that it was against the law, Hinktookup the challenge.
That evening, Puss was matched against a tough Bull and
Terrier; she quickly took care of his and not being the
worse for wear and tear was returned to the dog show the
next morning. Other crosses are assumed to have brought
further refinement to the breed. Among the breeds suggested
are the Greyhound, Spanish Pointer, and Dalmatian. and
Dalmatian.
In 1888, the Bull Terrier Club of England
was formed and official status granted to the breed. At
first the only recognized Bull Terrier was white, coloureds
not being accepted until 1919.
Canada first registered the Bull Terrier
in the years 1888-1889 and has the honour of being the
birthplace of the first Bull Terrier to win an all-breed
Best in Show, Ch. Haymarket Kennel Club event held in
New York City in 1918.
Official Breed Standard
for the Bull Terrier
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Origin and Purpose:
The Bull Terrier originated
in England and is the Gladiator of the canine race.
General
Appearance:
Must be strongly built, muscular, symmetrical and active,
with a keen, determined, and intelligent expression full
of fire and courage but of even temperament and amenable
to discipline. Irrespective of size, dogs should look
masculine and bitches feminine.
Size:
There are neither weight nor height limits but there should
be the impression of maximum substance to the size of
the dog.
Coat
and Colour:
The coat should be short, flat, even and harsh to the
touch, with a fine gloss. The skin should fit the dog
tightly. For white, pure white coat. Skin pigmentation
and markings on the head should not be penalized. For
coloured, the colour should predominate, all other things
being equal, brindle to be preferred.
Head:
The head should be long, strong and deep, right to the
end of the muzzle, but not coarse. Viewed from the front
it should be egg shaped and completely filled, its surface
being free from hollows or indentations. The top of the
skull should be almost flat from ear to ear. The profile
should curve gently downwards from the top of the skull
to the tip of the nose, which should be black and bent
downwards at the top. The nostrils should be well developed.
The distance from the tip of the nose to the eyes should
be perceptibly greater than that from the eyes to the
top of the skull. The underjaw should be strong.
The teeth should be sound, clean, strong,
of good size, and perfectly regular with full dentition.
Either a level bite or scissors bite is acceptable. If
a scissors bite, the upper front teeth should fit in front
of and closely against the lower front teeth. The lips
should be clean and tight.
The eyes should appear narrow, obliquely
placed and triangular, well sunken, as dark as possible
and with a piercing glint. The ears should be small, thin
and placed closely together. The dog should be able to
hold them stiffly erect, when they should point straight
upwards.
Neck:
The neck should be very muscular, long, arched, tapering
from the shoulders to the head, and free from loose skin.
Forequarters:
The shoulders should be strong and muscular but without
loading. The shoulder blades should be wide, flat, and
attached closely to the chest wall, and should have a
very pronounced backward slope of the front edge from
bottom to top. The forelegs should have the strongest
type of round quality bone and the dog should stand solidly
upon them; they should be moderately long and perfectly
parallel. The elbows should be held straight and the strong
pasterns upright. The feet should be round and compact
with well-arched toes.
Body:
The body should be well rounded with marked spring of
rib, and a great depth from withers to brisket, so that
the latter is nearer the ground than the belly. The back
should be short and strong with the topline level behind
the withers and arching or reaching slightly over the
loin. The underline from the brisket to belly should form
a graceful upward curve. The chest should be broad viewed
from the front.
Hindquarters:
The hind legs should be parallel viewed from behind. The
thighs must be muscular and the second thigh well developed.
The stifle joint should be well bent and the hock well
angulated, with the bone to the foot short and strong.
Tail:
The tail should be short, set on low. It should be carried
horizontally. Thick at the root, it should taper to a
fine point.
Gait:
The moving dog shall appear well knit, smoothly covering
the ground with free, easy strides and with a typical
jaunty air. Fore and hind legs moving smoothly at the
hip and flexing well at the stifle and hock with great
thrust.
Faults:
Any departure from the foregoing
points should be considered a fault and the seriousness
of the fault should be in exact proportion to its degree.
