american bulldogs

are american bulldogs very similiar to pit bulls in temperment. do they have the same crazy drive in all area's of life as apbt's have? are they stubborn as apbt's? how are they as all around pets? it just seems some of them seem to be a bigger version of the apbt as they do have apbt stock in their blood.

 

American Bulldogs are true bulldogs. To the AB crowd, they are the true bulldog of yesteryears whereas the APBT crowd tends to believe the APBT was more like the bulldog of yesteryears. But since none of us were alive 400+ years ago, we will never know.


ABs are amazing animals that are quite versatile in what they can do. The main difference in the AB and the APBT is that they were also bred to be guardian-type dogs whereas the APBT was never designed to be such nor bred to be such. And the APBT was bred specifically to be a pit dog for dog fighting whereas the ABwas not.

However, I do want to mention that today's AB is a recreation of what the 2 main founders thought the breed used to be. The APBT was actually used in the creation of the modern day AB.

I'm got a good friend with ABs who competes in high level Schutzhund events with the dogs. I can't even begin to explain how amazing her dogs are.

And we also hunt with several people who use them as catch dogs.

So yes, these dogs are courageous, driven, and full of heart...........when bred well. Just like every breed out there, particularly the bulldog breeds, their are numerous bybs & peddlers doing their damndest to destroy the breed. These dogs are bred for big heads, heavy weights, wide chests (aka bowed out shoulders and elbows), etc. instead of being bred for working ability first and foremost. So shopping for an AB is very similar to shopping for an APBT. For example, I wouldn't touch an AB being sold in the newspaper nor out of the bed of a pick-up truck. And in many cases, to get a true working AB from a reputable owner/breeder who works them like they should, you've got to either know them or know people. They don't just sell indiscriminantly.

 

i like the Allen Scott standard type the best. im wondering if anyone has had experience with this type. im also wondering about the painter/margentina dogs used for fight how are these set apart from the other kinds. are these breeding program dogs the same truely as the so called southern whites?

 

I have a friend who boasts of her ABs being PA and just recently in AZ the news reported a deadly attack on a little girl by an AB... and since then I've had to correct several people who have asked me if I've heard of the "pit bull" attack :rolleyes: uuuuhm... NOOO!

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/1107DogAttack1107.html

but I myself am not familiar with the breed, can't say I've ever even seen one in person so I can't offer an opinion on them with only 2 sources of information wether it be negative or positive, I can only suggest dealing with a reputable breeder who focuses on breeding for good temperment and who is willing to let you meet both parents of their litter, at the very least I can say I think they are beautiful dogs

 

As awesome as an AB seems its still a cur.

 

ive heard these dogs have a hell of a drive

 

They can. But hard-core APBT ppl still consider them "curs." You might want to consult an AB board to get a more in-depth response to your question.

 

i figured due to their relationship with apbt brood stock it would be relavent and interesting to people on this discussion forum thanks.

 

And?

Although I'm a "hard core" APBT woman, I still find value in other dog breeds and respect them for what they are and what they can do. Sure in APBT terms they are curs, but many of those dogs can do what APBTs cannot or will not.

I own a Rottweiler by choice and a Dogo by choice. And in the future I will probably branch out to the Filas (only though if the person I know ever ends up doing a breeding as her dogs are the true working type and actually work & are not the show type).

But different strokes for different folks I guess.

As for finding an AB board, jones, I can direct you to a few good ones full of working dogs with working owners.

 

as mia stated they are designed more for protection and gaurdian work than anything else. they do also make good catch dogs as was also stated. but the main focus here should be that every dog has a purpose and if bred properly they will excell at that given task. personally i would not choose to own an AB. and that may just be from a lack of hands on experience, as the only one i ever knew personally was NKC registered and dumb as shit. couldn't teach it to lick it's own arse. and when you take into account the physics of it, a bigger dog tends to tire quicker than a smaller dog of comparable conditioning. i have been told that AB's do make excellent guard dogs and also excell at being all around farm dogs. saw a lot of those growing up. that old saying, there is a breed for everyone.

 

And what?

Most APBT ppl consider ABs curs. You know that is the truth. Others like you & I CAN see the value of different breeds for different jobs. Others do not. But I never said ALL APBT fanciers consider AB curs, I said MOST do, a key word there you seemed to have overlooked.

 

They might not be game in the box, although im pretty sure theres a good number of AB's who could go 60+mins in the box, especially the ones with more APBT blood in them like the kershner line.

 

That statement is FLOODED with ignorance.

 

jeeprino: Yes it is. But we should try to help the guy learn.

Yngwie: ABs to my knowledge were never bred for the box. While some are most certainly DA, I doubt very many are truly game.

The AB's primary job was that of a farm dog. Nowadays they are also used in protection work. Mia could probably tell you more as I think she has owned or knows ppl who own ABs.

As for the Kirshner line, that is not an AB bloodline. That is an APBT line of dogs run by Rod Kirshner. His dogs are heavy Mayfield bred.

 

Not to argue but before you tell someone that a line of dogs doesn't exist you should do your homework their is a Kirshner line of AB's wether it's the same guy or not I don't know but their is a bloodline that carries that name. As for AB's in the box I thought that was what the Painter line was for which actually some of those dogs have some of the best known APBT bloodline's in them.

 

Must be 2 different guys. Can you sent me a link to the Kirshner AB fellow? I tried searching Yahoo & Google but got no hits on him or his dogs. I would like to read about him If I can.

As for the Painter dogs, I have heard they has APBT blood in them, but I never heard they were bred for the pit. What I was told was that the APBT blood was splashed in to bring the dogs back to more working type.

Here is a link I found that was interesting:

http://www.americanbulldog.org/past-breeders.htm


*EDIT - Never mind. I found the info I wanted. I was spelling the guy's name wrong, that's why I wasn't getting any hits.

And you were right. Some Painter dogs were indeed bred for the pit.

I guess you learn something new every day!

Here is the link I came across:

http://www.bulldoginformation.com/american-bulldog-types.html

 

There's also a Game Bred AB Club you can check out if your intrested. Those guys are as serious about their AB as any APBT Fancier I've ever met but yea the guys name is Kerschner the founder of that line,I don't know if it's the same person or not but I do believe they share the same name.Also on a side note Lone Oak AB have some nice dogs but they hold the opnion if it's not a "true" johnson AB they could really care less. I've spoke with them on serveral occasions.

 

American Bulldogs are great dogs, different from APBT. We have many friends that are bulldog people and we have even had a couple, but they are different. When it comes to training the dogs, there is differences, just differnent personality than a pit bull. Some are very stubborn, hard to read, hard to tell if you are getting through or not.

The people we know breed their dogs first for working ability. Being able to catch is important, many are trained in protection, I know a well trained AB in weight pull is tough to beat, they are strong dogs.

I like Alan Scott's dogs, Alan is a great person, although we don't have his bulldogs, we have his patterdales.

 

Thats funny, you were going to help me "learn" and you are the one actually learning something.

1. Yes there is a AB bloodline called Kershner.
2. I never said that they were bred for the box.
3. Never said many are game. I just think that there are game ABs, not many, but some.

 

Is it really?