Commonly called a pit bull, its history can be traced back to s England, where it was used in dog fighting. Group: Terrier AKC. Coat and Colors: The short coat appears in a variety of colors, including black, brown, blue, fawn, red and liver.
Brindle pattern and or white markings are also seen in combination with these colors. The American Staffordshire terrier's roots can be traced back to 19th century England. The bulldogs and terriers of the time were crossed to create a dog that possessed desirable attributes of each breed. The result was an agile and energetic terrier with bulldog-like perseverance and confidence.
The breed was originally called the bull-and-terrier Dog, half and half, or pit dog. Eventually, it became known in England as the Staffordshire Bull terrier.
Sadly, the dogs were most commonly used for fighting; although dog fighting was banned in the United Kingdom in , it continued to flourish as the ban was difficult to enforce. The bull-and-terrier dogs came to the United States towards the end of the 19th century where they became known as pit bull terriers and then American bull terriers. Though there is some disagreement on the details, it is said that these dogs were not widely used for dog fighting like their ancestors but were more commonly used for general farm work, hunting, and companionship.
As time went on, the breed was developed into taller dogs with larger builds than their English counterparts. The breed was registered with the AKC in as the Staffordshire terrier.
The name was changed in to differentiate between the shorter, smaller English version today's Staffordshire bull terrier. Today, the two are completely separate dog breeds. The very short, smooth coat of the Am Staff requires little more than routine grooming. This breed tends to shed at a low to moderate rate. However, shedding does tend to increase seasonally.
Although some Am Staff will wear down their nails naturally from walking, most still need regular nail trims to keep their feet healthy. Give your Am Staff baths as needed to keep the skin and coat clean and healthy. The Am Staff is an athletic dog breed with plenty of energy, so routine exercise is very important.
However, be cautious not to overdo it in warmer weather, as the breed may be sensitive to heat. Am Staffs will especially benefit from dog sports that challenge them mentally and physically. Regardless of the type of exercise, be sure it is provided about twice daily or more. Without a proper outlet for all that energy, an Am Staff may become destructive, hyperactive, or develop other behavior problems.
As with any dog breed, proper training is a must. This is a fairly smart dog breed that can be stubborn, following its own will if permitted. Therefore, obedience training is essential in order to manage your Am Staff. Training will boost your dog's confidence and provide structure.
This article is rubbish. Pit bulls are smaller and more fit. Staffords are also more aggressive. God i came here to learn something and instead I have do point the obvious:.
If the teeth are buried into my leg.. Mine has a red nose too. My understanding is that red nose is a quality that was purposefully bred out of the amstaff to further separate them from apbt.
Hank is usually confused for an apbt. I myself dont care what he is. To me Hes just a good dog, and my best friend. They have reliable sources listed, and they dispel common myths about the two breeds that are perpetuated on this page. Please do some better research. Wikipedia does a better job than this….
That comment from Joe is dead wrong. Hey is ignorant! Killing children? They all know my Staffordshire and thier kids love to play with her. I have a Amstaff,he is about 20 in. He is not good around small male dogs. I am a disabled veteran and he is my service and companion dog. The problem is none of you know what your talking about lol this is the most typical thing about the molosser dogs; Their owners are almost always the absolute most knowledgeable Pit Lover.
You guys each know more then the all the rest of you yet never seem to agree. All idiots! At least you all love your dogs. The information provided in this post is incorrect.
Large APBTs are generally no more than 65 — 70 lbs. This all happened back in the s. As such the once identical dogs have become very different from each other both physically, and temperment-wise. There of course remains a lot of similarities but the breeds are truly two different breed of dogs. Yeah I agree with you fully. The max for them is about 65 and that would be a beastly pit. Your statement is very well written. I hope it will absorb into there thick heads. The only thing that needs to be pointed out is that most powerful breads of dog can start out being dominant and lead to being agressive but it is proven that only to much inbreading will make a dog agressive from the start.
If a mentally healthy animal of any breed of dog is tought to be none domanent ;then,they will have no reason to fight. Dominance leads to agression. Staffordshires are only docile if they are show quality and raised properly. Those have more of the dogfighting ancestry bred out of them but most do not. A timid inexperienced owner should never buy a staffordshire puppy unless they know it is show quality and will take it to obedience school. Stafforshires will destroy another dog it has not been raised with if challenged or not restrained.
They are very family loyal and highly protective and territorial and will attack an intruder make sure they know the difference between an intruder and your mother in law! These are wonderful dogs even when not show quality I like the not so engineered ones better and to see them get banned because of stupid owners and misinformation would be tragic. They have excellent judgement of character and desire to please his owner and can display sympathy if he thinks you are upset!
Also very beautiful! Overall, the Pitbull is more muscular and stocky at inches in height and pounds in weight. Too those who say the amstaff and pit bull are the same. By all means check your facts. Both akc and my vet have them registered as two different dogs. Same family but different breeds. Also the amstaff is the smaller of the two. Signed a amateur bulls- terrier.
I hate people that think a Pitbull has to have a certain look with a big head. Big heads belong to bully breeds. A real abpt should be between pounds end of story. Its head being proportional to its body very simple. Have done my research and the american side is the bigger taller part , the staffordshire side is more compact.
Sadly, they've been gone a few years. Enter my daughter's a Pittie. So, being sad and lonely, well headed to the shelter again and came home with a senior girl. The most beautiful Staffie ever! Perfect old girl for us! She is other-dog-reactive, as is my grand doggie, and getting the two old girls together is proving to be quite the challenge! Nevertheless, she is an amazing dog! Not active this one, however, the shelter did determine shed been hit by a car on her travels.
She's out forever baby and fits so much of this article! Thank you! Kelly Wilson. Couldn't agree more!! I rescued my Staffy from an owner who cared more about drugs than his dog. He came to us with health n skin problems,terrible separation anxiety. What a boy he's become now!! So intelligent,kind and understands everything Please adopt a Staffy or Pitbull, they'll love you forever. Thank you so much for this well-written, informative article.
We rescued a month-old Amstaff from a kill shelter about 10 weeks ago. Could not love this big, bouncy bundle of fun anymore than we do already! Thanks for taking the time to stop by to both comment and share Karen! Glad you found the article valuable! I have been around dogs my whole life. I was terrified of pit bulls. Jack acquired his new family through my daughter finding him running near the highway.
He was chipped but no one claimed him after 6 weeks. So I had her bring him to me. I finally was able to track down the rescue. We were ready to take him but that little lover stole our hearts. He was full-grown but not quite a year old. We asked to keep him for we were so worried about him getting abused or mistreated because of looking like a pit bull.
I think he is some type of bull terrier. He is the smartest, friendly, silly, and most loving dog. I cannot imagine life without him. He does well with my Yorkies 12 and Keep educating people about how wonderful these dogs are. Terry Cunningham. We are on our second rescue, both have been for want of a better word pitties, with no real way of knowing whether they are pit bulls or am staffs or some mix.
But they share some common traits. Both are lovable, goofy, couch potatoes who appear to expend energy in spurts then are quite content to chill out for a while. Both required obedience and socialization training, firm boundaries, activities to engage them, and both needed to be prevented from getting over-stimulated. I don't believe they are for everyone, they need a dedicated owner, but also I think they are perhaps the most rewarding breeds we have. Sounds like you've had some amazing dogs, Terry!
Thanks for stopping by to share your experience! Natalie Maslo. I agree with the other comment. This was well written! Thank you. The way you explained and broke it down is easy to understand. And the fact that you said their reputation is unjust and pretty much they are the sweetest and most loving dog will hopefully change the minds of some people.
I'm in search for a home to rent and it is just so tough with these breeds. However I'm not giving up my Granddog. This is a very well written article. David of Piacente. Great article! Have owned a Pitbull mix and now own an Am Staff mix. Both dogs were rescued and the Pitty lived a long happy life.
We have two rescues now, a Doberman-greyhound mix and the Am Staff mix. They get along great and exercise each other in our large fenced backyard with supervision by dad.
The Am Staff does have some fear aggression with other dogs and strangers. We are working on that but since we got her at 6 months old it is taking some time.
Other than that she is a very loving pup. Thanks for sharing your experience, David! Sounds like you have had some great dogs. All pups have different experiences, so I'm glad you are taking your time with your Am Staff. Appreciate the comment! Tommy Sassano. I got my Am Staff back in December from a shelter and at first, I really didn't want to get her because of the reputation but got her anyways and she has become one of the best things I've ever done, I absolutely love my Maggie!
Sounds like you made the right choice and got a great dog, Tommy! Congratulations and thanks for sharing! I have one of each and to be honest, they truly are the best, most loyal, and loving dogs. Very protective of their family, but when I open the door and welcome someone in, I tell them to "make friends". Which in turn, they do. And the visitor's sole purpose for being here is them!
I am hoping to squash other people's misconceptions about the breeds. Thanks for the comment, Diane! Sounds like you have some amazing pups! We appreciate you sharing your experience with the breeds! I have an Amstaff. She is two years old and loves children, people, and motorcycles. She came to me from an animal care organization. She is so friendly and gets so many compliments when I walk her. I allow people to pet her when they ask because I want to educate people. They need to know how loveable Amstaffs are.
Mine is carmel and white. She thinks she is a big cat, quick to give a kiss, shake a paw and greet everyone. She is extremely intelligent and not a barker. However and it saddens me she has such disdain for other four-legged animals. I adopted her when she was a year old. She constantly reminds me that she is a member of my family as she follows me closer than my shadow and gets herself involved in everything I do on a daily basis. Thank you for the comment June! Sounds like you have a wonderful pup!
I would definitely recommend investing in a trainer locally because it's never too late to work on socialization with other four-legged companions! Best of luck with your pup! Excellently written article! My husband works out of town sometimes. I was given pick of the litter! These were rescue puppies on their way to a No Kill Shelter. Our vet says his color is Champagne I've spent the past yr training him. He catches on quickly. I do have one question, though.
He's gotten better but, we still aren't there yet. Any feedback is welcome. Thanks for your comments Sarah! Sounds like you have an amazing pup, and tell your husband that I love the name! To answer your question about jumping, it's definitely a hard habit to break once it's established.
The best thing to do is to not reward the behavior with attention in any fashion. In an excitable situation, you can also practice sitting and staying, and reward with a high-value treat. Our current dog was a notorious jumper and we trained her through repeated correction, and rewarding the behavior we wanted. We also would immediately ignore her if we saw her getting excited and about to jump. She rarely jumps now. As always, we recommend getting a trainer locally if the problem persists.
Good luck with your pup, and thanks for the comment! We own both and they both think they are lapdogs. Both of them are rescues. Two of the best dogs I have ever lived with! Very well written. I do think Amstaffs weigh more than 70 pounds. Maybe up to I have a purebred Amstaff and he is on the smaller side according to my vet at 63 pounds.
In addition, he may just be an exception but he is not high energy. He is low-medium energy but most others I met are medium energy! For those of you wondering, he is also very good with other dogs, children, strangers, and animals. He currently lives with a cat and 4 dogs ranging from small to medium size. I recommend an Amstaff to anyone looking for an intimidating-looking dog to scare off potential intruders but at the same time wants a dog who is actually a big softie and who loves to cuddle and sleep!
Thanks for the comment, Anna! The content in this comparison is just a guide. All dogs are different, and we know that dogs from these genetic lines can vary in both size and weight, but usually, they fall into these ranges.
I appreciate you taking the time to share your experience with the breed! Erica Cordova. I have an 8 week old Amer. Staffy and a 9month old America mixed Pitt bull terrier. How should I properly introduce them? It has only been one day. Any advice on what I should do next? Our 8-week old staffy was a foster dog and needed a home and our Pitt has come to our family 3 months ago.
Hi, Erica! Slow introductions are always best. We just welcomed a new rescue dog home about 6 months ago. We kept them in separate rooms for two days and would bring the dogs near the closed door to sniff each other at first. We also would take blankets from their crates where they slept and exchanged them each night. This way the dog's scent started to become familiar. Our last step was a slow introduction outdoors.
I had our rescue, and my Husband introduced our other two dogs to the rescue, one at a time. We had them on leash, and we walked them around our backyard leashed walks are great for bonding. All of our dogs are easy-going, though. Every dog is different and if either one of your pups have any fear-based tendencies, it will need to be done with more caution.
I would highly recommend you consult a local trainer in your area if you don't have any experience introducing two new dogs to each other. Good luck! We adopted an Am Staff from Haven Humane, and he is very large lbs. I don't understand why he is. So big. Is that normal for some breeds. Hi Julia, yeah, that seems big for a Staffy. Have you had a DNA test done?
We've used Embark twice, and both times it was spot on with analyzing our breed. I'd recommend looking into that if you haven't yet. Scott Kessinger. Am Staffs are excellent dogs. We got ours when she was 8 weeks old, and she has grown into an affectionate, loving and loyal dog. She really loves children, and gets along very well with cats. I have always had Black Labs before we got our Staffy, but this is the sweetest dog that I have ever had. Hi Scott! We love the Staffies!
Thanks for stopping by to share your experience with our readers! Alois Weidemann. I am 76 years old and I am worried that I won't be able to give either one of those breeds enough exercise. Live in Ottawa, and often in Winter Time the sidewalks a slippery and the streets have lots of salt. Thanks for the description of both breeds. Starting from a Golden Retriever, to a Yorkshire Terrier, to a 1-year old Doberman which I hit it really off perfectly, even though someone else trained it.
Then came a Bouvier de Flandre, which I never could train to walk on a leash nice beside me. Otherwise, he was perfect. Got a harness and he pulled me around in the snow. Goes without saying that he liked it.
Then came a German Shepherd also about 1-year old, he was too inventive and investigative for us, Training didn't go to well.
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