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GENERAL APPEARANCE
The American Bulldog is a powerful, athletic
short-coated dog, strongly muscled, and well boned. The body is just slightly
longer than tall. The head is large and broad, with a wide muzzle. Ears are
small to medium in size, high set, and may be drop, semi-prick, rose, or
cropped. The tail may be docked or natural. The American Bulldog comes in solid
colors, white with colored patches, and brindle. Gender differences are well
expressed in this breed, with males typically larger and more muscular than
females. Honorable scars resulting from field work are not to be penalized. The
American Bulldog should be evaluated as a working dog, and exaggerations or
faults should be penalized in proportion to how much they interfere with the
dog’s ability to work.
CHARACTERISTICS
The essential characteristics of the American
Bulldog are those which enable it to work as a hog and cattle catching dog, and
a protector of personal property. These tasks require a powerful, agile,
confident dog with a large head and powerful jaws. The American Bulldog is a
gentle, loving family companion who is fearless enough to face an angry bull or
a human intruder. Note: It is common for young American Bulldogs to be somewhat
standoffish with strangers, and judges should not penalize this. By the time the
dog is around 18 months of age, however, the breed’s normal confidence asserts
itself.
Disqualifications:
Viciousness or extreme shyness; cowardice.
HEAD
The head is large and broad, giving the impression
of great power. When viewed from the side, the skull and muzzle are parallel to
one another and joined by a well-defined stop. The stop is very deep and abrupt,
almost at a right angle with the muzzle. Despite the depth of the stop, the
forehead is wider than it is high.
SKULL - The skull is large, flat, deep, and broad
between the ears. Viewed from the top, the skull is square. There is a deep
median furrow that diminishes in depth from the stop to the occiput. Cheek
muscles are prominent.
In bully dogs, the skull is generally box-shaped to
rounded, with a more definitive stop, and more wrinkles than the standard type,
which has a skull that is box or wedge shaped.
Serious Fault: An
excessively narrow skull, in any type.
MUZZLE - The muzzle is broad and thick, with a very
slight taper from the stop to the nose.
The length of the muzzle in the bully type dogs is
25 to 35 percent of the overall length of the head. In the standard dogs, it is
30 to 40 percent of the overall length of the head. The jaws are well muscled,
displaying great strength. Lips are moderately thick, but not pendulous. Black
pigment on the lips is preferred. The chin is well defined, and must neither
overlap the upper lip nor be covered by it.
Serious Fault: An
excessively narrow muzzle in any type.
Disqualification: Any
dog that exhibits difficulty breathing while in the ring.
TEETH - The American Bulldog has a complete set of
42 large, evenly spaced, white teeth.
In the standard type, a reverse scissors bite is
preferred, a scissors bite or a moderate under bite (up to ¼ inch) is
acceptable. An even bite is allowable but not preferred.
In the bully type, undershot approximately ¼ inch
is preferred, but any variation from 1/8 inch to ½ inch is acceptable. An even
bite is allowable but not preferred. An extreme undershot bite is considered
faulty to the degree that the bite interferes with the dog’s ability to work.
Teeth are not visible when the mouth is closed. Worn teeth or broken teeth are
acceptable.
Disqualification:
Overshot. Wry jaw.
NOSE - The nose is large, with wide, open nostrils.
Black color is preferred, but shades of red or brown are acceptable. Lack of
pigment is a cosmetic fault.
EYES - Eyes are medium in size, round to almond in
shape, and set well apart. All colors are acceptable, but dark brown is
preferred. Haw is not visible. Black eye rims are preferred.
Faults:
Very visible haws.
Disqualifications: Crossed
eyes. Eyes that do not match in color.
EARS - Ears may be cropped, but natural ears are
preferred. Natural ears are small to medium in size, high set, and may be drop,
semi-prick, or rose.
Drop ears: The ears are set high, level with the
upper line of the skull, accentuating the skull’s width. At the base, the ear
is just slightly raised in front and then hangs along the cheek. The tip is
slightly rounded. When pulled toward the eye, the ear should not extend past the
outside corner of the eye.
Semi-prick ears: Same as drop ears except that only
the tips of the ears drop forward.
Rose ears: Rose ears are small and set high on the
skull.
Fault: Hound
ears.
NECK
The neck is where the American Bulldog exerts power
to bring down livestock. The neck must be long enough to exert leverage, but
short enough to exert power. The neck is muscular and, at its widest point, is
nearly as broad as the head, with a slight arch at the crest, and tapering
slightly from shoulders to the head. A slight dewlap is acceptable.
Faults:
Neck too short and thick; thin or weak neck.
FOREQUARTERS
The shoulders are strong and well muscled. The
shoulder blade is well laid back and forms, with the upper arm, an apparent
90-degree angle. The tips of the shoulder blades are set about 2 to 3
finger-widths apart.
FORELEGS - The forelegs are heavily boned and very
muscular. The elbows are set on a plane parallel to the body, neither close to
the body nor turned out. Viewed from the front, the forelegs are perpendicular
to the ground or may, especially in a dog with a very broad chest, incline
slightly inward. The pasterns are short, powerful, and slightly sloping when
viewed in profile. Viewed from the front, the pasterns are straight.
BODY
The chest is deep and moderately wide, with ample
room for heart and lungs. The ribs are well sprung from the spine and then
flatten to form a deep body, extending at least to the elbows or lower in adult
dogs. The topline inclines very slightly downward from well-developed withers to
a broad, muscular back. The loin is short, broad, and slightly arched, blending
into a slightly sloping croup. The flank is moderately tucked up and firm.
Serious Faults:
Swayback; sloping topline.
HINDQUARTERS
The hindquarters are well muscled and broad. The
width and angulation of the hindquarters is in balance with the width and
angulation of the forequarters.
HIND LEGS - The thighs are well developed with
thick, easily discerned muscles. The lower thighs are muscular and short. Viewed
from the side, the rear pasterns are well let down and perpendicular to the
ground. Viewed from the rear, the rear pasterns are straight and parallel to one
another.
Serious Faults:
Narrow or weak hindquarters.
Faults:
Cowhocks; open hocks.
FEET
The feet are round, medium in size, well arched, and
tight.
Fault:
Splayed feet. The seriousness of this fault is based on the amount of splay in
the feet.
TAIL
The American Bulldog may have a natural or a docked
tail, but the natural tail is preferred. The natural tail is very thick at the
base, set low, and tapers to a point. It should reach to the hock joint. A
“pump handle” tail is preferred, but any tail carriage from upright, when
the dog is excited, to relaxed between the hocks is acceptable.
Serious Faults:
Tail curled over the back; corkscrew tail; kinked tail, tail that ends in a
complete curl; upright tail when the dog is relaxed.
COAT
The coat is short, close, and varies from soft to
stiff to the touch. It is one inch or less in length.
Disqualifications:
Longer than one inch, any feathering, or a wavy coat.
COLOR
Any color, color pattern, or combination of colors
is acceptable, except for solid black, solid blue, merle, and tricolor (white
with patches of black and tan). A full black mask is also unacceptable. Some
dark brindle coats may appear black unless examined in very bright light. A
buckskin color pattern, where the base of the hair is fawn and the tips are
black, may also appear solid black. A judge should not disqualify an American
Bulldog for black color unless the dog has been examined in sunlight or other
equally bright light.
Serious Fault: Less
than 10% white markings.
Disqualifications:
Solid black or blue with no white markings; tricolor (white with patches of
black and tan); merle; full black mask.
HEIGHT AND WEIGHT
The American Bulldog must be sufficiently powerful
and agile to chase, catch, and bring down free-ranging livestock. Dogs capable
of doing this come in a rather wide range of height and weight. Standards are
leaner and more athletic in appearance. Bullys are thicker and more powerful in
appearance. Males are typically larger with heavier bone and more muscle than
females. Both sexes, however, should have a well-balanced overall appearance and
all dogs should be well conditioned, neither over nor under weight.
Desirable height in a mature male ranges from 22 to
27 inches; in a mature female, from 20 to 25 inches. In all types, weight should
be in proportion to height.
GAIT
When trotting, the gait is effortless, smooth,
powerful and well coordinated, showing good reach in front and drive behind.
When moving, the backline remains level, with only a slight flexing to indicate
suppleness. Viewed from any position, legs turn neither in nor out, nor do feet
cross or interfere with each other. As speed increases, feet tend to converge
toward center line of balance.
Poor movement should be penalized to the degree to
which it reduces the American Bulldog’s ability to perform the tasks it was
bred to do.
DISQUALIFICATIONS
Unilateral or bilateral cryptorchid. Viciousness or
extreme shyness. Cowardice. Unilateral or bilateral deafness. Any dog that
exhibits difficulty breathing while in the ring. Wry jaw. Overshot bite. Crossed
eyes. Eyes that do not match in color. Coat longer than one inch, any
feathering, or a wavy coat. Albinism. Solid black or blue with no white
markings. Tricolor (white with patches of black and tan); merle; full black
mask.
For More information visit United Kennel Club