Conformation confirmation...

Alright guys and gals. I searched for a while and found a few threads that helped, but nothing that covered exactly what I was looking for. Forgive me if there is already a post such as this, because I am almost certain there has to be one (just send me a link to it, please).

I've only been around the American Pit Bull Terrier for a couple of years now, and I've become extremely passionate about the breed. So much so, that I plan to begin showing dogs and, hopefully after a few more years of experience, even breed these amazing creatures.

But before I go any further with showing and such, I want to confirm my knowledge about the APBT conformation. I have read the ADBA standard multiple times (which is what I am concerned with...I am not as big a fan of UKC), and I believe I have a fairly decent grasp on what it calls for and what is a fault.

So, if no one minds too much, I am going to post a couple of pictures of dogs that I find as very good examples of APBTs. Understand that none of these pictures are mine, they belong to their respective owners (and a few of these pictures will probably belong to users of this site).
I would love for everyone to help me out by pointing out flaws and faults in the dogs so that I myself can become better at recognizing them.

So here goes nothing
Just tell me what you see wrong with each dog. For example: short back, splayed paws, bad rear angulation, poor head angulation, bad pasterns, etc.

Thanks! (and have fun, guys. Don't get too offended if one of your dogs gets critiqued. Take it in stride)
Also, I would like some of you to post your own photos for people to critique and for me to practice my "conformation eye"





Thats it for now. Thanks!

 

Hi Bub why don't you start wiTh your hound .I would think the owners of these animals might like to know that they are up here .

 

coop-dog, I don't know who owns these dogs, actually. I saved them in my computer a while back.
The problem with posting my dogs is that only one of them is an actual APBT, and I view his conformation as quite a mess.
But I guess you are right.
Here is my APBT boy-







Some things I personally see wrong in his conformation:
long body, poor back leg angle, I wouldn't consider his tail "pump handle", he is very large (72lbs), and he has a slight paw splay
Does anyone see any other issues I have missed?

 

Don't be an idiot. Taking pictures that don't belong to you and posting them up isn't ethical and we won't allow it. Have some common sense.

 

I apologize. I did not know.

 

I don't like his back. His weight is a non issue and he could lose a couple if that's what you want. I like length and I would never penalize a long dog but I would penalize a short length or boxy dog.

Think of it like whatever weight he is you want balance to benefit the athlete. So too big a head and your throwing pounds to the head that takes away body weight so you would in essence be going against a bigger dog. An avg to longer bodied dog is more agile than a boxy low slung dog and has the length to support leverage.

Almost like comparing body builders to boxers. There's always exceptions just saying on a general level

 

Chain Reaction...

Strictly from a conformation stand point this is my opinion on what I see.
poor rear angulation is the biggest issue with your dog. That flaw leads to several others, because he is so straight legged in the rear it is causing his rear to be high, The high rear is causing a poor top line aka sway back, the poor top line is causing his natural posture to lean forward, which causes more weight strain on the front legs, causing him to have poor postures and slight easty westy feet, and slightly splayed toes. that's why I started by saying Chain Reaction All these things cause for poor movement in a show ring stand point...

 

Thank you, BBT
My concern is more that his size seems relatively abnormal when compared to others. My issue is not so much his weight, but his overall size in general. Though I suppose as long as he is proportional, it is not that big of a deal.
I am not a fan of his back either, though I can not pinpoint why. I believe he is slightly sway-backed. He doesn't have a level topline or a roach back, which are what I consider acceptable.

 

Sumo broke it down for you so that should answer your questions as to why. Conformation guys look for things like this when picking. Good Luck.

 

@Smo_King
That makes a lot of sense. As I just said (I didn't see your post before I posted), he seems sway backed.
Very interested to know that his rear angulation is the cause of all those issues.
Great post.

 

To get good lookn bulldogs u need to start with a good lookn pair and from there it's is all selective breeding and from there just breed for the close ADBA, UKC, AKC ect. standers or breed for what u like in a am. pittbull terrier. There so many things you could breed for

 

Second what Sumo said, most of this dogs issues are secondary to a total lack of angulation in the stifle and hock.

Best way to get a good show dog is to go to an ADBA show, see a dog that you like winning in the ring and strike up a conversation with the handler to see if they have pups available or will have in the future. Look for a dog that is out of Champion show dogs, preferably ones that have produced other Champions. Be respectful and not pushy and most people will be happy to talk to you.

 

Benthere.Besides the short back in your opinion what else do you feel the dogs you see are lacking for the job at hand.

 

Some great posts benthere. Always good info in your posts. Keep them coming

 

I don't know how your dog is bred but just going off what I see it doesn't look like an APBT to me. I was thinking your dog was a staff with some bully blood mixed in there so it would be hard to compare the dog to the APBT standard IMO the dog's conformation doesn't fit the working type dog.