Just Some Reading

The official origin of the breed.

In 1898, Chauncy Bennet formed the United Kennel Club (UKC), a breed registry aimed solely at the registration and acceptance of Pit Bull Terriers. Chauncey’s own dog “Ring” was the first dog registered in the UKC. The UKC at that time when Pit fighting was still widely accepted as a national pastime the UKC provided registration and fighting guidelines for Pit fighting. Bennet sought to create an organization that would represent the breed as performance dogs. Thus, the American Pit Bull Terrier was born as a breed. At that time the UKC was an elite registry for the APBT. For a Pit Bull to be accepted into the UKC as an American Pit Bull Terrier the dog had to have won three fights. Years later when dog fighting became illegal the UKC quickly abandoned its past and has become an all breed registry that focuses on the working aspects of dog breeds. The UKC is now the second largest purebred dog registry in the United States, complete with strict bylaws that ban anyone who is convicted of dog fighting. Another registry that was started solely for APBT’s, the American Dog Breeders Association was born twelve years after the UKC. The ADBA was started by Guy McCord who was a close friend of one of the founding fathers of the modern APBT. The ADBA and the UKC are the only true registries of the American Pit Bull Terrier and have withstood the test of time.

Over the next thirty years the American Pit Bull Terrier became one of the most popular breeds in American history. It was only with this popularity that another registry known as the American Kennel Club bowed to overwhelming number and accepted the APBT as a breed. They did however change the name of the breed hoping to hide their true origins unlike the original registries that honored the history of the breed. The AKC decided to register Pit Bulls as Staffordshire Terrier, which was later changed to the American Staffordshire Terrier in 1972. Up until 1936, Pit Bulls and AST’s were physically identical. After 1936, AST’s were no longer bred for the defined working type but for a more “flashier” look with blockier heads, larger chests and a thicker jaw.

Currently the AST, due to a closed gene pool and a great deal of popular stud syndrome, has developed into a very narrow phenotype, while APBT’s still vary phenotypically from lanky to stocky, from terrier to bully. Although the phenotypic expression varied in the APBT, relative weight, size and proportion remained constant and dogs over 60lbs are rarely seen in the yards of ethical breeders. The Pit Bull has been selectively bred over 170 plus years, until they have become marvelous working and companion dog, used for purposes as varied as those it originally performed. Properly bred modern working APBT’s are still bred to be exceptionally sturdy and extremely human friendly, not to mention athletic, courageous, and tenacious. They can be found employed as police/armed services dogs, therapy dogs, search and rescuers, APBT’s have been used by the FDA and USDA for sniffing out bombs and drugs, the first certified hearing dog in Alaska was an APBT, and even today they continue to work livestock. The are indeed one of the most versatile breeds on the planet.

The United Kennel Club “Superdog” is considered to be a dog that has titles in conformation, weight pull, agility, and obedience competitions. The first dog ever to earn the “Superdog” title was an APBT. As if this is not impressive enough so were the third and fourth dogs. This ability to compete successfully at these diverse competitive events is further testament to this amazing breed. They compete successfully in all manner of organized dog sports, from herding to carting and even bite sports like Schutzhund and French Ring. Much of this success is owed to the activities it once performed and the stringency of the selection process that helped shape the breed. The harshness and physical demands of the activities the breed was bred for in the United States molded an incredibly strong, healthy, stable animal, a breed that anyone should be proud to own.

The Pit Bull became the United States of America’s favorite dog for a time. They represented sturdy and dependable in advertisements for Buster Brown shoes. RCA used a Pit Bull named Nipper to illustrate that the phonograph, due to the clarity of sound, could even fool a Pit Bull. The Pit Bull was considered by Americans as the smartest of breeds and because Nipper thought he was actually hearing his master's voice and not a recording it propelled RCA into a world leader in electronics. The breed was also used as the symbol of a strong, confident, fearless American neutrality in public support campaigns in 1914 during World War I. The Pit Bull represented the toughness of Levi jeans. The USA showed the Pit Bull as a fearless and powerful "defender of Old Glory". In 1917 came Sgt. Stubby a Pit Bull became a war hero for saving several soldiers lives and capturing a German spy while serving in the trenches of France with the 26th Yankee Division. In one of the most beloved television shows in history, a sturdy white pooch with a patch over one eye named Petey, played alongside a lovable bunch of kids called 'The Little Rascals' in the Our Gang Television Series.

In addition to the Our Gang Kids, many a famous people have known the joys of owning the true American Breed such as AJ Mclean, Alicia Silverstone, Alton Ford, Amare Stoudemire, Johnson, Amanda Lewis, Helen Keller, Serena Williams, Angel, Ann Bancroft, Anthony Robbins, Barbara Eden, Bernadette Peters, Bill Berloni, Brad Pitt, Frankie Muniz, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rodgers, Humphrey Bogart, Jack Dempsy, Jack Johnson, Jan Michael Vincent, John Stuart, Kelli Williams, Ken Howard, Linda Blair, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madonna, Malcolm Jamal Warner, Mary Tyler Moore, Mel Brooks, Michael J Fox, Molly Price, Pink, President Roosevelt, President Woodrow Wilson, Desmond Mason, Rashard Lewis, Rosie Perez, Rosy, Sinbad, Spicey, Stephan Jenkins, Steve and Terrie Erwin, Tamika Dixon, Mo Vaughn, Thomas Edison, Usher and many others.

It was during this time that the Pit Bull truly became America’s sweetheart breed, admired, respected and loved. Nothing has changed in the eyes of those who truly know the breed and have gotten to know a well bred, well cared for, well socialized member of the breed. APBT’s are great at most any task weight pulling as well as agility, Schutzhund, obedience and carting. The American Canine Temperament Testing Association, which sponsors tests for temperament titles for dogs, reported that 95% of all APBTs that take the test pass, compared with a 77% passing rate for all breeds on average. The APBT's passing rate was the fourth highest of all the breeds tested. In spite of the introduction of some bad breeding practices in the last 15 years or so, the vast majority of APBTs remain very human-friendly.

 

thats just more proof that the APBT is the best dog ever

thanks for the read

 

That would be good to use for a BSL debate, mind if I use that article and send it around for others to read?