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American Bulldogs are descended from ancient Mastiffs that originated in Asia and were brought to Europe by nomads. Mastiffs
were bred to bring down, fight or hold large aggressive prey such as wild boar, bears or big cats. Animals that are as likely
to fight as run away. Ancient Mastiff had incredible fighting ability and courage.
Phoenician traders brought a
brown strain of Mastiff to England around 800 B.C. Celts bred these brindle or brownish red behemoths to catch cattle and
wild boar. Today's English Mastiff and Bullmastiff have a similar color and to some degree are descended from this strain.
Around 400 A.D. a second very tough strain of Mastiff reached English shores. This dog was called the Alaunt.
English butchers and farmers turned the Alaunt into the world's first true Bulldog. In medieval times, the working English
Bulldog was the first dog to develop the so called 'lock jaw grip' which really has more to do with a dog's gameness than
any structural difference in its jaw. A true Bulldog has the ability to chase, catch and hang onto the nose, cheek or throat
of a large herbivore and not let go no matter how hard the beast struggles or how much punishment the dog is forced to absorb.
Throughout medieval, Elizabethan and the early industrial periods, Bulldogs routinely caught horse, cattle and boars. Sometimes
in routine farm or butchery work and sometimes in staged competitions. When catching domestic animals, the Bulldog was usually
able to make the hoofed creature submit to the excruciating pain of the bite before being harmed himself. When it is ready
to cry "uncle" a bull will lower its head to the ground and allow the Bulldog to drag him backwards to the butcher.
The bovine can then be slaughtered or put into a holding pen.
An old time working Bulldog also had the ability to
throw a bull to the ground by rapidly corkscrewing his body right when the big beast was off balance in the middle of a stride.
It was possible for an experienced 80 pound Bulldog to topple an 1800 pound bull.
Though his main opponent was usually
a bull, the English Bulldog was also used against bears, lions and other ferocious carnivores. These staged fights were called
baits. The Bulldogs employed on bears and large meat eaters were heavier than the ones used solely on livestock. For the larger
opponents speed was not as important and the fight would take place in an enclosed area so endurance was less of a factor.
Whether large or small the working English Bulldog that survived this grueling gauntlet of animal combat became the greatest
canine warrior ever. In 1835, all animal baiting contests were made illegal in England.
The only baiting that survived
the ban was dog baiting or dog fighting. Coal miners in the Staffordshire region crossed English Bulldogs with scrappy terriers
and continued the gladitorial tradition in clandestine matches that are still going on today. From these Bulldog terrier crosses
we get the American Pit Bull Terrier, the Staffordshire Bull terriers and the Bull Terrier.
Because of the anti-baiting
laws, purebred Bulldogs were very rare in England by the middle of the 19th century. They were being exported to America where
they joined and improved the working Bulldogs already in the former colonies. They were also shipped to Germany where they
helped create the Boxer. They were crossed with Mastiffs to create superior guard dogs. Interestingly, the early Bullmastiffs
were often white or piebald, only latter with the addition of dark brindle mastiff blood did darker colors evolve. And finally
the last of the working Bulldogs were crossed with pugs to create a blocky mild mannered little show dog.
Today,
the dog the world calls the English Bulldog is really a Pug Bulldog cross, a fine animal in its own right but not a true working
Bulldog. In fact, the working English Bulldog became extinct in his native land at the turn of the 19th century. Fortunately
he survived in America, especially in the mountainous regions of the rural south. There he was saved from extinction because
he still had work to do. Hogs and cattle were allowed to free range in this rugged terrain where fences were impossible and
could only be caught with hardy English Bulldogs.
Throughout the south and the southwest, Bulldogs were also used
as guard dogs. In the 19th century and earlier there are numerous historical records of large plantation Bulldogs or estate
Bulldogs that were kept in yards sometimes on chains and used on human bad guys. Plantation bullies were occasionally allowed
to roam in prison yards, patrolling open spaces between cells and main wall. Regional varieties developed and many names were
applied to the southern Bulldogs. Some of the more common names were Old English White, White English, Swamp Bulldog, Backwoods
Bulldog, English Pit, Old Country White and many others.
Toward the end of the 1960s, the last remnants of working
English Bulldogs were disappearing from the rural south. Large agribusiness firms were consolidating land and eliminating
small scale ranching. Also, small all terrain vehicles were allowing farmers to herd, catch and move cattle without dog assistance.
It looked like the working English Bulldog was truly going to become extinct once and for all.
Fortunately at this
time a few dedicated Bulldog enthusiasts made a concerted effort to locate some of the last of the hill Bulldogs and begin
efforts to breed them, preserve them and foster a public awareness so their breeding programs could continue into perpetuity.
Because of their work, the Bulldog, the breed that had toughed it out for so long against so many adversaries, could survive.
The principal architects of today's American Bulldog are Allen Scott and John D. Johnson. From the breeding programs
of these two men, two distinct strains have emerged, commonly called the Johnson type and the Scott type. The former is a
larger, wider dog with more bone, pendulous lips, an undershot jaw, facial wrinkles and a shorter muzzle. The Johnson type
resembles an athletic, tightly built, white Bullmastiff. The Scott type looks like a large, coarse, leggy, white Pit Bull.
To say that today's American Bulldog is a direct descendant of the original working English Bulldog is not to say
that a small percentage of other breeds have not been recently added, mostly in the 1970s when the AB was being rebuilt. The
Mastiff/Bull breeds used in such outcrosses were descended in part from the working English Bulldog, Alaunt and other ancient
molossers. Due to the low number of Old English Whites left, some breed out-crossing was inevitable to insure enough genetic
diversity.
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