American Bulldogs (again)

Had a thread asking about various bully breeds for a friend but dropped it due to the legislation stating that anything that looks like a pit bull can be subject to the BSL.
I was watching some schutzhund video and this one AB caught my eye and I started getting interested in them. Checked out the pet FAQs in the city of Ottawa site and found out that registered purebreds won't be looked at as one of the banned breeds.

It looks like the breed attracts a lot of people who think owning the breed makes them look tough and name their dogs things like ORIGINAL GANGSTA and ICE COLD etc. and information seems to be limited.

I've read they excel in schutzhund so they must have pretty good natural obedience and the other skills needed in the sport, after all they were used as an all purpose farm dog. I'm interested in the standard/performance or scott type, they resemble a larger leggy pit bull, but every breeder I find breeds hybrid lines that look more like English bulldogs

Sorry, kind of ranting, but to sum it up - if anybody knows any standard/performance type breeders in the Toronto area of Ontario (preferably, but anything in N.America is worth looking at) that I could check out I would be grateful. Also, if anybody has some information about the standard/performance lines I'd be glad to hear it.

And, for those who don't know I'm going to be getting a puppy sometime during the summer, and now I'm tore between the AB and the GSD. Except I've already found a GSD breeder I like and is only an hour away lol.

Easier to train than a sighthound, not as easy/quickly as a herder And that's not to dis the bulldog, but if you're coming from herding breeds (I don't know what breed you're coming from) you will find that bulldogs mature a lot slower than herders, and thus the OB can be a lot slower to put on them. And not to dis the bulldogs, 'cause I have three of them (Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldogs) that I train in agility, personal protection, and PSA, I just wanted to put that out there since many owners who go from herders feel like their dog is broken when at a year old their dog is still doing rag work while their buddy's Malinois is ready for the trial field But when they turn on, oh man is it a beautiful thing. I adore working bulldogs!!

Talk to Tracey from Longwoods; she's working a little guy called FUBAR - she'd be able to direct you to his breeder. Members Page

Also there is John Bonello; he does some Iron dog with his guys; not sure about SchH -- his website's down; but I think you can still find and use his email. Just plug his name and bulldogs in google.

Hey thanks for the info, i'm going to be getting a puppy primarily as a companion and I might do a sport but only recreationally. So maturing slowly isn't really a problem and I don't think any dog is ever "broken". I'm coming from beagles/JRTs and I had one GSD/Husky mix so an AB will be something different if I decide to go with it.

I'll try and get in touch with those two and ask some questions, thanks.

Well if you're looking for companion first then bulldog is the best way to go Not that I'm bias or anything. LOL!

hahaha, anyone ever own a standard/performance type AB?

Closest breeder I could find is in Virginia, 12 hours away =(. Still looking though

Looks heavy on Leclerc, which is what went into my dogs, so I think it looks good. LOL! I also see they have a couple of Templar dogs. My friend has a Templar dog, Donkey, that he'll bring out to work sometimes (though usually he just works his Alapahas). Donkey actually looks almost exactly like Phantom, but with a bigger butt I'll forward the breeder link to him and see if he can tell you about the lines.

I don't know much about ABs, I wish I could be better help. But 12 hours isn't so bad!!

TK American Bulldogs

Gino has some of the best Sch ABs out there....not just Canada. His are much more the performance type.

ABs are great dogs but they really vary. I have seen some Johnson dogs who are only a little more athletic than english bulldogs and then I have seen some Scott/performance that are athletic wonders. Also check out Topline in NY state that have a really good reputation to.

lol! I really like the look of their Lunatic, 2nd last female on the page.
They're homepage says all of their dogs except two are performance lines.
It'd be 24 hours in total!

Thanks for this, nice white ABs!
Yeah, I thought GSDs varied a lot, wow.
Found Topline's site and checked it out, I think their dogs just aren't me.

Well their website tells you their LINES but it doesn't tell you ABOUT their lines

I see

Okay so, I'm going to keep looking up breeders and stuff on my own. Thanks for all the help it pointed me in the right direction and I have a few breeders' sites bookmarked already haha.

Does anyone know how well ABs handle the cold? Like I said when I was first looking into Dobes and GSDs, I like to be outside a lot and it gets pretty cold here. so it's a huge factor in what breed I choose.
I read somewhere, can't remember where because I just google things like a mad man, that while they lack a thick coat, ABs have very thick skin and can tolerate colder weather than a GSD can. Would you say this is true? I'm doubting it but, if you were to rate both breeds 1-10 in cold tolerance what would it be? Just to help put things into perspective for me.

I would say GSDs can tolerate cold a lot better than ABs. ABs are short singled coated dogs. When they are young they use their "Tenacity" to overcome the cold for a while working or playing outside but I wouldn't recommend them for a winter sport dog. However there is a company called K9coat that I recently stumbled across who make full body coats that look promising. I am ordering one for Sal (Amstaffs are very similar in coat to ABs) and give you more feedback on the Arctic Fleece Body Suit.

Gino from TK ABs can give you more info on ABs working in the cold

1-10 scale?

1 Italian Greyhound to 10 Alaskan Mal

Hmmmmm I guess I would say the AB would be 4.8 to 5.5
and GSDs would be 7.0 to 8.8

That would be my guess

One of my good friends who breeds ABBBs lives in a very cold climate and has outdoor kennels. He has no problems with his dogs, but they also have the option of going in and out of their heated dog houses, and are rotated through his house. Of my own two adults, Teeny LOVES cold weather, adores it when it snows out and just wants to burrow in it and have fun, Blue thinks that cold weather is for fools.

I have jackets for my dogs and it seems to help when it's really cold out. NOT something I would leave on a dog if they were left unattended, but for walks and turn outs to the backyard they're perfect.

I'd say a GSD is better suited for the cold because of the double coat, but I have met some GSDs who are even worse about cold weather than my ABBBs simply because of how they were raised.

Have you joined the bulldog forum I PMed to you? Like I said, LOADS of AB owners on there, many in CA, and even more are working their dogs so they could give you lots of specifics.

a lot of heat & cold tolerance is conditioning, diet and acclimation. the main reason most house dogs have a hard time is limited exposure to temperature extremes, too much weight & not enough fat in the diet.

Thanks, that's the sort of answer I was looking for. I never saw a full body suit like those ones, some feedback on them would be appreciated!

hahaha, guess I'm a fool then =p
Haven't joined it, just been sorta lurking for now. Went through the WHOLE list of breeders they have on the AB breeders page lol.

Hey Pops2, I was just looking for something in general but, thanks for the tip.

Hopefully their list of AB breeders is better than their list of Alapaha breeders. LOL!

I found some really good looking ones. I've noticed all the dogs I like have Templar/Twister/Hamilton in their pedigrees so I have a better idea of what exactly I'm looking for now.

"Closest breeder I could find is in Virginia, 12 hours away =(. Still looking though"

Hi Im Sandi, owner of the kennel mentioned above. Thanks for all the kind words about the dogs. If you have any questions please feel free to ask.

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Have a Great Day!

Sandi