ive been told they were bred for fighting but someone else said that they were used as cattle dogs to start with. Can anyone help?
2006-11-03 02:24:23 · 14 answers · asked by missshortly 2 in Pets ➔ Dogs
Originally they were bred to help handle cattle at the auction yards..They weren't afraid to grab the bulls by the nose, and make him submit to being moved from pen to pen during these auctions..
the smaller varieties were also used as vermin terriers..
As they were known for such tenacity and gameness, they were a natural for the sport of bull baiting, and when that was outlawed, they became famous in the dog fight arenas..The smaller variety was hidden under the owner's coat, so was always hidden from police, and yet ready for a gaming fight..
2006-11-03 06:19:16 · answer #1 · answered by Chetco 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They were bred to fight other dogs.
The old english white terrier and possibly dalmation were crossed with the existing bull and terrier (a crude staffordshire BT look alike) to make a more refined looking animal that still fought well.
In fact they were extremely successful in the pit. Thankfully this horrible so call 'sport' as long since been illegal but the dogs do still like to fight other dogs and can not always be trusted around other animals- i know one that attacked a pig.
They were not bred to bait bulls as some people here have suggested- they were bred to fight and it was the bulldog that was used for bull baiting. By the time the English BT arrived the sport of bull baiting was illegal, that is why people concentrated more on dog fighting.
They didn't become the Staff either as one idiot has suggested.
They certainly never drove cattle- they fought other dogs end of story.
I hope that helps
2006-11-06 00:11:12 · answer #2 · answered by Acer 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The now extinct breeds Old English Bulldog and Old English Terrier were crossed to form a new breed of dog called the Bull and Terrier. It is also known that Dalmatian comes into their genetics, and this can be seen by looking on the stomach area, where dark, spotted pigment can be seen on the skin. Around 1860, the Bull and Terrier breed split into two branches, the pure white Bull Terrier and the coloured forms that lived on for another seventy years in the dog fighting pits until they finally were recognized as a legitimate dog breed called the Staffordshire Bull Terrier.
Pedigrees of Bull Terriers date from the period during which the English Stud books were first written (circa 1874-6). Although the breed was developed from fighting dogs, the Bull Terrier was intended to be a showdog and companion.
2006-11-03 02:32:44 · answer #3 · answered by rrrevils 6 · 2⤊ 2⤋
This Site Might Help You.
RE:
What were English bull terriers bred for ORIGINALLY?
ive been told they were bred for fighting but someone else said that they were used as cattle dogs to start with. Can anyone help?
2015-08-16 14:37:16 · answer #4 · answered by Mabelle 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
English Bull Terriers were originally bred for fighting and vermin control, but once "egg shaped" head, or lack of the "stop" in the skull was bred into these dogs, they were mostly bred for the show ring.
2016-03-13 11:12:43 · answer #5 · answered by Dolores 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
why do you think there is the word 'bull' in the breed name???????
They were bred to bait bulls . In olden times people believed that beef tasted better and was more tender if the bull had been angered before it was killed. They would set bull terriers on it partly for fun (sick people) and partly to tenderise the meat. Incidentally it isn't true since high levels of adrenalin makes meat tough.
2006-11-03 08:06:02 · answer #6 · answered by fenlandfowl 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This is all news to me, I thought they were bred specifically for the old English sport of "bull baiting" where a pack of dogs was set on a bull.
2006-11-03 02:35:38 · answer #7 · answered by Not Ecky Boy 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Although the breed was developed from fighting dogs, the Bull Terrier was intended to be a showdog and companion.
2006-11-03 02:27:04 · answer #8 · answered by Splishy 7 · 1⤊ 2⤋
BULL terriers ... the name says it all....
Terriers (all terriers) were bred for their keenness to fight and kill... from the tiny yorkie (bred to kill smaller vermin) to the bigger dogs... terriers were selected for their tenacity...
BULL terriers were bred to fight/bait BULLS...
2006-11-03 02:36:50 · answer #9 · answered by CF_ 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
they were breed in the early 19th century for bull bating and dog fighting (which is now illegal)
2006-11-03 06:49:26 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋