American Staffordshire Terrier

The American Staffordshire Terrier gives off an impression of incomparable power. This medium-sized dog has inescapable physical characteristics, the fruit of the crossing between races of Bulldog and Terriers. In everyday life, the American Staffordshire Terrier is an excellent companion dog provided that it is properly educated and does not favor an aggressiveness that only asks to be. It shows itself then soft, tender, affectionate with its owner. He is patient and receptive. It is also endowed with great intelligence.

History of the race

The American Staffordshire Terrier or the Amstaff, is resulting from crossings of dogs originally made for the combat. It is not native of Great Britain, but of Canada. It comes more precisely from the crossing between the Bull-and-Terrier and the Blue Paul Terrier, 2 breeds that do not exist anymore nowadays. It is only at the beginning of the 20th century that American breeders developed their lineage by mixing breeds. They also made a wider variety of breeds, including the Pitbull (used as a fighting dog at the time).

The Amstaff was notably used at the beginning of the 19th century in traditional dog fights across the Channel before they were banned. At the beginning of the 20th century, the breed was on the verge of extinction when it was brought back to the forefront in the United States, where American breeders developed it at the same time as Pitbulls. The term American will be allotted to him only in 1972. They appear in France in 1987.

Physical characteristics

Its hair: hard, short, it must be tight and shining.

It's color: all the colors, unicolored dress, panachée or multicolored. However, the standard in force of the FCI does not accept the dresses having more than 80% white or being black and fire are not encouraged.

It's head: it is of medium length. The skull is broad and the muzzle is of medium length, rounded in its upper part. The cheek muscles are very pronounced.

Ears: drooping ears are not standard. The ears are generally uncropped, inserted high, short, and semi-erect.

His eyes: dark, round and wide apart.

His body: the back is short and gently sloping to the base of the tail. The chest is well descended and very muscular. His bone structure is strong.

Tail: short and low set, it is neither curled nor carried over the back but rather horizontal.

The American Staffordshire Terrier is a calm, reserved, and a clean dog that will adapt without problem to the life in interior, in a house like in the apartment.  Even if it is avid of spaces, life on the inside is not a problem for the Amstaff. He will only need access to the outdoors a few times during the day, using leash walks. In the country, he will be happy in a fenced garden. He will be able to run and exercise.

In public places, the owner should put a muzzle on him and keep him on a leash. This breed is indeed part of the 2nd category (guard and defense dog) according to the law of January 6, 1999, and June 20, 2008.

Health

The American Staffordshire Terrier has robust health. Thus, it suffers almost no hereditary diseases. It can however develop cerebellar abiotrophy which is a degeneration of the cerebellar cortex. Also, he can develop hip dysplasia, especially if his physical activity is not controlled when he is still young.

He is also not prone to one disease rather than another. He tolerates the cold very well as well as the heat in summer. He just needs to be vaccinated against the common dog diseases. With a life expectancy of 12 years on average, it is a robust dog without particular health problems.