History of the American Pit Bull Terrier

Author: Laura McKinney
Date Of Creation: 8 August 2021
Update Date: 6 November 2024
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The History of the American Pitbull Terrier.
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The American Pit Bull Terrier has always been the center of bloody sports involving dogs and, for some people, this is the perfect dog for this practice, considered 100% functional. You must know that the world of fighting dogs is an intricate and extremely complex maze. Although the "bull baiting" has stood out in the 18th century, the ban on blood sports in 1835 gave rise to dog fighting because in this new "sport" much less space was needed. a new cross was born of Bulldog and Terrier that ushered in a new era in England, when it comes to dogfighting.


Today, the Pit Bull is one of the most popular breeds in the world, whether for its unfair reputation as a "dangerous dog" or its faithful character. Despite the bad reputation received, the Pit Bull is an especially versatile dog with several qualities. Therefore, in this article by PeritoAnimal, we will talk about history of the American Pit Bull Terrier, offering a real, professional perspective based on studies and proven facts. If you are a breed lover this article will interest you. Keep reading!

bull baiting

Between the years 1816 to 1860, dogfighting was in high in england, despite its prohibition between 1832 and 1833, when the bull baiting (bullfights), the bear baiting (bear fights), the rat baiting (rat fights) and even the dog fighting (dog fights). In addition, this activity arrived in the United States around 1850 and 1855, rapidly gaining popularity among the population. In an attempt to end this practice, in 1978 the Society for the Prevention of Animal Cruelty (ASPCA) officially banned dogfighting, but even so, in the 1880s this activity continued to take place in various parts of the United States.


After this period, the police gradually eliminated the practice, which remained underground for many years. It is a fact that even today dogfighting continues to take place illegally. However, how did all this get started? Let's go to the beginning of the Pit Bull story.

Birth of the American Pit Bull Terrier

The history of the American Pit Bull Terrier and its ancestors, Bulldogs and Terriers, is ax in blood. The old Pit Bulls, "pit dogs" or "pit bulldogs", were dogs from Ireland and England and, in a small percentage, from Scotland.

Life in the 18th century was difficult, especially for the poor, who suffered greatly from the pests of animals such as rats, foxes and badgers. They had dogs out of necessity because otherwise they would be exposed to disease and water problems in their homes. these dogs were the magnificent terriers, selectively bred from the strongest, most skillful, and dogged specimens. During the day, terriers patrolled the area near houses, but at night they protected potato fields and farmland. They themselves needed to find shelter to rest outside their homes.


Gradually, the Bulldog was introduced in the daily life of the population and, from the crossing between Bulldogs and Terrier, the "bull & terrier", the new breed that owned specimens of different colors, such as fire, black or brindle.

These dogs were used by the humblest members of society as a form of entertainment, making them fight each other. In the early 1800s, there were already crosses of Bulldogs and Terriers that fought in Ireland and England, old dogs that were bred in the Cork and Derry regions of Ireland. In fact, their descendants are known by the name of "old family" (ancient family). In addition, other English Pit Bull lineages were also born, such as "Murphy", "Waterford", "Killkinney", "Galt", "Semmes", "Colby" and "Ofrn". another lineage of the old family and, with time and selection in creation, it began to be divided into other lineages (or strains) completely different.

At that time, the pedigrees were not written and duly registered, as many people were illiterate. Thus, the common practice was to raise them and pass them on from generation to generation, while being carefully protected from mixing with other bloodlines. The dogs of the old family were imported to the United States around the 1850s and 1855, as in the case of Charlie "Cockney" Lloyd.

Some of older strains are: "Colby", "Semmes", "Corcoran", "Sutton", "Feeley" or "Lightner", the latter being one of the most famous creators of Red Nose "Ofrn", which stopped creating because they got too big to his taste, in addition to not liking completely red dogs.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the dog breed had acquired all the characteristics that still make it a particularly desirable dog today: athletic ability, courage and a friendly temperament with people. When it arrived in the United States, the breed separated slightly from the dogs of England and Ireland.

Development of the American Pit Bull in the USA

In the United States, these dogs were used not only as fighting dogs, but also as hunting dogs, to cull wild boar and wild cattle, and also as guardians of the family. Due to all of this, breeders started to create taller and slightly larger dogs.

This weight gain, however, was of little significance. It should be borne in mind that puppies from the old family in 19th century Ireland rarely exceeded 25 pounds (11.3 kg). Also not uncommon were those weighing 15 pounds (6.8 kg). In American breed books in the early part of the 19th century, it was actually rare to find a specimen over 50 pounds (22.6 kg), although there were some exceptions.

From the year 1900 until 1975, approximately, a small and gradual increase in average weight APBT started to be observed, with no corresponding loss of performance capacity. Currently, the American Pit Bull Terrier no longer performs any of the traditional standard functions such as dogfighting, as performance testing and competition in fighting are considered serious crimes in most countries.

Despite some changes in the pattern, such as the acceptance of slightly larger and heavier dogs, one can observe a remarkable continuity in the breed for more than a century. The archived photographs from 100 years ago that show show dogs are indistinguishable from those created today. Although, as with any performing breed, it is possible to notice some lateral (synchronous) variability in phenotype across different lines. We saw pictures of fighting dogs from the 1860s that were phenotypically speaking (and judging by contemporary descriptions of fighting in fighting) identical to modern APBTs.

American Pit Bull Terrier Standardization

These dogs were known by a wide variety of names, such as "Pit Terrier", "Pit Bull Terriers", "Staffordshire Ighting Dogs", "Old Family Dogs" (its name in Ireland), "Yankee Terrier" (the northern name ) and "Rebel Terrier" (the southern name), to name just a few.

In 1898, a man named Chauncy Bennet formed the United Kennel Club (UKC), for the sole purpose of registering the "Pit Bull Terriers", given that the American Kennel Club (AKC) wanted nothing to do with them for their selection and participation in dog fighting. Originally, he was the one who added the word "American" to the name and removed the "Pit". This didn't appeal to all lovers of the breed and so the word "Pit" was added to the name in parentheses, as a compromise. Finally, the parentheses were removed about 15 years ago. All other breeds registered in the UKC were accepted after the APBT.

Other APBT records are found at American Dog Breeder Association (ADBA), begun in September 1909 by Guy McCord, a close friend of John P. Colby. Today, under the direction of the Greenwood family, ADBA continues to register only the American Pit Bull Terrier and is more in tune with the breed than the UKC.

You should know that ADBA is a sponsor of conformation shows but, more importantly, it sponsors drag competitions, thus evaluating the dogs' endurance. It also publishes a quarterly magazine dedicated to the APBT, called "American Pit Bull Terrier Gazette". The ADBA is considered the Pit Bull's default record as it is the federation that tries hardest to maintain the original pattern of the race.

American Pit Bull Terrier: The Nanny Dog

In 1936, thanks to "Pete the dog" in "Os Batutinhas", which familiarized a wider audience with the American Pit Bull Terrier, the AKC registered the breed as "Staffordshire Terrier". This name was changed to American Staffordshire Terrier (AST) in 1972 to differentiate it from its close and smaller relative, the Staffordshire Bull Terrier. In 1936, the AKC, UKC, and ADBA versions of the "Pit Bull" were identical, as the original AKC dogs were developed from UKC and ADBA-registered fighting dogs.

During this period of time, as well as in subsequent years, the APBT was a dog. very dear and popular in U.S, being considered the ideal dog for families due to its affectionate and tolerant temperament with children. That's when Pit Bull appeared as a nanny dog. The little kids of the "Os Batutinhas" generation wanted a companion like Pit Bull Pete.

The American Pit Bull Terrier in World War I

During the First World War, there was an American propaganda poster representing rival European nations with their national dogs dressed in military uniforms. In the center, the dog representing the United States was an APBT, declaring below: "I'm neutral, but I'm not afraid of any of them.’

Are there pit bull races?

Since 1963, due to different objectives in its creation and development, the American Staffordshire Terrier (AST) and the American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT) differentiated, both in phenotype and temperament, although both ideally continue to have the same friendly predisposition. After 60 years of breeding with very different goals, these two dogs are now completely different breeds. However, some people prefer to see them as two different strains of the same race, one for work and one for exhibition. Either way, the gap continues to widen as breeders of both breeds consider unthinkable to cross the two.

To an unqualified eye, the AST can look bigger and frightening, thanks to its large, stout head, well-developed jaw muscles, broader chest, and thick neck. However, in general, they have nothing to do with sports like the APBT.

Due to the standardization of its conformation for display purposes, the AST tends to be selected by its appearance and not for its functionality, to a much greater degree than the APBT. We observed that the Pit Bull has a much wider phenotypic range, since the main objective of its breeding, until recently, was not to get a dog with a specific appearance, but a dog to fight in the fights, leaving aside the search for certain physical characteristics.

Some APBT races are practically indistinguishable from a typical AST, however, they are generally a little thinner, with longer limbs and lighter weight, something especially noticeable in the foot posture. Likewise, they tend to show more stamina, agility, speed and explosive strength.

The American Pit Bull Terrier in World War II

During and after the Second World War, and until the beginning of the 80s, the APBT disappeared. However, there were still some devotees who knew the breed down to the smallest details and knew a lot about the ancestry of their dogs, being able to recite genealogies of up to six or eight generations.

The American Pit Bull Terrier Today

When the APBT became popular with the public around 1980, infamous individuals with little or no knowledge of race began to own and breed them and, as expected, from there. problems began to arise. Many of these newcomers did not adhere to the traditional breeding goals of former APBT breeders, and so began the "backyard" craze, in which they began to breed random dogs in order to mass raise the puppies that they were considered a lucrative commodity, without any knowledge or control, in their own homes.

But the worst was yet to come, they began selecting dogs with the opposite criteria to those that had prevailed until then. The selective breeding of dogs that showed a tendency to aggressiveness to people. Before long, people who shouldn't have been authorized produced dogs bred anyway, Pit Bulls aggressive against humans for a mass market.

This, combined with the ease of means for oversimplification and sensationalism, resulted in the media war against pit bull, something that continues today. Needless to say, especially when it comes to this breed, "backyard" breeders without experience or knowledge of the breed should be avoided, as health and behavioral problems often appear.

Despite the introduction of some bad breeding practices over the past 15 years, the vast majority of APBT are still very human-friendly. The American Canine Temperament Testing Association, which sponsors dog temperament testing, has confirmed that 95% of all APBTs who have taken the test successfully complete it, compared to a 77% pass rate for all others. races, on average. The APBT pass rate was the fourth highest of all analyzed breeds.

Nowadays, the APBT is still used in illegal fights, usually in the United States and South America. Fighting in fights takes place in other countries where there are no laws or where the laws do not apply. However, the vast majority of the APBT, even inside the cages of breeders who breed them to fight, have never seen any action in the ring. Instead, they are companion dogs, loyal lovers, and family pets.

One of the activities that has really gained popularity among APBT fans is the drag-and-drop competition. O weight pulling retains some of the competitive spirit of the fighting world, but without blood or pain. The APBT is a breed that excels in these competitions, where the refusal to give up is as important as brute strength. Currently, the APBT hold world records in various weight classes.

Other activities for which the APBT is ideal are Agility competitions, where your agility and determination can be greatly appreciated. Some APBT were trained and performed well in the sport of Schutzhund, a canine sport developed in Germany in the late 1990s.

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