Olde English Bulldogge

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Olde English Bulldogge

A male Olde English Bulldogge
Country of origin United States
Traits

The Olde English Bulldogge is a purebred breed of dog. It is a re-creation of the Bull-baiting dog that existed in England during the English Regency period of 1811 and 1820 that was known as the Old English Bulldog.

Contents

[edit] Characteristics

[edit] Appearance

Olde English Bulldogge physique
Weight: Male: 60-80 lbs, Females: 50-70 lbs
Height: Males 17-20", Females: 16-19"
Coat: Short and close or medium and fine
Color: Gray, black, brindle of red, brindle spots on white, fawn, red or black solid or with white
Tail: Long, straight, with pump handle preferred
Litter size: 6-9 puppies
Life span: 11+ years

The Olde English Bulldogge is a muscular, medium sized dog of great strength, stability and athleticism. It is well balanced and proportioned with no exaggerated features. It has the appearance of a dog capable of doing it's original job of bull baiting. Excessive height would have been detrimental for the old working Bulldog as it had to “play low” to avoid the bull’s horns and fasten onto it's nose. A heavyweight dog would also have been at a disadvantage as the bull’s nose would have been likely to rip sending the dog flying.

[edit] Temperament

The disposition of the Olde English Bulldogge is confident, courageous and alert. Olde English Bulldogges are very friendly and loving. They are extremely strong and occasionally display same sex dog aggression, so socialization and obedience training are important. It is best to channel high energy individuals to some type of work and exercise.

[edit] Olde English Bulldogge Breed Standard

Several of the breeds main attributes from the recently revised breed standard of the Olde English Bulldogge, written (August 2007) by the Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club and Leavitt Bulldog Association, are listed below. This Standard was written at the request of the United Kennel Club as they prepare to recognize the Olde English Bulldogge breed as a purebred dog breed within their foundation stock registry program called, The Canine Developmental Health and Performance Registry.

Show & Breeding Disqualifications
Eyes: Any eye color other than brown. Wall eyes or crossed eyes.
Nose: Any color nose other than black.
Bite: Wry jaw or Overbite.
Tail: Kinked, docked, bobbed or screw tail.
Color: Blue/gray (Neapolitan Mastiff color), black & rust/mahogany (Rottweiler color)
Also: Males lacking two fully descended normal testicles.

[edit] Health

The Olde English Bulldogge is a significantly healthier breed of dog than many modern Bulldog breeds. The Olde English Bulldoge is quickly becoming well respected in many working venues such as weight pull, therapy training, French Ring Sport and several others. They have become excellent breathers and do not have to be kept in an air conditioned environment on hot days. They not only possess excellent stamina and athletic ability, they can breed and give birth on their own. Artificial insemination is not a standard protocol when breeding Olde English Bulldogges, natural ties are the standard. Caesarean sections are only needed in the event of unexpected complications at delivery like with almost any breed of dog. Breeders from both the Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club, Inc. and Leavitt Bulldog Association are working vigorously on educating new breeders among the breed on genetic disorders and the benefits modern genetic testing for these disorders can have on preventing genetic disorders in domestic animals. Many breeders are also becoming more aware of how important selective breeding can be to the breed as a whole.

[edit] History

[edit] General overview of Bull-baiting and Blood Sport during the English Regency Period

Bull baiting dogs, referred to today as "Bulldogs", were bred to bait animals; mainly bulls and bears. Baiting sports, often referred to as "Blood Sport", were extremely popular from their inception around the 1100's until they started being banned across Europe in 1835[1]. During "Bull-baiting" the dog would attempt to flatten itself to the ground, creeping as close to the bull as possible, then darting out and attempting to bite the bull in the nose or head area. The bull would often be tethered by a collar and rope which was staked into the ground. As the dog darted at the bull, the bull would attempt to catch the dog with his head and horns and throw it into the air. The dog owners would often try to catch the dog before it fell to the ground to minmimize the dogs injuries so that the dog could continue tormenting the bull.

In 1835[2], the Cruelty to Animals Act was passed in Parliament that outlawed "Blood Sport" in Great Britain. The Bulldog's work was suddenly over and the Bulldog rapidly started dying out. Around 1865 dog fanciers began developing dog clubs which eventually culminated into conformation shows. Many fanciers utilized various remnants of the dog utilized for "Blood Sport" to resurrect the "Bull" dog and ultimately developed todays modern English Bulldog.

[edit] History of the "Olde English Bulldogge"

The "Olde English Bulldogge" is a specific re-creation of the "Regency Period Bull Baiter", developed by David Leavitt, of Coatesville, Pennsylvania. In 1971 Mr. Leavitt began his project by utilizing a cattle line breeding scheme of Dr. Fechimer from Ohio State University[3]. The goal was to create a dog with the look, health, and athleticism of the original bull-baiting dogs, but with a much less aggressive temperament[4]. The composition of the Olde English Bulldogge was ½ Bulldog, 1/6 Bullmastiff, 1/6 American Pit Bull Terrier, and 1/6 American Bulldog[5]. After many carefully planned crosses, the Olde English Bulldogge emerged and began to breed true. Thus, Leavitt formed the Olde English Bulldogge Association (OEBA) to maintain the breeds stud book and issue registration papers to future offspring[6].

During the 1980s Ben and Karen Campetti from Sandisfield, Massachusetts, worked closely with Leavitt in breeding the Olde English Bulldogge. Soon they achieved great success showing the breed in Molosser breed shows across the country and internationally. For several years the Olde English Bulldogge was the top rare breed in rare breed conformation shows across the US. In 1993 Leavitt stopped breeding and turned the OEBA registry as well as his personal breeding stock over to Working Dog Inc. which was owned and operated by Michael Walz of Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania[7]. In 2005, due to the OEBA's inefficiency, Leavitt re-emerged and joined the Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club. Leavitt declared that he was merging the OEBA registry with the registry of the Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club before he developed another club called the Leavitt Bulldog Association.

Despite recent controversy over the name that Leavitt assigned to the breed, today's Olde English Bulldogge is still breeding true to form and possesses excellent health, agility, temperament and a consistent look to that of the old working Bull Baiter of the English Regency Period. The Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club and Leavitt Bulldog Association are recognized as the only breed clubs of the Olde English Bulldogge and are working to protect and maintain the bloodlines that make the Olde English Bulldogge a purebred dog breed.

The Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club and the Leavitt Bulldog Association are currently in the process of achieving United Kennel Club recognition and have unified a single breed standard that is currently under review by the UKC.

[edit] Olde English Bulldogge Breed registry

It should be noted that there are many registries in the US and abroad that claim to register purebred Olde English Bulldogges. However, if a dogs pedigree can not be traced back to the breeds original foundation stock, the dog being registered can not be ethically registered with the three registries below as an Olde English Bulldogge due to the lack of validation in it's bloodliines.


The Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club

The Leavitt Bulldog Association

The American Rare Breed Association

[edit] References

  1. ^ *Jenkins, Robert; Ken Mollett (1997). The Story of the Real Bulldog. Neptune, NJ: TFH Publications. ISBN 0-7938-0491-4. 
  2. ^ *Fogle, Bruce; Tracy Morgan (2000). The new encyclopedia of the dog. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 381. ISBN 0789461307. 
  3. ^ Semencic, Carl (August 1984). The World of Fighting Dogs. Neptune, NJ: TFH Publications. ISBN 0866226567. 
  4. ^ Semencic, Carl (August 1984). The World of Fighting Dogs. Neptune, NJ: TFH Publications. ISBN 0866226567. 
  5. ^ *Semencic, Carl (August 1984). The World of Fighting Dogs. Neptune, NJ: TFH Publications. ISBN 0866226567. 
  6. ^ *Semencic, Carl (April 1998). Gladiator Dogs. Neptune, NJ: TFH Publications. ISBN 0793805961. 
  7. ^ Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club .::. Home of the Original Olde English Bulldogge
  • DePrisco, Andrew (1990). The Mini-Atlas of Dog Breeds. Neptune, NJ: TFH Publications. ISBN 0866220917. 
  • Brearley, Joan McDonald (1985). The Book of the Bulldog. Neptune, NJ: TFH Publications. ISBN 0-86622-027-5. 

[edit] External links

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