About Bull Terriers
We'll have more info up here soon! In the meantime, if you'd like to know more about the bull terrier breed, please feel free to contact us.
So You Want to Adopt
Is a bull terrier right for you? It's easy to be charmed by that cute pig-like face and clownish personality, but bull terriers are not for everyone. We, of course, adore the breed but they're an acquired taste. So here are some points to consider before jumping in and adopting.
Personality and Trainability. Bull terriers are difficult to "train." You must abandon outdated notions of traditional, dominance-based dog training methods (punishment is NOT effective in changing bull terrier behavior, except in the most non-productive way) and use "positive reinforcement" to communicate with your bully. This means reading books on positive training or attending lessons with a trainer familiar with the terrier personality and rewards-based learning. (It doesn't mean a set of classes at your nearest big box store with a non-CPDT trainer or a Cesar wanna-be).
Some people use the terms "willful," or "stubborn" to describe bull terriers. It's true. A bully is not going to willingly do what you ask before asking himself "What's In it For Me?" If you're looking for an always "obedient" dog, or a dog whose purpose in life is to make "you" happy, then a bullie will be a disappointment. Bull terriers first and foremost want to please themselves. Once you understand how the bully mind works, and once you put in a bit of effort, oversight and training, you will be delighted by a dog with true personality and intelligence, an active and curious mind and a hedonistic streak that can be frustrating or adorable, depending on you!
Bull Terriers and Other Pets. Many, if not most, rescue bull terriers do not get along well with other animals. Your rescue bully may not have been properly socialized. Even dogs with the best start in life and the best socialization as puppies may not be able to override their aggressive instincts. Remember, bullies were wired for fighting. For decades, responsible breeders have tried to mitigate this but while you can keep the dog out of the fight, you can't always keep the fight out of the dog. Even if your bull terrier is friendly and not prey-driven, you may never be able to assume he or she can interact unsupervised with cats, dogs, birds or any manner of other fuzzy or winged things.
What does this mean in terms of adoption? It means if you have other animals, you may need to wait a while before a friendly bull terrier comes into rescue. It means if you regularly socialize with friends/relatives with dogs, or if you wish a dog that you can take to the dog park or dog run, a bullie probably is not the right breed for you. Even if you end up with a friendly bully, given today's political climate and bias against bull breeds, if your bullie gets into a scuffle it's he that will likely be blamed, even if the other dog "started" it.
If you do have other animals and still want a bull terrier, you must be prepared to carefully and cautiously manage your bully's behavior when in the presence of other animals, even if they are caged or crated. If you do not, the result may be tragic. Generally, we recommend that if you wish to add a second dog to your home, you select a bullie of the opposite sex as your current dog.
Bull Terriers and Kids. Bull terriers and young children are not the best combination. Bull terriers usually love children, but that rock-hard, egg-shaped head running into a grown adult during a hucklebutt (search YouTube for some real-time examples of what is also known as the 'bully run") is painful enough....a bully running into a small child can be dangerously concussive! And kids who like to wrestle with dogs may trigger mouthiness or nipping from a bully, whose powerful jaws can do damage even in play. If you have small children or if kids visit you regularly, we usually recommend you wait for a very mellow, or an older, rescue dog to become available.
Bullyproofing Your Home. Bull Terriers are notorious chewers. You may have to bully-proof your home so your bully won'tamuse himself eating rugs, pillows, toilet paper, balls (tennis, soccer, foot, soft), chair legs....you get the picture. And for many bullies, a filled trash container is the toy chest. Ingesting non-food substances is sometimes harmless but more likely will mean a trip to the vet for expensive obstruction surgery (known in the bully world as "zipper" surgery, a reference to the belly incision). Even some of the most diligent owners have bullies who have made multiple vet trips for zipper operations. Partially for this reason, we recommend your bull terrier be crate-trained so it has a safe and comfortable place when not under your direct supervision. Crate training is not "cruel." Think of it as a dog's private bedroom (we like large wire crates, not the plastic, isolating hard-sided types). His boudoir, when you're not home, has his comforts of life: toys, food, water, a soft place to lay his head. It should not be a place for banishment, but rather a safe, cozy home within his home.
Training (coming soon!). In the meantime, we'll be posting links and articles of interest here.
- Think your dog's "guilty" look is because he knows he's done something "wrong"? Think again. Research shows he's reacting to your anger and disappointment, not to his own actions. Here are two articles regarding the same study. "What Really Prompts the Dog's 'Guilty Look'" (Science Daily) and "...Owner's Scolding ..Makes a 'Guilty' Dog" (New York Times)
- Internationally known author and trainer Turid Rugaas has a Q&A page on her website covering dozens of common behavior problems: www.canis.no/rugaas/questions.php
Diet (more coming soon!)
Please don't let anyone tell you that your bull terrier will do just fine eating the kibble that you can buy, cheap, at your local discount warehouse, supermarket, or even pet supply chain. Until we get more information up here about the origins of the dog food industry, what you should look for in a quality commercial dog food, alternatives to commercial products (raw feeding, home cooked, supplementing commercial foods with meats/other proteins), and why you should care, we suggest you visit www.Dogaware.com for feeding advice. Dogaware is the brainchild of Mary Straus, an expert on dog health and nutrition; her information will help you decide what's best for your bully, no matter which feeding method you opt for. Recommended, also, is this blog post from Dr. Michelle Yasson, "What I learned in [vet] school about pet nutrition." It will make you think twice if or when your vet recommends a "prescription" diet.
Did you know that veterinary schools in the U.S. don't receive government funding (unlike medical schools)? They have to rely substantially on sponsorhips and donations from the dog food industry, creating an obvious and possibly unethical conflict of interest. How likely is it that your bully's doctor will criticize dog food like Hill's Prescription Diets, Purina and Iams if those same companies subsidize our veterinary institutions, wrote the nutrition textbooks, and give part-time jobs to veterinary students? This newspaper article explains more.
Please don't let anyone tell you that your bull terrier will do just fine eating the kibble that you can buy, cheap, at your local discount warehouse, supermarket, or even pet supply chain. Until we get more information up here about the origins of the dog food industry, what you should look for in a quality commercial dog food, alternatives to commercial products (raw feeding, home cooked, supplementing commercial foods with meats/other proteins), and why you should care, we suggest you visit www.Dogaware.com for feeding advice. Dogaware is the brainchild of Mary Straus, an expert on dog health and nutrition; her information will help you decide what's best for your bully, no matter which feeding method you opt for. Recommended, also, is this blog post from Dr. Michelle Yasson, "What I learned in [vet] school about pet nutrition." It will make you think twice if or when your vet recommends a "prescription" diet.
Did you know that veterinary schools in the U.S. don't receive government funding (unlike medical schools)? They have to rely substantially on sponsorhips and donations from the dog food industry, creating an obvious and possibly unethical conflict of interest. How likely is it that your bully's doctor will criticize dog food like Hill's Prescription Diets, Purina and Iams if those same companies subsidize our veterinary institutions, wrote the nutrition textbooks, and give part-time jobs to veterinary students? This newspaper article explains more.
Health (coming soon!)
A good summary of the bull terrier breed can also be found HERE, at Dogtime.com
