Staffordshire Bull Terrier breed guide

The Staffordshire Bull Terrier is intelligent, learns easily, responds quickly and may be a loving, fun companion, with an ardent desire to please. AKC reminds owners that Staffordshire Bull Terriers were originally bred to fight other dogs and most retain a strong prey drive.

Responsible breeders today produce sweet-natured, family-oriented Staffordshire Bull Terriers.

Staffordshire Bull Terriers live 12 to 15 years. Breeders screen for elbow and hip dysplasia, patellar luxation and eye anomalies including hereditary juvenile cataracts, persistent hyperplastic primary vitreous and posterior polar subcapsular cataracts.

A DNA test for L-2-HGA, a metabolic condition, lets breeders identify carriers and avoid producing affected dogs and a similar test exists for hereditary cataracts.

It does not take much work to keep a Staffordshire Bull Terrier handsome: occasional baths and weekly brushings with a horsehair mitt or hound glove pull away dead hairs and nails should be trimmed at least monthly.

The Staffordshire Bull Terrier needs regular exercise to stay fit in mind and body: a ball tossed across the backyard, running alongside a biking or jogging owner or a long hike. AKC advises waiting until 18 months before running beside a bike or jogger, so growth plates are protected.

The Staffordshire Bull Terrier's story is brief in canine history but confused by several names it carried: the Bull-and-Terrier, the Patched Fighting Terrier, the Staffordshire Pit-dog and the Brindle Bull.

Staffordshire Bull Terriers are among the AKC terriers classed as bull types, like the Bull Terrier and the American Staffordshire Terrier, which share a backstory from the days when betting on dog blood sports was all the rage in England.