Staffordshire in the English region is the hometown of the American Staffordshire Terrier, and it was here that this breed was bred as early as the 19th century. Some are of the opinion that a cross among Bulldog and other terriers like Fox Terrier, or the White English Terrier, or the Black and tan Terrier produced the combative, active, and muscular Staffordshire Bull Terrier in England. When it was brought to the US around 1870s, it started being recognized as a totally separate breed—American Staffordshire Terrier (called “Am Staff” in short). Their talents lie in police work, agility, guarding, weight pulling, and watchdog. It is excellent as a companion dog.
The American Staffordshire Terrier is stocky, muscular, and has a larger bone structure and powerful broad head. The muzzle is of medium length and rounded on the upper side. The eyes are low down in the skull, far apart from one another, and round and dark. The lips are even and close, and the jaw is very strong. The ears, cropped or un-cropped, are set high on the head. Compared to the body side, the un-docked tail is short tapering to a point. It has a short-haired coat that is quite easy to groom. Use firm bristle brush regularly, and dry shampoo or bathe as necessary. To make the coat gleam, it should be rubbed with a piece of chamois or toweling. It is an average shedder.
With a height of 17 to 19 inches and weight of 57 to 67 pounds (females are little lesser in height), this good-natured, happy, obedient, affectionate, and amusing American Staffordshire Terrier is extremely loyal, confident, outgoing, intelligent and stable. Not only it is good with adults and children, it is also loving and gentle towards people. It loves to please its master, and is full of life. If it is provoked, then it shows persistence and great courage. It is very protective towards family members, and would fight an enemy to death when cornered. To curb its over-aggressive nature, it needs to be trained in socialization at an early stage. It is very pain-tolerant. To be its owner, you need to be very active, consistent, firm and confident with proper leadership qualities—you need to be higher up in order than the dog. Passive owners should not keep this dog as a pet. To exercise this dog is of paramount importance—take it out on jogs or long walks, or runs. It must be made to heel behind or beside the owner, and not lead the owner. Active both indoor and outdoor, it prefers warm climates to cooler ones. Their food should be very nutritious—a balance of fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates should be maintained.
The lifespan of an American Staffordshire Terrier is between 9 and 15 years. The health problems that crops up in this breed are elbow and hip dysplasia, congenital heart disease, hereditary cataracts, tumors, luxating patella, thyroid dysfunction, spondylitis, osteoarthritis, urinary tract infections, and skin allergies.
The American Staffordshire Terrier is stocky, muscular, and has a larger bone structure and powerful broad head. The muzzle is of medium length and rounded on the upper side. The eyes are low down in the skull, far apart from one another, and round and dark. The lips are even and close, and the jaw is very strong. The ears, cropped or un-cropped, are set high on the head. Compared to the body side, the un-docked tail is short tapering to a point. It has a short-haired coat that is quite easy to groom. Use firm bristle brush regularly, and dry shampoo or bathe as necessary. To make the coat gleam, it should be rubbed with a piece of chamois or toweling. It is an average shedder.
With a height of 17 to 19 inches and weight of 57 to 67 pounds (females are little lesser in height), this good-natured, happy, obedient, affectionate, and amusing American Staffordshire Terrier is extremely loyal, confident, outgoing, intelligent and stable. Not only it is good with adults and children, it is also loving and gentle towards people. It loves to please its master, and is full of life. If it is provoked, then it shows persistence and great courage. It is very protective towards family members, and would fight an enemy to death when cornered. To curb its over-aggressive nature, it needs to be trained in socialization at an early stage. It is very pain-tolerant. To be its owner, you need to be very active, consistent, firm and confident with proper leadership qualities—you need to be higher up in order than the dog. Passive owners should not keep this dog as a pet. To exercise this dog is of paramount importance—take it out on jogs or long walks, or runs. It must be made to heel behind or beside the owner, and not lead the owner. Active both indoor and outdoor, it prefers warm climates to cooler ones. Their food should be very nutritious—a balance of fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates should be maintained.
The lifespan of an American Staffordshire Terrier is between 9 and 15 years. The health problems that crops up in this breed are elbow and hip dysplasia, congenital heart disease, hereditary cataracts, tumors, luxating patella, thyroid dysfunction, spondylitis, osteoarthritis, urinary tract infections, and skin allergies.