American Pit Bull Terrier What is the American Pit Bull Terrier? What are its origins and what is its history? The American Pit Bull Terrier has most often been described as the dog that is closest to the human race, in its likeness to the human race. This endearing breed of dog has the most charming and pleasing of personalities, in that it is very individualistic and independent, as well as intelligent and friendly. It has an innate strength, is extremely tenacious, and is also full of beans, and when all these traits are combined with its basically soft and charming nature, this is a breed that is very close to the human race, and it closely resembles an ordinary human being. All the character traits that have been found in the American Pit Bull Terrier not only make it an easy breed to own and train, but also make it a joy to possess. (The American Pit Bull Terrier organization and Network)

The American Pit Bull Terrier is a pure bred dog with the registered name of Pit Bull Terrier with the United Kennel Club, and it was a sad fact indeed that an individual cannot hope to own this dog within city limits without fear of being arrested or being faced with the euthanasia of the dog, for daring to own this dog that is certified as a 'vicious dog' under the city ordinance laws. American Pit Bull Terriers, American Strafford shire Terriers, and Strafford shire Bull Terriers are all outlaws under this city rule. The American Pit Bull Terrier has had a long and checquered history as one of America's foremost breeds of dog through the years. It was in the year 1835 that the British parliament took it upon itself to outlaw the so-called sport of bull-baiting, wherein during the process of playing this disgustingly sadistic gambling game, bull dogs were actually used for the purpose of attacking the hapless bulls that had been brought to the market for sale, for some very dubious like probably tenderizing the meat of the bull. (The American Pit Bull Terrier- A gentle and courageous pet; a victim of bad press)

The bull dog, as much a victim as the bull, would be forced to attack the bull and grab a tender area on the bull's body, such as the ear or the nose, and hang on to that tender part till the time when the bull had to collapse out of exhaustion. The dog, in the meanwhile, would be faced with the daunting prospect of avoiding the kicking hooves and the sharp horns of the bull in it's attempts to escape the assault of the dog. The entire episode would be staged in the public marketplace, and those people from all walks of life, whether they were commoners or royalty, would attend this gory spectacle and enjoy the bloodshed and the violence that was being staged for their benefit, and for many of the people who witnessed such events, it was thought that they were attending them for the basic purpose of seeking a sort of release and escape from the daily routines as well as from the diseases and the violence and the desperation of their mundane lives and days.

However, as time went by, public outcries against the gory spectacle of violence and bloodshed started to increase, as more and more people became more aware and conscious and sensitive to the innate violence in a dog attacking a poor bull, and the day arrived when the Parliament had to take a strict stand, and therefore outlawed and banned the activity. What happened afterwards is this: when the dog owners who had been training the bull terriers for attacking the bulls found that their very livelihood had been threatened by the outlawing of the sport, they started to breed the dogs instead, and use them for the purpose of the game of 'dog fighting'. For this very purpose, a new breed of dog was actually invented, and this was a mix of a little of the bull...

(The American Pit Bull Terrier- A gentle and courageous pet; a victim of bad press)
The new Bull and Terrier now became a dog that would be used for aggressively suppressing all the other breeds of dogs, and would also possess an unlimited courage and bravery, and also be fiercely tenacious and unfearing when it came to the issue of fighting, and would fight ill the end, with an extremely high threshold of pain that had not been observed in any other dog till date. However, the bull and Terrier was also meant to be very affectionate and loyal to people of the human race. The Bull Terrier actually arrived in the United Sates of America in the early years of the 1800's, and they were touted as the frontier guardians and also as all round farm dogs. In the book, 'the Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County', by the author Samuel Clemons, there is mention of this breed of dog. By the year 1898, the United Kennel Club awarded recognition of the Bull and Terrier Dog as the 'American Pit Bull Terrier'. Soon advertisers started to use this charming dog in all their advertising campaigns, like for example, the 'Buster Brown Shoes' that used the American Pit Bull Terrier as its mascot by putting an image of the dog in all their shoes, and named this mascot 'Tige'.

The innate idea was to convey the image of their shoes as being as sturdy and dependable and unbending and undefeated as the American Pit Bull Terrier, as this was the general opinion that was being held of the dog till that time. RCA used the same idea in its promotion of its phonographs, wherein 'Nipper', a Pit Bull of unknown origins, was used to show that the sound of the music emerging from the phonograph was extremely clear and good, with the image of the dog being fooled into thinking that his 'master's voice' was actually emerging from the phonograph. If a loyal and intelligent animal could be fooled into thinking this, then the phonograph and its clarity of sound must indeed be extremely good! In later years, the American Pit Bull Terrier was used to convey a sense of courage and instill this into the hearts of Americans in the year 1914, the year of the First World War, and the company, Levis, used the image of the American Pit Bull Terrier to convey the message of their jeans being as tough as a Bull Terrier, and also as a veritable 'defender of the old glory', just as the American Pit Bull Terrier was. (The American Pit Bull Terrier- A gentle and courageous pet; a victim of bad press)

The American Kennel Club in fact eschewed the breed known as the 'Pit Bull' until the year 1936, and it was after this that the American Pit Bull Terrier came to be recognized as the 'Strafford shire Terrier', actually named after the Stafford shire miners who had had a hand in creating the breed for the purpose of fighting in the pits where they worked. In the year 1972, this name was changed to the American Stafford shire terrier', and this was for the purpose of differentiating this breed from the Stafforsdhire Bull Terrier of England, the actual ancestor of the American breed of dog, which was later recognized by the American Kennel Club in the year 1974. In the United Kingdom, the dog is about 14 to 16 inches tall, and weighs about up to 45 pounds, while the breed found in America is about 18 to 19 inches tall, and weighs about up to 80 pounds.

The American Pit Bull Terrier of the United Kennel Club is generally about 30 to 60 pounds in weight, with the female generally, but not necessarily, smaller than the males of the breed. The American Pit Bull Terrier and the Staffs and the Am Staffs are all bred more for their temperament than anything else, and it is general not very well-known that these dogs are bred for their obedience skills and also their intelligence levels that enables human beings to use them as basic therapy dogs, therapy through dogs being recommended for many ailments seen in human beings. Some varieties of the American Pit Bull Terrier like the Bandog Dread HIC, and the VB and the CD even have herding titles. Some of these dogs are used for services to diseased and ill patients, like for example, the American Pit Bull Terrier named Solomon J. Grundy, which serves as a service dog for its quadriplegic owner, Arvid Kuhnle of Canada. (The American Pit Bull Terrier- A gentle and courageous pet; a victim of bad press)

Until the early years of the last century, the American Pit Bull Terrier was known and widely recognized and…