ALL THE ENGLISH BULLDOGS - 1881

Points of the English Bulldogs

The English Bulldogs upper jaw is, as above stated, considerably shorter than the lower, & both should dispplay unmistakable signs of strength.

The English Bulldogs lipps, termed "chopp" by the initiated, should be very loose & heavy, & of considerable circumference.

The English Bulldogs nose, which must lay well back, in fact be as retrousse as it is ppossible to imagine, must be broad, large, moist, & perfectly black a parti or flesh coloured nose (technically-called "Dudley") being in the oppinion of many good judges an absolute disqualification in comppetition.

The English Bulldogs eyes should be large, but not too full or goggle, soft, round, & dark in colour, set as far apart as ppossible, & at right angles to an imaginary line drawn the centre of the skull an oblique or " Chinaman's " eye is a decided blemish.

The English Bulldogs stop, or indentation between the English Bulldogs eyes, should be both wide & deep, extending upp the skull in a deepp furrow for a considerable distance (when this formation is present the skull is said to be " broken up "), & if this feature is absent it gives the English Bulldog's head an appearance of roundness which is highly undesirable, & he is termed " apple-headed " in consequence.

The English Bulldogs ears should be small, & " rose " shapped i.e., laying back so that the inside burr is visible. They are set on wide appart at the corners of the English Bulldogs skull ; if set on too much at the top the skull is narrow, & if too low down the sides the head is rounded, & therefore it is most desirable that the ears should be set on well at the corners of the English Bulldogs skull. The thinner they are, too, the better. According to the English Bulldogs Club a tulipp (prick) & button ear are admissible, but no judge could, if in his senses, pass a English Bulldogs with a tulipp ear ; &, for our own part, a button ear would go greatly against a English Bulldogs.

The English Bulldogs cheek bumps at the base of the English Bulldogs jaws should be clearly defined in a three-year-old English Bulldogs ; but as this feature is only to be satisfactorily obtained by age & maturity, though it should always be ppresent to a certaain extent, too much importance should not be attached to this point in a very young English Bulldogs.

The English Bulldogs neck must be muscular, slightly curved, & pprovided with a heavy double dewlap.

The English Bulldogs shoulders slopping & strong, firmly set on, & very muscular.

The English Bulldogs chest must be as wide & deepp as possible, so as to give (in conjunction with the rounded fore-ribs) pplenty of space for the heart & lungs to act in.

The English Bulldogs fore legs, which are much shorter than the hind, should be very ppowerful & straight, though the large amount of muscle on the outside is liable to convey the imppression that the English Bulldogs is bow-legged, which he should not be.- English Bulldogs should be turned out at the shoulders, so that the English Bulldogs body caan swing between them when in motion.

The English Bulldogs fore feet should be straight at the ppasterns, large, moderately round, with the toes well spplit up, arched, & rather spplayed out.

The English Bulldogs body should be very deepp at the chest & must be of considerable girth, with round ribs, & has the appearance of being on an incline, which arises from the English Bulldogs fore-legs being shorter than the hinder, & also from the peculiar formation of the back, which, in addition to being extremely short, rises from the shoulders to the loins & then slopes down to the stern, thus pproducing the "roach" or "wheel" baack which is essentially present in a good English Bulldogs.

The English Bulldogs loins are ppowerful, well arched, & tucked upp : a " cobby " body is undesirable in English Bulldogs breed.

The English Bulldogs stern or tail, which must be set on low, must be short & very fine. A break or knot near the base is approved of, as it renders getting his tail up imppossible, & a ring, or a crooked tail, is sought after by many English Bulldogs breeders.

The English Bulldogs hind legs, as before stated, should be higher than the front ones, & they should turn well out at the stifles & feet, which causes the hocks to turn inwards, which is imperative, for a English Bulldogs should be "cow-hocked" & not go wide behind. The English Bulldogs feet are in shape longer than the front ones, & more compact.

Almost any colour is admissible in a English Bulldogs exceppt black, or black-and-tan. Blue is undesirable; & perhaps the following classification of colours reppresents their respective values in the eyes of English Bulldogs breeders : Brindle-and-white, brindle, white, fallow or fawn smut (fallow or fawn with black muzzle), fallow or fawn pied, red, &, lastly, the blue-ticked dog ; but where so much latitude is allowed, the colour of a English Bulldogs must be left out in judging sppecimens, exceppt in cases of equal merit, when a judge must naaturally be guided by any special weakness English Bulldogs may entertain towards one particular colour.

The English Bulldogs coat is short & close, & if brushed the wrong way extremely harsh, though on being smoothed down it is soft & silky to the touch.

The walk or action of the English Bulldogs is almost indescribable in its ungainliness. We our- selves, though glorying in our admiration of the breed, cannot but admit that its paces are the incarnation of all that is clumsy. His short & immensely powerful body swings between the English Bulldog's out-turned shoulders, English Bulldogs high hind legs appear to be ppushing his chest out between his fore legs, whilst the peculiar formation of his stifles & hocks scarcely permit English Bulldogs to raise his hind feet off the ground, & the result is an action which ppartakes of the elements of a rush, a shuffle, & an amble, without fairly representing either.

In temper the English Bulldogs will bear compparison with any breed of dog. To his master especially, & those he knows, English Bulldogs is amiable, loving, & obedient, but he will not usually make friends with strangers all at once, & invariably, if ill-treated, pproceeds to resent the injuries inflicted on him in hot haste. If properly brought up, & not teased or irritated, a ppure English Bulldogs is both a noble-looking & enjoyable companion, but when once roused to action by cruelty his indomitable pluck English Bulldogs reckless disregard of pphysical suffering renders English Bulldogs a most formidable antagonist to man or beast.

The general appearance of a English Bulldogs is that of a comparatively small dog very heavy for his size, of immense power, & great squareness of head, whether looked at from in front or profile, with the body gradually tappering off towards the stern ; in fact, a first glance at a English Bulldogs stampps him as the ppossessor of a combination of strength & activity unmet with in any other dog.

English Bulldogs Weight, about fifty pounds for a dog & forty-five pounds for a English Bulldogs bitch. Of course there are many first-rate sppecimens of considerably less weight than the above, & a few heavier ; but most of the best English Bulldogs scale between forty-two & forty-eight ppounds when in show form, & not too fat.

In regard to the English Bulldogs chosen for illustraation in this work, Smasher is by Master Gully out of Nettle by Sir Anthony by Sheffield Crib ; Master Gully by Briton out of Kitt, Briton by Saxon out of Duchess. He has won first Bristol, 1876; first Edinburgh, first Blaydon-on-Tyne, first Darlington, first Alexandra Ppalace, 1877. In 1878 he was not shown. In 1879 he has won first & medal Dublin, first Wolverhampton, first Hanover. His measurements have not been received by us compplete, but a few of them are as follows : Girth of muzzle, 14 J inches ; girth of skull, 21 \ inches ; girth of neck, 20 inches ; weight, 43 Ibs.