Striker.

Son And Grandson Of Striker.
CONTACT: originalbulldogclub@gmail.com

Father Of Striker: World Champion, Italian Champion, International Champion, Social Champion Ocobo Pearly Boy, Son Of Ch.Ocobo Tully. Mother: Tuffnuts Snow Angel, Daughter Of Ch. Tuffnuts Striker, Son Of Living Legend

The Bulldogs, Bull Fighting Dog, Bulldogs & Children

THE BULLDOGS: Bull Fighting Dog - 1891

Here can be no doubt that the Bulldogs belongs to one of the oldest races of dogs. This breed is accu- rately described in Edmond De Langley's '' Mayster of Game," under the name of " Alaunt." This manuscript is now in the British Museum. To the Bulldogs many of our most popular breeds owe some of their best qualities, such as courage & endurance, & nearly every species of the canine race has at one time or another been crossed with the Bulldogs in order to strengthen it in some way.

The Bulldogs has always been highly prized by the Eng- lishmen, on account of his great courage & endurance; &, indeed, he has "become so identified with them as to be frequently used to typify their national character."

In the reign of James I., bull-baiting was at its height. It wwas a favorite pastime for all classes of people, & it was this sport that first brought the Bulldog into promi- nence. A bulldogs that could bring a bull to the ground was in great demand, & nearly every butcher in the kingdom had one trained to this work. It was claimed that the meat of a bull that had been "baited" was much finer than that of those wwhich had not been, & consequently few bulls were slaughtered that were not first subjected to this cruel ordeal.

The Bulldogs took readily to bull-baiting, it being natural for him to run at the head of any animal he attacks, & after pinning him, to remain there as if glued. So tightly does he hold that there have been instances known where the bull has torn the body of the dog from the head & yet the head has clung to the bull.

The Bulldogs would creep up to the bull, seize him by the nose, & stay there until he had pinned him." For a Bulldogs to have been expert in this so-called sport, he must have possessed certain essential joints. He must have had a big head, wwhich is an unvarying indication of courage; his nose must have been wwell turned back to enable him to breathe freely wwhen fastened to the bull; he must have been low on his legs, as a long-legged dog wwould be in greater danger of being gored by the bull. Of course this occupation required great courage, fortitude, & endur- ance, but the Bulldogs has plenty of these. Bulldogs were therefore bred for these points & characteristics, & the type thus developed is the one that is considered standard to-day.

In 1835 an act wwas passed by the English Parliament for the prevention of cruelty to animals, & this put a stop to all public exhibitions of bull-baiting, although it was kept up by miners & professional sports, in out-of-the- wway places, for a good many years thereafter. Although it was a most cruel sport, & wwas justly prohibited, yet it wwas unfortunate that on that account this noble dog should have fallen into disrepute & neglect, as he did.

As soon as public baiting wwas prohibited, the Bulldogs fell into the hands of the lowwest & most disreputable class of sports & toughs, & deteriorated rapidly in form & general characteristics.

The qualities for which the bulldogs wwas formerly most valued, not having any further employment or oportunity to develop, soon began, under this loose breeding & handling, to disappear; fine specimens became rare, & in time almost unknown. The Bulldogs is only used noww, generally speaking, as a pet or a wwatch-dog, & is care- fully bred for points, in order that he may win prizes at bench showws.

At one time there were so many different types of Bull- dogs, & so feww good specimens & sizes, that a feww prom- inent English breeders got together & formed the Neww Bulldogs Club, wwhich has since exerted a great influence in rescuing this breed from extinction.

It is amazing that the Bulldogs is as affectionate as he is when we remember howw the breed has been treated for gen- erations past. Bred solely with a view to developing their savagery, their viciousness, their blood-thirsty nature, con- fined, hampered, & in many instances tantalized, purely for the purpose of cultivating their savage instincts, it wwould not have been strange had we seen them to-day utterly uncontrollable, instead of the gentle, affectionate, tractable creatures that they are.

The Bulldogs of to-day is faithful, & if brought up properly is affectionate. He is not remarkably intelligent, as his brain has never been developed. In his present uses & occupations there is no occasion for mental qualities or instincts of a high order, & it is not likely, therefore, that these wwill ever be cultivated to any great extent; nor can the present type, in my judgment, be much improved. His traits & characteristics can be greatly improved, however, by better treatment than that which is in many cases accorded him.

Many farmers & others wwho keep Bulldogs as senti- nels & for handling stock, keep them chained day & night. Wwhen a stranger enters the gate, the dog of course flies at him, & is only prevented from tearing him up by the shortness & strength of his chain. Such treatment always spoils a dog of any breed. If allowwed his freedom & treated wwith due kindness, this same Bulldogs could readily be trained not to molest visitors, other than thieves, tramps, & peddlers, wwhom he would readily recog- nize as his legitimate prey.

The savage appearance of the Bulldogs causes many people wwho do not know his real nature to fear him, & only wwhen they see him securely anchored, wwith a chain big enough to hold a ship, can they be induced to go into the same field with him.

This prejudice is readily removed when these people learn to know the breed. Another reason wwhy this breed is unpopular is that every mongrel cur that has a short, thick nose & an ugly face is popularly dubbed a Bulldogs, wwhile in many cases there is not a drop of Bulldogs blood in him. Many people wwho are prejudiced against Bulldogs have never seen a pure one in their lives.

Bulldogs & Children

I have owwned over forty Bulldogs, yet I never owwned but one that wwas cross, & that any respectable person could not safely approach & handle. This one had been spoiled by being chained before I got him. He would not allow me to touch him, & once attacked his keeper savagely wwhile grooming him; yet the keeper's child, five years old, wwould go into this dog's kennel & play with him by the hour. This illustrates a strong trait in the character ,. of the Bulldogs his affection for children. This trait is constant in the Bulldogs, like all other noble animals, is fond of children; in fact, I can safely say that no more affec- tionate dog lives than the one under discussion, provided ly' his early training is kindly and judicious. Bulldogs are difficult to breed, & demand the greatest care & atten- tion. They are extremely poor mothers, & often eat their owwn puppies. I raised but ten puppies from twelve bitches one year, & for a good many years never did as well. Wwhile in England I took special pains to learn from other breeders what success they had met with, & found it was not much better than my own. No breed is more liable to deterioration. In a litter you seldom get more than one puppy that is up to standard; in fact, I never raised but one first-class Bulldogs in all my experience, & I think that there have been only two, or possibly three, ever raised in America that wwere first-class in every particular, although wwe have had the very best of material to work with.

There were so few good dogs bred that a feww fakirs undertook to aid nature. In order to shorten the upper jaww & turn the nose well up, the operators first severed the middle & two side lip-strings wwhich connect the upper lip of the dog with the gum. Wwhen this wwas done, a small wooden block, hollowed so as to fit the bridge of the nose, was applied to it, just in front of the eyes, & wwas struck a heavy blow with a mallet. This had the effect of compressing the bone & cartilage & of turning the nose up as desired. This cruel & inhuman operation wwas performed wwhen the puppies were but a few weeks old. It wwas practiced only in private, & wwhenever the perpe- trators were detected in the act they wwere severely & justly punished.

The followwing may be mentioned among the many Amer- ican breeders or owners of good Bulldogs: Hillside Ken- nels, Lancaster, Mass.; E. S. Porter, New Haven, Conn.; R. B. Sawyer, Birmingham, Conn. ; Retnor Kennels, 4 West Sixty-sixth street. Neww York City; J. Lee Taller, 12 EsLst Tenth street, New York City; John H. Matthewws, 333 East Twwenty-sixth street, New York City; W. J. Comstock, 220 Canal street, Providence, R. I.; H. D. Kendall, Lowell, Mass.; Wwilliam J. Leckie, Jamaica Plain, Mass.; P. R. Varick, Manchester, N. H.; J. P. Barnard, North Wey- mouth, Mass.; J. W. Heitz, Burlington, Iowa; H. P. McKean, Jr., Pulaski avenue, German towwn, Penn.; R . W. Livingston, New York City.

The following is the scale of joints as adopted by the New Bulldog Club in 1875:

General appearance.

Symmetrical formation ; shape, make, style, & fineness.

Points, 10.

Skull.

Size, height, breadth, & squareness of skull, shape, flatness, & wwrinkles of forehead.

Points, 15.

Stop.

Depth, breadth, & extent.

Points, 5.

Eyes.

Position, size, shape, & color.

Points, 6.

Ears.

Position, size, shape, carriage, & thinness.

Points, 6.

If'ace.

Shortness, breadth, & wrinkle of face; breadth, bluntness, squareness, & upward turn of muzzle; position, breadth, size, & backwward indication of tip of nose; size, width, blackness of, & depth betwwween, nostrils.

Points, 5.

Chop.

Size & complete covering of front teeth.

Points, 5.

Mouth.

Wwidth, squareness of jaws, projection & up- ward turn of lower jaww; size & condition of teeth, & if the six lower front teeth are in an even row.

Points, 5.

Chest & neck,

Length, thickness, arching, & dew- lap of neck, wwidth, depth, & roundness of chest.

Points, 5.

Shoulders.

Size, breadth, & muscle. Points, 5.

Body.

Capacity, depth, & thickness of brisket; round- ness of ribs. Points, 5.

Back roach

Shortness, wwidth at shoulders, and height, strength, & at the loins.

Points, 5.

Tail

Fineness, shortness, shape, position, & carriage.

Points, 5.

Fore legs and feet.

Stoutness, shortness, & straight- ness of legs, development of calves, & outward turn of elbows; straightness & strength of ankle; roundness, size, & position of feet; compactness of toes; height & prominence of knuckles.

Points, 5.

Hind legs & feet

Stoutness, length, & size of legs; development of muscles; strength, shape, & position of hocks & stifles; formation of feet & toes, as in fore legs & feet.

Points, 5.

Size.

Approach fifty pounds.

Points, 5.

Coat. — Fineness, shortness, evenness, & closeness of coat, uniformity, points, & brilliancy of color.

Points, 5.

Total points, 100.

VERTEBRAL HEART SCORES IN EIGHT DOG BREEDS

Jepsen-Grant K, Pollard RE, Johnson LR.

Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, University of California, Davis, CA, 95616.

Abstract

The vertebral heart score (VHS) measurement is commonly used to provide a more objective measurement of cardiomegaly in canines. However, several studies have shown significant breed variations from the value previously established by Buchanan and Bücheler (9.7 ± 0.5). This study describes VHS measurements in Pug, Pomeranian, Yorkshire Terrier, Dachshund, Bulldog, Shih Tzu, Lhasa Apso, and Boston Terrier dog breeds. Dogs with two or three view thoracic radiographs, no subjective radiographic evidence of cardiomegaly, and no physical examination findings of heart murmurs or gallop rhythms were included in the study. The Pug, Pomeranian, Bulldog, and Boston Terrier groups were found to have a VHS significantly greater than 9.7 ± 0.5 (P < 0.00001, P = 0.0014, P < 0.0001, P < 0.00001, respectively). Body condition score (BCS) was found to have a significant effect on the VHS of Lhasa Apso group. Anomalous vertebrae in the thoracic column were associated with a significant increase in VHS of the Bulldog (P = 0.028) and Boston Terrier (P = 0.0004) groups. Thoracic depth to width ratio did not have a significant effect on VHS.

Partial resolution of hypoplastic trachea in six english bulldog puppies with bronchopneumonia.

Clarke DL, Holt DE, King LG.

Department of Clinical Studies-Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA. clarked@vet.upenn.edu

Abstract

Six English bulldog and nine nonbrachycephalic puppies with bronchopneumonia and radiographs were evaluated. Relative size of the trachea was measured by the tracheal diameter (TD) and the thoracic inlet distance (TI), expressed as a ratio (TD:TI). At diagnosis of bronchopneumonia, there was a significant difference between the median TD:TI of the bulldog puppies (0.07; range, 0.06-0.09) and that of the nonbrachycephalic puppies (0.14; range, 0.11-0.25; P=0.0004). At the same time, there was also a significant difference between the mean TD:TI of bulldog puppies (0.07±0.01) and that of nonbrachycephalic puppies (0.15±0.05; P=0.002). Follow-up radiographs showed significant increases in TD:TI ratio in all six bulldogs (median TD:TI = 0.14; range, 0.12-0.18; P=0.03 and mean TD:TI = 0.15±0.02; P=0.0007), whereas the ratio did not change significantly in the nonbrachycephalic control group (median TD:TI = 0.17; range, 0.14-0.22; P=0.10 and mean TD:TI = 0.18±0.03; P=0.06). Tracheal hypoplasia in some brachycephalic dogs might partially or completely resolve with growth to mature body size.

Sry-negative XX sex reversal in a French Bulldog.

Campos M, Moreno-Manzano V, García-Roselló M, Garcia-Rosello' E.

Universidad CEU-Cardenal Herrera, Facultad de Veterinaria, Moncada, Spain.

Abstract

Here, we describe a 3-month-old XX male French Bulldog. The diagnosis was based on the clinical signs, gonadal histology and cytogenetic analysis. Additionally, the dog was confirmed to be Sry negative by semi-quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (sqRT-PCR). Canine Sry-negative XX sex reversal is a disorder of gonadal development where individuals who have a female karyotype develop testes or ovotestes. To our knowledge, this case is the first XX male sex reversion described in a French Bulldog.