American Bulldog Breed Info

An American Bulldog is a stocky and muscular type of a dog. It is a very intelligent and affectionate animal, meaning that it can be trained to guard and protect its owner and the household. Generally this breed is viewed as a utility dog. This is due to its agility and temperament.


Female American Bulldog

There are two types of American Bulldogs, the Standard and the Classic. The Standard Type is also known as the Johnson Type, while the Classic one is familiar as the Performance Type and is also referred to as the Scotty type. Essentially there are also hybrids, which are mixtures of the two given types.

History & Origins

American Bulldogs trace its history with the early settlers who came to America. Generally speaking, people who came on boats to the New Continent brought their pets with them. The Old English Bulldog was brought by working class immigrants as they needed their dogs to help them with farm work and various other activities while settling down.

They breed the dogs with the most agile and helpful breeds once they came there which resulted in what we have today or the American Bulldog.


Black and White American Bulldog Dogs

They have done this in order to maintain the purity of the breed and also to gain the best and most useful type of dog for their farm work. These dogs were exceptionally useful to their masters and are great guard dogs as well. They have also been used to protect the farms from wild pigs and due to its muscular demeanor were very effective against them. They have also been used before WWII in Spain as bull baits and a lot of these dogs actually fell as pray to the rampaging bulls.

American Bulldog Characteristics & Temperament

American Bulldogs are generally very well-mannered dogs. They are very condiment and social but also very faithful. When they are trained properly they can form a great attachment to their masters and their family. It is highly important to socialize them from an early age and give them their boundaries which will result in them being better dogs. Because of forming this type of an attachment to their owners, they are also very good with children, especially when they are thought the boundaries that they need to respect from an early age.


American Bulldog

But due to their lively temperament they and muscle tone, they also need a lot of ground and a big area to exercise.  You need to give them a lot of room so they can maintain their body and muscles. These dogs are quite agile and can jump up to 3 feet in the air. So in order to allow them to be at their peak physical condition, you need to give them a lot of room to exercise.

Experienced breeders know this and if you want to train an American Bulldog you need to have certain experience to do that. Generally speaking it is not too hard but you still need to provide the dog with everything it needs.

Appearance, Colors, Size

An American Bulldog is taller than the French or English counterpart. Adult dogs can reach a height of 20 to 28 inches and can weigh up to 60 to 120 pounds. But it will generally depend on their training and surrounding how big they grow up to be as they can be both larger and smaller than this.


Bridle and White American Bulldog

In terms of appearance, American Bulldogs are usually white with various red, black or brindle patches around their bodies. There are very few other types of colored bulldogs but they do exist.

These dogs have darker patches around their eyes and noses and they also may have shades of ping around the eyes. Eye color of American Bulldogs is usually brown and these type of dogs are probe to drooling a lot. They have a short coat which can be easily maintained.

Looking upon an American Bulldog you will notice that they are stocky and well build and seem very muscular.

American Bulldog Health

American Bulldogs are generally healthy and strong animals. Thanks to their physical activity and fitness they are quite capable of living much longer than other types of breeds. Their lifespan is somewhere between 10 to 16 years. There are not common types of illnesses which can affect the entire breed, but there are certain types which these dogs are known to suffer from.


4 Months Old American Bulldog Puppy

They include  neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis,  Ichthyosis,  ACL tears, disorders of the kidney and thyroid,  elbow dysplasia, cherry eye,  ectropion,  entropion and bone cancer, but these are all more commonly known to affect all types of Bulldogs.

But there are blood test which owners can do so you can cure most of the illnesses early on before they become much more serious.

Grooming & Shedding

American Bulldogs are known for being moderate shedders. They do shed moderately throughout the year, but do not create a big mess thanks to their short coat of hair. They do not require extensive grooming and can do with weekly brushing which will keep shedding under control. They also do not require too many baths, mainly depending on the amount they exert energy.

American Bulldog Price and Breeders

Owing an American Bulldog can be quite fun and there are various ways to find one. If you want to buy a puppy you can end up spending up to 2,500 dollars for a quality dog. But there are other ways to get one if you are not willing to spend that much money. There are American bulldog breeders all over America and you can easily find the dog you want.


8 Weeks Old American Bulldog Puppies


Rescuing and adopting an American Bulldog is one of the option for you. Luckily there are many shelters where you can do that all over America. You can start with American Bulldog Rescue and start from there and see what kind of offer they have.