American Staffordshire Terrier

The American Staffordshire Terrier, or AmStaff, is a medium-sized, short-coated dog from the United States. It shares its ancestry, temperament and size with the American Pit Bull Terrier, though it is usually the stockier of the two. It is a different breed from the Staffordshire Bull Terrier of the United Kingdom.

History

The breed goes back to the bull-and-terrier dogs of the British Isles, a type now extinct. Some of them reached America as early as 1850. The United Kennel Club recognized these dogs as the American Pit Bull Terrier in 1898.

In 1936 the American Kennel Club accepted the breed under another name, the Staffordshire Terrier, and entered some dogs in its stud book. The name rested on the claim that the breed’s ancestors came from Staffordshire in England, an idea prompted by the British Kennel Club’s recognition of the related Staffordshire Bull Terrier in 1935. On January 1, 1969, the AKC changed the name to American Staffordshire Terrier to set it apart from the British breed.

The AKC stud book was opened to UKC-registered American Pit Bull Terriers a few more times until the 1970s. Since then both parents have had to be AKC-registered. Breeding to a conformation standard over several decades has made the AmStaff a noticeably different dog from the American Pit Bull Terrier. The UKC does not recognize it separately and registers AmStaffs as American Pit Bull Terriers.

Appearance

The AKC standard asks for a dog that gives an impression of great strength for its size: stocky and muscular, yet agile and graceful, and not long-legged. The head is of medium length with a broad skull, a distinct stop and strongly muscled cheeks. The ears are set high and may be cropped or left natural, with natural ears preferred. The nose is always black.

The preferred height at the shoulder is about 46 to 48 cm (18 to 19 in) for males and 43 to 46 cm (17 to 18 in) for females, with weight in proportion; dogs weigh roughly 18 to 32 kg (40 to 70 lb). Many coat colors are accepted. Liver, black and tan, and coats that are more than 80 percent white are discouraged.

Temperament

The AKC describes the breed as confident, smart and good-natured, a loyal companion when responsibly bred and well socialized. The American breed club points out that aggression toward other dogs can appear even in well-socialized AmStaffs, and says they should not be left alone with other dogs.

Care and health

A 2024 study in the United Kingdom put the breed’s life expectancy at 12.5 years, close to the 12.7-year average for purebred dogs.

The AmStaff is predisposed to allergic skin disease and to demodicosis. A North American study of hip and elbow scans found hip dysplasia in 24.4 percent of the breed and elbow dysplasia in 16.1 percent.

The breed is often covered by laws aimed at pit bull-type dogs, which range from conditions on ownership to outright bans.

Facts on this page were checked against Wikipedia and may have changed since.