I met an AmStaff for the first time last Tuesday. I have seen many, but never had contact with them. I've had Dobermanns and worked German Shepperds also, but not PitBulls (To me AmStaff=PitBull, I may be wrong).
This dog is owned by a couple who has no idea about dog training. The dog is 5 years old. They're having trouble when they leave the dog in the house.
They came to our club asking for help. We told them it was separation anxiety. That they should buy a large crate for the dog. Also told them they should play more with the dog and exercise it.
I can tell you I was impressed with this dog. I have never seen anything like that. The prey drive was unextinguisable (I don't know if that word exists, but you know what I mean)
I was playing with the dog for about two hours. His prey drive was extreme and would not decrease as would happen even with a good working dog. From 0 to 100, I would say a working GSD or Malinois may have a 70 to 90 level. This dog had a 1,000 level. You had to see it to believe it.
It was an excellent dog. Very self confident. Easy going, very athletic... I can only say goog words about that dog.
I don't know how good it would be for SchH, but the amount of prey would be a very big help.
To those of you who know the breed, I have one question please: Are we right when we tell the owner to play tug with his dog? We play tug with our GSDs and other breeds all the time. Is this a good idea with a PitBull? or should they do something else?.
Thanks in advance.
Pedro.

No matter what people say, the Amstaff is a pit. Some of them will be fine playing tug, I would assume that since you played with this one for so long it should be good. Every once in a while there is one that can get pretty pissy about not winning. Fortunately most enjoy the game.

Thanks for your reply. I also think it should be fine. The dog really enjoyes the game, and outs on his owner's command. I didn't mean to play for so long. I tried to quit, but since the owners were there asking more and more questions and the dog was running free inside our fenced area, he kept asking for more. You should have seen that dog. Too bad so many of these dogs end up in the wrong hands. And with a dog like that, wrong hands mean big trouble.

If I lived out in the forest I would surely own at least one of those. In a urban area, with BSL like we have, and many owners not keeping their dogs on leash, it is a real hassle.

Regards,
Pedro.

Thats a great experience you posted, my female is like that as well...hmmmm with the exception of the out command. She is more of a chase me I got the toy kinda girl!!!! Her play drive is unquenchable....an Am Staff is a Pit Bull. The Pit Bull breeds are American Pit Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Bull Terrier and American Staffordshire. They are wonderful dogs but require a lot of attention. My male which is an APBT is not as interested in playing as he is exploring and chasing things...cats, small prey. For some reason he tires of play or maybe gets bored...not sure. I also agree with you that these dogs need to be in rural environments....something I will seek as soon as I am able as I would like to have more space for mine to roam some day.

I feel that playing straight tug-of-war with a pit-type dog is absolutely dangerous. (That's what spring poles are made for.)

If they are to play tug, it should be drive work - not just straight tugging. If this is not possible, a spring pole is ideal. Some communities don't allow spring poles, but they do provide excellent exercise! One overweight rescue pit we had lost 20 pounds in 3 months with a quality (kibble) diet and 5 - 10 minutes on the spring pole each day.

The Amstaff is the "AKC version" of the APBT. The AKC changed the breed standard late last year to focus more on larger size, conformation and coloration rather than purpose, health, and stable temperament. I predict that the Amstaff will become very different from the APBT very quickly.

Try and find any working AM staffs <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> UKC and AKC did this relation to the APBT in, a long time ago. ADBA is lone bastion of a real breed association for them.

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I predict that the Amstaff will become very different from the APBT very quickly.

That happened about 30yrs ago! So now they want to attempt even more damage, Wow, they're really trying to butcher this hog huh? LOL!!
Although they started from the same bloodlines the Colby (which is absolute crap today) AKC through years of selective breeding have succeeded in taking a breed that has phenominal health, and bred correct temperments out of them, and HD is showing up in AmStaffs, that is unheard of in your lines maintained through registries like ADBA. They have allergy problems, and are developing more problems everyday. They have developed cancer at an alarming rate, meanwhile the old school APBT lines are still very healthy. Yeah, thats the good old AKC (American Kennel Crap)

Brad -

That was my understanding as well (UKC,AKC and ADBA), have you had any exposure to the Staffie Bull Terrier. Friends of ours got one about 5 months ago, what a wonderful dog. So Beautiful. Their dog looks like a famous SBT CH Riverdale Major Payne,Westminister Kennel Club "Best of Breed", Multi Group and NS Winner. I just can't believe how small and compact they are. Do you know anything about them?

Val

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 Quote:

I predict that the Amstaff will become very different from the APBT very quickly.

That happened about 30yrs ago! So now they want to attempt even more damage, Wow, they're really trying to butcher this hog huh? LOL!!
Although they started from the same bloodlines the Colby (which is absolute crap today) AKC through years of selective breeding have succeeded in taking a breed that has phenominal health, and bred correct temperments out of them, and HD is showing up in AmStaffs, that is unheard of in your lines maintained through registries like ADBA. They have allergy problems, and are developing more problems everyday. They have developed cancer at an alarming rate, meanwhile the old school APBT lines are still very healthy. Yeah, thats the good old AKC (American Kennel Crap)

Chris -

I just have to say "You Are So RIGHT ON!!!!!" Good post!!!

Val

Hi,
I own APBTs and ASTs. I basically consider them the same breed, but different varieties. The lineage is very different. Basically the temperament is the same, but the structure is different. The APBTs can be a little more dog agressive, but not necessarily.
Regarding some of the posts, I have been reading on this forum, not just this post. Here is my perspective:
-There are Amstaffs that are good working prospects.
-No, the AKC Amstaff standard did not recently change.
-Yes, both Amstaffs and pits have health problems (heart/hips), but not nearly as many health problems as shepherds, dobes or boxers.
-Yes, it is OK to play tug with pits or staffs, but just like any powerful breed, they need boundaries and obedience.
- Maybe people need to have a license and a background check to own a pit or staff, but if they do that, they need to do it with every breed of dog over 35 pounds.
-Pitbulls/amstaffs temperament is no different than other breed, other than the dog aggression. In fact, I have been around working dogs for close to 18 years, and the pits seems to have more stable temperament than most.
-
These are just a few points, I want to make, since reading some of the posts on this forum. Just to give a little background. I have titled both Amstaffs and pit bulls in Schutzhund, UKC Obedience, Conformation and weightpull. I have owned this breed for over 20 years.