| Bandog | | | | Alternative names | Bandogge
Swinford | | Country of origin | | United States of America | | Common nicknames | American Mastiff
Swinford Bandog
Swinford K9 | | Classification and breed standards | | Not recognized by any major kennel club | Bandog (also known as Bandogge) is a name derived from early English and refers to a dog that was bound by a chain until it was released at night in order to guard property. The fact that the modern day Bandog is also large, is a guard dog, and is composed of some Mastiff and some Bulldog, as was the original Bandog, is all that the Bandog of old and the modern Bandog have in common. Image File history File links Bandog. ...
Trinomial name Canis lupus familiaris The dog (Canis lupus familiaris) is a domestic subspecies of the wolf, a mammal of the Canidae family of the order Carnivora. ...
Mastiffs are a group of large, solidly built breeds of dogs typically with heavy bones, pendant ears, a relatively short and well-muscled neck, and a short muzzle. ...
For other uses, see Bulldog (disambiguation). ...
History of the bandog
Most writers are of the opinion that all dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) originated from the wolf (Canis lupus); however, the exact development of the original Bandogs still remains a mystery. Although, it is impossible to say exactly how the Bandog originated, it is certain the original Bandogs were bred with a functional purpose, as were all working breeds, and for the Bandog this purpose revolved around guarding and protecting. [citation needed]
Early incarnations of the Bandog probably had bloodlines from bull baiting dogs and the Guardian Mastiffs or the cross of both like the war dogs used in the Crusades. Bull-baiting is a blood sport involving the baiting of bulls. ...
This article is about the medieval crusades. ...
William Harrison, in his description of England during 1586, first mentions the breed in his statement, "Bandogge which is a huge dog, stubborn, uglier, eager, burthenouse of bodie, terrible and fearful to behold and often more fierce and fell than any Archadian or Corsican cur." It is assumed that the word "Bandogge" originated from the use of strong bonds and chains to secure the dogs.[citation needed] For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...
1586 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. ...
In 1576, Dr. Caius states that, among others characteristics, the "Mastiff or Bandogge is serviceable against the fox and the badger, to drive wild and tame swine out of meadows, and pastures, to bite and take the bull by the ears, when occasion so required."[citation needed]
The Bandogs of old were strictly working dogs, often of various crosses and various sizes. Usually these dogs were coarse-haired hunters, fighters and property protectors without a strictly set type, developed from eastern shepherds and mastiffs crossed with western Bullenbeissers and hounds, with a few local bloodlines eventually being established as specific types in some regions, such as Britain, Spain, Germany, Poland and elsewhere in Europe. One of the most famous Bandog programs in England led to the establishment of a recognized breed, the Bullmastiff. For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ...
Modern Breed Description When describing Bandogs, it should be noted there have been many variations of such programs under a variety of names, but the breed commonly accepted as the Bandog today was developed in the 1960's by American veterinarian John Swinford, who set out to create a guardian dog superior to all others. Though many breeders of Bandogs today disagree on just what breeds went into Swinford's original breeding scheme, it has been proven that the basis of his program was largely derived from 50% American Pit Bull Terrier and 50% English Mastiff. Unfortunately, Swinford died in October of 1971 at an early age and his version of the Bandog, although very successful, was never perfected or recognized as a purebred during Swinford's time. Eventually, all the original Swinford dogs died out. Approximately 25 years later Swinford's work was recreated by Animal Sciences graduate student from the University of Illinois, H. Lee Robinson, M.S. Look up veterinarian in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
The American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT) is a breed of dog in the terrier group, one of several breeds loosely classified as pit bulls. ...
The English Mastiff, often called simply Mastiff, is a large breed of dog of the general mastiff or Molosser type. ...
After studying John Swinford's work extensively and uniting with a few other dedicated breeders, Robinson formed the Swinford Sporting Dog Association (SSDA), which is a breed specific registry focused on developing and preserving the Swinford canine as a truly functional family companion guardian. Today, this registry is known as the Swinford Sporting Dog Association (SSDA). Working off the original "Swinford Bandog" standard, the SSDA has since developed a detailed standard for the "Swinford" breed and only registers dogs that are able to meet three levels of breed specific requirements. First, the dogs must be from accepted breed origin. Second, the dogs must be within the physical and temperamental guidelines described within the official Swinford Breed Standard adopted by the SSDA. Third, and most importantly, the dogs must be worked in performance measures and found suitable for protection canine work.
It is accepted by the SSDA that the development of every working breed created in history was done so by working or testing a dogs towards a given task. For this reason, the SSDA uses a different designation towards the dogs that pass the breed specific tests. In the SSDA, acceptable Bandogs are not referred to as Bandogs, but instead they are referred to as "Swinfords" in recognition of John Swinford's contribution. Another justification the SSDA uses for designating their dogs differently from other Bandog programs is the SSDA believes not all Bandog programs use performance selection and therefore believes that not all Bandog programs are equal and should not be referred to with a generic "Bandog" name. In addition, it is the belief of the SSDA that a guard dog should not require a heavy handed master, but should be somewhat naturally submissive to its family and so stable minded that it never shows any form of aggression or redirecting towards its family. It should be noted that a few kennels have moved onto producing several multi-generation SSDA accepted offspring of working specimens. With proper selection the dogs are proving to breed true as performance family guardians. Recently, great strides have been taken to further the success of these fine dogs.
Another notable developer of working class Bandogs is Joe Lucero. Lucero refers to his dogs as American Bandogge Mastiff. There are other bandog strains in existence under different names, but the Swinford and Lucero lines are the most famous celebrated for their stable temperaments and outstanding working qualities. Many people believe these dogs to be the perfect protection and working class guard dogs.
Many programs have used American Pit Bull Terrier (American Staffordshire Terrier) and Neapolitan Mastiff crosses, as has been the case with the Lucero program. Other programs, such as the Swinford program, developed primarily founded upon American Pit Bull Terrier and English Mastiff crosses. A few programs have also used other bully type breeds as well as other mastiff type breeds. Regardless however of which program a breeder selected, if they were breeding dogs true to guarding purposes it has been essential to select dogs suitable for such work. Dogs were bred from strains that have temperament, phenotype, to do home guardian or personal protection. The Bandog is a rugged dog, heavily boned and muscled, intimidating when seen and is ferocious when provoked. The Bandog, any variety, is strictly a working breed and should be a result of serious and dedicated planning, starting from careful selection of parent breeds and more importantly, appropriate representatives of those breeds, with the health and temperament testing being on the top of the list of priorities, while the uniformity in appearance is the last of the breeders' concerns. The intention in each case is to combine the courage and tenacity of an American Pit Bull Terrier with the large size and guarding instinct of a Mastiff. The American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT) is a breed of dog in the terrier group, one of several breeds loosely classified as pit bulls. ...
Broad skull, strong muzzle that is medium to long muzzle depending on the strain, wide shoulder, powerful chest, great agility, intelligence and very well controlled dog.
Future The hope is that the breeding of these dogs will finally be perfected; however, the Bandog is being bred by many breeders who range from the very serious and knowledgeable to the very amateurish and inexperienced, sometimes called backyard breeders. Like with all dogs, the Bandog can display either the best or the worst characteristics of the parents (or the parent breeds), depending on the knowledge of the breeder and the randomness of genetics. Therefore, a purchaser of a Bandog must do a good deal of investigation to avoid the risk of buying a puppy from a breeder that doesn't understand the necessity of proper selection. A backyard breeder is a person who practices random or ignorant dog breeding on a small scale. ...
Appearance It should be noted that appearance is of least concern to serious bandog breeders, as the purpose of such dogs is first and foremost function. It should also be noted that not all groups currently agree on a universal standard. While some breeders share a general standard, the SSDA has kept their standard for the Swinford type dogs private and for this reason the general standard seen below will vary significantly from their adopted version.
Size: Males and females: Height: 25" or greater. Weight: 100 lbs or greater.
Drives: Natural guardian ability is required. The dog should display prey drive with enthusiasm. Defensive drive should be bold and confident when stimulated. Weakness in any form should be selected against.
Specials characteristic: Effectionate with the family, intelligent, loyal and devoted to their master.
Temperament: Effectionate, loving, and submissive to the master and family (including children), yet fearless adversary to anyone who threatens the Bandog's master or property. Although accepting to welcomed guests, the Bandog should present a guarding disposition towards visitors if his master is not at present.
Disposition: The Bandog protects their master against any danger, even to give their own life to protect him.
Body: Large, but compact. Powerful, but agile. Should represent an athlete.
Color: Different mixes of colors are acceptable, but most common colors are: any brindle color, black, golden fawn, fawn and red. Other colors are allowed too, as is red and black on their noses. Large amounts of white has been frowned upon by some programs due to its lack of being a natural color, inability to camouflage the dog well, and because it is often associated with various genetic defects.
Coat: Short, close and medium fine.
Ears: Cropped or natural.
Neck: Very strong, muscular and robust.
Eyes: Dark preferable, but should bear some relation to coat color.
Tail: Docked or natural.
Faults: Failure to be worked, failure to work successfully, producer of genetic problems in pups, poor immune system, affected by hip and elbow dysplasia. Excessively undershot.
Foundation Breeding What is reported here is just an estimated expected average range of various foundations breeds commonly seen in various Bandog programs.
The Primary Group , approximate average of 25-75% from American Pit Bull Terrier and/or American Staffordshire Terrier. The American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT) is a breed of dog in the terrier group, one of several breeds loosely classified as pit bulls. ...
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The Secondary Group ,approximate average of 25-75% from Mastiff and/or Neapolitan Mastiff. Mastiffs are a group of large, solidly built breeds of dogs typically with heavy bones, pendant ears, a relatively short and well-muscled neck, and a short muzzle. ...
The Neapolitan Mastiff is a large, ancient breed of dog that can be traced back to about 100 BC. This dog is a massive breed often used as a guard and defender of owner and property. ...
A Tertiary Group (used in some programs) approximate average of 0-75%: American Bulldog, Boerboel, Bullmastiff, Bulldog Campeiro, Bull Terrier, Cane Corso, Dogue de Bordeaux, Fila Brasileiro, Great Dane, Perro de Presa Canario, and/or the Tosa Inu. The American Bulldog is a breed of working dog developed for catching livestock and for protecting property. ...
The Boerboel is a large working molosser type breed of dog from South Africa. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
This article does not cite any references or sources. ...
The Cane Corso is an Italian breed of dog used mainly as a guard dog. ...
This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ...
The Fila Brasileiro (or Brazilian Mastiff) is a large working breed of dog developed in Brazil. ...
The Great Dane is a breed of dog known for its giant size and gentle personality. ...
The Perro de Presa Canario is a Molosser type dog from the Canary Islands. ...
Tosa Inu Country of origin Japan Classification and breed standards The Tosa Inu is an AKC-recognized canine breed of Japanese origin that is considered rare. ...
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