History of the Olde English Bulldogge
The Truth about the Olde English Bulldogge The Olde English Bulldogge is a recreation of the original 18th century Bulldog "The Butchers dog". Throughout history different people have made attempts at recreating the bulldogs of olde days. Today there are many bloodlines of the breed we know as the Olde English Bulldogge. One particular individual by the name of David Leavitt was recognized in a book called The World of Fighting dogs, as having created the first dog of this kind and naming the breed "Olde Bulldogge", and later "Olde English Bulldogge". Although researching history will show that there were many others doing basically the same type of breedings, it was Leavitt who is credited for naming the breed. In the book written by Dr. Carl Semenic, Leavitt's recipe for his creation was published, along with several pictures of his dogs. The book listed the breeding of these dogs as being one half English Bulldog, one sixth American Pit Bull Terrier, one sixth American Pit Bulldog (which later became known as the American Bulldog) and one sixth Bull Mastiff. Leavitt's dogs were first registered with ARF, later Leavitt began his own registry so he could have more control over his bloodline. But then, he stopped raising dogs all together. Today Leavitt is back hard at work with his dogs, now and forever known as Leavitt Bulldogs. Around the same time Leavitt was coming public with his dogs in the early 70's, various other breeders were coming public as well and later even more breeders came out with their own alternative Bulldog recreations. Most all of theses dogs were developed to reflect a certain time period in the past history of the Bulldog breed. Many of these new Olde Engish Bulldogges possesed the great qualities of their ancient ancestors. Today the most important goal that all Olde English Bulldogge breeders should have in mind, is the health and functionality of the dogs they produce. That is what sets the OEB breed apart from todays modern Bulldog!! Within the Olde English Bulldogge breed, there are numerous bloodlines, each possessing unique characteristics representative of the particular line from which they decend. Quality health, Sound Temerment, Strength, Stamina, Ability, Functionality and Form all describe the Olde English Bulldogge. The original "Olde English Bulldogge" originated in England between 1600 and 1700. These were the early ancestors to many of the Bull breeds that exist today including the English Bulldog and the American Bulldog. They were bred to participate in blood sports like bull baiting. This so called sport, became quite popular in England through out the middle of the 18th Century. Bull baiting primarily consisted of staking out a bull and allowing several Bulldogges to attack it. A dog of great courage and agility was needed for bull baiting. This dog was of medium size; larger dogs were considered to be the result of mastiff crosses. Around 1835, laws were passed in England prohibiting bull baiting and the Olde English Bulldogges main purpose of existence vanished. Within a decade the numbers of bulldogs declined drastically almost to extinction. Dog show fanciers eventually decided to reconstruct the breed, but wanted to tone down the aggressive temperament of the original Olde English Bulldogge. They crossed the remnants of the existing stock with the pug and over the years that followed they developed the modern English Bulldog. Unfortunately though, this modern dog is wrought with all kinds of genetic health problems. The modern Olde English Bulldogge is a reconstruction of the original Olde Bulldogge from the 16th through 19th century. Various genetic crosses have been used in carefully and thoughtfully planned breeding programs to obtain each breeder's goals. The foundation of most of today's Olde English Bulldogges can be traced to English Bulldog, American Bulldog, and a variety of Mastiff bloodlines, as well as APBT's. The foundation dogs were used very selectively in various combinations to obtain the desired physical and mental traits of the original Olde English Bulldogge. The result has been a good looking Bulldogge of great athletic ability that is much healthier and physically fit and without most or all of the problems that plague today's modern English Bulldogs. The goal of all Olde English Bulldogge breeders should be to produce genetically healthier Bulldogges that are free breathers, free breeders, and free whelpers and who are physically capable of nearly any activity of any other breed of dog.
