Essay: Uncovering the History and Heritage of the British Bulldog

There is conflicting evidence to the history of the British Bulldog, and its ancestry. What is known is that the British bulldog descended from dogs originally brought to the British Isles by the Romans, and is believed that it descended from the fighting Mastiff breed. It is thought that the dogs are related although the word ‘mastiff’ was used originally as a general term for large dogs.
The first mention of the bulldog is in a poem from 500years ago called “Cocke Lorelles Bote” (Cock Lorell’s Boat) The poem spoofs lower middle class behaviour “Than came one wt two bolddogges at his tayle / and that was a bocher without fayle” (1) It was basically saying the bulldog accompanied the butcher and were kept on a chain, and at night released to patrol the properties. The bulldog was also mentioned in a Shakespearean play King Henry VI, Part II.
The bulldog was originally used to help butchers and farmers to control their livestock, they were bred so that they were aggressive, which meant they could help catch horses, cattle and boar, and the farmers could use them to herd the animals. Due to the aggressive nature of the Bulldog its main purpose then became in the sport of bull baiting. Bull baiting was a popular spectator sport, crowds would gather to watch and would wager on the outcome of the different fights. The bull would be tethered to an iron stake and the bulldogs would be trained to attack the bull’s nose, pulling the bull to the ground by its nose ring and shake it whilst the bull would try to toss the dog into the air and with its horns. Although seen as a barbaric sport, bull baiting was said to have a purpose, by tenderizing the bull’s meat by thinning the blood of the bull which would make the meat tender after it was butchered. In many areas of England there were laws saying that bulls needed to be baited before they were slaughtered.
The popularity of bull baiting saw a demand grow for the fighting dogs. The bulldog was courageous, ferocious and strong and was an ideal dog for this sport. The bulldogs appearance was different to the bulldog of today, they were taller and heavier and the early description “A physical description of the bulldog appeared in the 1800 Cynographia Britannica, a text providing images and descriptions of various dog breeds. The description of the bulldog mentioned its round head, short nose, small ears and wide, muscular frame and legs.” (2) The other characteristics that made then adept at this sport was the shorter front legs which meant they could crawl on their bellies, this made it harder for the bull to get its horn under them. They had wide mouths and powerful jaws so they could lock onto the bull’s nose and bull couldn’t shake them off. The bulldog’s short flat nose along with the lower jaw sticking out further that their upper jaw meant that they could still breathe whilst holding on to the bull’s nose. The bulldog’s weight shifted towards its head, this reduced the chance of the bulldog’s back snapping when the bull tried to shake the bulldog off his nose. The bulldog’s high pain threshold was developed so that they could excel in the sport; they even say the wrinkles on the forehead were developed to direct blood away from the bulldog’s eyes so that they wouldn’t be blinded.
The sport of bull baiting continued until the 1800’s when bull baiting was made illegal in 1802 under the Cruelty to animals act and finally outlawed 33years later in 1835. It was at this time that many people thought that the breed would disappear as there was no purpose for the bulldog and it would not make an affectionate companion. Many people though admired the bulldog’s characteristics and they decided to save the bulldog’s appearance by breeding out the aggression and breeding in a much more gentle temperament. This breeding process took place, and breeders would select the dogs with the correct temperament to breed and slowly the aggressive temperament was removed and the bulldog became gentle and affectionate which is what we know today.
It was at this time that it started to become popular to show dogs, it was in 1860 in Birmingham that the first bulldog was allowed to be shown, “In 1861, a Bulldog named King Dick won at the Birmingham show. One of his descendants, a dog named Crib, was later described as being “close to perfection.” (3) The first bulldog club that was formed and wrote the first breed standard was disbanded after only 3 years. In 1875 a bulldog club “ http://www.bulldoginc.co.uk/” was founded and this club developed the breed standard and, the club still exists today.