What is the difference between a american Staffordshire bull terrier and a pitbull?

Question

I have this dog and i don't know how to tell if is a pit or a Staffordshire.

Answer 1

1st there is no such thing as the

American Staffordshire Bull Terrier.

there are

American Staffordshire Terrier ( Am Staff for short.)

or

Staffordshire Bull Terrier. ( Stafford or Staffy Bull for short)

So my guess is you need info on the Am Staff and the Pit Bull.

Both can be VERY simular but here is some info on them both.

the APBT (American Pit Bull Terrier)  was the only breed to make up the Am Staffs.

when the AKC decided to start the Am Staff breed they used only UKC registered APBT. they did change the name to get away from the fighting history of the breed though.

in 1898 the UKC was formed for the purpose of registering the APBT as a pure breed. this was the 1st breed the UKC did recognize but later they did become a multi breed registry and the 2nd largest and 2nd oldest registry in the USA.

then in 1936 the AKC did also register the APBT but did change the name to Staffordshire Terrier. then later in 1972 changed the name again to American Staffordshire Terrier so they would not get confused with their English cousins the Staffordshire Bull Terrier

from the AKC site

"These dogs began to find their way into America as early as 1870, where they became known as Pit Dog, Pit Bull Terrier, later American Bull Terrier, and still later as Yankee Terrier.

In 1936, they were accepted for registration in the AKC Stud Book as Staffordshire Terriers. The name of the breed was revised effective January 1, 1972 to American Staffordshire Terrier"

as the AKC doesn't recognive the APBT as a pure bred dog they really give little to no mention of them in the history of the breed and no mention of the UKC either.

hope this helps a little bit...

Edit to add:

althought the Am Staff and the American Pit Bull Terrier where the same breed in the begining they are both been bred very differently. orig the Am Staff was bred primarly for shwo and the APBT was for fighting they have become very different.

The UKC does allow the Am Staffs to be registerd as APBT so some people are crossing the 2 lines in UKC. I know of many people that call them Pitter Staffs ( an unoffical name)

The AKC will not allow the APBT to be registered with their registries at this time though.

Also People have been breeding the APBT and AST lower and thicker to make the lowrider type of dogs. Many people believe others breeds may have been added tot he APBT or AST to make this new breed of dog.

They have also started their own registry and they are being called American Bullies.

here are some registry links for you

AKC

http://www.akc.org/index.cfm

UKC

http://www.ukcdogs.com/WebSite.nsf/WebPa...

ABKC

http://www.abkcdogs.org/

Answer 2

the terms are sometimes used interchangeably.   Pitbull is not really a breed but a description of squat, well muscled dogs with short hair.   American Stafforshire bull terrier is a distinct "purebred" in the group generally referreed to as  pitbull  

Answer 3

pit bull is a general name for these breeds:

American Staffordshire Terrier (AmStaff)

http://dogbreedinfo.com/americanstafford...

Staffordshire Bull Terrier (Staffy)

http://dogbreedinfo.com/staffordshirebul...

American Pit Bull terrier (APBT)

http://dogbreedinfo.com/americanpitbull....

there are difference in blood lines. some argue that APBT and AmStaff are the same dog. but they are not. some use the term 'cousins'

and there are differences between all of them. maybe research each breed and figure out which one your dog is

Answer 4

The Pitbul name is used to describe all of those dogs that have those similar breeds the stadfords,Rednose,and blues etc.

Answer 5

they are practically the same. Staffies are usually short and "buff" with pointed ears and pitts are also short but more blocky and usually flappy ears here are picts:

http://www.22dog.com/images2/Staffordshi...

http://www.bonitalakes.org/images/pitbul...

Pittys are GREAT, good choice!!1

Answer 6

I have a huge long explanation for this, but I'll try to keep it simple.

Essentially, there are TWO different breeds, which originated from the same stock.

AKC registers dogs called American Staffordshire Terriers, they are bigger, more muscular, with squarer heads.  They are showing dogs, not working ones.

UKC registers dogs called American Pit Bull Terriers.  These dogs are tall, slender, athletic, with longer, wedgier heads.  They are working dogs.

AmStaff and APBT originated from the same stock, however, when AKC decided to accept the breed into it's registry, it didn't want to have the words "pit bull" associated with it's organization, so they changed the name to Staffordshire Terrier, and later, American Staffordshire Terrier.

Here are some picture references:

AmStaff:

http://www.breederretriever.com/photopos...

http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/dogs/i/a...

http://www.dkimages.com/discover/preview...

APBT:

http://www.realpitbull.com/Lilbit-04-08-...

http://www.freewebs.com/redrumkennels/al...

http://builder.evetsite.com/matrix/servl...

There is also a breed called the American Bully (Sometimes referred to as an APBT, but they are NOT APBTs, they are MIXED BRED dogs (admittedly by Dave Wilson, the man who "created" this breed)  They are SEPARATE from the REAL APBT

American Bully:

http://www.ucadogs.com/images/sol_boy.jp...

http://www.preciouspomsnpersians.com/spi...

http://www.bulldogbreeds.com/breeders/pi...

There is also a few breeds called Staffordshire Bull Terrier and Bull Terrier which some people confuse with other bully breeds as well.

Staffordshire Bull Terrier is a small, power packed mini dog, with round, bulbous heads.  They stand less than 2 feet tall (normally 1- 1.5 feet)

Staffy:

http://www.westminsterkennelclub.org/bre...

http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/dogs/i/s...

http://www.kennels.co.uk/images/Ter.Staf...

Bull Terriers (come in standard and mini sizes) are egg headed shaped dogs, which are compact, but SOLIDLY built.

Bull Terrier:

http://www.breederretriever.com/photopos...

http://www.i-love-dogs.com/dog-breeds/im...

http://www.gotpetsonline.com/pictures-ga...