Non Breed Standard

Hi all,

During my time ive seen a large number of Staffordshire Bull Terriers and whilst i cant say i am drawn towards the show standard (short legs and stocky) i have seen several recently which appear to have longer legs in addition to having a noticeably larger frame.

Is anyone familiar with a KC breeder whose dogs resemble this more 'working' (for lack of a better word) apperance?

I'm afraid im not aware of many breeders in general, but have seen many dogs with the looks that you're describing in rescue centres waiting for a home

Thanks Rachel33,

I was looking at getting a lovely guy from a resuce centre and i would have were it not for the kids, part of the reason im looking at a staffy is the affection they show towards children.

Seeing as im specifically looking for a larger & taller dog i wanted to be able to see the puppy and it's papers when it was young to ensure im not getting a Staffy crossed with a larger dog to add muscle.

I'm involved in rescue too. Depending on how old your kids are, you could well find a lovely dog that can be rehomed to a family. We have two slightly bigger staffie crosses in at the moment, both of which have an age guide for kids of 8+, for example, and two average sized boys with an age guide of 6+.

If you're looking for a bigger dog, it's unlikely that you'll get one with papers as they are going to be crossed somewhere to get that extra height. If you are keen to have/avoid a certain build in the adult dog, you might be better off looking for that dog already grown as it can be very hard to tell what a cross breed puppy will actually turn out to be a year or two down the line.

Hope that helps

Hi ya Alex, welcome to the forum from Flo and me

I'm don't work at a rescue centre but do agree with Liz above. Most of the pedigree Staffies I've seen aren't tall really, chunky yes but not what I would call tall. If you did find a breeder that does specialise in tall Staffs then I agree that there will most likely be some cross in the past and probably won't have KC papers.

You can see all ages in rescue that would give you an idea of what size they would be. Good luck in your search, do let us know how you get on

rescue centres have some cracking looking staffyswith the added bonus of being neutered microchipped wormed deflead and house trained

Millie my girl she is kc reg. she is from an old line of working staffords. shes very lean!. she is from the sparpit lines which were one of the top lines back in the day.
I think i will always have one from working lines as i find them so versatile! i compete her in agility and athletics.

Thanks Katie,

I've always admired the physique of the working group stafford, what sort of height are your dogs at the shoulder?

Do any lines around today spring to mind with regards to quality?

Thanks

Anything with sparpit in my girl has that in, they aren't easily come by these days that line but if you find any they are fab!. The quinlent lines are fab too, also anything with rapparee or betchgreen hope that helps, any info you need just ask!
I love my girls physique!

My girl is 14.5 inches to the withers

My girl is really tall for a staffy, so we aren't convinced she is a full staff. She looks kind of like a greyhound but with staffy muscle and staffy face. She's an absolute beauty though and I am not bothered about having kc papers.

I have a staffy/JRT cross now, which is perfect for us as we wanted a small staffy! But I've seen plenty of the big leggy ones in rescues when we were looking for our girl.

Interesting someone upthread mentioned Rapparee - I had totally forgotten that kennel name but it featured fairly heavily on my last staffy's pedigree. He was the old fashioned sort of staffy though; short.

Rescues wouldn't give you papers even if they had them and for good reason. There are so many staffy and crosses in rescue now I must admit I couldn't in all conscience, get a dog from elsewhere.

Our first staffy (can't recall the kennel name now) came from the Black Country in 1983, and was the proper, old fashioned, tiny sort of staff. Ever since, they have been the ones I love!

Many rescues have dogs in foster care so have full info about temperament and how the dogs are with kids, etc.

the old Rapparee staffords were anything but short! try googling some images eg Rapparee Renegade

LOL, maybe - but mine was a standard, old-fashioned looking staffy. I have no idea where his pedigree is now, but I know there were a lot of Raparees on it - possibly even his dad... (I forget). This is a dog born in 2000, and of course not all dogs are true to their 'type' but just an observation - my dog had that name more than once on his pedigree, and he was, without a shadow of doubt, very similar to my first and super 'old fashioned' staffy, of the 1980s. He came from Birmingham but I can't remember the breeder's kennel name and they weren't well known, themselves so probably went to stud.

most of the staffords from the 79s & 80s were longer on the leg & less 'bulky' than todays staffs, as were the 'original' staffords from the 30s.

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=rapparee+threapwood+handyman&prmd=ivns&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi38sD6rfPKAhVIKpoKHd8JBDcQ_AUIBigB

My girl has a lot of rapparee in her ped, they are leggier, but they are fit for the work they were bred for rapparee renegade is a relative of millies

this is my girl taken today


she is sparpit bred and has rapparee and betchgreen in her ped

My girl is KC registered , she is very tall at 17 1/2 inches at the withers , and 47 lb she's not three yet.