The standard opens with a general description of a positive and charismatic dog. The Bull Terrier should be the maximum dog in the available space; a dense, substantial animal, but with balance and agility. He should give the impression of strength, energy and quickness. The expression should reflect these body projections; a positive, glinting, intelligent eye set in a triangular opening which produces a "varminty" outlook. Temperament is paramount in a Bull Terrier. He must be outgoing, friendly, interested in his surroundings and on his toes, but NEVER bad tempered or shy.
The HEAD should be long, strong and deep right to the muzzle, but not coarse. Full face it should be oval in outline and be filled completely up, giving the impression of i.e. egg shaped. In profile it should curve gently downwards from the top of the skull to the tip of the nose. The forehead should be flat across from ear to ear. The distance from the tip of the nose to the eyes should be perceptibly greater than that from the eyes to the tope of the skull. The underjaw should be deep and well-defined.
The TEETH should meet in either a level or a scissors bite. In the scissors bite the upper teeth should fit in front of and closely against the lower teeth and they should be sound, strong and perfectly regular. The EARS should be small, strong and thin and placed close together. They should be capable of being held stiffly erect, when they should point upwards.
The EYES should be well-sunken and as dark as possible, with a piercing glint and they should be small, triangular and obliquely placed; set near together and high up on the dog's head. Blue eyes are a disqualification. The NOSE should be black, with well-developed nostrils bent downward at the tip.
The expression is a key feature of the Bull Terrier. Together with the dense, muscular, shapely body and correctly shaped head, the "varminty" look is responsible for making the dog a BULL TERRIER and not just a strong, chunky dog. The eye openings should be slanted and triangular, set relatively high in the head, with a dark, keen eye. The ears add to the alert expression and should be close together and pointing upwards. A Bull Terrier with donkey ears and a round, "kind" or pale eye loses the intense, alert "varminty" look so valued in the breed.
The teeth have become more of a problem as the profile has become more exaggerated. In order to accommodate a very curved (and therefore somewhat shortened) nose profile, the underjaw has either remained deep, long and broad producing undershot dentition, or become narrow and shortened (pig-jawed) which allows the front incisors to meet in the preferred scissors, but crowds the lower canines inward where they can prevent the mouth from completely closing, and damage or puncture the hard palate above. Premolars are often missing in Bull Terriers as well, possibly as a result of this progressive genetic shortening of the lower jaw to achieve a more exaggerated profile and retain a scissors bite. A deep strong underjaw can be appropriately balanced by a long, wide muzzle with the correct profile to accommodate proper dentition.
The CHEST should be broad when viewed from in front, and there should be great depth from the withers to brisket, so that the latter is nearer the ground than the belly. (The underline from the brisket to the belly should form a graceful upward curve.)
The BODY should be well rounded with a marked spring of rib. The BACK should be short and strong. The back ribs deep. Slightly arched over the loin, The SHOULDERS should be strong and muscular but without heaviness. The shoulder blades should be wide and flat and there should be a very pronounced backward slope from the bottom edge of the blade to the top edge. Behind the shoulders there should be no slackness or dip at the withers.
The overall impression of the Bull Terrier's body should be one of short-backed, wellknit strength with graceful lines. The topline should flow continuously from the base of the ears over a graceful neck, tying smoothly into the level withers and thence back to a slight rise over a muscular loin, finishing in a gentle curve over the croup to a low-set tailhead. The Bull Terrier should be a combination of dense but smooth parts connected by graceful curves. Beware the heavy, ill-made animal who has a long, straight-cut body which lacks the graceful quality of the well-knit athlete. Also beware the individual who lacks substance and spring of rib.
"The LEGS should be big-boned but not to the point of coarseness; the forelegs should be of moderate length, perfectly straight, and the dog must stand firmly upon them. The ELBOWS must turn neither in nor out, and the pasterns should be strong and upright. The HIND LEGS should be parallel viewed from behind. The thighs very muscular with hocks well let down. Hind pasterns short and upright. The stifle joint should be well bent with a well-developed second thigh. The FEET round and compact with well-arched toes like a cat."
The hind legs can reflect the bulldog ancestry by being straight in stifle, lacking a muscular second thigh, and bowing out at the stifle or in at the hocks. Faulty conformation of the hindquarters can be not only an unsightly weakness in a muscular, agile dog, but can be a harbinger of arthritis or joint disease, whereas straight shoulders and crooked front legs are not so pathological. A properly set on, tapered tail carried horizontally gives a finish to the topline which is essential to our visualization of the ideal Bull Terrier. Unfortunately, most of today's dogs have dogs have varying degrees of "gay" tail which brings the lines of an otherwise ideal animal to an abrupt, angular termination. While "gay" tails have not been considered a serious fault, they are often associated with a short pelvis and flat croup which detracts from the finishing lines of this muscular yet gracefully agile dog.
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