The English bull terrier is a very sweet and special dog, his appearance is certainly unique. If you are considering adopting a dog of this wonderful breed, the truth is that you should be well informed in order to achieve a stable, sociable and happy adult dog in the future.
In this AnimalWised article we will show you what the usual behavior of an English bull terrier is and what would be the best tips for training them. Remember that educating a dog in general is not as simple as it seems. It is necessary to have a good dose of patience, in addition to sufficient knowledge to be able to respond to the challenges that may arise. With the bull terrier the challenges are even greater.
Keep reading and discover how to train an English bull terrier:
What is the origin of the English bull terrier?
Logically, any breed of dog has the behavior basis of Canis lupus familiaris. It is a social animal that needs to live in a group, but has been tamed by man.
The English bull terrier dog was sadly educated as a prey dog, both agile and fast. It has been used to hold cattle for different livestock tasks (unfortunately it has also been used as a fighting dog and other shows). This selection has given rise to a very corpulent dog, of great physical strength, very brave and tenacious, also with a natural tendency to block the bite, that is to say, that when it bites, it has a high probability of maintaining the bite for a long time.
Later, due to its great acceptance as a companion animal and not as a work animal, breeders have tried to sweeten this initial behavior somewhat, based on a working dog. This new facet of the bull terrier has meant that it barely maintains its old ferocity, but still maintains some of its characteristics, which made it a highly valued dog.
What is the behavior of today's English bull terrier?
He is still a dog with a prey base and with great personality This means that the average profile of this breed would be: dominant with other dogs and with the owner, with a medium tendency to guard, relatively unaffected with the family, little barker in general, very little sociable with strangers, with a medium tolerance with children and with poor response to training
You must bear in mind that there is great variability between individuals and that you can find specimens that do not comply with what is described above at all. Don't forget that an excellent way to prevent dominance in adult dogs is sterilization, which has a wide range of advantages.
How to train an English bull terrier?
This is a good question, with a complex answer. When adopting a dog you have to take into account the characteristics of the breed and if its associated characteristics adapt to our way of life, such as family, free time, hours of work or economic situation. Not all breeds adapt equally. And you also have to keep in mind that there are no magic tricks when it comes to training a dog.
Once we are sure that the English bull terrier is our ideal dog, the first thing to do is to make sure that the dog is well socialized. This implies that part of the socialization period is with the mother and with the litter of siblings and the other part with the new owners. It is advisable to adopt the puppy dog, with about 6 to 8 weeks of age. You will have to introduce him to many people, pets and objects so that in the future behaves friendly and positive with his surroundings.
From this moment you have to start the training of the puppy. You have to know your site and meal times. From the moment you put him to eat, you have to practice putting your hand in it and offering and removing his toys, all family members. You also have to get used to being alone, to avoid separation anxiety problems and destructive behaviors.
The second thing is to try to educate from reward and congratulations, avoiding punishment. This starts from the moment the dog begins to relieve himself on the street. If you want the animal to acquire a behavior, reward it immediately, ignoring the behaviors to be avoided. In other words, every time he pees in the street, he will immediately be given a small prize and when he pees at home, the behavior will be ignored.
It is not an easy task, because this breed does not usually respond to training like others. It is a breed that will need a little more patience on the part of the owner, but that can acquire the basic orders of obedience. You can start from 6 months of age (although this date is indicative, because not all dogs respond the same), with rules such as sit, come or here, walk close to the owner, etc.
To do this, the order will be given, the associated gesture is made (order and gesture will always be the same), they are taught to execute it (for example, sit down, leaning on the hip) and they are rewards. This sequence will be repeated until the dog executes it alone. Also keep in mind that the learning sessions have to be short, being 5 minutes at the beginning and never exceeding 20 minutes.
Exercise and walks of the English bull terrier
Every dog must do daily exercise, adapted to his age and breed. Many behavioral problems would be avoided with a good walk and a good session of games. A puppy has to go out for walks very frequently, more or less twice as much as an adult (3 times a day is recommended for adults). Each output will be about 15 minutes and one of them will be from 1 hour to an hour and a half.
Learn more about dog walking and give your new best friend a good dose of activity to keep him happy, calm and obedient.
