"Blue Paul's Stafford Times" A Staffordshire Bull Terrier Community

Welcome To The Blue Paul Times.

We are a Staffordshire Bull Terrier Breeder, and although, this the official Website of Blue Paul Staffordshire Bull Terriers. The Vision for the site, was to be a place to get Staffordshire Bull Terrier information. But as we built the site we decided to make it into a community for all Stafford, bull breed and terrier enthusiasts. Where individuals can network, use the forums, one of which is the Staffordshire Bull Terrier forums, write articles for our three blogs, and use our sites many function.

The site is open to anyone as an educational tool but certain areas require Membership, which is free. In registering we do not ask for any personal information except your email address. We won't even know your name, unless you volunteer it through your Profile page.

In addition to the forums and blogs, we also provide our Members with a links page where Breeders can link to their sites, and a puppy calendar for breeders to list upcoming litters. In the forums there are sections for Staffs, Bull Breeds and Terriers, a place to advertise your products, and a trading post, and a tutorial section, among other categories. We also extend to our Members whether, breeders, show people or pet owners photo galleries to show off their Staffs. We hope to get the best and brightest minds in the world of dogs to write articles for our blogs.

The advertising ideas came about because we would have like to have had a community like this back when we bred in the 90's. I can remember running ads in the Dog World, Dog Fancy, Staff Status and the two local papers would cost hundreds of dollars a month. For as little information as:

Blue Paul Staffordshire bull Terriers,

AKC/UKC registered, expecting a litter of

black brindle and blue Staffordshire Bull puppies

00/00/00. Ohio, Contact: Christian @ xxx-xxx-xxxx

Enjoy the site, and don't forget to register.

Blue Paul Staffords

Blue Paul is a small family run kennel. After about five years of writing experts around the globe, and doing pedigree research looking for lines that carried the recessive blue dilution gene. Our research showed that all of the blues that we could in pedigrees, all had one dog in common, Betchgreen Dubber. We contacted Dennis Flynn of Blue Steel Staffords and bought our first Staff 1993, with Dennis' help we purchased two more Staffs from Barbara Law of Scotstaff Staffords with breeding similar to the first, down from Betchgreen Dubber, and in 1996 bred our first litter.

With God and the luck of recessive genetics we produced a few litters, some with blues, over the next few years. We also imported four Staffs from June Cook with Tara Boyle of Ebonystaff Kennels in Texas. We were also able to acquire, from renown American Bulldog judge and breeder, Don Matthews, two imported KC registered Staffs, a brindle male that carried for blue, and his blue sister from the internationally known Irish Staff breeder S.K. Barker- and by the way you should pick up his book on Staffs. We also imported a Finnish female from Mela Ekman. As fate would have it, the blue female puppy ate a piece of wood and died on Thanksgiving Day. Her brother was stolen and never used. By the time we acquired the Australian dogs and the Finnish female, due to a difference in vision for our dogs and failing health -I have congestive heart failure- I decided to break from the kennel that I was semi-partnered with and retire from breeding. My dogs were all placed with friends and associates except for my original three that lived in the house.

Although, my dreams of having a big kennel were never realized. As an older and wiser man, I realize that I could never physically handle the work entailed in owning ten or twenty dogs and caring for a kennel. But, in all honesty, I am most happy when they are crowding me out of my bed at night, begging scraps from the table and being my son's playmates. So, now all our dogs are our housemates, which will always keep our kennel small and breeding limited.

Why the name "BLUE PAUL?"

THE BLUE

PAUL TERRIER

Not much is actually known about the Blue Paul, except that it was a pit dog from Scotland. It is referred to as the Blue Paul, Blue Paul Terrier, Scottish Blue Paul, Blue Paul Bulldog, and the Blue Poll.

Similar to modern day fighting pitbulls, which are not to be confused with show type APBT or Amstaffs. They were thought to be about 45-50 pounds at pit weight and twenty to twenty-three inches at the withers. This young pitbull is very similar to what a Blue Paul may have looked like color-wise. The adult below is how a fighting dog would have probably looked at pit weight.

They had a powerful build, hard muscle, and no fat with tight skin. They had the trade mark broad bull and terrier head, brick-like with well muscled jaws and cropped ears. The muzzle was short and broad, with large teeth and a scissor bite. As with all bull and terrier breeds, the coat was smooth and the low set tail was carried like a pump handle.

The blue color of the Blue Paul was likely the blue dilute that is seen in Greyhounds and Whippets. The color of the Greyhound below is probably the same as most Blue Pauls. Additionally, the dog below is 27-30"inches and 60-75 pounds, which when you do the math is one third more than the Blue Paul's 45-50 pounds and 20-23" inches. So, to scale they are pretty much the same height and weight.

If you can disregard the bone structure, notice the musculature and fat ratio of the Greyhound and the pit bull above. They are very similar animals.

The Blue Paul also came in brindles of various colors and reds. These reds were called red smuts, which is still a dog term today. A smut is a red dog with a black mask and black hairs sparsely interspersed throughout the red, giving the dog an almost dirty, "smutty" appearance.

So, if there were red smuts then genetically that would mean there were reds, blue tinted fawns and fawn smuts. If a dog is not sable, tan-pointed, saddled or agouti, it must be red to have a mask.

The theories that Paul Jones brought them from abroad, or that they were bred by the Roma (gypsies) for fighting and entertainment. Only supports the theory that the dilute blue genes are indeed from blue sight-hounds, which were everywhere from Africa to Europe by this time and were breeds most often kept by the low and working classes.

Considering that Greyhounds and whippets come in all manner of Irish spotting and pied. It stands to reason, so, did the Blue Paul, but as was the custom of the day, culling for whatever reason was common place. So, unwanted colors like pieds and fawns and dogs with Irish spotting were killed. This generally happens because the breeder believes the color has negative aspect that come it that don't suit their needs. Even though such beliefs are no more than fairy tales is was and is reality.

Even today those who raise show pit-bulls do not like the red nosed livers, and fighting strains do not care for blues, as they feel they are bred to much for color and have lost some of their spark.Within our own breed blues are looked down upon for having bad coats, skin problems, light eyes, pale and dudley noses. I have owned or produced probably twenty blue Staffords, and have seen twice that. I never had a coat or skin problem, light eyes or noses etc...But I did have a black dog that had such bad skin infections it had to be put down.

I once had a well know Stafford judge tell me that blues when bred together tend to lighten up generation to generation, and develop pale and silvery coat with light amber and silver gray eyes. I said, "It sounds like a Weimaraner , kind of a coloring." He said, "Exactly." Well, although Weimarainers coats are genetically blue bb dilute, they are also liver dd dilute. They are called Isabella, Drap, Lilac, double d's, but more correctly they are bbdd blue-livers, which are not uncommon in our breed I had one in a litter once and have seen others. Here is one, not a blue or a blue fawn but a blue liver.

The Blue Paul was renown for its gameness and desire to fight.

With his excellent fighting skills, the Blue Paul was introduced as part of Staffordshire Bull Terrier breeding in the early 19th century and the blue coloring has appeared in Staffords ever since, in particular, the Blue Staffordshire Bull Terrier.It has also appeared in Pitbulls and a bluetick coloration also appears due to inbreeding.

THE LEGEND OF

JOHN PAUL JONES

"I HAVE NOT YET

BEGUN TO FIGHT"

Was this game American

Patriot the father of

"The Modern

Bull Terriers?"

There are several theories behind where the Blue Paul came from and where it got it's name. While the legends abound it's doubtful there will ever be any real evidence to prove one story over another. The most famous and widespread is "the Legend of John Paul." This probably because whether you are from this side of the pond or the other, and believe him to be a Founding Father and Revolutionary War hero, or the other and view him as a infamous pirate and revolutionary... either way he's pretty cool. Everyone loves a hero and who doesn't like pirates?

The famous sea captain was born on the estate of Arbigland near Kirkbean in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, which was also known as Kirkcudbrightshire or the Stewardy, on the southern coast of Scotland, July 6th, 1747.

At age thirteen Paul looked to the seas and never looked back. In his illustrious career he served as a Captain in the Colonial and American navies as well as a Rear Admiral in the I

mperial Russian Navy. As a young seaman his journeys took him around the world to ports of call in Europe, the Mediterranean, Africa, the America's and the Caribbean. So, it is highly probable that Paul did in fact bring the Blue Paul or its foundation stock from abroad, back to his home on the Scottish coast. This legend resonates because Paul is a romantic character, and although, he was not a large man in stature. He definitely had the reputation of being as mean in a fight as a Blue Paul.

Another theory is that the Roma (gypsies) developed the dog around the same area of Scotland that Paul was from. This in no way hurts the Paul legend, and many would say that it reinforces it that the Roma were simply cultivating

Paul's stock.

The third and most likely scenario is that Greyhound and Whippet blood or more likely Greyhound and Whippet Lurcher blood was infused in the fighting dogs around Kirkcudbright. Roma and Irish Travelers were known for always keeping Lurchers. So, it stands to reason this blood and that of their fighting dogs were mixed. It would also explain why Blue Pauls were so much larger than other bull and terriers of the day. Here is a greyhound-terrier Lurcher.

This explanation to me seems most plausible because terriers, pit and baiting dogs, sight hounds and lurchers were all known to be kept by both Roma and working class Irish, Scottish and English. It also does not refute the other t

wo ideas in any way.

Finally, their is the school of thought that believes the breed was called Blue Polls or Blue Polles, meaning literally blue heads.

Christian Counterman

Create Your Badge

The American Patriot

version of John Paul Jones

The British version of the dread

pirate John Paul Jones

The Legal Beagle

Disclaimers and Stuff

Our Thoughts on Bull Breeds

Being bull breed enthusiasts, the Staffordshire Bull Terrier in particular, we have very strong feelings about many of the issues that surround them today. Although, this is a community site where we would like everyone to feel welcome. We feel it is our duty and obligation to promote and protect the welfare of all bullies, no matter the breed. So, no dog fighting or blood sport talk will be allowed in the blogs or forums, this does not include historical or content that does not promote blood sports. We do not consider working dogs, such as catch dogs, hog dogs, going to ground terriers and other hunting activities as blood sport, and huntsmen are always welcome.

We also do not promote, endorse, or welcome puppy mill breeders to the site.

We also do not promote, endorse, or welcome talk about using bull breeds in attack dog or Schutzhund-Training. We do not feel these activities, in and of themselves, are bad, or unethical, but we do not believe bull breeds should be trained for these purposes for several reasons. First, and foremost, it goes against their nature to be human aggressive. Second, bull breeds once attacking will not be called off easily if at all. There is a reason why dog fighters must employ the use of breaking sticks, it is because the dogs do not break when told to. Mauling the assailant is not the purpose of either attack dog or Schutzhund training, it is to subdue them.

Trying to buy, sell or trade dogs for fighting or dog fighting paraphernalia through the site will result in being banned.

No kennels or individuals suspected of any illegal or unethical practices will be banned from the site, at our digression.

We do not support breed banning, or breed specific legislation, and think all owners of bull breeds should keep abreast of all local and state dog laws.