Around 1835, laws were passed in England prohibiting
bull baiting and the Olde English Bulldogges main
purpose of existence vanished. Within a decade the
numbers of bulldogs declined drastically almost to
extinction. Dog show fanciers eventually decided to
reconstruct the breed, but wanted to tone down the
aggressive temperament of the original Olde English
Bulldogge. They crossed the remnants of the existing
stock with the pug and over the years that followed
they developed the modern English Bulldog.
Unfortunately though, this modern dog is wrought with
all kinds of genetic health problems.
The modern Olde English Bulldogge is a
reconstruction of the original Olde Bulldogge of the
17th and 18th century. Various genetic crosses have
been used in carefully and thoughtfully planned
breeding programs to obtain this goal. The foundation
of most of today's Olde English Bulldogges can be
traced to English Bulldog, American Bulldog and
Mastiff.
These dogs were used very selectively in various
combinations to obtain the desired physical and
mental traits of the original Olde English Bulldogge.
The result has been a good looking Bulldogge of great
athletic ability that is much healthier and physically
fit without most or all of the problems that plague
today's modern English Bulldogs. The goal of all Olde
English Bulldogge breeders should be to produce
genetically healthier Bulldogges that are free
breathers, free breeders and free whelpers.
The IOEBA's detailed breed standard is the best
guide as to what the perfect Olde English Bulldogge
should look like according to the International Olde
English Bulldogge Association. It is recommended
that it be used by today's Olde breeders in an effort
to maintain the high standards that the breeders of
the past and the IOEBA have set fourth.
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