Bobtail
Features
As its name suggests, the American Bulldog has a beefy, striking, muscular and powerful build and is medium in size. It reaches a height of up to 71 cm and weighs between 27 and 58 kg.
Important to know
The extremely affectionate, active and friendly Bobtail is suitable for people who can offer him a lot of affection and employment. The dog feels most comfortable when he has his family around him, can play with them and protect them.


Confident & family oriented
Personality
- Very Intelligent
- Caring
- Happy
- Loyal
- Sensitive
- Herding dog
Body & Appearance
- Size: Medium
- Height: 50 - 71 cm
- Weight: 30-40 kg
- Life expectancy: 12-14 years
- Coat type: Long hair
- Colors: White, Brindle, Fawn, Brown, Red
Attributes

Features
This hides a strong, muscular physique, with which the dogs reach a weight between 30 and 40 kg.
Typical of the Bobtail is a square head with small, flat ears and widely spaced, usually dark eyes.
The characteristic fur of the Bobtail can be found in a wide variety of shades of gray and blue with possible white patches. The texture of the coat is dense, hard and shaggy, it must not be straight or curly. While the rump and hind legs are solid color, the head, neck and forelegs are white. Also, the dogs can have white “socks”.
Under the top coat, the Bobtail carries a very dense and water-repellent undercoat.
Another distinctive feature of Bobtails is the tail, to which they also owe their name. Translated, this means “stubby tail“. In the past, however, this was usually brought about by docking, which is now fortunately prohibited. That is why nowadays, except for a few specimens that have naturally short tails, the dogs are found with normal, inconspicuous tails.
An additional distinguishing feature of Bobtails is their idiosyncratic and expressive voice with high recognition value.
The Bobtail lives between 12 and 14 years.
Personality
The Bobtail is an extremely social, happy and intelligent dog. He has a strong bond with his people and is very loyal to them, while also getting along very well with children. The self-confident but also sensitive dog needs a lot of attention and is passionate about every fun, game and action.
His history as a herding and sheepdog is evident in the fact that he likes to keep his family together and doesn’t like it when individual members stray too far. That’s why he likes to herd his family together like his own little flock and vehemently protects them from danger.
However, although he defends his family, the bobtail has no strong hunting instinct and barks little. Aggression is also generally a foreign word for the dogs.
Because of its high intelligence, the studious Bobtail is not a dog that blindly follows orders, but craves a mental challenge in its tasks and wants to be challenged. Physically, he also needs a lot of exercise, which is evident in his entrepreneurial spirit.
Posture
Bobtails are total family dogs who immensely enjoy playing with and protecting their humans . Although they are extremely good-natured and cooperative, their roots as herding dogs always come through, as evidenced by the fact that they tend to be independent and can occasionally be stubborn . Therefore, a lot of consistency is needed in the education of dogs. However, it is important to note that Bobtails are also very sensitive and therefore need a lot of feeling. It is essential to set clear boundaries from puppyhood, as dogs tend to jump up on people, for example, due to their exuberance, underestimating their size and weight.
The Bobtail is a real bundle of energy and, as a former herding dog that had to cover long distances, has great stamina and therefore needs sufficient exercise, for example in the form of long daily walks or dog sports. He has talent for sports like agility, flyball, dog dancing and also obedience where he can show not only his physical resilience but also his intelligence. Most importantly, however, is that the bobtail has enough opportunity to run out.
He doesn’t care what the weather is like, as his dense coat means he’s ready for any weather. Only in summer, an overly bushy coat can become uncomfortably warm.
Bobtails are most comfortable in the outdoors, so they are less suitable for city-only homes. The best thing for the dog would be a house with a garden, so that he can sniff fresh air at any time.
Nutrition and care
The Bobtail is very uncomplicated as far as its diet is concerned. He will eat just about anything, which is why you should be careful with spicy leftovers and sweet foods, as eating them is not good for him or can even be dangerous. Especially for families with children, make sure each family member knows what your dog can and cannot eat.
Since the Bobtail is physically very active, it doesn’t tend to be overweight, so you can’t do much wrong when feeding your dog. It can also eat dry, wet and home-cooked food. Just keep in mind with wet food that the dogs’ long fur can sometimes end up in the bowl, making it easy for it to stick. It can also happen that Bobtails tolerate wet food sporadically worse.
For young dogs, it is advisable to use high quality and very nutritious food to prevent diseases and promote healthy growth.
The magnificent coat of the Bobtail, on the other hand, requires more attention. After all, without regular care, this tangles quite quickly. Your dog’s coat needs to be combed thoroughly at least two to three times a week and cleaned of dirt and bugs after every walk. Regular bathing can never hurt either.
If, despite the measures taken, matting occurs, it is advisable to visit a dog groomer. They can also, if you don’t want to do it yourself, do a shearing especially in the summer so your Bobtail doesn’t get so hot.
Also, make sure to keep your dog’s eyes clear. For example, you can carefully trim fur around the eyes, pin it up with clips or even tie a braid.
In addition, you should especially wash the hair around your dog’s mouth regularly.
To avoid discoloration of the coat, you should also clean the fur around the genital area regularly.
Since something likes to hide in the dogs’ thick coat, you should check your Bobtail regularly for ticks and other bugs, as well as injuries. Pay particular attention to the ears and paws.
Bobtails are in themselves very robust against diseases and enjoy basically the best health. However, hip and elbow dysplasias occur occasionally, which is why the selection of a good breeding is particularly important. There is also a slight tendency to cataracts, but this can be counteracted with good nutrition.
In addition, the bobtail sometimes has a genetic defect called MDR1 defect, which can make it sensitive to certain medications.
History
The history of the Bobtail is not fully understood to this day. However, it is clear that he belongs to the oldest dog breeds and especially shepherd dogs of Great Britain. It is believed to be descended from German and English shepherd dogs, as well as Russian and Hungarian shepherd dogs, and was first mentioned in writing in the 18th century. The combination of the characteristics of his ancestors led to his extraordinary robustness and endurance, which was of particular benefit to him when he was used as a shepherd dog. Especially his fur ensured that he could perform his duties of rounding up animals and protecting them from danger in any wind and weather.
In order to mark him as a working animal and therefore pay less tax, the tails of the dogs were docked at that time, which is how he got his name bobtail – “stubby tail”. However, today this practice is no longer carried out.
In addition to its use as a herding dog, the Bobtail was and is also very popular as a show dog.
However, over time, the Bobtail has become mainly a family dog.
Conclusion
The extremely affectionate, active and friendly Bobtail is suitable for people who can offer him a lot of affection and employment. The dog feels most comfortable when he has his family around him, can play with them and protect them. Those who are ready to take on themselves the elaborate care of the furry dog and optimally find joy in it, will gain an extremely loyal, bright and clever family member.