TEMPERAMENT
Keenly alive to his surroundings. His courage is proverbial.
The first and most important impression should be the dog’s temperament. No matter what the dog looks like, it cannot be a proper AmStaff without the proper temperament.
The official Standard is sparse and is often faulted for not giving enough information to the student of the breed. However, the words used are beautifully descriptive of the breed’s temperament.
“Keenly alive to his surroundings”: Describes a lively intelligent disposition that watches what is going on around him and misses nothing. Further, he not only watches, but also interacts; he is quite aware of and very responsive to his surroundings. He is ready for whatever comes his way in all the best sense of this term.
“His courage is proverbial” proverbial, according to Webster’s dictionary is defined asfollows: “The embodiment or representation of some quality. The byword for it. A commonplace truth. A commonplace reference for some quality:” This is perfectlyapt to describe the correct temperament of this breed. They are nothing if not courageous. This courage is inherent to their history. These dogs have faced death in all its forms, and have long ago had fear bred down. They should appear supremely confident in all situations. No excuse can be made for a specimen that lacks this quality. Courage has no similarity to aggressiveness, which often masks insecurity.
The ideal Am Staff should not display aggression toward other animals or humans.
They should only appear confident and interested, prepared to deal with and takepart in whatever situation develops. Many legends have grown surrounding this breed’s courage.
The ideal specimen must always display courage and confidence to a marked degree.
Absolutely no consideration should be given to an exhibit that lacks this quality.
The first and most important impression should be the dog’s temperament. No matter what the dog looks like, it cannot be a proper AmStaff without the proper temperament.
The official Standard is sparse and is often faulted for not giving enough information to the student of the breed. However, the words used are beautifully descriptive of the breed’s temperament.
“Keenly alive to his surroundings”: Describes a lively intelligent disposition that watches what is going on around him and misses nothing. Further, he not only watches, but also interacts; he is quite aware of and very responsive to his surroundings. He is ready for whatever comes his way in all the best sense of this term.
“His courage is proverbial” proverbial, according to Webster’s dictionary is defined asfollows: “The embodiment or representation of some quality. The byword for it. A commonplace truth. A commonplace reference for some quality:” This is perfectlyapt to describe the correct temperament of this breed. They are nothing if not courageous. This courage is inherent to their history. These dogs have faced death in all its forms, and have long ago had fear bred down. They should appear supremely confident in all situations. No excuse can be made for a specimen that lacks this quality. Courage has no similarity to aggressiveness, which often masks insecurity.
The ideal Am Staff should not display aggression toward other animals or humans.
They should only appear confident and interested, prepared to deal with and takepart in whatever situation develops. Many legends have grown surrounding this breed’s courage.
The ideal specimen must always display courage and confidence to a marked degree.
Absolutely no consideration should be given to an exhibit that lacks this quality.