- Permissible: Any colour, solid, particolour, or patched
- More than 80% white, black and tan, and liver not to be encouraged
About the American Staffordshire Terrier
Origin: United States Of America
- Typical life span
- 12-16 years
- Size
- Large — from its typical weight
- Weight
- Male
- 25-32 kg
- Female
- 18-25 kg
- Height
- Male
- 46-48 cm
- Female
- 43-46 cm
- FCI status
- Recognised by FCI
- FCI group
- Terriers
- Origin
- United States Of America
- Known hereditary risks
- 2 documented conditions, with the test for each
About
What is a American Staffordshire Terrier?
A muscular, stocky, but agile medium-sized terrier of remarkable strength with a broad head, strong build, smooth coat and confident, good-natured personality
American Staffordshire Terrier history and origins
Developed in the 19th century from crosses of bulldogs and terriers brought to America in the 1800s. Originally bred for bull-baiting and pit fighting, later refined to be larger than English Staffordshire Bull Terriers and developed into all-purpose farm dogs and family companions. Recognized by the AKC in 1936.
American Staffordshire Terrier appearance and size
Males typically weigh 25-32 kg and stand 46-48 cm at the shoulder; females 18-25 kg and 43-46 cm.
American Staffordshire Terrier temperament and personality
Generally described as confident, courageous, loyal, intelligent and smart.
That is the breed in general, not a promise about one animal. Ask the breeder what their own line is like, and meet the parents before you decide.
Breed reference from The Dog API.
Characteristics
- Size
- Large
- Exercise needs
- —
- Easy to train
- —
- Amount of shedding
- —
- Grooming needs
- 2 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- 2 conditions documented
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the American Staffordshire Terrier
What you get with the American Staffordshire Terrier
- Low grooming needs, fitting for a busy owner — the coat is “Short, close, stiff to the touch, glossy”
- Commonly described as: “Confident, courageous, loyal, intelligent”
What you are taking on
- 2 serious inherited conditions are documented, mainly in brain & nerves and breathing. The health guide tab has the test to ask for on each.
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard; The Dog API; Staffordshire Terrier Club of America — Health. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.
Characteristics
FCI standard · American Staffordshire Terrier
Coat and colour
As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording, tagged permissible.
Coat
- Short
- Close
- Stiff to the touch
- Glossy
Colour
- Preferred
- Permissible
- Undesirable
- Disqualifying
Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FCI’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.
Shortened from FCI standard n°286 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
Temperament
Confidentcourageousloyalintelligentsmart
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the American Staffordshire Terrier in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
Health & screening guide for the American Staffordshire Terrier
Known hereditary risks for the American Staffordshire Terrier breed, and the specific documentation to request from any breeder before paying a deposit. A responsible breeder will have these readily available; deflection is a red flag.
2 conditions documentedThis is breed-level literature, not veterinary advice about an individual animal — your vet knows the animal.
Health checklist (PDF)Brain & nerves
Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis 4A / cerebellar ataxia (NCL-A)
Serious
A late-onset, incurable neurodegenerative disease (ARSG gene) causing cerebellar signs — incoordination, tremor, abnormal gait — that usually appear between 3 and 5 years old and progress until the dog is euthanised. Puppies are unaffected and look completely normal at the time of sale.
What to ask for
DNA test result for NCL-A (ARSG gene) on both parents, registered with the OFA; required for a CHIC number under the Staffordshire Terrier Club of America's health programme.
Breathing
Juvenile laryngeal paralysis and polyneuropathy (ALPP)
Serious
An inherited neuromuscular disease causing progressive laryngeal paralysis and polyneuropathy — weakness, exercise intolerance and noisy or laboured breathing — usually appearing in young adulthood. The responsible DNA variants were identified through University of Missouri research into this breed specifically.
What to ask for
DNA test result for ALPP on both parents, registered with the OFA; required for the same CHIC number as NCL-A.
How long the American Staffordshire Terrier lives, in the records
Median survival 12,5 years
95% confidence interval 11,4–13,1 years, from 94 recorded deaths among 134 dogs
Mortality hazard 1.09 (0.89, 1.33) relative to crossbred dogs, whose median is 12,0 years.
Measured in the United Kingdom from 584.734 dogs. Median survival is not a prediction for an individual dog.
McMillan, K.M., Bielby, J., Williams, C.L., Upjohn, M.M., Casey, R.A. & Christley, R.M. (2024) Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death. Scientific Reports 14, 531.
Gallery
No photographs yet
This is where American Staffordshire Terrier owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.
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Puppies
No puppies listed right now
No American Staffordshire Terrier breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.