The earliest records of Bandogs in America were during the civil war. They were used by both sides as bullet fodder and to wreak havoc amongst the low ranks. Many were also trained to bring down horses. These dogs were basically imported Mastiffs and Bullmastiffs mixed with Bulldog and Pitbull Terrier.


All pics and info. posted today were originally posted by DaveUK in his article The History of Bandogs

The Gran Mastin of Puerto Rico, otherwise known as the Puerto Rican Sporting Mastiff has been in existence since the early 1900's.

Powinder, or Koochie. The British took their Bandogs to India with them to hunt boar, leopard, and bears. They were also used as crowd control dogs. The Indians called them 'Seizers' and they still exist to this day.

A night-dog and keeper waiting to surprise poachers

Gamekeepers show in the 1920's

Bandog and Midget

Bandogs used to hunt bear in Eastern Europe

Dutch Bandogs

French Chien du Nuit

A Nobleman and his hunting bandog. The lower classes were prohibited by brutal law from owning dogs like this.

Dogue De Bordeaux's

Alaunts boar hunting. They were also used to patrol the Battlements. It's thought that these dogs were the foundation ancestry for Dogue De Bordeauxs.

Back then mastiffs were often dual registered as either BM/Mastiff, or Mastiff/Dane, and there were also Bloodhound/Mastiffs. Turk was the modern template for the modern recreation in certain circles. All pictures provided courtesy of Dan Balderson.

Mosley's Tiger Taurus

His Breeder Mosley founded the Bullmastiff Police Dog Registry in 1926. It was the first registry for bandogs. The registry had requirements that dogs pass all phases of police training to pass. Here's an extract from a letter to the club by Sgt. Cordy of Walsingham Police Station:



"I want no better dog than a good bullmastiff for police work and I am ready to back it against any breed. It may interest you to know that I have made an offer to one of my comrades who is an alsationist, to train a bullmastiff along side an alsation to track and be steady on the trail. The quarry will be a pretended fugitive and at the end of the trail, the dog must close and catch the fugitive. A game keeper friend recommended this breed to me and told me I would have no better breed. His words were true."

Letter taken from article written by DaveUK

Faircrofts Fidelity, 1923, a dog off of Moseley's breeding. This is one of the most influential Bull Mastiffs of all time regarding foundations and influential also to English Mastiffs. He was a 60:40 bull dog blend that became accepted in England and South Africa.

Historic Gamekeepers daughter's dogs, 1912

This is possibly the best working bull and terrier, as far as manwork was concerned in the world for his era. Many Europeans saw this dog worked at the Crystal Palace in London and saw the sort of tests that would later be adopted into SCH/FR/NVBK/KNPV etc.