Say 'YES' to a Bully

We've grown tired of people judging dog breeds just on how they look, not their individual personalities. It's time to become more accepting of 'bull-type' dog breeds as a society.

In 2017 RSPCA Queensland started an adoption campaign called, Adoptabull. It received phenomenal, positive feedback from ‘bully’ breed dog lovers in the community, sharing their stories.

The stats

Although Staffies in particular are one of the top five dog breeds registered with Brisbane City Council, they’re still one of the most common types of dogs ending up at the RSPCA needing a second chance.

If you consider that out of the 13,000 dogs that we cared for just last year alone, the top 3 mixed breeds included English Staffordshire Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Bull Terriers and Bull Arabs, that’s a lot of ‘bullies’ that we need to help.

Get on board with Adoptabull

Until April 28, 2019 we want to give our ‘bullies’ a break to help them find loving new homes and break negative perceptions surrounding animals that just happen to look a certain way.

A desexed, microchipped, vaccinated, behaviourally assessed and vet checked adult bull-type dog breed at the RSPCA can be yours for just $199*… and that’s no bull!

You can view our RSPCA ‘bullies’ here, or visit your local RSPCA Adoption Centre in QLD, NSW, ACT, VIC WA and NT. It’s great that Adoptabull has been embraced almost right across Australia with our interstate counterparts jumping on board with the promotion too!

We wait in care the longest

The unfortunate reality for these loveabull pups, is that they wait the longest at RSPCA for a new home. Bull-type dog breeds can wait for a new home for over a month on average, compared to other mixed breeds who generally spend around half that time waiting for a new family.

Just like Pepper here, she has been patiently waiting in a foster care home. Pepper been with the RSPCA since April 2018… she’s nearly at 365 days in care! That’s too long for an adorabull lady like this to be waiting.

Above: Pepper stealing a kiss from her foster mum for a 'selfie'.

Adopted Adoptabulls

RSPCA Furbassador Kiba, is your traditional ‘happy staffy’ and has found the best home! This social butterfly loves playdates with other animals and meeting new people. Hardly the ‘aggressive’, ‘bad with other dogs’ stigma that sometimes gets lumped on our beautiful staffies.

The face of our 2017 Adoptabull campaign, lumbering RSPCA doggo Buddy, is nothing but a ‘good boy’. Being a large, white boofhead, Buddy sometimes gets avoided on the streets by members of the public. He’s a Bull Arab cross Bull Terrier. This goofball wants nothing more than a good stroll with the bub, tasty treats and sitting on your chair like a human. He’s certainly breaking all those bull-breed myths!

What's BSL got to do with it?

Sadly dogs that look a certain way in the bull breed category also have odds stacked against them if they are deemed as an American Pit Bull Terrier. Why? Because of Breed Specific Legislation. The RSPCA does not agree with BSL: placing restrictions on dog breeds themselves. It’s essentially judging a book by its cover and not a dog's individual characteristics. You can read more on this hot topic here.

If you get a moment to read our tribute to Ricky the pitty, please do.

Pixar recently created an adorabull cartoon, Kitbull: a story of a stray kitten meeting a pit bull terrier. In this animation the pit bull was being used for dog fighting and the kitten and 'bully' form a unique friendship. If you have a few minutes to spare, it’s well worth watching.

If you’re willing to open your mind and heart to an RSPCA Adoptabull, adopt today and help our long-term ‘bullies’ find the second chance they deserve.