Boston Terrier 101: Origin

So you've finally decided on welcoming a Boston Terrier in your home and are beginning to wonder where they originated, right? Or maybe you're just bored and figured you wanted to know some trivia about your beloved furry friend. In any case, you might just be surprised by the history of the Boston Terrier.

Discover the Boston Terrier origins and how they have evolved into the cute furball they are now!

So this cutie's breed had come into being exactly 145 years ago! Pretty ancient right? The first Boston Terrier originated around 1875 and was owned by Robert C. Hooper from Boston. He named his dog, Judge (this name is full of spunk!), and got it from Edward Burnett who was a U.S. House Representative at that time. The Boston Terrier breed was a mix of the English White Terrier and the English Bulldog which is why it shares a lot of semblance from French bulldogs and the likes!

Judge, commonly known as Hooper's Jude, which has a nice ring to it, by the way, was the ancestor of the modern Boston Terrier. He was said to be thirty-two pounds in weight and had dark brindle color with the iconic white stripes on his face; a true American Gentleman indeed! Like the present-day Boston Terrier, Judge also had the flat and square-like head; he was also quite stocky in physique as well.

A group of breeders and Boston Terrier owners then came together to create their own group and named themselves as Round Heads or Fanciers. They had advocated for the breed and pushed their limits to perfect it. Later on, they were officially named as the Boston Terrier Club of America by 1891. Two years later, the American Kennel Club had acknowledged the breed as a legitimate member and was finally registered in the Stud Book as an official dog of AKC.

Boston Terriers are bred down from fighting dogs which are actually the history of its parents. Dogfighting was a blood sport that only came to be because bullbaiting was considered illegal in England by 1835. They were bred to be compact and easy to transport so that when the police got a whiff of it, they are easy to hide. Later on, it died down and the predecessors of these dogs are comfortably cocooned in their own homes without fighting to death (well, they would probably fight you though when it comes to food and affection!)

The Boston Terrier breed was then developed more by the end of 1900 through countless research of scientific breeding and some inbreeding. After a lot of trials and errors, they are now sporting clean-cut short heads, the classic white markings, their beautiful and imploring eyes, as well as their agile bodies. Before, the markings of the Boston Terrier breed wasn't really an issue back but was then included in the standards of AKC.

Now, this breed is considered one of the most affectionate furry friends! The Boston terrier temperament makes them really an angel though they could be stubborn at times! If you want to learn more about them, check out some of the trivia you might not know about the American Gentleman.