Surely many dog lovers have heard of a spotted Albanian pit bull. Such animals have a specific leopard color, uncharacteristic of the breed. These dogs do not comply with the official standard. The Albanian pit bull is still not recognized as a separate breed. Why is this happening? What are the qualities of such animals from ordinary American pit bulls? Let's try to answer these questions in our publication.
Merle color
Albanian pit bull leopard color looks extremely exotic. Such a coloring is considered unacceptable for many breeds. Pit bulls are no exception. At the same time, spotted dogs attract a lot of attention. However, it is impossible to find them in domestic latitudes. After all, attempts to select a new breed are made by American breeders. It is worth noting that so far such experiments have not been crowned with serious success.
Albanian pit bull - does it exist or not?
Users of the Global Network can easily find photographs of a dog that has an extremely original “appearance”, with a spotty color. This is a dog named Titus, which was bred in the United States. According to the structure of the body, the animal is no different from the American pit bull. The pet has a characteristic massive head with well-developed superciliary arches, a powerful lower jaw, and wide-set eyes. The titus has a muscular neck, a strong shoulder, and developed pectoral muscles. At the same time, this dog has a cheetah color.
It is believed that Titus is a one-of-a-kind Albanian pit bull. It is simply impossible to find other representatives of the breed with such a pronounced spotty color. After the appearance of the dog’s photo on the Internet, an unusual pet attracted the attention of millions of animal lovers. Moreover, opinions regarding such selection were divided. Some people find the Albanian pit bull extremely attractive. Others believe that the breed does not deserve a right to exist.
Breed breeding
To get a dog with such an original appearance, American cynologists decided to cross the American pit bull with the katahula breed, whose representatives are famous for their leopard color. Why was this done? Perhaps the selectors were only interested in the original colors? In fact, breeders focused on the unique qualities of katahulu. Indeed, in the veins of representatives of this breed, the blood of a wolf and Indian dogs flows. Such dogs have extreme strength and endurance. From time immemorial they were used for hunting dangerous wild animals, in particular, a bear and a wild boar. The decision to cross the above breeds is caused by the desire to create aggressive pets that are able to fearlessly fight with prey.
The appearance of the Albanian pit bull was facilitated by the introduction of a special gene, which, in fact, causes leopard color. During the selection for a long time it was not possible to achieve absolutely no results. After all, the gene that was supposed to give Merle coloring did not manifest itself. Not a dozen years have been spent on this. In the end, the gene still made itself felt. Thus, dog handlers were able to get a spotted pit bull.
The danger of genetic modification
As we have already found out, the merle gene is responsible for the formation of spotted coat color in dogs. For many animals, this coloring is the norm. However, this can not be said about pit bulls.
Some cynologists believe that the presence of a gene leads to sterility of animals. Perhaps for this reason, the selectors have not been able to breed the dog with a uniform leopard color for so long. After all, the mortality of puppies was extremely high.
Due to the artificial modification, the character of the Albanian pit bull also suffers. It is believed that genetic changes in this plan cause various kinds of mental and neurological diseases. This, in turn, provokes an increased aggressiveness of the animal.
Among other things, with subsequent successful selection, Albanian pit bulls can manifest a host of other health problems. In particular, cynologists noted the probable development of blindness, deafness, and impaired immune system.
If you weigh the pros and cons, you need to think carefully about whether to expose animals to suffering and the risk of torment for the sake of the original spotted color. Perhaps even improving the hunting qualities is not worth it.
Finally
As you can see, the breed Albanian pit bull is not fiction. Although numerous dog handlers around the world continue to argue the opposite. Such dogs exist. However, most of them have an extremely uneven spotted color, which is caused by the imperfection of breeding work and genetic modifications.
In conclusion, it is worth noting that the Albanian pit bulls are still not recognized as a separate breed. But after some ten years, everything can change. Indeed, mestizos, which are merle, are unusually attractive animals and are of interest for use in hunting purposes.