Miniature Bull Terrier

Clownish and playful, and can be stubborn to train.
A Miniature Bull Terrier
Photo: Darmaninjl
Adult weight
8.2–13 kg
18–28 lb
Lifespan
12.2 yrs
Class · Companion
also Family

What it's like

In temperament it is lively and playful, given to clownish antics and closely attached to its people. It is also strong-willed and tenacious, and it can be stubborn in training.

Day to day
Activity
A good daily walk and play
Intelligence
Learns readily, likes games
Handler demand
Needs steady training
With people
Affection
Affectionate on its own terms
Loyalty
Bonded to its family
Independence
Decides for itself
Around the home
Sensitivity
Average
Voice
Barks to alert, then settles
Prey drive
Likely to chase small pets
Breed explains only about 9% of how individual dogs differ in behaviour1. Meet the dog. A good breeder breeds for temperament as well as health, and matches each puppy's personality to the right home2,3.
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Living with one

It has a short coat. It sheds through the year rather than in big seasonal moults. Plan on a brush once a week. It needs a moderate amount of exercise compared with other breeds.

Size and growth

A Miniature Bull Terrier is a small dog, heavier than a Pug and lighter than a Cocker Spaniel. It is one of the heaviest small breeds.

In appearance it is a compact, muscular Bull Terrier in a smaller form. The long, egg-shaped head curves down from crown to nose with almost no stop, and the small, dark, triangular eyes are set close and deep. The ears are small and upright. The coat is short, flat and harsh to the touch, with a fine gloss. It may be pure white, sometimes with markings on the head, or coloured, including brindle, red, fawn and tricolour.

Puppy growth

Reference curve · community data appears as owners log
By about 5 months, a male Miniature Bull Terrier puppy is already as heavy as a grown Jack Russell. They grow fastest between 3 and 4 months old.
Fully grown
10 mo
Both sexes, at 99% of adult weight7
Male
Female
Shaded: expected range
0510152m4m6m9m12m18m
0510152m3m4m6m9m12m18m
Age
Male
Female
2 months
2.1–3.2 kg 4.6–7.1 lb
2.3–3.6 kg 5.1–7.9 lb
3 months
2.8–4.4 kg 6.2–9.7 lb
3.0–4.6 kg 6.6–10.1 lb
4 months
4.0–6.2 kg 8.8–13.7 lb
4.0–6.2 kg 8.8–13.7 lb
5 months
4.9–7.6 kg 10.8–16.8 lb
4.9–7.5 kg 10.8–16.5 lb
6 months
5.7–8.8 kg 12.6–19.4 lb
5.5–8.6 kg 12.1–19.0 lb
7 months
6.3–9.7 kg 13.9–21.4 lb
6.0–9.3 kg 13.2–20.5 lb
8 months
6.7–10.4 kg 14.8–22.9 lb
6.4–10.0 kg 14.1–22.0 lb
9 months
7.0–10.9 kg 15.4–24.0 lb
6.8–10.5 kg 15.0–23.1 lb
10 months
7.3–11.3 kg 16.1–24.9 lb
7.0–10.9 kg 15.4–24.0 lb
11 months
7.5–11.6 kg 16.5–25.6 lb
7.2–11.2 kg 15.9–24.7 lb
12 months
7.6–11.8 kg 16.8–26.0 lb
7.4–11.5 kg 16.3–25.4 lb
15 months
7.9–12.3 kg 17.4–27.1 lb
7.8–12.1 kg 17.2–26.7 lb
18 months
8.2–13 kg 18–28 lb
8.1–12.6 kg 17.9–27.8 lb

Lifespan

In UK vet records, the typical Miniature Bull Terrier lived to about 12 years, shorter than the typical small breed. The group was small, so treat the figure as rough.

Where it comes from

The Miniature Bull Terrier comes from small Bull Terriers of the early 1800s; interest faded before the First World War and the Kennel Club dropped them from its register in 1918. Colonel Richard Glyn's Miniature Bull Terrier Club revived them in 1938, and they became a separate variety in 1943. Keeping the Bull Terrier's head and substance in a smaller dog proved hard; its standard differs only by capping height4,9.

The Miniature Bull Terrier shares its history with the Bull Terrier, which James Hinks of Birmingham developed in the mid-nineteenth century chiefly from crosses between the Bulldog and the now-extinct White English Terrier. Smaller dogs from the same stock were kept as ratters and companions. The small type faded before a revival in the late nineteen-thirties, when the Kennel Club recognised it. It spread slowly abroad, and the American Kennel Club recognised it in the early nineteen-nineties. The two varieties remain closely linked, and the Kennel Club has permitted them to be interbred.

Breed standard

The Miniature Bull Terrier is judged against standard no. 359, in group 3, Terriers4.

Questions people ask

General guidance for dogs rather than a measured Miniature Bull Terrier figure: most females have a first season somewhere between six and fifteen months, and cycles then settle to roughly every 180 days. Smaller breeds tend to start earlier and larger ones later, so a small breed is most likely at the early end.

Compare with related

Bull Terrier
Terriers · Medium
Border Terrier
Terriers · Small
Sealyham Terrier
Terriers · Small
Dandie Dinmont Terrier
Terriers · Small
Or compare the Miniature Bull Terrier with any breed you choose
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Sources

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Parts of this page were written by AI ·