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The Affix Longdrive belongs to Steve and Sandra Swift we have been breeding Staffordshire Bull Terriers for over 20 years. We started showing Samoyeds in 1975 we got our first dog with the Affix of Crownie and later acquired a dog with a Affix of Fairvilla from Mr Malcolm Hopkins and was showing both these dogs at Championship and Open Canine shows.At one of the local handling class (Bolsover) in the Mansfield area we were introduced to our first show Staffordshire Bull Terrier, It was there that we decided that this was the dog for us.
After a break from showing and a house move (3rd of April 1985) we bought our first Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Lance who was a beautiful red dog (Sir Lancelott) he came from the (Sire) Red Toff Serene whose Great Grandparent was Champion Scaithwaite Coachman and the(Dame)Ebony Black of Cawston whose Great Grandparent was Champion Scarthwaite Coachman, A few years later (19th of January 1987) we bought our first show Staffordshire Bull Terrier from Mr & Mrs R.Wynt, Bess a beautiful brindle bitch (Winstock Devils Debutante) the (Sire) Regency Buck whose Grandparents was Champion Karjobri Black Pepper and (Dam) Champion Devils Trill whose Grandparents were Champion Black Tusker and Champion Solo Gypsy Fiddler.
We mated Sir Lancelott and Winstock Devils Debutante and had 2 healthy litters with a total of 11 puppies with all these living to a ripe age of between 13 to 15 years of age, Which we believe to be a credit to the mating of two healthy dogs.
In 28th of December 1996 we bought our first pied dog (Buster) Kenex Pied Eyed Boy but from the start he developed health problems so our plans to start showing were put on hold, Sadly at the age of 13 years Bess (Winstock Devils Debutante) died .Then our son decided that he would like a Staffordshire Bull Terrier bitch of his own. So we got in touch with the Nott’s & Derby SBT Club who put us in touch with Mrs Debbie Saunt (Alport). After a talk we decided that it would be nice for Buster to have a play friend who we could also show.
On 10th of December 2002 we purchased Holly (Alport Praire Fire) and Trudie (Alport Jalapeno Hot)for our son and our showing of Holly started who has consistently been placed at Championship Open & Limit breed shows and at Canine Championship and Open Shows. Best honours up to now are Best of Breed at Loughborough Canine Open Show and qualified for the past two years at Crufts (2005 & 2006).
We decided that it would be nice if now that Sandra was showing Holly it would be nice if I could get a nice dog so that we could both be showing dogs in the show ring, I had seen some handsome boys that had come out of Judael both Barrels at Nozac and would very much like one of these. On the 10th of September 2003 we acquired Blue (Westbank Blue Blazer) from Mr & Mrs Paul,Lorriane, Renshaw .Blue has always been constantly placed at all Level’s,he`s best awards up to now is a Reserve C.C. and he`s Stud Book Number. Westbank Blue Blazer has developed into the dog I have spent over twenty years looking for.
We have now mated Blue on the 26th of October 2004 Westbank Blue Blazer at Longdrive with Holly (Alport Praire Fire at Longdrive) and had 6 Puppies (5 Bitches and 1 Dog) two out of this litter are being shown Lilly (Longdrive Praire Rose) and Jet (Longdrive Black Jet) both have been constantly placed with Longdrive Black Jet has qualified for the last 2 years for Crufts (2006 & 2007).
On 25th September 2005 we mated Blue (Westbank Blue Blazer at Longdrive) with Trudie (Alport Jalapeno Hot) who had 9 Puppies (4 Bitches and 5 Dogs) we have had 3 of this litter constantly shown. Diesel (Longdrive Blue Diamond) who has qualified for Crufts (2007) and has won Best Puppy Dog at Leeds Championship Show, He has now been taken to Sweden to live with Leo & Åsa Lowejko (Heartstaff) and he also been shown in the Swedish show ring.
Jake (Longdrive Blue Kentucky) who has been constantly placed at shows and now has qualified for Crufts (2007 & 2008) coming 2nd in the Special Yearling class at the East Anglian SBT Championship show. Max (Longdrive Blue Bijou) who has been constantly placed at shows and has now qualified for Crufts (2007 & 2008) Max qualified for 2008 by coming 2nd in Post Graduate Dog at Morecombe Bay & Cumbria SBT Championship show. Well Done to both Jake & Max !!!!
We have now mated Troy on the 29th of November 2006 (Longdrive Warlord) with Bella (Longdrive White Fire) and had 7 Puppies (3 Bitches and 4 Dogs) 1 Bitch out of this litter is going to be Shown her name is Lexie (Longdrive Wild Orchid)She is to be shown in this Country (United Kingdom) and 1 Bitch Who name is Illy(Longdrive Ice Queen)Owned by Leo & Asa Lowejko (Heartstaff) and 1 Dog Who name is Vegas(Longdrive White Lightning) are going to be shown in Sweden. We Wish everyone that is Showing and Owning the Longdrive Dogs all the Best for 2007.
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The Staffordshire Bull Terrier first came into existence in or around the seventeenth century. As bull baiting declined in popularity and dog fighting enjoyed a surge of interest, it became necessary to develop a dog which possessed a longer and more punishing head than the Bulldog and also to combine strength and agility. It is therefore believed that the Staffordshire Bull Terrier was derived from the fighting Bulldog of the day with some terrier blood introduced. This cross produced what was known as the Bull and Terrier or Pit Dog; these dogs were renowned for their courage and tenacity and despite their ferocity in the pit were excellent companions
The Staffordshire Bull Terrier breed received championship status in 1938 when CC`s were awarded for the first time at the Birmingham National. The first two Champions of the breed were Ch. Gentleman Jim and Ch. Lady Eve. The popularity of the breed has now spread abroad with well established clubs in many countries.
The modern day Stafford is a dog that loves the attention and the love of the family environment and thrives in these conditions give him a red hot fire or a very hot radiator to cuddle up to he is then in his element of course your seat next to the said items as well. A more loyal trustful friend you will not find apart from the mad times when he wants to run around your house at 60 miles per hour to get rid of all the pent up energy he has, he will follow you to the end of the world to please you.
The sound Temperament of the Stafford is the most important factor for us when in the choosing of a dog, In this fact we will always pay several visits when choosing a puppy looking how he behaves with the rest of the litter (does he sit with the rest of the puppies, how does he react around the rest when it is play time and what does he do when it is feeding time). Course there are still people in the breed who think that the make up of the Stafford is still dependant on how the aggression side of the dogs make up is. We are not these types of people in the past we have spent to much time trying to work on the effect of trying to convince people of the good nature of the dogs.Inside the breed there is a lot of good work being done with the pat dogs that are being taken around old people’s homes and sick children homes for the education of people of Staffordshire Bull Terrier breed, Some people to believe that only a good Stafford’s is one with a bad temperament behaviour. Of course there is a time when on some occasions when confronted with a badly behaved dog the dogs will stand there ground but we like to think that the dogs we breed do not go looking for trouble. This is what we advise when we have new owners at our home we always talk to them about the socialising of there new dog they have inside there family’s and friends home with other pets at the earliest age. We now have a growing family of Longdrive Stafford’s that are able to be mixed with other types of dogs without the behavioural problems associated with early times of the Stafford. In the new climate we are living with (Dangerous Dogs Act) and the problems aboard this is most important to this breed to make sure that we don’t have the same legislation as they have aboard in some countries.
In our own circumstance we are able to have had 3 dogs & 3 bitches living, sleeping and feeding in the same rooms without the usual problems associated with this breed,
We never become complacent with these arrangements especially when you have bitches in seasons but in the last 15 years or so of the twenty plus years we have had with this breed we have had no trouble with the dogs (we do put this down to good temperament of the dogs we have had breed and bought) but also of the early introduction of the dogs at a early age to the rest of the family. A good socialised dog is a good companion not just for you but also your family and friends.
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How could you possible not enjoy the beauty of being able to see your family of Stafford’s running lose in the woods together playing and not see the benefit of a good socialised family of Staffordshire Bull terriers doing what is natural (going back to were the dog came from the Wolf) hunting together of course they very rarely ever get near to the wild life never mind catch it and as you must be aware that wild animals mostly live on wild berries, nuts and anything else they can scavenge to survive . We must admit these facilities are not open to everyone as not everyone as a wood 4 miles down the road but it is also nice to be able to walk in the park and not have to worry about other dogs that are in the park.
The Health of the Stafford also comes into play when we start talking about diet we in these times seem obsessed with what we feed not only ourselves but also our animals.
For us a complete Dry food (we use Skinners Ruff N Ready) but this only works if it is worked in conjunction with a good excise program. A Good level of fitness can only be achieved by this to think we can get animals to look good by dieting alone does not work and to look at a dogs feet will always give you tell tales signs of this(spreading of the toes, smooth pads to list but a few examples) We should also be prepared to look what ingredients are in the food.
A good balance between diet and exercise will always be seen by two methods one is in the condition of the coat and the second is in the stoles of the dog, sometimes one diet suits one dog but does not necessary suit another one, but all dogs need a good exercise program to fit in with the diet of the dog. The exercise deficiency sometimes shows up in the forms of certain injury’s to the dog, so the more regularity of the program of exercise the better as far as the dog is concerned.We always look for signs of deficiency in the coat of the dog for example is the dogs coat dry, scaly or dull these are good signs to look for.
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