John P. Colby: the fountainhead of the American 'Pit' Bull Terrier within the United States

JOHN PRITCHARD COLBY, the most famous name in american pit bull terrier history, not only owned a man biter, he owned a man killer. read more of dogsbite.org's exposé of the this famous dog fighter.

from hardcore dog fighters of yesteryear to serious dogmen and crazed pit nutters of today, all of the pit bull fanciers praise John P. Colby and his pit dogs. here are a few highlights.

from sporting-dog.com

I think John P Colby tops as a breeder. The rolls I saw when I was up at Colby’s in 1935 or 1936 were better than half the matches I have ever seen in my life. John P called them turn ups. It was hot around Boston so any local action was kept quiet. A lot of people who didn't know any better said J.P never set one down. Three dead game Colby dogs I have had were Sport, Buddy, and Hobo. I think I have some good ones now, but to say a dog that is still living dead game is wishful thinking. None of these three dogs ever made a turn in there life or before they left it. I have over a dozen old Colby pedigrees around the house, and I cant find one of the dogs in them Mr. Pete Sparks mentioned in a recent copy of Bloodlines, I'm sure he was mistaken.

Howard Heinzl 1955

from riospitbull.com

Mr John P Colby was an active breeder for many years and produced some of the best dogs of his time. Much of his foundation stock was from the Gas House and Burke strains, as were the dogs of many other breeders. The difference in the quality of the dogs Mr Colby produced was the result of breeding principles he employed. Also, Mr Colby in my opinion possessed a very important attribute, which I refer to as a gift.

Indian Sonny

from workingpitbull.com

Pit bulls breeders have - to this day - been notoriously secretive about how they breed their best dogs. Pete Sparks, one of the most noted authorities on pit bulls during most of the 20th century, stated that with only one or two exceptions (the Colby family being one of those exceptions) almost "all" breeders such as Corvino, Carver, and others would intentionally fake pedigrees.

primo, the apbt that was used as the standard for the amstaff.

Then a small group of pit bull fanciers decided that their "Grand Old Breed" needed full American Kennel Club recognition in order to distance itself from its baiting/fighting heritage. A standard was drawn up and application made to the AKC. (John Colby's dog "Primo" was one of the dogs used to formulate the AKC standard, and Primo's picture illustrated the idea of perfection for many years. Those wanting to know what a real American Staffordshire is supposed to look like should study a picture of Primo.)

from workingpitbull.com

COLBY'S BOOK OF THE AMERICAN PIT BULL TERRIER: by Louis Colby and Diane Jessup 192 pages, hardback. ISBN# 0-7938-2091-X A classic for history buffs! Louis Colby's love and knowledge of the history of this breed makes this book special. If you love pictures of old-time dogs you will love this book. Interesting history of the Colby family; at one time the Colby family was associated with dog fighting, however these days the dogs are finding homes with folks who want a good natured family pet with an interesting history. This should be required reading for people becoming involved with the breed today - this book shows them what a "real" pit bull looks like.

i wonder if this history includes the fatal attack of colby's nephew?

from Jason Mann of pitbulllover.com

Colby's Book of the American Pit Bull Terrier.

I like this book because it shows the rich history of the American Pit Bull Terrier. Specifically this particular line of the breed dating back well over 100 years.

One of the best things about this book is the pictures. Quite a few pictures are included in the book and many of them are from the Colby family archives. Showing dogs with children and even a young Louis Colby with one his dogs.

If you don't already have this book I recommend every owner add it to their library. Great read, great pictures, solid information, overall a great book.

John P Colby (probably the most famous name in all of Pit Bull history) decided to register his dogs in the American Dog Breeders Association.

Richard stratton p82 World of the American Pit Bull Terrier

I do resent Mr. David's characterization of John P. Colby, as he was an honest dog man and a credit to the breed.

from riospitbull

John P Colby is noted for making only one outcross during his lifetime, and that was after 30 years of breeding experience. This was indeed possible, due to the extreme care he took in the selection of his initial breeding stock and his own talent and skills as a breeder.

Throughout his lifetime, Mr Colby was known to be an honest man, always "on the square", as well as an honest breeder. He is known and remembered as one of the worlds foremost authorities concerning the American 'Pit' Bull Terrier. He was a Dogmans "dogman" even among the elite of his peers. Men like George Armitage, Pete Donovan, Earl Tudor, Howard Heinzl, and Al Brown, all stated that John P. Colby was and always would be in a class all his own as a breeder of game dogs.

In the early part of his career as a breeder, John P. Colby became the center of controversy. One must understand that until this time, breeders and fanciers of the pitdog were a much tighter group, much more exclusive than the fanciers of today. The finest dogs were only passed to family and the most trusted friends and the secrecy of their lineage was closely guarded. John P. Colby broke with that tradition when he began to offer stud service and quality bred pups for sale to the "common man". This was to be his crime. He became successful in making the American 'Pit' Bull Terrier popular to the general public, and was the first to do so.

John P. Colby worked hard in all areas to help promote the breed and their popularity to the general public.

E.L. Mullins

dog fighter ray fox

Above is John Pritchard Colby Born June 15, 1875 and died in 1941 in Newbury, Essex Co. Massachusettes. He was one of the men that started dogfighting in America by producing some of the best. John also put his dogs in the hands of some of the top dogfighters. In the 1960's and the 1970's some dogmen including Loposay crossed Colby and Lighter dogs and got many winners. This cross whipped man dogs from all bloodlines. I'm not sure of the Colby dogs of this era.

an interesting comment from a discussion on bloodlines and temperament from 2003

I had a pure Colby as a kid, but he died of old age (16). I have 3 now. The father (I own him) is mainly Mason Hog with a little Red Boy/Jeep in him. The mother (the people who owned my male have her)is 1/2 Mason Hog 1/2 Red Boy/Jeep. I've noticed some difference in the temperament & size of my 3, & the Colby I had as a kid, but I thought it was maybe a difference in where they came from! My Colby was pretty mean at times (for no reason). The 3 I have now are pretty submissive, & quite wimpy (unless a strange dog is around, then all 3 want to fight it). The father to my Colby was a fighter. If we hadn't gotten him when we did, he would've suffered the same fate.... Don't get me wrong, he was a GREAT dog. Just a little ill tempered some times.