DECLARATION of FACTS

 

 

I, John D. Johnson, being of lawful age, do make the following Declaration of Facts:

 

1.     My current residence is as follows:

                   140 Hinton Street
                   Summerville , Georgia 30747

 

2.     By the sustaining power of our Lord Jesus Christ, and, with His help, I declare, that I, John D. Johnson, along with my beloved wife, Mildred Johnson, have dedicated our lives to the preservation of the American Bulldog, from becoming an extinct breed; the focus of our work began over 3 decades ago.  

Originally, my dogs were registered with the National Kennel Club [NKC], as “American [Pit] Bulldogs”. However, I became dissatisfied with the work of NKC’s former 1964 Founder and Administrator, Mr. M. E. Hopper, and the confusion of the “American [Pit] Bulldog” name.  I therefore contacted Mr. Tom D. Stodghill, the 1947 Founder of the Animal Research Foundation [ARF], in Quinlan , Texas , in regards to registering my rare breed of old-time bulldogs with the ARF.   

I explained to Mr. Stodghill, that the term “Pit” in the breed’s name  caused much confusion with some people, as they thought my rare breed of old-time bulldog was a type of an “American Pit Bull Terrier”, which they are not!  My dogs are much larger and heavier than a “Terrier-type” dog, and their temperament is entirely different, being very social with both adults and children.  It was at that time, I suggested to Mr. Stodghill that the term “Pit” be dropped from the breed’s name.  Mr. Stodghill,  ARF’s Genealogist, agreed that the use of the word “Pit” was a misnomer, and that the official breed name, from that time forward, would be recognized, and ARF-registered, as  “American Bulldogs”.     

   

3.     At that time, Mr. Stodghill recommended that I become a member of the  ARF,  so I became an ARF Lifetime Certified Breeder.  Prior to Mr. Stodghill’s death, in 1989, we became very good friends; between us, we shared our common interest in working dogs and various breeding techniques. As a result of my long affiliation with the ARF, on May 8th, 2005 , I was awarded an ARF plaque, commemorating my 30 years of achievement, as an ARF Certified Breeder of American Bulldogs.

 

4.     Within the past 30 years, I have placed advertisements in Mr. Stodghill’s ARF magazine; also, Mr. Stodghill printed letters in his magazine, especially those I had written to him, as well as the ones he wrote back to me.  He did this to help others, who would eventually want to have more information on the American Bulldog.   One of my letters to Mr. Stodghill was printed in “Stodghill’s Animal Research Magazine”, Issue No.: 64, 1980, as follows:

 

“I reply to the letter you sent me, from Mr. Baker, concerning the American Bulldog and the Pit Bull Terrier.  The American Bulldog is the same dog that was developed in England in the 12th century, by the meat packers, to catch large bulls, to kill for meat, as they did not have the facilities to handle them.  They were called “Packers’ Dogs” for a couple of hundred of years; t then they started bull baiting with them, and they then were called “Bull Baiting Dogs”.  Later, they were registered as ‘English Bulldogs’ [“The AKC Dog Book” refers to the breed as “Bulldogs”.].  They also were ‘pit’ fought over there [ England ], against each other, badgers, lions, and anything that would fight.  They were brought over here [ America ] in the 17th century, as the country was full of wild cows and hogs, and we needed something that could catch them for meat; they also were used as protection dogs for the home, and owners.  In the 18th century, England outlawed all types of fighting, and they were no longer needed in their present form, so they bred them down in size [smaller] to the present ‘English Bulldog’ [state].  We kept our Bulldogs in the [original] large state, and I have developed them even larger than the original.  I have one young stud dog that weighs 135 lbs., all bone and muscle, and is still spreading in his shoulders.  They have nothing but Bulldog in them.

 “The ‘Bull Terrier’ is a cross between the ‘English Terrier’ and ‘English Bulldog’ (60 percent ‘Terrier’ and 40 percent ‘Bulldog’).  The [‘American] Staffordshire Terrier’ is 50 percent ‘English Bulldog’ and 50 percent ‘English Terrier’; the ‘American [Pit] Bull Terrier’ is a cross between the two types.

 [“Pete”, from “Our Gang” comedy series, of the 1930’s, achieved national attention for the breed in 1935; the American Kennel Club entered “Pete” as the first dual-registered “UKC” and “AKC” Pit Bull.  The breed was AKC-registered as a “Staffordshire Terrier”; the name was revised to “American Staffordshire Terrier” on January 1, 1972 .]  

“David Leavitt’s ‘Olde Bulldogge’ (or ‘Olde English Bulldogge’), that he is breeding up is crossed between ‘English Bulldogs’, ‘American Bulldogs’, ‘American Pit Bull Terriers’, and ‘Bullmastiffs’.  The term ‘Giant [AKC English] Bulldog’ is used some in my dogs because of their extreme large size.  Over the years, I have developed a system to breed them into giants.  They are a real protective dog for the family and home; they are real smart; you can teach them anything.  They love children.  Some do trim ears and dock tails, but is not advisable.”

 

S/ John D. Johnson
 140 Hinton Street
 Summerville , Georgia 30747

   

5.     For over 3 decades, I have registered my American Bulldogs with the ARF; therefore, the ARF database has the most complete and most accurate records of my American Bulldogs, of any organization that now exists, either here in the United States, Canada, Europe, or Australia.

 

6.     I have dedicated my life to the preservation, recognition, and registration of the American Bulldog; therefore, it is my recommendation that all American Bulldogs be ARF-registered first, prior to being registered in any other registry.   Further, I have complete confidence in the ARF, knowing that they care about my American Bulldog as much as I do. 

   

Also, I want to be on record, that after seeing what the “American Kennel Club [AKC]” has done to destroy so many good breeds of dogs, I do not ever want to see my American Bulldogs registered with the AKC.  Also, I want to declare that the so-called “Animal Research Foundation Europe [ARFE]”, doing fraudulent business in Holland, The Netherlands, founded and owned by Mr. Jan Dirk van Ginneke, is not affiliated with the “Animal Research Foundation [ARF]”, in the United States of America . Therefore, I recommend that all true American Bulldog enthusiasts avoid the “ARFE”, and that all future American Bulldog dog buyers stay away from purchasing any so-called “ARFE-registered American Bulldogs”, as there is no qualified individual, within the ARFE, who can confirm ARFE’s pedigree as being authentic.  Therefore, I publicly declare, Mr. Jan Dirk van Ginneke’s illegitimate, unauthorized registering, and use of the “Animal Research Foundation” name, on March 20, 1989 , as “Animal Research Foundation Europe [ARFE]”, and as recorded in Holland , The Netherlands, was done completely without Mr. Tom D. Stodghill’s knowledge or approval. 

 

Further, I, John D. Johnson, being not only the oldest, but the world’s most recognized leader in the preservation of “American Bulldogs”, consider Mr. Van Ginneke’s ARFE registry, Holland , The Netherlands, as both an insult to me and to the late Mr. Tom D. Stodghill’s “Animal Research Foundation”.  Mr. Van Ginneke has not only bastardized my American Bulldogs, by cross breeding them with other breeds, and, then, by ARFE-registering them, he also publicly advertises and sells his ARFE-registered dogs to the unsuspecting public as “American Bulldogs”.  And, to give his registered ARFE-business name credence, he has, by constructive fraud, stolen Mr. Tom D. Stodghill’s “Animal Research Foundation’s” business trade name, which he established in 1947.       

 

7.     I highly recommend the ARF, above all other dog registries. Further, I recommend that all my American Bulldog buyers register their American Bulldog and puppies with the Animal Research Foundation [ARF], C/o 11182 highway 34 South, Quinlan , Texas TPZ 75474.

 

 

Therefore, I, John D. Johnson, do solemnly declare and attest that all the above facts are true to the best of my knowledge and belief. 

 

 

DECLARATION of FACTS

 

 

I, Alan Scott, being of lawful age, do make the following Declaration of Facts:

   

1.     My current residence is as follows:

                    35395 U.S. Highway 11
                    Valley Head , Alabama 35989

   

2.     I declare, that I, along with John D. Johnson, were two of the major individuals responsible for the saving and preservation of the “American Bulldog”, from becoming an extinct breed, in the United States; the focus of our work began over 3 decades ago.

 

In the beginning, I contacted Mr. Tom D. Stodghill, Founder of the Animal Research Foundation [ARF], in Quinlan , Texas , in regards to registering my rare breed of American [Pit] Bulldogs with the ARF. 

   

3.     At that time, Mr. Stodghill recommended that I become a member of the  ARF, so I became an ARF Certified Breeder.  Long before Mr. Stodghill’s death in 1989, we became very good friends; between us, we shared our common interest in working dogs and various breeding techniques.

   

4.     Within the past 30 years, I have placed advertisements in Mr. Stodghill’s ARF magazine; also, Mr. Stodghill printed letters in his magazine, especially those I had written to him, as well as the ones he wrote back to me.  He did this to help others, who would eventually want to have more information on the American Bulldog.  

   

One of my letters to Mr. Stodghill was reprinted in “Stodghill’s Animal Research Magazine”, Issue No. 72, 1982, as follows:

   

“I received the new magazine today, and read the letter Mr. Johnson [John D. Johnson] wrote to you about changing the name of the American ‘Pit’ Bulldog to American Bulldog to cause less confusion.  I think this idea is wonderful now, as I did when my friend Joe Painter of Lockport, Illinois, suggested it to me about a month ago; we kicked the idea around a few times, and he said he had mentioned it to Mr. Johnson. I think this idea will keep the two breeds from becoming mixed.

 

“I am enclosing pictures of my American Bulldogs and a story that I wrote some time back.  I also am enclosing a check for a 1/4 page ad in your Special American Bulldog edition of the ARF Magazine.

 

“I hope this letter finds you and Ms. Eunice in good health. Your Fellow Breeder …

 

S/ Alan Scott
Rt. 7, Box 609
Ft. Payne , Alabama

   

5.     For many years, I have registered my American Bulldogs with the ARF. 

   

6.     I have dedicated my life, to the preservation, recognition, and registration of the American Bulldog; further, I have complete confidence in the ARF, knowing that they care about my American Bulldog as much as I do.  Also, I want to declare that the so-called “Animal Research Foundation Europe [ARFE]”, in Holland , owned by Mr. Jan Dirk van Ginneke, is not affiliated with the “Animal Research Foundation [ARF]”, in the United States .   

 

Further, I declare the ARFE registry to be an attempt to defraud Mr. Tom D. Stodghill, Founder of the Animal Research Foundation, and to be a very serious form of business theft, by stealing his trade name.    

   

7.     I highly recommend the Animal Research Foundation [ARF], C/o 11182 Highway 34 South, Quinlan , Texas   TPZ  75474.                   

   

Therefore, I, Alan Scott, do solemnly declare and attest that all the foregoing facts are true to the best of my knowledge and belief.