State your name, and where you are from?
My name is Al Rivera, and I’m from Yonkers, NY.
What is your involvement in the Bully Community?
I’ve been involved with the bully community for well over a decade now. Starting out as a handler is what really got me into this community. I then began breeding a bit here and there, maybe one litter per year. Shortly after, I became a judge, and have been able to travel throughout the U.S., Europe, and South America, judging for a few different registries.
What influenced you to get involved within the Bully Community?
I’ve been into dogs my entire life and was surfing the web looking at different breeds and stumbled across a picture of Razors Edge “Biggie”. At the time I never even knew what an American Bully was, but was hooked instantly! My uncle AZ was the first out of our group at the time to purchase a bully. The rest is history!
As a BBCR judge, what are some things you notice in the ring, that people still need plenty of work on?
I think they need to work on understanding their breed standards better, as well as work on their handling. So many folks enter the ring with pet quality dogs because they didn’t take the time to actually study their breeds standard. I don’t mean just reading a written standard. You can read a breeds standard until your blue in the face and know it word for word. That doesn’t mean a person would understand what the true type is for that breed.
You learn true type when you see the animal living, type is all encompassing. It embodies everything that makes up a breed from look to personality. Sure a standard helps one with a good eye for dogs get an idea, but nothing comes close to seeing them alive and physically going over them.
Another thing I see is a lot of is bad handling. The person can have a beautiful specimen and do such a horrible job with the presentation, that they make the dog look and act ugly. As a judge, I make it my business to judge the dog. However, it’s a handlers job to present it correctly to maker sure they don’t kill the dogs chances. In the ring more times than not, less is more, especially when you have a nice dog. I think nowadays there’s so many ways to learn how to handle dogs. I believe like anything else, folks need to take it seriously and put the time and effort in, especially if you want to win. At the end of the day that’s what you’re there for.
Where is the furthest you’ve traveled to judge an BBCR show?
I judged a show in Lima, Peru. It was a huge event with well over 150 dogs, very well put together, and nicely decorated with huge BBCR banners everywhere. It was a really cool experience for me.
Do you have a kennel, or own any bully breed dogs?
Yes, we used to be known as Indastreets Bulliez when we first started, but have since changed our name to Praetorian Bulliez. Current members are my nephew Leonard, great friend Bam from Philadelphia, and my two brothers Rey & Leo. Without this team nothing would be possible.
What is your favorite bloodline?
We tend to stick with the older Razors Edge stuff and Roc & Ruby. I like the overall structure and look that comes with these lines. I’m not a fan of a lot of the new stuff that’s out. To me, the older blood is true to what the American Bully was intended to be.
What advice do you have for upcoming Bully Breed owners, and breeders?
Do your research. Just because it costs more doesn’t mean it’s better. There’s a lot of folks out here trying to sell dreams. Get involved for the right reasons. Try to better the breed and don’t look at them as a business. Breeders that look at these dogs like a business will never have a set breeding program, because what they do is dependent on how the market is and what’s selling. So therefore, like the market, their program will change with the wind.
What is the most difficult thing for people in the bully game to overcome?
The inconsistencies in breed type we see with our American Bully. Some days folks see more terrier type dogs winning, and other days see a more bulldog type dogs winning. This goes back to folks not taking the time to sit and really understand what true type looks like when dealing with the American Bully. The fact that there are so many bully registries now doesn’t help. There are a few that work together to help close the gap, but it’s not enough. I think folks have to educate themselves. They have to understand that a bully looking too much like a bulldog is lacking in type just as much as a bully that looks too much like an AmStaff.
It’s that happy medium we need to seek as a community if we’re ever going to have any consistency within our breed. Don’t get me wrong, I like breeds with different styles. I think that’s what makes a breed like ours so unique. However, there’s a huge difference between style and type. I wouldn’t really want our breed to be as uniform as the Doberman. However, at the rate things are going, I believe it’s something we should strive for. Then we can address the issue of too much uniformity, if we were to ever have such an issue.
How do you think they can overcome this thing?
I think removing certain classes is a start. I don’t believe 1 breed should have 5 classes. All registries having 1-3 classes would help tremendously. Those with 1 standard would make room for pocket & standards to show together, and those with 3 like the BBCR would have the same standard for all classes. The only difference would be height. I also think that registries using the same judges would help as well. This would help break up a certain culture that ends up building around a specific style of judging. Judges ended up picking the “safe picks”.
Recruiting judges from other larger registries hasn’t seemed to help much either because they usually end up stuck in the culture that’s already established in many bully registries. However, if we as judges are able to jump from registry to registry this culture would never develop. Judging would be more consistent overall. It may even add some well needed objectivity to our group, and help open eyes to other important features or traits that are being overlooked.
Describe how you would like to see the BBCR 10 years from now.
I’d like us to recognize more mastiff like breeds and create a platform for performance titles. There’s so much more our breeds can do. I think we just have to show folks what our breeds are capable of. We should add things like tug-of-war, jumping, running, protection, ect. This way folks have more things to look forward to instead of just showing or breeding.
Who do you look up to within the Bully Community?
The people! I believe this community has grown so quickly because we have some really awesome and diverse people. This community brings the entire world together with people from all walks of life. That’s just another plus the American Bully brings to the table. So yeah, the people for sure. They’re what makes this all possible!
What other hobbies / interests do you take part in?
I’ve been training professional MMA fighters and boxers for some time now. Also, I am very involved in the NYC autism community. I’m a Program Supervisor at a non-profit school, Atlas Foundation for Autism. We’re a small school in Manhattan. However, we have taken huge steps in changing children lives and increasing overall social awareness. Working with autistic and specials needs children is definitely the huge part of my life, and who I am as a person. These issues are something people only think about when they’re confronted with it or hear it on tv. At Atlas we hope to change that! Please check out our website at AtlasForAutism.org.
What motto do you live by?
Expect nothing and appreciate everything!
What do you think of Bully Girl Magazine?
I think BGM has come all long way and has proven that they’re not just some fly by night magazine. You guys have been very consistent. I love how you try to mix things up and find things that peak the interests of everyone in our community.
