Steven and Ronel Rogers had a bold vision when they started the American Bully journey in Southern Africa in 2011. This vision was to offer South Africans the opportunity to experience a premium breed with stunning physique and a calm temperament, to be a loyal companion, a friend for life but with style.
Bully Assure, previously ABFSA, took this vision in 2013 and started to implement a plan towards broader recognition and general public adoption. We saw others come into the market to mimic this vision, but it was never their vision and it showed. Some offered an alternative plan, but this plan was and still is always just about money, never about the breed. Bully Assure achieved some great milestones over the years, but our proudest moment came when ABKC and the founder (Dave Wilson) of the breed, came to South Africa and supported Bully Assure. This relationship is strong and very important as we continue down the path of fulfilling and living in the original vision.
Now we reached another very important milestone, Bully Assure is the only American Bully registry with the official backing of a registering authority namely SA Studbook, in South Africa. This means, we can deliver on our vision within a formally recognized framework. We worked hard over the past year to be fully integrated into SA Studbook and we have reached this milestone by integrating our database on the official SA Studbook management system. This means, each kennel or breeder, each litter or single dog who requests registration will now receive a Bully Assure registration backed by a formal system where each registration issued by Bully Assure will also enjoy a SA Studbook registration number. This is a great achievement for American Bullies and kennels, breeders and owners will benefit tremendously.
In addition, SA Studbook being the oldest and largest registering authority in South Africa, has vast technical capabilities offering services such as health tests and parentage tests for dogs. These services can be obtained through Bully Assure bringing simplicity to our members. Bully Assure will also be guided by SA Studbook to achieve and maintain compliance and are governed by SA Studbook, providing certainty to our members.
We recognize the recent developments with KUSA, initiated by a group of American Bully importers, the steps taken by KUSA are important but it is not able to deliver on the vision for the American Bully. It focuses only on a specific part of the American Bully and the main goal as initiated by importers, are to ensure importation of semen and livestock. We fully recognize the importance of imported semen and livestock to enhance and develop the American Bully. We respect the work KUSA is doing, we appreciate the commitment from the group of importers.
However, KUSA do not follow ABKC standards and they only regonize two varieties namely Pocket and Standard. Livestock of other varieties won’t be able to be imported. The AKC standards adopted by KUSA, are not representative of the American Bully. These pose serious challenges for the correct development of the American Bully in South Africa.
Bully Assure on the other hand, with the backing of ABKC and SA Studbook, remains the only viable option for the correct development and management of the breed in Southern Africa. Bully Assure is the bridge between the origination of the breed and local compliance. We remain steadfast to develop the breed, to offer compliance, to provide access and to instill trust for the broader dog community.
Sincerely,
Bully Assure Management
