THE ADULT MASTIFF

The Guardian

After you find yourself owned  by the mastiff puppy, you will quickly realize the growth rate of the mastiff. While as cute as they were little. Remembering that your now baby has the potential to weigh in at mid hundreds to 200  Plus pounds can be a hurling whirlwinds for the mastiff owner as their mastiff matures.

Breeders often fail to walk buyer through the true ownership of the adult mastiff. They stop at selling the "cute " puppy without bothering to educate about the breed. It is a heartache waiting to happen to many families who find themselves overwhelmed with the adult dog and no support system to go back on. The reason for this is, Many breeders themselves aren't educated enough on the breed to be able to educate the buyer. Your given back yard breed barney has never seen a vet more less been evaluated for genetic problems to even see if they should be used as breeding stock or foundation. Your mastiff adult will carry any inherited genetic traits of its parents. Including temperament problems. ( shyness and aggression )  It is vital you be educated in Mastiff 101 on the breed before bring a mastiff into your life. If you can not find the breeder willing to share the overwhelming wealth of knowledge, Please continue your search. Most reputable Breeders will want to know you fully understand the aspect of owning a mastiff and are more then willing to educate you.

The lively hood of your adult mastiff living in your home as a social , mentally stable adult will not only depend on your raising, But on the genetic makeup of your dog. You may not see these traits as a puppy. Many times they will not manifest until adulthood.

Too often we get surrender calls to the rescue because he/she got too big ! You must think long term when you are considering owning a mastiff. I am sure they did not fall in love with this puppy and know that once it was grown they could not handle it or could not deal with a dog of such size and would be faced with the heartache and decision of having to give up your loved pet.

Mastiffs do not reach full maturity and adulthood till age 3 plus and sometimes as late as 4.5 years. Your nice size living room, home and furniture will vastly Dwarf as your mastiff grows.

While mastiffs do not require space in the sense of a boxer with energy. They do require Laying room and snuggling space, as well their own space to retreat to. Most often close to you or on your feet is where your mastiff will be ! Be prepared when cooking, gardening etc, to have your giant baby laying right behind your feet. And stepping back will NOT make them move. But look at you with the look of " why did you wake me up ? " As well with most anything you do your mastiff will be right next to you, ( nothing is private, close the door !!!! )

Mastiffs also need that retreat, you know your friends visit with very hyper children.  Well Fido needs a place to get away and go into ignore mode. !!!!  ( mastiffs have perfected this as well as selective hearing ) Just because Fido loves your children and is tolerant to your children, Like any other breed they may not tolerate the neighbor or friends children their actions or sometimes perceived threats when next door Bobby whacks your Billy with a baseball bat while playing and makes him cry.  Please consider this factor, Do you like everyone ? < grin> Then Please do not expect your dog to. Especially if not trained to accept this type of activity.

Mastiffs are also agile with play and may surprise you how high this couch potato can jump or how fast he can run. Mastiffs require exercise if it is to run around the back yard like a nut doing 90 mph back to the house after potty.

Mastiffs  can make great working dogs, We have used ours on the small farm. The are very muscular and powerful  when used as a working or herding breed. There is nothing wrong with a working mastiff. More and more injury are reported in the couch potatoes dog lacking muscular structure then in the working mastiff. More hip , joint, elbow, knee etc. problems.  In the Large substance ( fat ) mastiff. Mastiff size should always be natural, with complete structure of muscle. Not Obesity.

Mastiffs indeed enjoy working, herding and have been used in hunting as well. They do have the speed and power to keep up with a deer. Be careful not to take the big dog for granted if you live in such an area that deer travel your property.

As long as it is beside you, the mastiff will love what it does.

On thing I must caution potential mastiff owners is the mere fact the mastiff is a Guardian Breed as well as a Working Breed.

Your meek and mild puppy that has show no interest in things or people up to about 18 months to  2 years of age. Will start peeking maturity  and begin to be a dog. Puppy hood will slowly fade and the dog will begin to mature. Therefore proper training is a Must.

So often I have crying owners calling the rescue end about a mastiff suddenly , growling or not letting people into their home. This is why obedience class is necessary ! Cute baby grows up to be a tattling booger :-)

You Must have complete control of your mastiff at all times.  ( and they will test you, when you least expect it )(just like Kids) A dog of such mass proportions and strength is not a fun thing when they mature and have not had proper training. Sometimes it can be genetic, or thyroid related. But most of the times we have found, Folks have not gotten their pet from a reputable breeder or have bought a pet Store pet. ( let me fall over now please read our section on Pet store pets) and was not educated to the breed prior to purchase, the pup was sold for the money factor and  did not know to, or have not provided any type of obedience training. A lot of heart ache could have been prevented with a little education and training. Another problem is they have let the puppy be taunted, poking and pulling on the slobber jowl puppy and the Dog  is not so tolerate to stupid actions !

Please realize your dog is a natural protector. Not aggressor such as rotts etc. But if it feels it's family is threatened the mastiff will most certainly react. It is his heart and soul to love, protect and be loyal to his Masters. However if your are bitten by a mastiff you most likely deserve it. Mastiffs will give you ever ample warning to back off ! Failure to comply is your fault. They are truly patient and kind  But would give their life for their people if threatened.

IF you are visiting a home with a mastiff think twice about your actions !

Though you and "Joe" when to school together and your idea of greeting each other is headlocks and gut punches, Well Guess What !  (he he) Joe now owns a mastiff and you are going to get pinned down.. <grin> Baby will protect Daddy If he thinks Daddy is being hurt. One of the thing mastiffs see as God is their owner, They will be loyal to their owner to the end of days. They are protectors not aggressors. But indeed if the feel their family threatened. Any breed of dog will react.

While Fido may have tolerated you at puppy hood, Once Fido starts to mature, you will be perceived as a threat to His Master ! To make a harming move toward them. The mastiff will usually plant their self well in front of their owner and give you ample notice of not being happy. Respect that move. Or the oopsie is going to be on your side of fault not the dogs..  As well , mastiff owners need to realize the same thing, Your mastiff may not differentiate between play and threat with some actions of physical contact from people not seen all the time or known well. IF you have children Ask  before you let your children charge up to a mastiff. You may provoke a  paw to the face out of excitement a knock down from a happy tail, Or worse a fear bite if the dog is taken off guard, Do Not  assume because they live with children they will be fine with yours. Nor with any breed.

If a Mastiff Retreats, Let Them Be !

This is the ignore mode. That retreat space we were talking about.  Well when your mastiff retreats they Do Not want to deal with the company, events etc. Therefore Respect  your Dog and Do Not  attempt to make the dog visit people your dog is already agitated for one reason or another and is trying to be good and ignore what is going on. Dogs have a much higher sense then people.  Body orders, perfumes, hormonal changes from fear,  etc. May just be offensive to your dog !  They are not going to like everyone all the time and neither do we !<grin> Never force your dog into a situation that can frighten them or provoke them !  YOU are creating a disaster waiting to happen ! This holds true in Any breed. But a dog of this size is not a minpin  !

When a mastiff is on guard you may hear a very low throat growling or bear grumbling noise they may stand in front of their owner or they may circle to push you back..  Back Off !   Shackles hair on the back of the neck and spine may be standing up, Tail erect or dropped tucked toward the belly and a dead stare. Do Not proceed to coax your way into friendship, It is Not going to happen. You have been perceived as a threat. And an Owner must immediately remove the dog from the situation. Do not Stare the dog down, you are challenging them in their terms.

I can not put enough emphasis on Training ! You Must have a trained mastiff. This is not something that can be ignored. Mastiff puppies are  Way to  Easy to  Spoil !  and therefore have no ground rules that you forgot to lay down while the 40lbs puppy did what you do not want the 200 lb dog doing. This is owner error not bad mastiff !!!!!