Big Paws Only Dog Forums

Let me first state I am one of those breeders that is only in it for the money. And when I make some I will let you know.

First we need a perspective, first there are several
types of behavior that are commonly called "aggresive"
they are:

1. Territorial - the dog displays protective behavior
only within it's territory which can be a house, a
yard, a kennel etc. It is generally the area in which
the dog is left to run free and dominate.

2. Dominance - the dog displays biting and growling
behavior towards individuals that it considers equal
to or lower than itself in hirearchy but not towards
established alphas.

3. Aggression - the dog attacks humans and other
animals outside of its territory when unthreatened.

4. Fear - the dog is shy and responds to perceived
threats with biting or growling behavior.

5. Resource guarding - the dog displays biting or
growling behavior when a human or animal that is not
an established alpha approaches while the dog is
eating or with a toy or treat.


The first step in handling any "aggression" issue is
to determine which type of behavior the dog is
exhibiting and treat the condition from the standpoint
of behavior modification. This is not necessarily easy
or quick and should not be undertaken without
professional help. Of these five the most dangerous
and difficult is "Aggression" and many times the only
answer is to put the dog to sleep and move on.
Especially with dogs this big and powerful.

For example if I classify your problem as
"Territorial" . Socialization alone will not stop a
dog from being territorial. Your dog has assumed a
dominant role in the protection of its territory and
you need to work to alleviate that situation.
For example:
1. Do not let the dog stay for long periods alone in
the territory.
2. keep the dog on a lead while in the territory and
assert your alpha status vigorously within that
territory.
3. While on the lead have people ask permission to
enter the territory and the you tell the dog it is
alright. IF the dog displays then correct it. Use your
hand and voice to enforce that it is ok.


These are just some of the remediations. Each one of
these five requires different techniques but all
require absolute consistencey.

Kevin

The "Stud" book is closed. There are no first generation crosses of OEM with ASD being produced and we are in the 9th generation. IF you are seeing advertised American Mastiffs that are first generation please let me know. THey are not Flying W AMerican Mastiffs and they are not recognized by the AMBC. My health claims are backed up by my warranty which is the same warranty that all of the recognized breeders use. My adopters seem to find this satisfactory and I have not had any complaints. It is these kind of inflammatory statements claiming that we are somehow trying to bilk an unsuspecting, ill informed public that has made me so wary about participating in these public forums. Instead of receiving some tolerence for trying to do things right uninformed people attack. I have not advocated my dogs here, I have not advertised the breed. I have not denigrated any other breed or breeder. I have tried to answer questions and offer information. I have yet to figure out why this topic stirs up such emotional response. Do they think AM breeders are out there calling attention to all of the faults and difficulties of other breeders. WE are not, every breed has faults, not every one is a potential adopter. I have owned about 14 different breeds in my lifetime, from minature dachsunds to AM's. I have loved every one of them and recognized the good and the bad about each. I make it a point to interview each potential adopting family extensively, Do each of you? We pick out the puppy that based on 8 to 10 weeks of observation in our living room (where they are born and raised) are best suited  in temperament for the adopter. Do your breeders? Or do they allow you to walk in and try to pick the best puppy for your family in 30 minutes or so. Remember this is a choice that will last for 10 to 15 years. Will your breeder take the dog back if after 5 years it's personality changes and becomes unsuitable for your family. Did your breeder require a spay/neuter agreement so as to prevent unscrupulous people to breed any old way they want? Who approved the breeder? A club with thousands of dogs and breeders or a council of dedicated breeders devoted to ensuring the best possible conditions for the puppies and the best possible genetics. THere are thousand of questions hat need to be asked before selling or buying a dog. Believe me if you don't ask me the right questions you won't get a dog from me. I live with these puppies, I feed them around the clock,, I medicate them, I sleep with them . If you are trying to buy one of my dogs because it's the cool thing, or because they look good you won't get one from me.

That's my rant for the day. Come visit me or one of the other breeders talk to us get informed first hand not through second hand info or message boards full of people with their own agendas. After you do that then criticise me or castigate the breed from your experience. But be prepared with facts, not suppositions or agendas or prejudice.

I have been looking into this mixed breed(not that I wanted one)someone else asked about them so I've been looking into them to see if the people breeding are trying to do something good or just make money.
The problem I have is most of the sites I looked at stated that this breed is free of hip problems.Yet I find no American Mastiffs on the OFA site(there are ladradoodles there but
no AM Mastiffs).This looks bad to me as breeders should not advertize what they can not prove.You can not tell a dog has hip problems unless you test for it and put it out to the public to see.
I hope to start seeing them on the ofa site soon.
Donna

Donna,
I can only speak for myself.
Dysplasia generally appears by x ray or symptomaticall y by the time that a dog reaches 24 months. All of my breeding dogs are x-rayed before they start breeding at a minimum of three years. Most of us have not gone the OFA route because the incidence of these conditions in our dogs is so low. It is like why test for thyroid problems if in  5 generations of a true breeding dog you don't have any cases. Now I am going to be a little pedantic, a mix is the first generation result of the breeding of two separate breeds. AM's have not been bred with anything other than other AM's for 7 generation that I know of. They are the result of a breeding program that crossed two breeds with the goal of creating a new one. Just like OEM's were after WWII and WWI. Just as the original Rottweiler or Rhodesian Ridgeback were in Germany and South Africa. AKC recognition does not a breed make. AM's have beed stabilized and we are being extraordinaril y careful with bloodline to obtain and retain the maximum genetic diversity.  I pose a challenge to all "purebred" dog owners to look at the history of your breed in detail (ain't the Internet grand) and you would be surprised at how many of these  breeds were "mutts" or "mixes" within the lifespan of many of us. Many more within the past hundred years. The Rhodesian is a very good study as is the OEM. Look at pictures of the "Mastiff" of yesteryear and compare them to today.

Thanks for listening

Against my better judgement (having fought these wars before) I will give it a try. I am an American Mastiff Breeder and am a member of the American Mastiff Breed Council Executive Committee.

There are approx 12 authorized breeders of AM's. All of these breedrs have been investigated and have subscribed to the principles and ethics of the AMBC. All of these breeders use the same standard Spay/Neuter agreement and offer the same guarantee. These are basically:
1 year on congenital defects
2 years on hips and joints
Lifetime on behavior.
THis means that all AM breeders are contractually bound to take back any dog that has a beavior problem beyond the desire of the owner to deal with. We have no Rescue because of this and in the 7 years I have been raising these dogs I have not known of any that have been returned because of behavioral issues.
It is semantically incorrect to state that they are unregistered, we use the ConKC as a central registry of all breeding dogs. It is true that they are unrecognized by the AKC. This is deliberate on our parts for a number of reasons. THe primary being we do not breed to a physical standard. We breed our dogs to the best, healthiest family companion that we can breed with the least amount of drool. We have no congenital eye problems, thyroid problems (that I am aware of) and a very low (less that 1 %) incidence of noticable dysplasia. If you have any additional questions I will try to answer them