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Mastiffs => Old English Mastiff Discussions => : melissajean September 03, 2007, 08:11:47 PM

: Mastiff Info Please
: melissajean September 03, 2007, 08:11:47 PM
Hi,
My name is Melissa. Im interested in perhaps adding a Mastiff to my family. I have a few other breeds Im looking into also. But I do have some questions about Mastiffs I was wondering if you Mastiff owners could answer for me?
1~How are they with children? I have a 4 year old son. I will never leave them unsupervised,and never let Shane (My son) tease the dog in any way, but I would like a dog that will get along with him and play with him.
2~How are they with other critters?
3~How much exersize a day do they need as adults?
4~What aresome health problems Mastiffs can have? How do you prevent them,and/or how they are treated
5~What are some pros and cons?

Feel free to add anything else you think I should know that I didnt add. Feel free to brag or vent lol
Thank you :)
~Melissa~
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: RMSChloe September 03, 2007, 08:17:43 PM
first off, what KIND of mastiff? and i can answer the first two questions for you right off... it depends on A- how old they are when you get them- if a dog is a puppy its going to be easier for them to get used to children and other pets, than an adult who has never had to deal with either one of them and B- how you socialize it- if you get a puppy, you have to socialize it a lot with young children and other pets (if you have any). teach them that they cant jump up on people (esp. children, with a large dog, things like that just CAN NOT be tollerated), no nipping, things like that. Also if you can take them some place where they can socialize with other dogs is great. they need to learn about pack dynamics and how to play with other dogs, without going over their limits. other than than, figure out what type of mastiff... and maybe there can be some more help with your other questions!
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: melissajean September 03, 2007, 08:54:00 PM
Im not sure what type of Mastiff, Ive just always heard of them refured to as Mastiffs. But some one on here, said something about an old English Mastiff, so I was assumeing they were also called that.
Thank you for the info :)
~Melissa~
Ok, I was reading a book tonight (The ggod, the bad, and the furry) and they say the Mastiffs Im thinking of are also known as the old english Mastiffs.
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: lorim2 September 04, 2007, 10:49:57 AM
Hey Melissa..I have been working alot lately and havent been on but just saw your post.  Well I think they are the greatest dogs ever!!  Our Marley is the best but he wasnt raised around small children.  My opinion is if you get them as a pup and raise them together they would be fine.  Marley is a little scared of the wild kiddos!  When we go to Petsmart they tend to go crazy when they see him because he is the "beast" (from the movie Sandlot) and that makes him a little nervous.  The only worry I would have is because they are so big and if your kiddos are really small then an accident could happen, like knocking them down.
  As far as getting along with other critters, there again its all about how and who they are raised with.  Marley with raised in a Zoo therefore he does well with most everything.  I have a yellow lab, 2 chihuahuas and a coatimundi who are out always and everyone gets along great.  I also have two kitties that Marley will chase if he thinks your not looking but will not hurt them...Exercis e is a breeze!  He gets two long walks..am and pm...and in between likes to go play frisbee for like 10 min when he goes potty!  The only health issues we have encountered so far is his ears...Awful nasty ear syndrome...but we keep it under control with Epi-Otic ear wash once a week...
  Let me just say that I love all my babies but Marley is my one true lifelong love...He loves sooooo very unconditionall y and his personality is second to none!  If you can handle drool and lots of it in our case then go for it...Although I didnt want my daughter to bring him home at first, hes the absolute best!!  She will be leaving for Cali in next fall for school and we have already had the discussion about Marley staying put with me!!  haha..even if I have to kidnapp...Sorr y so long but you can tell I love my mastiffs!
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: lorim2 September 04, 2007, 02:42:28 PM
One more of my fav pics!!  Can you tell I love OEM's?
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: mynameislola September 04, 2007, 04:42:25 PM
We have two Italian Mastiffs, also known as the Cane Corso.  This version of the mastiff is smaller than the OEM or the AM; the two-year-old is 80 lbs. and the pup will probably be a bit over 100.

We enjoy the Molosser type breeds but didn't want to handle huge dogs.  If there were an emergency, I couldn't get an injured OEM or AM by myself into a truck for transport to a Vet. without using a dolly, ramp, and a winch. 

Airline transport for huge adult dogs is also an issue.  My dogs fit into commercially-produced carriers.  There have been some very helpful threads here regarding how to travel with huge dogs.

When we searched for ours, I looked for a breeder who did extensive personality examinations of the pups at different ages.  Our pup wasn't the prettiest, but she had the least assertive personality of her litter.  When they held her on her back at three days, she was so floppy they had to repeat the test several times to be sure she wasn't just asleep.

Here is a picture of Rosita doing Down, Stay. 

: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: melissajean September 05, 2007, 12:26:51 AM
Thanks guys :)
I dont thinkit would bother Shane to get knocked over by a tail or anything. His favorite activity is to climb on the highest part of the couch and jump off onto a matress we have on the floor. Theres been a couple times hes missed the mattress. He just laughes. Me and him wrestle around alot. I'll knock his legs out from underneith him (On the bed) so he falls over.He loves it. He was running at the park, and went face firs into the ground cause he tripped, he got up laughing. Everyone looks at him like whats wronge with that kid, when instead of getting up crying hes laughing.
How many miles is a long walk? Would two miles a day be ok? And then I would probably be walking my dog down town at nite. I like walking at nite cause there arnt that many people out lol.
Thanks again for the help guys.
Feel free to brag as much as you want, and post as many pics as you want. All your guys dogs are so cute  :D
~Melissa~
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: jagersmom September 05, 2007, 01:14:44 AM
Hey Melissa,

Sorry I didn't post earlier. Life is crazy, you know?

I have a smaller mastiff, the bullmastiff. He is about 27-28" at the shoulder and weighs about 120 lbs at 2yrs old. He is the biggest couch potato! If he's outside for like 10 minutes, thats 9 too long as far as he's concerned, unless he's in the pool. Then again, I live in Flordia so it's too hot for me!

Jager gets glucosamine every morning to help prevent hip/joint issues. The breeder I got him from had started him on it has a wee-giant puppy. I do force him to walk with me occasionally. We' go about a mile and it's like walking with a steam-engine! Socialization is huge though! Jager didn't get as socialized as I would have liked (my fault). He's pretty good but does get excited with new people and will sometimes jump.

We have a 5-6 month old kitten. Jager can take him or leave him. We brought him as a pup with an adult cat (Stitch tolerated Jager). When we had her put down we got another adult cat, they didn't get along either. The kitten, totally fearless! They play together, chew on each other, share food. It's crazy, annoying, and cute. It all depends on the animals.

Pros and Cons? Geez I could go all day. Just kidding! Pros are that you have HUGE loving puppy kisses when you come home. Most "large breed" toys and food are the near the same cost as the small toys and food. Friends are always fascinated and wanna play with him. Sometime I can get them to dog sit for me here! Jager loves my 18 month old niece! If she's here and cries he gets very worried and protective of her. It's just too bad that she's allergic, otherwise I'd be having pics of my "babies" together. Cons are that vet bills can get high. Same with boarding. You can't just move into anywhere either. I was looking at a townhome when Jager was about 6 mos old. I was told full-grown he couldn't be over 17". I was debating about just saying he was a monster and a freak of nature but I live in an actual house with a fenced yard that is full of "land mines," which can be another con. Big dog. Big poop. Not always good with kids running around you know?

Honestly, with the all the cons of a big dog, no less the "beast" I wouldn't trade him for a million dollars. I love him to death! He's a tough dog. Like a freakin' tank!

I have a couple of books on mastiffs/bullmastiff that your welcome to. Obviously I made my educated choice (which kudos for doin research!) and love it! Oh one more thing: they fart and snore. Their farts can be killer, most times SDB (silent but deadly) sometimes your can hear them. Thankfully I'm sick and can't smell but he just ripped one next to me. He's cleared my house before! Seriously 6 of us were standing outside for like 10 mins trying to breathe! Snoring isn't too bad though. It's cute and I can easily ignore it, which is A LOT easier to ignore than the barking.

(http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7d629b3127cceb8b5e100795a00000026100Aas3DJu5atmKA)

(http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7d724b3127ccebae900bdaacb00000026100Aas3DJu5atmKA)

(http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7d724b3127ccebae90a6caa1f00000025100Aas3DJu5atmKA)

Sorry for the numerous pics. I'm a proud mommy!!
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: melissajean September 05, 2007, 03:12:57 AM
lol Thats cute. I also posted on the Bullmastiff part, cause there one of the breeds Im interested in. He looks so cute lol. I love the pic of him and the kitty. Made me laugh. Feel free to post as many pics as you want.
Thanks again :)
~Melissa~
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: jagersmom September 06, 2007, 01:19:41 AM
LOL I have the picture of him lookin like "Not again!?" on my desktop at work. Everyone that comes in the office is told by my co-workers "You have to see Jager and Bacardi!" Hehe they crack me up but can be so annoying! I love my fur-sons though.
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: melissajean September 06, 2007, 11:30:20 PM
lol Thats cute.
My Yorkie would get so mad at us cause were always takeing pics lol
~Melissa~
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: charliesmom September 27, 2007, 08:26:40 PM
Hi,
I have a oe mastiff. I can tell you that he is the most lovable guy. He was raised along side two toddlers and a cat. He loves all people and the cat puts up with him. I've never meet a eo mastiff that wasn't friendly (but of course they were all well socialized). The only two cons that I see in owning one of these breeds are:
1.  They think that they are lap dogs.
2.  The slobber, it goes everywhere! You can't have a week stomach.
Just do your research before you decide on the right pet for you. These guys can go over 200#’s.
Make sure you research your breeder, make sure they do health testing! Please don’t buy from a pet store, they get their puppies from puppy mills.
Some health issues with the eo mastiff are hip/joints, bloat.
This brings up the vet - make sure that vet that you decide on knows about mastiffs, you would be surprised at how many don’t.
Also, pet food - with the giant breeds you don’t keep them on puppy food very long. The idea is to let them grow at a slow pace (this helps with the joints. Buy the best pet food that you can. Read the list of ingredients, a specified meat (ie. Chicken, beef, lamb) should be the first ingredient listed. The better the food, the less they need to feel full, the less that comes out of the other end!
Yes they do get paint peeling gas! I found that if I add a few spoons of  yogert to his meals that helps cut it down a lot.
Charlie is a year and a half and weighs in at about 170#. We walk him twice a day in total of about 2 miles plus he does his daily jog around the pool in the yard. My home will never be without a oe mastiff, they are the best feet warmers  ;)!
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: melissajean September 28, 2007, 05:09:03 AM
Thank you. :)
Ive been researching all the dogs Im interested in.
I would never buy from a BYB, Puppy Mill, Or pet Shop. There terrible places, and the people make me sick. I could go on a whole little rant but I wont lol.
Slober dosnet bother me. It used to before I had Shane(My son) But after everything Ive gone through with being a mommy, Slober is nothing lol. You woulnt belive how many times Ive gotten peed on (Or worse lol) The only thing Im not overly fond of is blood, and that dosent gross me out, just freaks me out, One of the reasons I decided against becomeing a Vet tech lol.
Whats some problems youve run into by raising a OE Mastiff and small children? How did you handle them?
Whats a good age to stop feeding them puppy food? Ive heard to never feed and then Ive heard to only feed for the first couple months. What is a good brand to feed?
Thank you :)
~Melissa~
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: charliesmom September 28, 2007, 09:59:12 AM
I feed my Charlie Eagle Pack Holistic Select for large & giant breeds.
You can check them out at  http://www.eaglepack.com/Pages/HS_Dog.html
He also gets a can of Merrick wet food mixed into his dinner. Their dry kibble is also great!
http://www.merrickpetcare.com.
There are a lot of great foods out there, you just have to read labels and make sure that they only use "human Grade" ingredients. And as I said before, make sure the first ingredients are a specified meat product. You don’t want a lot of fillers (you have to feed more, thus more poop!). I found that the "Big Box" pet stores and grocery stores only carry crap food, although PetSmart carries Blue Buffalo, it’s way too rich for my boys tummy, go to the smaller pet stores. They carry a better variety. I shop at Pet Supplies Plus, maybe you have one in your area.  You will also need to know what your breeder is feeding, decide if you want to keep your pup on that, if not you will have to do a gradual switch with the foods (or you risk explosive diarrhea).  I would only keep your pup on puppy food for 4-6 months, check with your vet. Since you have been researching you know that pups should be kept with their mom’s for as long as possible. She will teach him about social behavior and bit inhibition (those milk teeth hurt). Charlie was rolled on, laid on and over loved by the kids. He has never shown any aggression. If he had enough he would walk away and go to his crate. The kids knew that it was Charlie’s space and that they were not to mess with him there, it was his rest time.  Of course we no longer use a crate as we have a small house and the size we would need now would take up to much room, he has his own love seat to relax on. Your son is old enough to follow simple rules with a puppy. One last thing (as I seem to be writing a novel) take your puppy to puppy classes. PetCo and PetSmart both offer them. You will be thankful for the training when your pup is older and out weighs you!
(http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t308/mastiffmamma/100_04122.jpg)
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: melissajean September 28, 2007, 05:23:34 PM
Thank you.
We dont have a petsmart or petco in the whole U.P. I know, Ive looked lol. I belive Petsmart says theres one in Marquett on there web site, but I know for a fact there isnt. They do have a pretty good pet supply store up there, Marzadoetts or something lol. I went there once. I wanted to look around for hours and hours lol but my friends were waiting for me in the car :( But a friend of mine gets her llama feed up there says there pretty cheap and I know I seen the good brands of dog food up there like Eagle pak and Blue buffalo, and Some others, I cant think right now lol. But I remember seeing huge crates andhuge colars and leads and toys lol
I dont mind that you write so much. Its how I learn stuff. Feel free to write as much as you like about Charlie.
Thank you for takeing the time to help me :)
~Melissa~
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: karateblossom November 25, 2007, 03:09:00 AM
I brought an em pup into a family of kids, a siamese and an 11 yo alpha sprnger spaniel-successfully.

1.  I immediately placed him in a puppy kindergarden class (aka basic obedience).
2.  I allowed the kids to put their hands in his food while eating and 'treating' to prevent him being aggressive.  cannot imagine a 200 lb snapping at my kids.
he has been awesome and totally puts up w/ the loudness and chaos that my kids bring-even some of the antics!  amazkngly, he has the ability to 'alter' his level of play depending upon the age and ability.
4.  the cat tolerates him.  the springer tolerated him as well.  we socialized him weekly by introducing him to ALL critters (even frogs) as a small pup so now, at 170lbs, he wouldn't harm a treefrog -literally!  even on our irregular walks, he has been assaulted by chihuahuas and his disposition was like-whatever.
5.  exercise?  we live in a small home and he is content being asleep under our feet!  very low activity level!!!  however, when I'm in a walking mood, he is all  but screaming 'lets go'.  the bottom line is they adapt to your level of energy.  they don't require a lot of space but they need daily interaction and play.  we spend a few hours a day outside playing get squeaky man. 
6.  be prepared to decorate around the wobblers and the slingers!  they get everywhere.
7.  easy to housebreak and train.
8.  to help with bloat, we feed him small meals 2 times a day and keep his kibble small....he doesn't suck air and  actually grazes nicely.  this helps keep him lean, which helps keep him healthy and free of hip issues thus far.  8.  heartworm meds are based on weight so he costs more for 6 mo supply.  they are low groming need (puppy trainiiing taught me how to clip nails and how to get him to let me), food costs are high due to the amount he eats a day....but he doesn't like the more expensive foods so we r lucky that beneful has been his favorite and he thrives beautifully!

good luck and hope this helps.  I think that if you are home a lot and can handle the size, a mastiff is a beautiful addition to a human family with kids and other furry friends!  I would NOT recommend adding a mastiff if he would be left alone, as the breed needs their people!  I refused to go back to work until mine was 2 and even then, I only work 20 hours a day. 
     
: Re: Mastiff Info Please
: karateblossom November 25, 2007, 11:45:08 PM
20 hours a week-sorry!