After the passing of my beloved canine partner Bitz earlier this year, I figured it would take me quite a while to be ready for the next one.
I was wrong. I stumbled across this sweet girl, who was being rehomed because her family has a toddler that they don’t trust her with, despite there never being any incidents. We took her home for a week’s eval, and other than chasing the cat (which she’s already doing much better about) and a bit of leash aggression when she sees another dog (which we’ll work on) she’s just about perfect.
Her current name is Emma. That will be changing, since I can’t see having a dog named for a psychotic Jane Austen character. She’s a 95 pound bullmastiff/neopolitan mastiff mix. 2 years old and a sweet as a jar of molasses.
She gets along famously with our 3.5 YO English Bulldog and has already settled into the house routine quite easily. Her guard instinct is perfect without being over-reactionary. She will bark, go to access the “threat” and then take all her cues from the human after that.
She came known most of the basic commands and has picked up shake and roll over in the 10 days she’s been with us.
I’m still pondering the new name. Being a Browncoat, I’m leaning toward Zoe or Jayne, but I’m open to suggestions.
Since my wife calls the Bulldog her little Pooh Bear, she suggested Tigger. That won’t be happening. I can’t imagine saying, “Siccim, Tigger!” with a straight face.
She looks like a hellhound on a rampage and sounds like the gods’ own thunder, but give her the right word and she’s on her back begging for belly rubs before you have time to reach out your hand.
Goliath isn’t bad except for three things: She’s too little (in my mind) for it to apply, she’s a she and my wife, being Canadian, would almost certainly make it into, “Goalie.”
Hellhound? But I saw the pic you called ‘Rollin’ with the two wubbas belly-up. That is one cute, giant dog. And brindle to boot. How many hands can you fit in her jowls all at once?
She’s a doll. A protective doll who takes her job seriously, but a big floppy goof just the same. I haven’t measured her by the hands in jowls method, but if you pinch her cheeks and then pull out, you get about 16 inches from thumb to thumb.
I’m thinking you and your wife can fit all your hands in the jowly jowls at once. I’m jealous, cause I can only fit half a hand in my Ridgeback’s jowly jowls, and none at all in my Elkhound’s mouf.
She really does look like a sweetie. Reminds me of the Boerboel Mastiff (aka South African Mastiff) that lives across the street.
A friend of mine is married to a South African and had recommended a Boerboel for my next dog when I told her I was fond of mastiffs. We have an internationally recognized local breeder in the area, but I’d much rather go for a rehome than a breeder dog, just because there are so very many of them in need of a good family.
When I got the new dog and showed her the picture she said, “If that dog were fawny red instead of striped, I’d have sworn you got a boerboel, you lucky, lucky bastard.”
I’d go with Zoe, 'cause Jayne’s a guy’s name. Can’t be Goliath because she’s a girl, but I kind of like the name Goalie. Are goalies small or otherwise objectionable? Or do you just not want to encourage the hockey thing?