I’m doing a bit of writing at the moment and my main character has gotten himself a mastiff puppy. In your experience of puppies, what did they do? How active where they? How big were they at each age? How quickly did they grow? What kind of personality did they have? How were they around kids and other animals?
Pics would also be appreciated of different aged pups if you have them.
Thanks!
Bull Mastiffs are a distinctly different breed that comes from English Mastiffs: They are 40% English Bulldog, 60% English Mastiff.
They are shorter, more compact, than regular English Mastiffs. They tend to be livelier and perhaps more agile. Their heads are more bulldog-like.
Both come in fawn, apricot fawn, and brindle, with black masks.
Both are large, sweet puppies.
An 12 week old might be about the size of a Chihuahua.
Both are good with kids.
English Mastiffs are mellower, true gentle giants, Bull Mastiffs are similar but a bit more active. A male English Mastiff can weight between 160 and 220 lbs, a male Bull Mastiff is more like 130 or so.
You might want to do some googling.
Thanks, I did some googling but I couldn’t find very many personal experiences which is what I’m looking for.
A couple of little quibbles. The breed is properly Bullmastiff, as one word. They were, originally, a cross of the Mastiff (commonly known as the Old English Mastiff and the English Bulldog. However, that was in 1924, and nowadays they are a separate breed with no outcrossing to either Mastiffs or Bulldogs.
There was a thread a little while ago about large breeds, including Bullmastiffs … here you go.
My experience of them is limited, but they are usually a little lighter and more agile than the other mastiffs, and seem to be a bit more assertive in temperament. This site is usually pretty good about temperament: Bullmastiff Dog Breed Information and Pictures
Be careful when choosing re temperament. Due to their size and power it’s not unknown for Bull Mastiffs to kill their owners if attacks occur.
Big breed puppies are really fun. Their paws are enormous in comparison to their body size, so they tend to trip over them. They also grow so fast that they don’t realize their size.
When my dog was a tiny pup, she would run and crawl under the sofa when she got in trouble. One day, it finally happened-- she was too big to fit. She ran for cover, tried to dive under the sofa and bonked her head. Confused, she backed up, and decided to try it again, wriggling and squirming for all she was worth, trying to fit into a space too small to admit her. She finally turned to me with an accusing look: “You must have gotten another sofa!”
They also remember snuggling on your lap, so even though they’re three times the size they once were, they still try it. (My grandmother’s 150 lb Airedale used to try this on me, and I only weigh about 115. He would always give me this, “Did you shrink?” look.)
I’m gonna have to disagree with you, there. I used to be a vet tech and one of our patients had a pair of english mastiff puppies. I know that they’re bigger than the bullmastiffs, but these puppies were 40 lbs at 12 weeks; I don’t think bullmastiffs are going to be 3-10 lbs at the same age (We also had a great dane who was 60 lbs at 16 weeks, and they end up weighing about the same as a bullmastiff, although taller).
I don’t have any experience with bullmastiff puppies, but english mastiff ones are the laziest things you’ve ever seen. Adult mastiffs are insanely sweet, drooly, and huge; and in my experience not all that bright. But really sweet. And drooly.
Another dissenter on this. My Rhodesian Ridgeback, which is significantly lighter than a Bullmastiff (75 lbs or so as an adult), was 19 lbs at 9 weeks and between 25 and 30 lbs at 3 months. There’s no way a 3 month old bullmastiff is going to be the size of a Chihuahua. Probably will be at least 30 lbs.
Wow, I’ve had three English Mastiffs, one of them topped out at 185, but I don’t think he weighed 40 lbs at 12 weeks, however he was my first and that was 13 years ago. So maybe my memory is fuzzy.
My present mastiff was much smaller as a pup (and is a smaller adult), but he was indeed much stockier and more solid than a Chihuahua. Perhaps I should have picked a different breed for my size example.
I have two full grown English mastiffs (female) the larger one is around 170lbs the smaller is prob. 145. One is rather stocky and more compact the other is taller longer legged and kind of resembles a great danes build. They are both very loving and mild mannered. I have two small children and the dogs are very loving and playful with them. They are layed back dogs that kind of amble around and are not at all excitable unless they are happy to see you or they sence danger of some sort. They were playful as puppies, eager to please, easy to train. I remember that Emma the smaller one weighed 8lbs at 8wks of age and the breeder commented that she was on the chubby side. I don’t know if thats a fact or not as I don’t know how much she should have weighted at that point. They both grew fast, but it seemed like it took them a couple of years to completely “fill out” to their present weights,sizes…I’ve heard they are slow to mature. I have had many dogs and I have to say I think mastiffs are tops!
Never owned them, but I love English mastiffs. They’re exactly what a dog should be - reliable, patient, loyal, very defensive (at the right times), and simply happy to be part of the pack.
My parents are now on their fourth Bullmastiff.
They grow pretty quickly and are pretty lively when puppies.
I remember a lot of bounding about.
All four of them have had great personalities, very gentle and tolerate children pretty well. My cousins when younger would prod, push and generally be a nuisance, as soon as the dog got fed up of that they would just leave the room.
If they meet another big dog they would generally be quite keen to socialise with it. More than once when out walking, various small dogs (terrier size) would come running up and bark/growl, every time our dogs would just look at it with bemusement.
All dogs have been lazy as well, it’s no fun walking them when they decide they’ve had enough and just sit down about a mile from home.
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I’m doing a bit of writing at the moment and my main character has gotten In your experience of puppies, what did they do? How active where they? How big were they at each age? How quickly did they grow? What kind of personality did they have? How were they around kids and other animals?
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Generalising from other mastiff-types, I’m assuming that Bullmastiffs will follow some of the same patterns. Giant-breed dogs grow fast, but they take a long time to reach their full-size, they won’t be their adult size until 3 or 4. Because they grow so fast it’s important to keep them on the lean side and limit the amount of exercise they do, so lots of puppy running around is fine, but little or no leash walking until at least a year, and then be careful.
They are really at the extreme end of size for dogs, and because of this growing puts a lot of pressure on their joints. Because of this giant puppies are actually quite fragile and prone to some temporary and permanent joint issues if their nutrition and growth aren’t carefully managed.
Size at each age will vary widely from dog to dog. At 6 months of age when I had my Mastiff X puppy desexed he weighed 50 kilos. Breed standard for a Bullmastiff says that height and weight should be:
SIZE -
Height: Dogs 63.5-68.5 cms (25-27 ins) at shoulder
Bitches 61-66 cms (24-26 ins) at shoulder
Weight: Dogs 50-59 kg (110-130 lbs)
Bitches 41-50 kg (90-110 lbs)
Puppies are always active, Bullmastiff puppies would be no different. However, the giant puppies sleep a lot, I think due to their rate of growth they need more rest. When they’re out, they’re right out and they can sleep for hours at a time.
They will all have different personalities, but across the mastiff breeds you’ll generally see dogs who are somewhat reserved and standoffish with strangers (except for my male Neo who is a Labrador in disguise), but very affectionate with family members. There is a tendency for this trait to become a temperament fault where you get dogs who are excessively shy or fearful of strangers.
Even as puppies you’d probably notice their guarding instincts emerging. They are not necessarily watchdogs, but if they notice something in the environment they see as a threat, they might stand between their people and the threat, or go on patrol.
The Bullmastiff was bred to show more activity and assertiveness than the Mastiff, so I’d expect a more extroverted, alert type of dog.
Generally they are very fond of children, and will be protective of “their” children. They can have a strong prey drive, but brought up with other animals will be accepting of them as part of their pack. Mastiffs, on the whole, show very strong pack drive … it’s what makes them a guardian breed.
Each dog will be different, but characteristics of the mastiffs are a tendency to dominance, self-will (i.e. stubborness), and sensivitity. They are not difficult to train, but won’t usually display the kind of eager, “can we take it up a level now, now, now”, that you get from working dog breeds.
I’d suggest you visit a couple of dog shows and talk to breeders and play with their dogs (with permission). Breeders love talking about thier breed and you’ll have the opportunity to get up close and personal with the dogs.
Thanks guys, this has been really helpful - I’ll definitely check out the breed shows as well.
Thanks again!