# Bullmastiff as a first dog - opinions?



## NotoriouS (Aug 15, 2011)

Hi guys!
I am looking at purchasing my first dog! Just wanted some opinions from people who have/had Bullmastiffs. I am absolutely in love with the breed. I was looking for a family dog/ guard dog and came across the Bullmastiff whilst doing some research. I plan on getting a puppy so it can get used to being around my kids. So yea, any Bullmastiff owners out there willing to share advice/opinions?
Thanks!


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## jas468 (Aug 15, 2011)

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My boy is 5 years old now. Great with the kids and an excellent guard dog. Go for it


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## Erebos (Aug 15, 2011)

jas468 said:


> View attachment 213913
> 
> 
> My boy is 5 years old now. Great with the kids and an excellent guard dog. Go for it


 
I got my boy off jas486 as a pup and I love them never had any problems with him his a big boy tho weighs more then me and is bigger so if your not prepared to play with them and train them then they can become a handful







there old pics but there my favorite his 3.5 now


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## NotoriouS (Aug 15, 2011)

Wow!! Absolutely stunning!!


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## Erebos (Aug 15, 2011)

oshakoor said:


> Wow!! Absolutely stunning!!











His a great conpanion he's always with me so he's really well behaved and really well trained oh yeah he loves out cat.


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## Red-Ink (Aug 15, 2011)

That's a whole lot of dog to be starting with....


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## kawasakirider (Aug 15, 2011)

Not trying to be rude, but damn man, you're 25 and you've never owned a dog? You're in for a fun ride!

The puppy stage is great, but be prepared for a few sleepless nights as they do whinge like a child unless you're holding them haha.

Post pics of your new pup when you get it! As long as you give it attention it shouldn't matter what breed you start with. Keeping a dog is easy if you put in the effort to train them.


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## Twitch_80 (Aug 15, 2011)

Have you got good carpet cleaner? 

Dogs are great, put in the effort and you will have a great companion. Enjoy.


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## Erebos (Aug 15, 2011)

Twitch_80 said:


> Have you got good carpet cleaner?
> 
> Dogs are great, put in the effort and you will have a great companion. Enjoy.


 
There great animals but think of the food bill as well.


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## pythonmum (Aug 15, 2011)

Do your homework and find out how to feed and exercise him right as a pup so that you avoid bone and joint problems. Above all, make sure to train any dog so that you have a great family companion rather than a nightmare. This dog will be bigger and stronger than you, so you want him to be very clear on his role in the family from the first moment he joins your household. I love giant breeds and they are great when you raise them right.


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## damian83 (Aug 15, 2011)

br3nton said:


> There great animals but think of the food bill as well.



and the vet bill especially when they get older or need surgery etc....


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## pythonmum (Aug 15, 2011)

Not even then - any time. Costs a fortune in wormers and flea prevention, not to mention arthritis preventatives just for my Rottie and she weighs half (or less) of what a mastiff weighs. Dosage is by weight, as is cost. Unfortunately the giants don't live as long as the little ones, either. Proper diet, especially early in life, makes a big difference.


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## Erebos (Aug 15, 2011)

Agreed my male weighs over 60 kg.


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## Twitch_80 (Aug 15, 2011)

Do you cook for your rottie pythonmum? Our dogs are spoiled rotten, they get home made meatloaf, bones, treats, toys all delivered by their grandma!!


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## cwebb (Aug 15, 2011)

ive got a mastiff x and hes weighing in at 35kgs as an 8 month old so have fun with a purebred haha


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## pythonmum (Aug 15, 2011)

No cooking specifically for her, although she gets scraps when I'm cooking or when we finish eating. It's important to keep up the raw bone for her teeth, too. I got her at 20 months and her teeth were so covered in tartar that I had to get them cleaned by the vet during her desexing surgery. Now that she is having raw bones on a regular basis there is no problem. I feed mainly a mixture of decent dry food and fresh roo plus the fresh bones. Food scraps supplement this, but nothing too fatty. Both dogs love brocolli stems and apple cores!


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## Twitch_80 (Aug 15, 2011)

Are the seeds in apple cores ok for dogs? Yeah Hector gets a bone or two a week but I dont normally let him finish them. Tali gets one week or so. 'Grandma' cooks an awesome meatloaf every two weeks or there abouts for her dogs so I always end up with a couple of tubs. I also cook hearts and livers but not too often as they are pretty rich etc. Rice cooked with stock and water mixed with dry food and either meatloaf, fresh meat, or a small can of wet food tend to be the daily meal. Eggs and sardines pretty often as well, makes for a stinky dog but really good for the coats. They even get fish, generally salmon, every few weeks.

This is Hector with my friends mastiff puppy about 8 months ago. Im pretty sure the puppy is bigger than him now!


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## pythonmum (Aug 15, 2011)

Sasha abandons some bits of the bone that she can't crack and then Fang (fluff dog) chews on them or buries them in the flower beds. She eats the seeds of the apples with no problem, but Fang spits them out all over the floor, the little wretch. Apple seeds are no problem, but you need to stay away from grapes and sultannas. Sasha has supplemented her own diet with fresh brush turkey recently. She then supplemented it with 3-day old bits of brush turkey, too. Fortunately, I can call her off these goodies and dispose of the remains. If you think sardines make for stinky dog, try rotting brush turkey...


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## Twitch_80 (Aug 15, 2011)

Hahahaha thats not so nice. Yeah I knew about the grapes which is why I asked.

Fang, the fluff dog, love it..


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## shabori (Aug 15, 2011)

Try looking up the BARF Diet Nothing cooked and nothing commercial. Cheap as chips. I bred and showed 60 kg Alaskan Malamute Champions on that diet with no health problems.


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## Jen (Aug 15, 2011)

Apple seeds contain cyanide, I'd avoid giving them to your dog. The flesh is fine though. 

Mastiffs are lovely dogs, bit too big for my yard though, lol, having said that, I have baby sat a Great Dane pony for a week and he was fun to have, my staffy crosses adored him.


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## Twitch_80 (Aug 15, 2011)

Yeah I generally stay away from all seeds, pips, and any fruit containing them which is why I asked but I know some things are not so bad in small amounts and people seem to overreact a bit. Great dane pony huh, the kids next door want to ride hector but I said no. Considered a cart though.

Do anyone elses watch tv? I have heard the 2d/3d sight thing but one of mine loves the tv and seems to follow it.


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## pythonmum (Aug 15, 2011)

Jen said:


> Apple seeds contain cyanide, I'd avoid giving them to your dog.


. They come through whole - believe me! We considered a cart for our first rottie when the kids were small, but couldn't find a good harness. They were bred to pull carts, as were all mastiff type dogs. They also did herding duty. I really see this when Sasha wants all of the attention and she keeps Fang away from my lap. He usually outsmarts her in the end, but there is clear herding behavior.


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## Twitch_80 (Aug 15, 2011)

Ive been looking into the husky harness's but the only carts I can find are horse carts, prob fine though  Both of ours are hearding dogs so makes for interesting competitions for affection. Tali is a lot smarter though and generally wins.


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## jas468 (Aug 16, 2011)

br3nton said:


> Agreed my male weighs over 60 kg.



He's taken over his father then.


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## Erebos (Aug 16, 2011)

jas468 said:


> He's taken over his father then.


 
Really how much dose riff weigh


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## jas468 (Aug 16, 2011)

Usually between 58-60kg. I find that walking them everyday helps as he can stack on weight really quickly. We're both better for it.


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## Erebos (Aug 16, 2011)

jas468 said:


> Usually between 58-60kg. I find that walking them everyday helps as he can stack on weight really quickly. We're both better for it.


 
Yeah I struggle to keep weight on my boy he eats more food then me hahah


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## NotoriouS (Aug 16, 2011)

Hey guys! Thanks for all the input and sharing your experiences! I have just recieved the ok from my landlord, and it's time to go find a best friend!

Do you guys know any good bullmastiff breeders that have a litter available?


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## Smithers (Aug 16, 2011)

Sorry haven't read any of the other posts,....

I'd be checking the Mastiff Standard (Guidlines on what to look for) and ask as many Q's of the breeder as possible esp as your getting a larger boned dog you should check for the ailments that can hinder these breeds ask to see their test results like hip score etc,..sorry to put a downer but larger dogs can come with joint issues from memory. Hips etc. Personally I'd have to say go American Staffy but im way biased . I love the Neo Mastiff gorgeous puppy's good luck on your quest for a new fam member.


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## tempest (Aug 16, 2011)

Jumping in a bit late but bullmastiffs are my heart breed, they are the best dogs ever in my opinion! That said, you need to have a firm hand with them from the start and you must be prepared to give them a lot of time and love. They are not a dog which likes being alone for the most part, they love to be part of the family and having people around. They are a big dog and you have to be prepared for big vet bills. Personally, I would suggest if you are looking for one as your first ever dog you get a female because you will have less dominance issues, some of which you may find difficult if you have a male especially as your first dog. 

Make sure you find a decent breeder and you find out what the parents hip scores are... and if possible, try and see the parents. There are lots of breeders if you look on somewhere like dogsonline. Powerbullmas and Gameguard are both excellent breeders in NSW. The sire to Sage, my boy, was from Gameguard, but I got mine from a breeder here in SA. 

Make sure you research the breed thoroughly and make sure you and your family are well prepared to welcome one into a forever home. They drool quite a lot (drool rags are a must LOL) and they snore. They should only have minimal exercise whilst they are growing to prevent issues down the track. 

The only real pitfall to owning a bullmastiff is their lifespan... 8 to 10 years... and when they leave you, it rips your heart to pieces.

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## phantomreptiles (Aug 17, 2011)

I pretty much agree with tempest, the only other thing I will add is they can have horrible skin probs, my mastiff is now 10yrs but she lives in NZ, no skin probs there as its too cold for anything to live....lol my home town is just north of Dunedin.
Make sure you get pet insurance..doesn't matter what pet you have they all cost money.
I am also biased towards amstaffs...... Oh my god I just went to post a pic of my amstaff who is the love of my life, all my pics are of snakes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!hmm maybe this should be in "you know your a reptile keeper when......"


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## Kristy_07 (Aug 18, 2011)

Agree with most of what tempest has said - mastiffs are my breed of choice, too. But, as per what others have said, be aware of the food bill, the training requirements (which are ongoing, not just puppy school ), the vet bills down the track for joint issues, and also how long you will have a puppy for! 

The bigger the dog, generally the longer they take to grow out of the puppy stage. My boy was 2.5years before he started to calm down, and 50-60kg of puppy is a challenge! Just something to keep in mind.

And, the vet costs. We are currently just starting down the arthritis pathway, and it's expensive. Change of diet to $150 per 2-3 weeks per dog, plus monthly cartrophen injections, plus xrays... definitely get insurance! He's 4.5 years old, by the way. We would expect to get another 3-4 years out of him, and I'm already preparing myself for it. It will be worse than losing a limb. 

But, otherwise, great dogs  And, even though they're big, they have great temperaments (usually!) which makes them suitable as a first dog, so long as you're prepared to train them and put the time in  Good luck!


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## NotoriouS (Aug 18, 2011)

Thanks guys! Reading about all the health problems is making me a bit iffy now. Might be worthwhile starting off with a smaller breed, a staffy perhaps. I'll keep researching, thanks for all the input, I really appreciate it!


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## jedi_339 (Aug 18, 2011)

If I were to suggest anything I'd suggest a dingo , however they're definitely not for beginner keepers such as yourself.

My Aunty has a pure dingo (or as pure as they come from the Australian dingo foundation), they really are a fantastic animal.

Their agility and stamina is just unreal, they really are a cross between a cat and a dog in their nature.

And they're a much leaner then everyone realises, 20-25kg. It's just a shame QLD classes them as pests (there's no distinction between wild dogs and dingoes)

enough ranting about dingoes, but I do love them so much.

good luck owning a puppy.

and for kawasaki rider I've never owned a dog in my life, nor has my family, however I've owned just about everything else under the sun (except a cat)


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## NotoriouS (Aug 18, 2011)

Yup.. 25 and never owned a dog... growing up my parents never allowed a dog, I've kept snakes, turtles, dragons, cats, birds, tortoises, fish, ducks, chicks - but no dogs 
Then when I moved out, never had a place with a big enough backyard to keep one - until now!


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## pythonmum (Aug 18, 2011)

A smaller breed will live a lot longer. Same advice goes for training and choosing the dog, however. A well-trained dog of any size is a pleasure to own. Too many people don't bother to train smaller dogs, hence the happy little terrors that you see pulling people around. My fluff dog and rottie are trained to a similar standard.  Well, actually the fluff dog is trained to a higher standard for tricks, but both have rock solid basic obedience and household manners. It makes life so much easier!


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## CrystalMoon (Aug 18, 2011)

Hi there, I used to breed them. Pm me if you want any tips  
Kind regards
Crystal

PS... Mine lived around 14 years which was
a good innings


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