History
of the Breed - As you can see
from any amount of Bullmastiff dog pictures on the Internet or in
books, they are a big dog! The breed were actually originally bred to
bring down and contain poachers and were bred by English gamekeepers
during the 1800's to help support the work of gamekeepers and keep an
eye on their estates and guard against poachers.
It was recommended as pure bred dog by the English Kennel Club back in
1924. However, it wasn't until 133-34 when the American Kennel Club
recognized the first standard for the breed.
Appearance
- Males are capable of growing to a height of 25 up to 27 inches (63 -
69 cm) and a weight ranging from 110 up to 133 pounds (50-60 kg). The
female will grow to a height of about 24 up to 36 inches (61-66 cm) and
weigh from 100 pounds up to 120 pounds (45-54 kg).
It is however unwise for breeders to breed a dog bigger than these
dimensions as it will make the dog too cumbersome and not able to
perform the job they were bred to do.
Color
- As you can see in our Bullmastiff dog pictures they can come in fawn
but are mostly described as being brindle or red. If you see any
Bullmastiff dog pictures with any white markings on the body
they are not considered a 'true' Bullmastiff, although white markings
are allowed on the chest area.
Temperament
and Training - Bullmastiffs
should be docile in nature but also have confidence. They are loyal to
the family, loving and calm - this breed will become very and we mean
very attached to the family that owns and cares for them.
Although this breed are good with children it is important that you
socialize your Bullmastiff with the children, other animal and
experience from an early age as this will help the training process and
limit any possible problems.
Don't ever leave this breed with children unsupervised (this is the
same with all dogs) mainly due their size and the risk of accidents
occurring.
Due to their history this breed are very independent and like making
their own decisions but if you remain fair, consistent and a strong
pack leader your Bullmastiff will look to you as the leader for
permission before he action his inbuilt instincts., so you need to be
ready to anticipate your dog's every move.
As long as you start obedience training from an early age and ask all
members of the family to use the same commands for each chosen task
this will make the obedience training much more easy for you and your
dog.
Health
Problems - This breed are
prone to a number of health problems mainly due to hereditary diseases
including...
- Elbow Dysplasia
- Hip Dysplasia
- Entropion
- Arthritis
- Dog Bloat
- Lymphoma (cancer)
- Hydrothyroidism
- Progressive Retinal
Atrophy
Life
Span - As you can see from
the Bullmastiff dog pictures their big and don't stop growing until
they are two and a half years old. They generally don't live to a ripe
old age with most living to 8-11 years of age.
Bullmastiff
Puppies - It's important that
when purchasing puppies that they do grow - it's very easy to look at
the size of a small puppy and think that it will stay that small.
If you are going to purchase some puppies consider the following....
- Is your House big
enough?
- Can you afford the Vet
bills?
- Can you afford the
food bills?
- What is your personal
situation i.e. we mean are you delicate and have back problems what
happens when your puppies get older and they jump up?
- Can you afford
medications?
- Are the living
conditions appropriate for small puppies?
- Do you have small
children that can be trusted around small puppies?
- Can you afford the
grooming bill?
