Bullmastiff Dogs
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
|
|
[ A Powerful Bullmastiff ]The Bullmastiff is a powerful dog, said to be a cross between the Mastiff and the Bulldog. Originally bred to find and immobilise poachers, the breed has proved its value as a family pet.
Appearance
The Bullmastiff is 60% Mastiff and 40% Bulldog and was first recognized
in 1924. It is powerfully built and symmetrical, showing great strength,
but not cumbersome; it is sound and active.
Size
The Bullmastiff is a relatively large dog. The American Bullmastiff
Association standard calls for dogs to be between 25 and 27 in (63 and
69 cm) tall at the withers and between 110 and 130 lb (50 and 60 kg)
though current judging trends often favour a dog slightly larger than
this.
Bitches are to be between 24 and 26 in (61 to 66 cm) tall and 100 to 120
lb (45 to 55 kg). Some dams make good mothers, but elective Caesarian
sections are common, and most breeding is quite costly as a result. An
average litter size is about six, but as few as one and as many as ten
are not unheard of.
Color
Any shade of brindle, fawn, or red is allowed as long as the colour is
pure and clear. In the United States, however, there is no mention in
the standard of the color being "pure and clear". The fawn is a light
tan or blond color, while the red is a richer, red-brown. This can range
from a deep red to a light red merging with the fawn sometimes described
as a red-fawn. A slight white marking on the chest is permissible, but
other white markings are undesirable. A black muzzle is essential,
toning off towards the eyes, with dark markings around eyes contributing
to the expression.
[ Nine-week-old Bullmastiff puppy dog ]
Temperament
The Bullmastiff is courageous, loyal, calm, and loving with those it
knows. It has a very strong protective instinct and will defend its
people against anything it perceives as a threat. However, it doesn't
normaly attack to protect, instead it simply knocks the intruder over
with its massive size and pins them to the ground.
Bullmastiffs become immensely attached to their families and do best
when they can live inside with their people. Their protective instinct
combined with their great size and natural wariness of strangers means
that early socialization is a must. The Bullmastiff gets along well with
other dogs, and loves children. Parental supervision should be
maintained when they are with kids because these dogs are so big that
they can accidentally hurt children while playing with them.
Working life
With its handsome, powerful appearance and superb speed coupled with
strength and endurance, it can overtake and capture intruders without
mauling them. These traits make the Bullmastiff appear to be an
excellent choice for a guard dog; however, a stubborn streak makes the
animal somewhat resistant to obedience training and they can be overly
protective of its human family.
Due to this, the breed has been overtaken by others, more popular as
guard dogs. Bred to sneak up on poachers, the Bullmastiff often barks
much less than other breeds, but when they bark they will make your head
turn, as it is dark and hollow sounding. The Bullmastiff was recognized
as a pure-bred dog in 1924 by the English Kennel Club. In October, 1933,
The American Kennel Club recognized the Bullmastiff. The foundation
breeding was 60% Mastiff and 40% Bulldog (which was more like the
American Bulldog not the short English Bulldog of today).
Dog attacks
This dog was popularized by the media in Canada in the late 1990s as being the breed of dog in a string of unrelated dog attacks against children. The proposed Breed-specific legislation to ban the breed in Canada started a small uprising and the measure ultimately failed.
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bullmastiff".
