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Hi my new pup's name is Marley and we live in Ontario, Canada. Her name is Marley and currently weighed in Sunday at 20 lbs at just 8 weeks. She has been growing in the last week since we got her a pound a day.
Her disposition is so laid back yet does have her "feisty" times but so easily settled down with some soft pats and cuddling ! Look forward to reading through this forum and learning about everyone's experiences, trials and tributions with their Mastiffs..

So HI all look forward to chattin !!

Just when you think you've seen the cutest mastiff puppy ever (besides your own of course), along comes another one! Marley is SO cute, it will be fun to see her grow, and grow, and grow...

Sue (Ozzie's mother)

(05-05-2010 04:17 AM)Gleasonsmom Wrote: [ -> ]Just when you think you've seen the cutest mastiff puppy ever (besides your own of course), along comes another one! Marley is SO cute, it will be fun to see her grow, and grow, and grow...

Sue (Ozzie's mother)

Thank u Sue... I'll go seek out Ozzie now...

Wow Jill, your photo brings back memories of when we could easily pick up and hold our "little" boy. Enjoy it while you can! They grow so fast. And take lots of pictures! My wife and I were just talking about how nice it would be to be able to hold our "puppy" in our arms again - ha! They are the cutest pups. You guys look great together! He's beautiful. What a team!

Is he your first Mastiff?

Are you planning on showing Marley?

As soon as you can Jill, I urge you to get him into a puppy obedience class to train him and socialize him with other dogs (shots first) as that is so very important with these dogs. Even with training they can be a handful on walks. Socialization is a must too, especially if you are showing him. Kahless' puppy training used ONLY positive methods with no negative reinforcement. We also use clicker training for the show ring as outlined in Vicki Ronchette's book Positive Training For Show Dogs AVAILABLE HERE

Here are a few more links we have found useful (you should be able to locate dog friendly puppy classes in your area this way):
POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT
American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior
FIND A CLASS IN YOUR AREA HERE
OR MORE HELP FINDING A TRAINER HERE

Kahless (pronounced Kay-less and named after a Klingon from Star Trek) has never been to a dog park due to a contractual prohibition from our breeder. I believe she is right on, if a Mastiff gets nipped (even playfully) by a smaller dog, a Mastiff could easily kill the dog unintentionally while only trying to avoid being bitten and cause all kinds of grief for the breed. Kahless gets plenty of exercise in our big back yard and on walks. Remember, take lots of pictures...


Enjoy this puppy time it's a blast. And take LOTS of pictures... It's a lot of fun to go back and see from whence the huge dog came.

Kahless happened to look like he was just as serious as Chief Sitting Bull so I photoshopped him into a Sitting Bull family portrait.

Oh yeah, did I remind you to "take lots of pictures?"

Marley will not be shown, breeders contract. So far she has been very socialized...walks every morning with the neighbour kids to the bus stop along with a Lab. Consistent daily, so far very good! As well I take her for lots of car rides and have walked her along busy streets and meet and greet with anyone who wishes to adore her. Puppy school is next on the list, she is doing so well walking on her lease and has got the SIT command down pat...I know it's not much of an accomplishment but a start to prove she is listening somewhat : ),

Again thank you for all your advise and links, very much appreciated...Kahless is adorable can't believe how much he had changed in the last picture you posted of him !

LOL, reminds me of Kahless. He got the "sit" command down at that age also - the problem was getting him to get back up! Puppy class will help that. But he eventually learned "stand." Great that you started training and socialization early.

Careful with the walks. Our breeder warned us, due to the tendency of this breed to suffer from hip dysplasia, no walks over 10 minutes in duration for the first year while the bones and joints are forming. This sounded extreme, but since our 10 year old has been living with dysplasia for over a year, we decided that it would be best to heed her advice and be extra safe. As a puppy, Kahless got plenty of exercise with short walks and playing with Sadie in the back yard.

Please keep us posted on Marley's progress and did I mention to please "take (and post) lots of pictures?" And keep us updated on her progress. She's adorable.

latest pics today... 9 weeks she's getting lanky and thinning out : (, I'm free feeding so hopefully she's eating enough...on a mixture of 1/2 and 1/2 Pro Plan large breed puppy and Pedigree Vitality + (this is what the breeder suggested) but when the bags are done I'll just keep her on Puppy....

Hi,
In regards to what your feeding your gorgeous little girl... here's a little reading for you:

http://urbangreengirl.wordpress.com/2008...-industry/

http://www.dogfoodproject.com/index.php?page=menadione

The first article actually applies to both pro plan and pedigree, as the both have the same basic ingredient list.
The second article applies to the pro plan food.

We had the whole what to feed thing with Ozzie too. I settled on Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul, large breed adult formula. The puppy formula had him runny all the time, and I saw a comment from someone that when they switched to the adult food it 'fixed' it. And it did. Plus I also free feed, not a choice just what happened with my first dog, and every dog I've ever had has fallen into the routine just fine. The advantage of the adult formula is that both Ozzie and Zoe can eat it and I don't have to be the dog food police, it was driving me nuts. And Zoe's black wavy labradoodle coat has never looked so good, so I can see what the better quality food has done for her.

Your baby is looking so good. Ozzie meets lots of dogs, kids, people on our walks too, and seems to think that they exist only to pet him. He has developed a lot of fans in the neighborhood.

Sue

Thank you Jkinblack for the links....I'm driving myself a little nutz researching food and products. I think your point is I'm not giving Marley the proper food and I will heed that advice. Not only do you have to read the ingredient list carefully and realize the first few ingredients are key but then there's an arguement on the quality grade of the ingredients as well, hence going "nutz with it all" As well what is good for one dog is not necessarily good for another, they all have different requirements, really what is "the best", if definative I would certainly use but "the best" is also debatable. Seriously thinking of going the Kirkland/Diamond route, ingredient list, quality and rating is impressive without breaking the bank, guess that's another thread tho... Just wanted to post a puppy update.... : )

Yep, I didn't want to force my opinion of the "best" food on you... rather just provide link(s) that may point out concerns with those particular foods. It can be totally crazy finding the "right" food for your girl.

We had Yogi on Iams when we first brought him home, but quickly learned that there were much better choices out there. We then went with the Chicken Soup for 8+ months, and he really liked it, but he was very gassy and never got completely "regular" on it. We switched to Fromm's a few months ago, and he has been doing absolutely great.

(05-17-2010 06:36 AM)JkinBlack Wrote: [ -> ]Yep, I didn't want to force my opinion of the "best" food on you... rather just provide link(s) that may point out concerns with those particular foods. It can be totally crazy finding the "right" food for your girl.

We had Yogi on Iams when we first brought him home, but quickly learned that there were much better choices out there. We then went with the Chicken Soup for 8+ months, and he really liked it, but he was very gassy and never got completely "regular" on it. We switched to Fromm's a few months ago, and he has been doing absolutely great.

Agreed! Our breeder sent us home with a bag of Iams Large Breed Puppy. Kahless was scratching himself all the time but we could find no fleas. I became immediately concerned, did some research and found corn in the Iams product.

We immediately tried Orijen and Innova LB Puppy and settled on the Innova after testing both and much consideration. I thought the Orijen tasted a little too fishy myself - LOL. Within 48 hours the scratching stopped. Evidently, it is not uncommon that corn and other "filler" ingredients cause allergic reactions. Itchy skin is just one side effect of feeding poor food. Kahless has turned out beautifully.

At 8 months we switched him to adult kibble. We have always added freshly cooked foods to the kibble such as a boilded egg, freshly cooked chicken, a quarter of a mashed yam, etc.

Don't be intimidated by all the choices, here are two excellent resources which helped us narrow the field quickly and easily:

You will need to register to read the link but it's a Mastiff board so it's well worth the effort:
Mastiffs.org Forum (You will see here that using a scoring system Innova scores 114 (A+) and Chicken Soup scores 115 (A+) which is virtually identical. Plus they list many popular premium foods with a wide range of scores)
Exellent Resouce: What Is In That Bag Of Food?

And finally, Kirkland is an excellent choice also. All our dogs are on this and it scores very high on the dog food evaluator found at Mastiffs.org as well.

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I love her expression, she is just adorable!

we're 19 weeks now...getting there...

Wow, time flies, she's getting big! And pretty too.

Well here we are 6 months and over 100 lbs later and she's heading in to be spayed tommorrow... I'm nervous for her and probably won't sleep the night she's away from us thinking she's stuck in a cage somewhere all drugged up : (

(09-27-2010 07:00 PM)Marley and me Wrote: [ -> ]Well here we are 6 months and over 100 lbs later and she's heading in to be spayed tommorrow... I'm nervous for her and probably won't sleep the night she's away from us thinking she's stuck in a cage somewhere all drugged up : (

No, please wait!

I spoke with my breeder on this subject not too long ago and she said with Mastiffs you should NOT spay or neuter until at LEAST 18 months but preferably 2 years old. The reason is that the procedure will (obviously) affect both their hormone output, long term health and their growth. They grow until about 3 years of age.

A humane society or a vet will say "no problem" but I strongly urge you to wait.

Quote:Early altering does not stunt the growth. It actually delays the growth plates closing and causes the dogs to be taller (but in males less muscular) than dogs altered later in life. Earlier altering has been linked to several problems in large and giant breed dogs including an increased risk of orthopedic problems and an increased risk of bone cancer.

The following is from the National Animal Interest Alliance and is from a research study published by Laura J. Sanborn M.S:
For female dogs, the situation is more complex. The number of health benefits associated with spaying may
exceed the associated health problems in some (not all) cases. On balance, whether spaying improves the
odds of overall good health or degrades them probably depends on the age of the female dog and the
relative risk of various diseases in the different breeds.

On the positive side, spaying female dogs
• if done before 2.5 years of age, greatly reduces the risk of mammary tumors, the most common
malignant tumors in female dogs
• nearly eliminates the risk of pyometra, which otherwise would affect about 23% of intact female
dogs; pyometra kills about 1% of intact female dogs
• reduces the risk of perianal fistulas
• removes the very small risk (
0.5%) from uterine, cervical, and ovarian tumors
On the negative side, spaying female dogs
• if done before 1 year of age, significantly increases the risk of osteosarcoma (bone cancer); this is a
common cancer in larger breeds with a poor prognosis
• increases the risk of splenic hemangiosarcoma by a factor of 2.2 and cardiac hemangiosarcoma by
a factor of >5; this is a common cancer and major cause of death in some breeds• triples the risk of hypothyroidism
• increases the risk of obesity by a factor of 1.6-2, a common health problem in dogs with many
associated health problems
• causes urinary “spay incontinence” in 4-20% of female dogs
• increases the risk of persistent or recurring urinary tract infections by a factor of 3-4
• increases the risk of recessed vulva, vaginal dermatitis, and vaginitis, especially for female dogs
spayed before puberty
• doubles the small risk (<1%) of urinary tract tumors
• increases the risk of orthopedic disorders
• increases the risk of adverse reactions to vaccinations

So to sum up the best/safest time to spay is between 18 months and 28 months or so. Please wait, timing is so important with a giant breed girl.

Citation: Click For More Info

As Robin said.... 18 months is the preferred minimum age for these guys (and girls...lol).

(09-28-2010 03:25 AM)JkinBlack Wrote: [ -> ]As Robin said.... 18 months is the preferred minimum age for these guys (and girls...lol).

Yep, sorry, I didn't mean to omit the info for the boys... but the entire article goes into detail for both. Take a look at the pdf file link at the bottom.

Spay/neuter of immature dogs delays the closure of the growth plates in bones that are still growing,
causing those bones to end up significantly longer than in intact dogs or those spay/neutered after
maturity. Since the growth plates in various bones close at different times, spay/neuter that is done after
some growth plates have closed but before other growth plates have closed might result in a dog with
unnatural proportions, possibly impacting performance and long term durability of the joints.

Spay/neuter is associated with a two fold increased risk of cranial cruciate ligament rupture. Perhaps this
is associated with the increased risk of obesity.

Spay/neuter before 5 ½ months of age is associated with a 70% increased aged-adjusted risk of hip
dysplasia compared to dogs spayed/neutered after 5 ½ months of age, though there were some indications
that the former may have had a lower severity manifestation of the disease. The researchers suggest “it
is possible that the increase in bone length that results from early-age gonadectomy results in changes in
joint conformation, which could lead to a diagnosis of hip dysplasia.”

While I so appreciate your concerns I did have a contract that she was to be spayed at this time from the breeder! I also did discuss my concerns with my vet. It's too late I'm afraid, she went under the knife today...boo hooooooooooooooooo poor baby !

I pray she will be safe and free from these increased risks!

I waited as long as I could before her first heat and the vet told me spaying after maturity is a much more risky with other complications ! It's 6 of 1 and 1/2 dozen of the other...and again I had no choice.