New Forum Member / First Time English Mastiff Owner

[JaxxDaddy]

Hello All,

Just wanted to introduce myself here on the site. Just got our first English Mastiff a few days ago, Jaxx is 8 weeks old and is such a good little boy, starting to get comfortable in his new home. I have always loved the breed and have wanted an English Mastiff since I was young, my wife was a bit harder to convince, but I think she is coming around .

I know there is a ton of information on this site, I have been searching through the threads and learning a lot. When we got him from the breeder, she was feeding Nutena Loyall Life Grain Free, however, no stores in my area carry this food and the best quality food I could find locally at the moment is Diamond Naturals Grain Free. I found it has a 3.5 star rating on dogfoodadvisor.com, but I also noticed there have been recalls in the past, but they seem to all be from a few years back. Anyone feeding this food or have a recommendation of a good food that won't break the bank? Any other suggestions or recommendations for a first time owner would also be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

 

[Oscar'sMom]

Welcome!!! Please share pics of Jaxx! I feed Earthborn Holistics...it's a small family owned company and has never had a recall that I can find. I don't have as much locally either, but I order from chewy.com and highly recommend it! I order my monthly supply and shipping is next day and free on orders over $49. It makes life a lot easier and I don't have to lug around 30lb bags of food .

 

[JaxxDaddy]

Here are a couple pictiures of Jaxx, Just over 8 weeks old.

 

[TricAP]

Welcome! Jaxx is adorable!!!

Sounds like you are already doing a good job of educating yourself if you've checked out Dog Food Adviser site. Keep in mind some mastiffs can be extremely sensitive to chicken by product/meal and grains in kibble. Symptoms can be loose poops, goopy ears or just over all itchiness. There are plenty of kibble choices out there, bottom line is finding one that works best for your pup.

 

[JaxxDaddy]

He seems to be doing ok so far on the Diamond Naturals Grain Free we got for him. He's been eating it for a little less that a week and his poops seem to be consistant and I haven't noticed any ear issues or itchyness. I have noticed he doesn't eat as much (but still eating plenty) as he did with the food the breeder gave us, thinking maybe the new food is more filling? I did read that some are senstitive to grains and chicken which is why I bought the grain free beef flavor. I was a bit concerned though with it being from Diamond foods since they have a recall history but everything I could find on the recalls was from 2012 or earlier?

 

[TricAP]

Not eating as much can be adjusting to his new home, heat or a dozen other things. There are very few kibble manufacturers that haven't had a recall of some product in their line. It really all depends on what works for your pup. (who is giving me severe puppy fever again just looking at his photo's!)

 

[JaxxDaddy]

Yeah, I think he's just still trying to adjust to all the new things he is experiencing, but he is eating consistently and seems to like the food so maybe it'll be a good match for him. Thanks! I think he is just adorable too. It's probably been about 10 years since we had a puppy around, our other dogs are all senior citizens, so we definitely have the puppy fever right now. I kinda feel like a kid again, lol.

 

[Max's mom]

Welcome. Max has eaten Diamond grain free white fish and sweet potato after switched from Diamond large breed puppy. He suffered from allergies...not sure but we think to grains, nuts, chicken. He does great on it and we have never experienced any issues. I have a lab who eats pedigree and is a healthy at 8 as a 2 year old. It's all in how the food works for your dog.
Oh, and your wife may be even harder to convince to love Jaxx when he starts slobbering...so make sure she falls good and in love with him now!