Owning a Fila

[fila4me]

Dogos are wonderful for protection and super athletic. I have had both breeds, just do not have
a Dogo right now. Dogos are wonderful with people and love kids! they are not an easy breed in
other areas. raised as a pup with the horses, they may be ok, they may not. they have a HUGE
prey drive.

my current Filas will lay down about a mile into a 2 mile walk! hahaha they both look at me like
I have grown 2 heads and insane. they would rather lay and wait for me to get the car to tote them
back home.

as to family and friends, well luckily most of my friends have or have had Filas. so, they could care less.
my immediate family love my dogs, but my brother will not let his kids around them. I don't let them around
any other kids but my own. my girls hate screaming, running kids! they tend to hunt them and then jump on
their backs to take them down!lol with my own kids, the only time it happened, I laughed my ass off! my
daughter had a hair bow on her head and Maddie ripped it off and ran like she caught the golden goose
my dd(9 at the time) did not think it was funny and was chasing after her. after working with her, she knows
that it is ok for her kids to run around and play. I do have other friends of my boyfriends that hate my dogs and
do not come over. they cannot believe I would own dogs like Filas. but, they also felt this way about my Pit Bulls,
so I really could care less.

some of bf's friends now say they want a Fila, after they have seen the numerous pics of the dogs with my kids.
I strongly encourage them to get a stuffed dog or a fish, hahaha.

I have always gotten dogs for me and me alone. I have never cared what others think of the breeds I chose.
I have rescued/fostered/owned/supported Pit Bulls for about 25 yrs now.

feel free to pm me if you want to chat about Dogos

 

[Siloh]

some of bf's friends now say they want a Fila, after they have seen the numerous pics of the dogs with my kids.
I strongly encourage them to get a stuffed dog or a fish

Oh man. I just LOVE it when people see that you have a well mannered dog and think, "That dog is so good! I want one of those!"
...As if the dog just comes that way in a package ready to unwrap and enjoy. Good luck, people! I had a guy who said today "Well yeah my dog has problems but he's not like your dog." I looked him square in the eyes (I know him and his puppy pretty well) and said, "Yeah, that's because for every 100 hours I put into my dog you put in one."



"Nothing is neither good nor bad, but thinking makes it so."
Hamlet Prince of Denmark

 

[spearchucker]

I have two Filas and got them to offer a greater level of protection for my wife when I was away.

I did my research, as it appears you are doing, and have not been disappointed at all. We have about 12 acres in very rural Nevada. The dogs will alert on anything/one approaching from one half mile away. At a quarter mile the male will start his charge, but is retrievable under voice command......so far.

Both of them will face an entry way when laying down; it is as if they know where danger is likely to come. They both remain protective when in our vehicles and will often go nuts at a stoplight (no carjackings allowed). There are 9 people who can enter our home if we are there.

 

[spearchucker]

I have two Filas and got them to offer a greater level of protection for my wife when I was away.

I did my research, as it appears you are doing, and have not been disappointed at all. We have about 12 acres in very rural Nevada. The dogs will alert on anything/one approaching from one half mile away. At a quarter mile the male will start his charge, but is retrievable under voice command......so far.

Both of them will face an entry way when laying down; it is as if they know where danger is likely to come. They both remain protective when in our vehicles and will often go nuts at a stoplight (no carjackings allowed). There are 9 people who can enter our home if we are there.

 

[spearchucker]

I guess I was a bit slow and fat fingered on my cell phone edit. And, apparently, too slow to notice those same fat fingers hit the enter button twice.

Anyway, there are a few downsides to owning a fila. They seem to think that the words "you are too big" and "get off me" are more akin to mating calls and will crawl even further up your lap. They will sleep with you and take up most of the bed while doing so. Ours put off a trememdous amount of heat.

We spend about $400 each month on food for them. But, since it is all human grade food, the plus is that any burrito made out of their food will contain fresh chicken, beef, maybe turkey, fresh tilamook cheese, green beans and scrambled eggs, along with some garlic salt.

They demand attention. When I come home from work, my job is to love on them. Two days ago I made the mistake of having to go pee after I walked in (instead of doing MY job). Apparently the female decided she would get her share and nudged my hand with predictable results. You will never be without attenion with a fila in the house.

 

[Tubarao'smom]

I guess I was a bit slow and fat fingered on my cell phone edit. And, apparently, too slow to notice those same fat fingers hit the enter button twice.

Anyway, there are a few downsides to owning a fila. They seem to think that the words "you are too big" and "get off me" are more akin to mating calls and will crawl even further up your lap. They will sleep with you and take up most of the bed while doing so. Ours put off a trememdous amount of heat.

We spend about $400 each month on food for them. But, since it is all human grade food, the plus is that any burrito made out of their food will contain fresh chicken, beef, maybe turkey, fresh tilamook cheese, green beans and scrambled eggs, along with some garlic salt.

They demand attention. When I come home from work, my job is to love on them. Two days ago I made the mistake of having to go pee after I walked in (instead of doing MY job). Apparently the female decided she would get her share and nudged my hand with predictable results. You will never be without attenion with a fila in the house.

You forgot the snoring. Mine snores worse than any man i've ever come across lol

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[spearchucker]

You forgot the snoring. Mine snores worse than any man i've ever come across lol

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Forget the snores? Impossible. Sometimes I think they snore when they are awake. One thing I did forget is how they sulk when scolded.

 

[chuckorlando]

They do snore when awake. ahahahahahaha I swear they do

Kona also lays in door ways. And like yours, get, down, back, often means "come, lay on my lap and put your nose in my face"

 

[KristinandCianna]

Another breed to consider would be Cane Corso, for the jogging anyway, and my female Cane goes everywhere with me off leash. She won't attack anyone unprovoked, but is usually uninterested in strangers, not looking to be friendly. And if she does think someone is odd, she get's in front of me and postures with her scary evil stare. This is usually enough to deter people from even coming near. I really do feel that in the event that I really needed her to protect me, she would. She's also just been so socialized, and of course, different breed, that I can safely have her everywhere with me. Most CC as long as they aren't too big could handle being a jogging partner, and of course as long as they are healthy. I to looked at Dogos, and found that they weren't as protective at times, I don't want to say all, but I read many were more into hunting and not as into guarding. Anyway, that being said, if you were to look into a CC, really research your breeders and meet the parents etc, many CC's tend to be more bark then bite, and will turn and run if the pressure is put on. So you do want to look for the right one. I love Filas, I wanted a dog to do IPO with so CC fit in with me more, and I have lived in a condo, and now in a house with my parents and sisters. Have never been set up to keep people, and a Fila safe. They are an awesome breed though, and maybe someday!!

 

[KristinandCianna]

Another breed to consider would be Cane Corso, for the jogging anyway, and my female Cane goes everywhere with me off leash. She won't attack anyone unprovoked, but is usually uninterested in strangers, not looking to be friendly. And if she does think someone is odd, she get's in front of me and postures with her scary evil stare. This is usually enough to deter people from even coming near. I really do feel that in the event that I really needed her to protect me, she would. She's also just been so socialized, and of course, different breed, that I can safely have her everywhere with me. Most CC as long as they aren't too big could handle being a jogging partner, and of course as long as they are healthy. I to looked at Dogos, and found that they weren't as protective at times, I don't want to say all, but I read many were more into hunting and not as into guarding. Anyway, that being said, if you were to look into a CC, really research your breeders and meet the parents etc, many CC's tend to be more bark then bite, and will turn and run if the pressure is put on. So you do want to look for the right one. I love Filas, I  wanted a dog to do IPO with so CC fit in with me more, and I have lived in a condo, and now in a house with my parents and sisters. Have never been set up to keep people, and a Fila safe. They are an awesome breed though, and maybe someday!!

 

[Siloh]

My three not-very-educated guesses at an athletic and protective dog were CC, Dogo, and Bullmastiff. But the protection aspects for each of those dogs probably varies greatly and may not be entirely dependable. That said, if I were a no-do-gooder and came across you with any of those dogs, I would probably think twice about preying on you.

Personally if I had a lot of money to spend on a well-bred dog that I wanted for protection and athleticism, I would look into trained protection GSDs. Not a mastiff, but you wouldn't have to worry about the capacity to protect, and they are plenty of energy.


"Nothing is neither good nor bad, but thinking makes it so."
Hamlet Prince of Denmark

 

[Hector]

If you really want a big dog with the stamina and athleticism, look for a quality tosa. There are some that have passed the schutzhund endurance test and that is quite an achievement.

 

[WyomingWild]

Thank you again for everyones responses. I haven't been able to log in and read your replies until today. Everyone has such great input and it is very much appreciated.

We only see family once or twice a year as we live out of state from all of our family. So really isn't a huge deal for us, we could easily deal with it the once or twice a year we have family over. Same with friends- we don't really ever have people over, mostly stick to our own things and spend time together. My husband and I both really like the protectiveness of the Fila and the standards of the breed. We are however going to wait until we buy our first home to add one to our family.

In regards to the Tosa, I never actually looked into one at all. They are a beautiful breed and we may look in to them as well. I want to have no doubt that my dog would protect me in an situation and really that seems to fit the Fila the most. I was running with my lab and Boerboel a couple days ago and someone rode a bike up behind us with a dog and my Boerboel (Dana) never even thought twice about it. I had no clue that they were there until i turned around and they were right there. Thankfully they were just on a bike ride with no intentions but still, it was eye opening. I love Dana but she is just so trusting of strangers or doesn't really seem to be wary of them.

 

[mountainfila]

Have you ever had her tested to see if she has a protective side? Have you ever had person you know but she doesnt jump out at you while on a run, you never know she may surprise you.

 

[WyomingWild]

That is true MountainFila, she may surprise us. We haven't had her tested or tried anything to test her. Lately she has been showing us more and more protective instincts. haha.. maybe she doesn't want a big brother who knows! But she is definitely protective in the house, like if she hears someone or something. You would have to be pretty dumb to try to break in with the sound of her bark and growl. But who knows what she would do if someone came in.