Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff owner.

[ruby55]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

Hi crash. We have 4 bullmastiffs & I'm here to say that they are absolutely a WONDERFUL family dog. I would have chimed in earlier but we had a show this weekend & I had to work some long hours yesterday to make up for being gone.
Anyways I second what AKBUll told you. And the crate training is tough but absolutely necessary. I'm surprised that the breeder let him go at such a young age. Who is the breeder? Where do you live?
We fed Ruby the youngest 4 cups a day of a local feed called Nature's Select. She's now 2 years old this month & gets about 4 cups a day. When we were crate training Ruby we didn't get the whole I'm-lonely-come-play-with-me whining & crying because she was in a crate with the other dogs around her. So I can't help you there. But because your puppy lost those last 2 weeks with mom & siblings, he's going to be a little lost on some social skills.
In the long run I'm sure you will love that little booger like the family member he deserves to be. He'll be fine with the kids, except he won't realize his size. He's a baby; they're a baby. We taught all of ours to lay down around very little ones. You might still have to watch him though because a bullmastiff's theme song is Lean On Me. They're leaners; it's part of their nature. He might try to lean on the kids & knock them over when he gets bigger. But he will never deliberately hurt them, as long as you teach your kids to respect him.
He's adorable by the way. Keep the pics coming.

 

[crashmydaytona]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

 ruby55 the breeders name is Lea Jacobs from Akron Iowa.  The pup i picked was from a litter she had not yet advertised but he's the one i wanted.  It was a 13 hour round trip and she let me take him. I live in rapid city sd.  I have decided to feed him science diet for now you could spend a lifetime reading peoples opinions on what is best to feed a dog.  He is to much for the kids right now because of his sharp puppy teeth and to young to understand no.  I  am going to give him a couple weeks before realy trying to teach him not to bite while playing.  The kids get in there puppy time when he is sleeping or tired out.  He woke up about six times last night to pee and i ended up on the floor next to his crate after each potty brake untill he fell asleep.  Just like i had to with my kids sitting next to there crib rubbing there backs untill they fell asleep. Not the most fun but it stoped the whining and got him to sleep sooner (the puppy not my kids).  My wife has already called to vent on how hard it is with pup and kids all needing attention.  It will be a long couple of months i think.  My local pet stores have tranning classed available.  What age should i consider takeing him in for training? Also i think his name is going to be Thor.

 

[trkybrd20]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

What I did with my BM when we first got a crate was to take him outside if he started whining. Then as soon as he was done doing his business outside right back in the crate he went. He learned real fast that whining will only get him a trip outside, and not play time or attention. It seemed to work well, as he stopped whining unless he needed to go outside fairly quickly. He is 7.5 months now, and we leave his crate door open all night. He usually falls asleep next to the bed on the floor, but in the morning he is almost always sleeping in his crate. One other thing is to never use the crate as a punishment, we use the laundry room for a "time out" if he is misbehaving, but never use the crate as it is his place and I don't want him to not want to go in. Good luck, they are great dogs and it is very rewarding owning such a great dog!

 

[Smokeycat]

My EM started a puppy only class when he was 12 weeks old.

 

[chuckorlando]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

I would'nt worry much about the next couple months. The new pup will take to ya'll in short order and things will level off alot. Still a puppy but they learn very very fast. They play dumb but they aint. Just be consitant with comands. NO being one of them. And dont give into crying. If it aint for the potty os dinner, dont give in.

 

[seeknoxrun]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

Hi there, congratulations on your new addition!

I have a 13 week old EM, and we're just now getting to the point of sleeping through the night (11:00pm to 5:00am). Very early on (we brought her home at 8 weeks old) I set my alarm for every 1.5 hours throughout the night, and even then she would still have accidents in between. We found that having blankets/towels in her kennel, for whatever reason, made her MORE likely to have an accident. And we found that taking up her water about 2 hours before her last potty break of the day helped tremondously. But, all the planning and scheduling won't change the fact that a young puppy can only hold its bladder for 1 hour for every month old it is... Accidents are just part of the game.

We're still dealing with the occasional accident on the floor - usually when I'm not paying attention to her cues. If I find her in the act I startle her by clapping my hands, pick her up, and take her straight out. I try to wait for her to go again to reinforce and praise the behavior I want. If I find it after the fact, well... There's not much to do about it except clean it up and move on.

As with food - we're feeding our 8 month old male EM around 6 cups of Taste of the Wild everyday, but sometimes he doesn't eat it all. Our 13 week old female is getting around 3.5 cups a day. I'm not going to tell you what or what not to feed, that's your choice, but I will say that you'll probably end up feeding your pup more cups of food per day on Science Diet... and, naturally, clean up more poop. Its argued that Science Diet isn't as nutrient rich as other foods out there, thus requiring more food to meet your dog's nutritional requirements. Just throwing that out there.

Good luck with your new pup, and keep us posted!

 

[Smart_Family]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

Science Diet also has some rather questionable ingredients but again as everyone has said it's your choice. I hate that that's the food we have to use at the shelter but it is what it is!

 

[crashmydaytona]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

I am open to suggestions on food but only peoples personal experance. After talking with vets and breeders the subject has left me crossed. Everyone had good reasons why to use or not use different brands. So all i can do is just pick one. I am interested to hear from people who have actually used different brands and have suggestions. Thanks.

 

[cwayaustx]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

I am open to suggestions on food but only peoples personal experance. After talking with vets and breeders the subject has left me crossed. Everyone had good reasons why to use or not use different brands. So all i can do is just pick one. I am interested to hear from people who have actually used different brands and have suggestions. Thanks.

The poster directly above you has done extensive research and IMO is defenitaley one to listen to in regards of food.

---------- Post added at 06:13 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:10 PM ----------

And congrats on the pup! I'm with Chuck on the kennel, if you do let him out when he whines make it only for potty break. It only took two days of whining with my em and now at almost ten weeks he almost always goes in on his own to sleep unless it's on my feet.

 

[cwayaustx]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

And congrats on the pup! I'm with Chuck on the kennel, if you do let him out when he whines make it only for potty break. It only took two days of whining with my em and now at almost ten weeks he almost always goes in on his own to sleep unless it's on my feet.

 

[Tiger12490]

Look through the forum there's allot on food our resident fog food expert posted above you "smart_family" read there post especially

Tapd on my Skyrocket

 

[Smart_Family]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

The information I know in regards to dog food comes from a canine nutritionist. While I am not certified as a nutritionist myself, I do plan to go to school for dog nutrition in the near future. The nutritionist I mentioned gave me the foundation of my knowledge and I went from there and literally did 1000s of hours of research thanks to my own curiousity and due to dogs who had difficult to please digestive systems haha. I'm working on a dog food guide for here and should be done with that by next Monday so stay tuned

 

[chuckorlando]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

Well I've found that most vets are food stupid. My vet bragged how he's been to the purina school. AHAHAHAHAHA. I bet that got a balanced view. A good breeder will feed good food. So depending on the breeder they may know less than my vet. If you have any questions this is the site I would turn to.

I will warn you though, if you plan to follow smart_family's threads and absorb what is being said, you'll need a real desire. I've read them a million times it seems, even keep my favorites saved for refreence. I still dont get it. hahahahahaha. Least not for the pup's. Older dogs are easier.

But you will deff use less food. We did a 50lb bag of purina or what ever crap was on the shelf with 2 dogs. Were way under that with totw and even better on Blue Bufflo. I want to switch, but right now they love the BF. TOTW not so much

 

[crashmydaytona]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

Just an update on Thor the last couple of nights he has only had to go out twice during the night and he no longer whines in his crate. Now if i can only get him to sleep in past 6:00. His potty training is going good.

 

[cwayaustx]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

Good luck with getting him to sleep past six. My 10 week old boy sleeps from 9 to six but at six he is ready to eat poop and play. Usually not long after the kids leave for school at seven he is wore out and goes back to his kennel to sleep again until 10ish maybe 11. Luckily he has slept throughout the night since his second night in the kennel.

 

[crashmydaytona]

Re: Hello joining the forum to get help with some ? before becoming a bullmastiff own

Wow your boy has the life I dream of.