Mastiff or Bullmastiff that is the question...:)

[ksufan72]

Hi! I am driving myself crazy (and my husband of course) with research on which breed is best for us. I like a lot of things about both breeds but have heard horror stories about Bullmastiffs being destructive. And most importantly I have a 13 year old Shih-Tzu that can be quite bitchy if not left alone. I had a French Mastiff and a Boxer that learned within a couple of days to just leave her alone. My female boxer was like a dog on crack and my French mastiff (male) ate my furniture so needless to say I don't want to go there again. I'm just looking for an honest opinion on which breed has the best personality traits.

 

[musicdeb]

Welcome aboard~

 

[Harrygto]

welcome
I have had good luck with both
but like the EM the best

 

[ksufan72]

Thank you! Oh and my French Mastiff was part Boxer as well he was a rescue and they were "guessing" he was part French mastiff. I have also done a little research on the Cane Corso and again hear mixed reviews. My 2 main concerns about any one of the three is 1. it won't eat my hateful little Shih-Tzu 2. I have to be firm with it all the time to establish the pecking order for lack of better words 3. Hyper dogs drive me crazy

 

[ksufan72]

Thank you for the response! I am really glad I found this forum to get info from actual owners not statistics off of a webpage

 

[cinnamon roll]

I guess it would depend on what you are looking for in the dog. Pet, guard dog etc....also size there is a big difference in the different mastiffs.

 

[ruby55]

We have a friend who shows boxers. We tease her all the time that boxers are like bullmastiffs on crack. She says our bullmastiffs are like boxers on downers.
We have 4 bm's at this time. I would like to add another; the house still seems a little empty....
We looked at & considered an EM, but we would have to resize some things, especially the doggy door. When our friend's EM followed her into the bathroom & had no choice but to back out, we realized that adding an EM at this time would be a pain. I just downsized my vehicle from a full size van to a mini van.
We don't see a lot of destruction with ours, except Bella, who eats couches when she's stressed. Ruby tore up a couple of books when she was little, but for the most part they're not too bad. I've had much worse problems with other non mastiff breeds. As far your shih tzu is concerned, I would definitely be on my guard with any dog you bring into the mix. And are you looking for a puppy or an adult? That makes a difference too. If your little one is a female, then you shouldn't have any more problems with a bm than any other breed.

 

[mastiffico]

i have and english mastiff and i just got a bull mastiff ..love my english mastiff ..and i like the bull mastiff but i havent had him long enough yet to commit ...right now he was 1 in june and he seems to get along with all the dogs goood and my other animals ..my english mastiff still hasnt warmed up good to him yet

 

[ccmum22boyz]

Your dog ate your house because it was not watched while out of it's crate. Any and all puppies can eat your house when unattended. I love my huge English Mastiff because he is sweet and I just love huge dogs. I hope you don't think I am rude but I am right. I myself have left my puppy unattended and I knew I shouldn't have and the same thing happened and it was my fault. A well breed EM is no comparison. It will leave a BM in it's tracks. Not to say a shorter stockier BM isn't a beautiful sight and a wonderful dog. But the colossal EM is a sight to behold.Big gentle giants.

 

[ksufan72]

My Shih-tzu is 8 pounds. Definitely a pet just one that looks intimidating It sounds like my safe bet will be the English which of course I'm completely fine with of course. Has anyone had a small dog that is snippy around one of them? I really don't want to wait until something happens to Hannah to get a a other dog. I love that little dog so much and if I don't have Another dog I am pretty sure I will be committed.

 

[Smokeycat]

I don't own a small dog (my little guy is 75lbs) but I have had Kryten (EM) interact with little dogs since he I got him at 11 weeks. There have been some that want nothing to do with him and have snapped at him. He will come over to me and pout that the other dog was mean to him. The only dog I have ever seen him snap at is my other dog and Jiggers has deserved it. He may have drawn blood once whereas he has scars from Jiggers and he didn't retaliate he just wanted comfort since Jiggers was mean to him. Kryten is a very sensitive soul, the cats can hurt his feelings.

 

[ksufan72]

I agree with you on the leaving him unsurprised... however they were both in crates (havy metal wire ones) my moxer was so strong he destroyed two & that's when he had A party in the house. I had already learned the hard way about not crating with my boxer. The second time he got out he
chewed thru a sheetrock wall trying to get somewhere? They weren't locked in a separate room
Just in the house. We even had one of those outside kennels for when we were gone a couple of
Hours and even with it hooked in the ground he literally picked it up and went under it. That time he chewed they the privacy fence and sat on the front porch. My neighbors at the time called the
City because he "looked dangerous ". That jail break ended with him having to stay for 2 days because it was a Friday and Monday was A holiday so they were closed. I had Maggie for 8 years and
Cooper for 6 they both died early this year.

 

[ksufan72]

I actually got the moxer so my boxer would have a buddy for her endless energy. I took Maggie to Obedience class and they said they would give me a discount if I did private lessons that's how wild she was. Oh and she peed a river everytime anyone she didn't know well called her. She was so
Sweet but I would never have another one lol

 

[ksufan72]

You guys have NO idea how much this helps!!

 

[Boris the Blade]

I have s bullmastiff cane corso cross and he has been the only pup ibe ever had that hasn't destroyed anything, but his own toys. He is crated when we sleep or are out but I would leave him unsupervised while in other rooms and he never got into anything. Hes almost 9 mths now anf about 113lbs. Its part training and part keeping his toys interesting enough.
As far as which dog, I would go with bullmastiff hands down. I couldn't deal with the size and the crazy crazy drool, I know BMs drool as well but EM drool is I. A world of its own lol!

 

[cinnamon roll]

I own a EM and I also a have a 10 yr old puggle. He is by far the boss and when he has had enough of her acting like the energizer bunny on crack he will put her into her place.

 

[Kelly]

Tess is my EM/BM mix and she is a true gentle giant. my mothers stupid pug goes after her sometimes, she does defend herself but has never hurt him. shes also very funny and makes me laugh all the time.

 

[ksufan72]

I have read that the tighter the jowls the less drool on god knows where as I have been researching for a long time? I would be lying if I said that wasn't why I didn't go with the EM from the beginning. My other dogs stopped mass destruction at around 2 or 3 at that point I could leave them out unsupervised for 8 hours. Of course they had lots of toys & big bones to chew on.

 

[ksufan72]

Any recommendations on a reputable breeder? I am in Kansas City MO but would be willing to travel for the right puppy

 

[ksufan72]

I really like the looks and size of the Bullmastiff but love the temperament of the English. With the Bull I am just worried about the stubborn thing and worried about my dog that I can guarantee will be mean. I am also taking into account that this dog will have to endure Hannah's attitude (not that I will allow her to bite) and then this dog will get the idea all small dogs are hateful then not accept another Shih-Tzu when the time comes.