American Mastiff: Dog Breed Information and Owner’s Guide |

If you are an owner of an American Mastiff, you can earn honor from neighbors and relatives without much trouble. Its stout, elegant, dignified presence will make you talk of the town. The only requirement this huge-sized dog breed demand is the space in your house.

A full-grown American Mastiff will need a bed of 50 x 50 inches. This dog will be a big mess if your home is not that spacious. So, if you are looking forward to winning respect in people’s minds by owning an American Mastiff, ensure that you can afford a big abode.

Breed information of American Mastiff

The credit for the origin of this breed goes to flying W Farms kennel’s owner Fredericka Wagner. Intending to create an improved version of Mastiff breeds, she came forward with the first litters of this dog breed in Piketon, Ohio, after 1975.

To make this breed, she mated an Anatolian Mastiff (known as a guard and herding dog) with an English Mastiff (known as guard dogs or war dogs). In the developed version of the Mastiffs, Miss Wagner wanted to retain the good features of Mastiffs, such as their disposition, temperament, appearance, and size.

But in this breed, she wanted fewer health issues and a dryer mouth than the Mastiffs. And in the attempt, her experiment was pretty successful.

The American Mastiff developed drooled much less than its ancestors since it had a stouter, tighter lower lip. Another positive feature that developed in this new breed was its temperament. It was not violent like its warrior ancestors.

After developing the breed of American Mastiff, Miss Wagner ensured that its standards were adhered to in a strict sense. To achieve this purpose, she established the American Mastiff Breeders Council (AMBC) in 2002.

The AMBC greatly relieves the dog owners planning to buy an American Mastiff. The council ensures the rights of the buyers. The responsibility is to ascertain that buyers never get cheated by unethical or greedy breeders.

Price of American Mastiff

If you buy an American Mastiff puppy from their place of origin, i.e., Flying W Farms, it will cost you 2300 US dollars for females and 2000 US dollars for males.

But if you go for other reputed breeders, you can find a puppy of this breed for between 1000 and 1500 US dollars.

The cost of American Mastiff in India ranges from Rs.40,000 to Rs.1,o0,000, depending on factors like breeder and age.

The behavior of American Mastiff

This dog breed is known for its loyalty. These fearless protectors can protect their owners and families, even risking their own lives. They never bark without a purpose.

However, if it barks, you should be careful of some intruders trying to break into your house. These dogs are intelligent. They can understand what their owners are thinking of a visitor.

As per that understanding, they treat a visitor. If the owner doesn’t wish a visitor to enter his house, he doesn’t need to say it himself. His pet will do the needful on his behalf.

However, at an early stage, you should train it properly. Through training, it understands that you are the leader of the house. Otherwise, your pet will think of itself as the captain of the house, and it will be difficult for you to control your disobedient dog.

The general appearance of American Mastiff

Following is the list of full-grown American Mastiffs:

• Weight range of males: 160 to 200 pounds (72 to 90 kgs)
• Weight range of females: 140 to 180 pounds (63 to 81 kgs)
• Height range: 28 to 36 inches (65 to 91 cm)

The American Mastiffs are known for their broadhead bodies of rectangular shapes. Looking at their wrinkled foreheads, one can think of their kind great grandfather. Their muscles are well developed, and their bones are heavy.

They have medium-sized brown eyes. The massive skull it possesses makes its ears look small in proportion. The ears fall on their cheeks. The muzzle and ears are dark blacks; it seems they are donning a mask.

Their large teeth remain hidden in a powerful jawline when they shut their mouths. The neck of this breed gets broader when it moves from skull to shoulder.

Their chest looks like barrels while their backs are held straight. The stoutness of this dog is observed in their tails as they rarely drop. Instead, they are upright with a bit of curve. When they move, their powerful legs with arched toes run parallelly. It adds to their dignity.

Health issues of American Mastiff

In general, they are healthy dogs with minimum health issues. However, like in any dog breed, they may have heart disease, cancer, seasonal allergies, epilepsy, and eye problems. Regular appointments need to be scheduled with vets to avoid these diseases.

One of the common diseases reported in this breed is hygromas. In this disease, they suffer from expanding areas around elbow joints.

However, it is not a life-threatening disease and is curable by the vet. The vets generally recommend providing the dogs with a bed cushioned with soft pads to minimize these expansions.

The coat color of American Mastiff

The American Mastiffs have double-layered coats. The short thick undercoat is adjacent to the skin, while its relatively short outer coat is straight and rough.

A purebred American Mastiff will never have any decorative border on its stomach, tail, or legs. However, in a few cases, they may have white marks that appear in areas surrounding their chin, chest, nose, and feet.

They come in several colors, such as:

• White
• Apricot
• Fawn
• Brindle

Per standards, the brindle ones should always have fawn or apricot backgrounds with stripes of dark shade. Body-color of an American Mastiff changes a bit when it grows older.

When they are puppies, they can be darkly shaded. Then, as they grow, they become lighter. Finally, they get their permanent color after their first birthday.

Shedding of American Mastiff

This breed doesn’t trouble its owner by shedding much. They shed a maximum of two times a year. Because of their short coats, they don’t overwhelm with shedding.

You can manage by brushing them with a stiff-haired brush a few times daily to remove their dead hair. While they are not shedding, you can brush them once in 3-4 days.

The lifespan of American Mastiff

The lifespan of this breed ranges between 10 to 12 years.

Caring tips for American Mastiff

If you own an American Mastiff, be careful of what you feed them. Until this breed reaches two years, it is not grown fully. At this stage, it should be kept under strict supervision so the dog can develop at a steady and measured pace.

The calorie intake should not be too steep. An excess of 26% protein is too much for an American Mastiff puppy and must not be consumed. The ratio of calcium and phosphorus in their food is another critical thing that must be considered without fail.

This ratio should range between 1:1 to 1.3:1. If a proper ratio is not maintained, there is a risk of causing skeletal damage to your pet.

Regarding training exercises, this breed doesn’t need a rigorous schedule. Never put it into too many workouts. Rigorous exercise can injure it. Walking a day for a couple of miles will be enough for an adult dog.

Long walks and jumping from heights are an absolute no-no for young adults and puppies. These activities can lead to their bones getting harmed. However, if you take care of these things, you can minimize their health issues when they grow up.