ravensmyst00

Kim Chi, I would be extremely concerned about any vet suggesting unneccesary surgery such as this Prophalactic Gatropexy. There is no need for this to be done and I dont know of anyone with the breed who has had it done as a preventative measure.

Yes there is a possiblity of bloat as with any large/giant breed of dog but that is also why you take appropriate procautions with feeding and exercise. Yes the bigger the dog the bigger the problems but that is why you research your breeders extensively and their blood lines. If you are worried about bloat then you ask the breeder if any of the dogs they have bred have had bloat. You ask about allergies, thyroid issues. You ask about hip and elbow dysplasia. You ask about temperament.

I am more than happy for you to contact me should you have any questions.

:) :laugh: Thank you to evey one that has helped me with the food advise I think the best is to stick with the ARTEMIS or Royal Canin as the breeder sugested I just wanted to know the difference was there really a big difference and clearly there is, so Im happy to give my Bull mastiff the $130 bags of food as it will promote great health and well being, also I was told by the breeder to get medicare pet insurance as I am defantly doing that and Ill be getting the hight one, as I know the biger the dog the biger the problems I have also been told by vets when I have the dog desexed to have the operation PROFALACTIC GASTROPEXY so prevent Blote, so any one with Bull mastiffs that have had there dogs have this opp and had benifits I would appreciate any one telling me things I need to learn about. I go to KCC PARK VIC all the time to talk to people at the shows so I can learn. I have been learning now for one year and Im renovating the house so I have just had 6ft 6 fences and new gates lucky dads a builder and we are killing of all the wandering due plant before our family member comes along. so I still have a lot to learn I wont be showing but I will still take my dog to puppy school and on to obediance at KCC PARK as I feel the knowledge of the people there is a great help to and I need that as I have never had a Bull mastiff and such a strong willed dog and needs reguler socializing with dogs and kids people. so I really appreciate every one here telling me about the food as its important and thats why I wanted to ask other people. thnak you kindly and merry xmas and happy new year.

I've owned both and will advise a Bullmastiff any day. I have a 4 year old and I couldn't fault male with him for anything. They were the best of friends. My girl is now starting to respond to my son recently by sitting on commands given to her by him.

Also look at PawCraft Designs.

Www.pawcraftdesigns.com

If your breeder is local to you contact them and see if they can take him over the period as some breeders offer that service if they have a spare kennel available.

If not they may be able to offer a suggestion or advise on who you can contact to help out.

In the end it comes down to the morals and ethics of the judges.

Take photos, set up video cameras and keep a detailed diary of all that takes place.

Contact your local council ranger and advise them of the situation including them keeping 5 dogs on the premises as I guarantee they arent registered. Make sure after you speak to them you either send an email (return receipt requested) or letter - registered post confirming the conversation.

Make a temporary fence to keep the dogs away from the fence line.

Booge - sent you a pm.

As for skin issues - they are common enough.

Do Bullmastiffs have any issues with skin allergies? Having a Boxer with skin problems, I'd rather avoid breeds prone to it! Plus a decent guard dog that doesn't require extensive exercise would be great.

Yes Bullmastiffs can suffer from skin allergies.

This is very serious - Ring the police. They are scamming your father and will continue to do so because he's an easy target. I wouldn't try to confront them yourself because who knows what they will do.

Dont think its going to change either. Bugger.

Rotti Club in Wednesday's is very good.

From what I understand there used to be obedience at Kcc an thursdays but due to lack of participation it was discontinued. Only show training on Thursdays now

Photograph and if possible video these children on your property harassing your dog. Contact your local council and advise them of the situation and your concerns. Also advise them of the roaming dog as it is illegal to have a roaming dog.

Send a letter to the parents asking them nicely to keep their children within the confines of their own yard under the guise of you not wanting to see them get hurt should someone not see them when leaving their drive way or on the road.

Next time they are out and roaming you can also contact the police saying they were in the street and a car just swerved to miss them.

I'd be going to another vet for a second opinion.

I've been involved in showing for nearly 7 years. While there has been pleasant experiences I can say the negative experiences are starting to out way the positive and as such I hardly show any more.

I'm at the point where I have to force myself to enter a show and then the morning of the show I have to find a really good reason to get myself out of bed. I used to love showing and its really sad that I have lost that passion because of the behavior of others.

Dog poo composters take a while to get started and have them work effectively. I have one which was supposed to handle 3 large dogs according to the internet plans. With all the rain earlier this year I have had a lot of set backs with it and it is only now at the stage where it is starting to work - its still going to be a few months before I consider it to be effective.

It would be a better idea for the number of dogs to have a septic system installed.

Microchip registration cannot be transferred into someone else's name without the signature of the previous owner. (pounds and rescues I believe have special privileges).

If your friend willingly signed the transfer forms he may have difficulty proving they are legally his

As a bullmastiff owner and breeder I can't emphasize enough the need to ensure that you adequately socialise and obedience train your puppy.

Your vet may offer puppy preschool classes for your pup that are available for pups from 8-14 weeks of age. If possible get your pup enrolled. After that I would highly recommend that you get enrolled in obedience. This pup will reach up 50kg of solid muscle and pretty much nothing will stop an untrained bullmastiff if they want to investigate something. Having a hyper bullmastiff rush up to someone else's dog is not a good thing and people who don't know your dog will think the worst just because of the size.

Socialize socialize socialize. Yes I am repeating myself but it is vitally important that your pup be socialized with all breeds of dogs, animals and situations.

A well socialized and well trained bullmastiff is a wonderful ambassador to our breed.

Regarding being protective - a bullmastiff will be naturally protective of their family - they take their cues from their owners. So no training is necessary.

On another note - be sure you establish the pack dynamics in your household from the moment your pup arrives. You are the head of the pack not the dog. If you have any further questions please feel free to PM me.

I've sent you a PM.

I personally won't feed Advance to any of my bullmastiffs. Try the Pro Plan large breed puppy keep you protein levels low ie no higher than 28%.

Also when feeding raw meats pick one and stick with it for a couple weeks sudden changes in mince can cause issues as well.

I use bio-organics glucosamine + MSM. I used to use joint guard. I found it to be quite expensive.

My dogs get 1 tablet a day and they do better on the tablets than on the Joint Guard.

Get him off the Advance!!!!! I had an entire litter knuckle over while on it and I recently heard and saw another that was suffering the same issue. I will never feed Advance to any of my dogs ever again.

A couple things you will need to do is move him to an adult formula dog food that is less than 26% protein look at mixing half chicken mince (ie ground chicken frames) and half dry. I also gave my pups glucosamine and MSM tablets half a tablet once a day. Get him off slippery floors as well. I did this by getting an industrial rubber backed carpeted mat from Bunnings it gets hosed off a couple times a week and disinfected.

Good luck and if you have any questions feel free to PM me.

It's never a 'Brand' that is a problem.

You have to know what ratios are suitable for your puppy and Breeders should be giving this information to their puppy buyers.

I only going on my own personal experience and info I have been given in the last 12 months. 11 pups all suffering from knuckling over while on the same food while it may not be a big deal does make you wonder.

I would be looking at the added chicken you added before the brand of dry food.

These pups were not being fed chicken mince when the knuckling over happened. So that was not the cause. The litter was on Advance alone. The other pup was also on Advance alone. It wasnt until they were pulled off the Advance put onto an adult formula dog food with the addition of chicken mince along with glucosamine and MSM tablets that they came good.

It's never a 'Brand' that is a problem.

You have to know what ratios are suitable for your puppy and Breeders should be giving this information to their puppy buyers.

For instance here's diet information including Phos/Calc ratios which are one of the most important aspects of a Great Dane diet in terms of avoiding growth problems: http://www.greatdane...com.au/diet.pdf

I would suggest you go back to your Breeder or go into your Breed thread here on DOL and speak to those who are very experienced raising puppies of your breed.

Your breed thread is here: http://www.dolforums.com.au/topic/104098-rhodesian-ridgeback-thread/page__st__2055

I only going on my own personal experience and info I have been given in the last 12 months. 11 pups all suffering from knuckling over while on the same food while it may not be a big deal does make you wonder.

Get him off the Advance!!!!! I had an entire litter knuckle over while on it and I recently heard and saw another that was suffering the same issue. I will never feed Advance to any of my dogs ever again.

A couple things you will need to do is move him to an adult formula dog food that is less than 26% protein look at mixing half chicken mince (ie ground chicken frames) and half dry. I also gave my pups glucosamine and MSM tablets half a tablet once a day. Get him off slippery floors as well. I did this by getting an industrial rubber backed carpeted mat from Bunnings it gets hosed off a couple times a week and disinfected.

Good luck and if you have any questions feel free to PM me.

If he's allergic to chicken avoid eggs as well. You can try rabbit. Adding olive oil helps and you can try adding goats milk to his meals as well.

This was good but they should have taken into consideration their questions on desexing and age of pets as one answer does not necessarily apply to all pets in ones home.