World Winner in Helsinki 1998 CH. Roderick, owned by Ramirez, Mexico.
Picture by Anneli & Rosie Pettersson.
First I must say that this page is the most difficult I have made for Molosserworld. Since this breed, the Mastiff,
are my favourite breed I find it difficult to extract only some of the overwelmimg amount of information on the breed. There are so much written on the history
of the Mastiff and there are so much I want to share with you who read this. Maybe I some day makes this page very large, with several sections,
but for now I must try to keep the page short and easy to read.
The British Mastiff is by many regarded as the purest and oldest of the Molosserbreeds, but, it all depends on what you are referring to with the name Mastiff.
There certainly was Molossers in Britain long time ago, but to say that this was THE Mastiff, as we know it today, is just fairytales.
M.B. Wynn, who wrote the first Mastiff book in 1886, had the theory that the English Mastiff from the earlyest times has existed in Britain, in its purity resembling in many respects a vast
Bulldog, being the ancestor of that breed. He also believed that this dog were crossed by larger breeds, particulary the Tibetan Mastiff introduced by the Phoenicians, forming a large varity of the Mastiff.
Well, what I agree with Wynn is that the Mastiff and Bulldog have the same origin. The ancestor breed must have arrived the British Isles very long time ago because when the Romans invaded England they met the
British fighting dogs and reported that they did come in two sizes, a large and a smaller. This suggests that the ancient British Molosser already had separated into two breeds and the pre-Bulldog and the pre-Mastiff was born.
Woodcut by Thomas Bewick, 1790.
I believe that after the separation the Mastiff and the Bulldog have often been crossed with each other, but we must remember that the Bulldog of old did
not recemble the modern English Bulldog at all and that the two breeds were not that different in the old days. There are references to Mastiffs and Bulldogs in old English litterature but
also to "bull mastiff", "mastiff with a dash of bull" and "bull and mastiff" long before the modern Bullmastiff was created. The ancient British Molosser, or Mastiff if you want, was problary a
dog of Bullmastiff type and size, and the two extremes, the Bulldog and the Mastiff, has been bred from this point of origin.
Mr. B. H. Donkin's Byron. A beautiful Bulldog of the old type.
The common accepted Phoenican theory as an explanation to the existence of the Mastiff in Britain is not likely to have happened.
D.B. Oliff give us a brilliant question in his 1988 book "The Mastiff and Bullmastiff Handbook"; "is it likely that these astute traders would bring something as
unwieldy and perishable as a live Mastiff as an article of barter?". He also writes that it is not even proved that the Phoenicans did reach Britain. This I do not know and I do not want to
speculate on it. However, my question to they who believe on the Phoenican theory is this; In the British Isles there were dogs before the "Phoenican arrival" and how many dogs did they have
to bring with them, to avoid that they mixed to much with the already existing British dog-breeds, so the type and size of the dogs dissapered? As I said above, the Romans met these
Molossers when they reached the British Isles, but they (Gratius Faliscus) described them as two breeds, a large and a smaller one, and thereby suggest the existens of both the "Mastiff" and
the "Bulldog". Is it likely that these two breeds, with the same ancestor, already had divided into two separated breeds from the time of the Phoenicans visit to the Roman occupation? A work
who had to be done in a time without the modern systemated breeding and in a time were people had a though job keeping themselves alive.
It is problably more accurate to believe that these dogs did come through the European continent at a much earlier time. I will write more about the subject at a later time.
Wallace, the property of T. Lukey. Mastiff in the mid 1800's.
The Romans wrote about the British pre-Mastiff, as did the Brites themselves and there is so much written about the Mastiff, both old and new, that instead
of listing up persons and years here, I recommend to you the excellent book of Douglas B. Oliff; "The Mastiff & Bullmastiff Handbook". In M.B. Wynn's "History of the Mastiff", dated 1886, there
are also much interesting to read. Wynn did a tremendous job in gathering info that else would be lost for the future, and we should be very thankful to Wynn for perserving this material.
Two young Mastiffs at the Madison Square Garden Show 1884;
Jumbo & Ponto, owned by Mr. Samuel F. Sniffer.
Throughout the history the Mastiff was used as "gladiators", fighting bears, lions and other animals, and it is said that Mastiffs sometimes defeted both
lions, bears and leopards, also one on one.
In the beginning of the 1800's many considered the Mastiff as more or less extinct. Bewick said that the Mastiff, in its purity and unmixed state, were rare. W. Taplin wrote in 1803
that the breed were reduced due to experimental crossing to other breeds. John Scott took it a bit further and wrote in 1820 that the purebred Mastiff no longer can be obtained.
At the end of the 1700's and through the 1800's many Mastiff breeders imported foreign mastiff-breeds and some breeders used breeds described as alpine mastiffs, spanish bull-mastiffs
etc. in their breeding programs.
Mr. Thomson bred a bitch who were called "Duchess". She got an unusual big head with a short and blunt muzzle and became a sucsessful show-winner in the years 1863-65. Many favored this
headtype and it led to much arguing about witch head and muzzle type the Mastiff should have.
There are no doubt that dogs of the "Bull and Mastiff" type, who were a cross between Bulldogs and Mastiffs, the same way as the modern Bullmastiff, were used in the breeding of Mastiffs,
to easier get the favored headtype.
Many did feel that breeding for a shorther muzzle was wrong and did bring ruin to the breed. Considering that the Mastiff had been crossed by foreign Molosser breeds, bringing an even larger
variety in the breed, and that the Mastiff and the Bulldog have the same origin, I feel that breeding for a shorter muzzle and broader head was the only right thing to do, and I consider
that the early show breeders did bring back the original headtype to the breed.
CH. Marcella, bred and owned by Mr. R. Leadbetter.
Quality Mastiff bitch from the late 1800's who could
even have had success in the show ring of today.
The history of the Mastiff from 1900 until today is very detailed and it can fill large books. To draw only a few sentences out of the mastiffs history
and put it up on a page like this is hard and once again I recommend to you the excellent book of Mr. Douglas B. Oliff, "The Mastiff and Bullmastiff Handbook". I still consider this to be the best book
written about the Mastiff.
The only thing of this period I want to write about here is that the breed was not exactly strong in number after World War I and after World War II it was almost
extinct. Most people in England could not afford to keep such large dogs in a time when there was so little food and most of the Mastiffs was destroyed. Some dogs were
sent in safety to America but this was just a little number compared to all the ones that had to be put down. All in all there were not many Mastiffs in the world after WW II, a small number in
England, reduced to only seven in 1947. USA had not many more Mastiffs than England. Canada had some few more and and did send a couple over to England in 1949.
By dedicated work done by the Old English Mastiff Club and its members the Mastiff were slowly brought back from the point of near extinction and we who love this breed should forever appreciate
the tremendous work done by these individuals.
Illustration of a Mastiff in Buffon's "Historie Naturelle", 1755.
The Mastiff of the past had a larger variety in colours than today and it was not unusual to find mastiffs with large white patches, often on the chest and
extending over the muzzle and forehead, like the one illustrated under. Even pied dogs was known, like the one illustrated above. All black Mastiffs were not unusual but are now extinct. The last
black Mastiff was registered in 1904.
Today the Mastiff comes in fawn, silver-fawn, fawn brindle,
apricot brindle and black brindle. The standard gives however these colours; apricot, silver-fawn or dark fawn brindle. In the case of the black brindle the dog is so dark pigmented that
it looks more or less black. I own myself such an dog and it can be seen pictured below.
W. K. Taunton wrote in 1911; "Black Mastiffs are spoken of as having been known in years gone by,
and occasionally we hear of a dog of this colour having been seen even now. I have never come across one myself, although I have often seen brindle puppies so dark they might have been
mistaken for black." Taunton also said; "Red was another colour that was in evidence thirty or fourty years ago, but is have been allowed to die out, and I have not seen a Mastiff of that
colour, whose pedigree could be depended upon, for many years."
Today there are sometimes born mastiffs with long coat and this is a result of crossing with the
Alpine Mastiff (St. Bernard), and some claims that such crossing was done in certain lines even as late as 20-30 years ago. Picture on aclong coated Mastiff can be found below.
At the top left is a Mastiff of today, pictured at
4 monts of age, bred in Phoenix, Arizona-USA, with a white blaze up her forehead. Right and
middle at the top is my black brindle Goliat pictured at 14 months of age. The two pictures
at the bottom is of Floyd, a Swedish bred and owned long haired Mastiff. The pictures was taken
at a show and the owners even trimmed the dog's coat before the show.
I am a advocate of the old english type of mastiffs. With this statement I am telling that I do not agree with certain countries breed-clubs who
have changed the original British standard to better suit their own favored traits. This is an English breed therefore we should follow the original standard given by the kennel club of
England.
The standard is crystal clear on how a Mastiff should look like in bacics and I would strongly advice the breeders in any country to follow the standard when they breed. One of the most important
requirements for the Mastiff should be type, and breeding for the correct type. Sadly there are to many Mastiffs which have a head that does not follow the standard, and here in Scandinavia we
have quite many of these wrong typed Mastiffs. Below you will find some examples on wrong type and correct type.
You can clearly see the difference on these two heads.
The wrong type at left have more in common with the Kangal of Turkey
than with the correct typed Mastiff at right. Note especially the difference in lenght of muzzle,
nose, lips, stop, skull, mask and colour on the ears on these two speciments. The standard is crystal clear when it comes to the head, read the following extract from the standard and judge for yourself;
"The head is general outline giving square appearance when viewed from any point. Skull broad between the ears, forehead flat, but wrinkled when attention is exited.
Muscles of the temples and cheeks, well developed. Face or muzzle short, broad under the eyes, and keeping nearly parallel in width to the end of the nose; truncated, i.e. blunt and cut off squarely."
Her are one more example. The forehead shall be flat,
like the dog at right. The dog at left have an to round skull, to short muzzle, lacking mask and
to light colour on the ears. You can clearly see the difference on him and the correct Mastiff at right.
If your Mastiff does not have the right type don't breed him or her, it is simple as that. Here in Scandinavia we are seeing more and more people who breeds
their Mastiffs without the slighest consern on type. I have discussed this matter with many of these breeders any they do not see anything wrong with the type on their dogs, just explaining
it with "ok, there are several types but I prefer the type on my dogs" and "your dogs have too much loose skin, to short muzzle, to big head etc." Anyone that have read the standard knows how
wrong they are and the pictures above show my point.
Another thing all breeders should aim for is good temperament and a strong mind. Too often there are mastiffs in the show ring who
show shyness and it is much frustrating to see a 100 kg. (220 lbs) Mastiff with its tail between the legs, afraid for anyone and everything, like the two speciments pictured above.
All Mastiffs showing shyness should be excluded
from the breeding program. I have time after time seen the problem at dogs from the same lines, generation after generation with their tail
between their legs. Like in the type-subject the breeders of these shy Mastiffs often do not see the problem themselves and often is satisfied with how the dog is at home.
The late Khan and his son Oluf at 7 months of age.
The Mastiff is a big and gentle breed. They do never hurry to a place, but prefer to walk slowly to their destination. They are devoted to their owners and enjoy the company of
children. Although most people consider this breed as a family dog, I hope that they not forget that the Mastiff is a working dog also, and it really enjoy to be used as a working dog.
The body of the Mastiff is large and powerful. It shall be symmetrical and have a well knit frame, the four legs placed in each "corner". The body massive, long, deep and broad with muscles sharply defined.
Great size of the bone. The head is the most important; broad, forehead flat. Muscles of the temples and cheeks well developed. Muzzle short, the lenght of muzzle to whole head and face as 1 to 3. The head shall look square from all angles.
The coat is short and close lying, but not too fine over the shoulders, neck and back. The colour of the coat is apricot, fawn and brindle in combination with the two.
The original British standard does not give a minimum or maximum height, although the American does. The normal size of the Mastiff are above 75 cm. (24,4 in) at the withers and 80-90 kg. (176-198 lbs) but many Mastiffs exceeds 100 kg. (220 lbs), and the
largest & heaviest speciments in the dog-world comes from this breed.
The late Khan, one of my own Mastiffs.
Links
Molosserworld will from now on only link to pages that
exchanges links with Molosserworld. Molosserworld will still link to official pages of the breed and to club/accociation
pages. If you want to read more about the reason to this decision, you can find it Here.
If you want to have a link to your page put up at this page, please make a link to Molosserworld first, then send the
address of your website to Molosserworld so we can add a link to your site in return.
Please inform Molosserworld about any "dead" links.
Clubs
