English Mastiff Puppies Blog

The first and most important thing is: prevention. It means training and socializing your English Mastiff from early puppyhood.
But if the trouble is already here and you have to deal with an aggressive English Mastiff, the first thing to do is to find the reason hidden behind its behavior. It is most probably some kind of fear that your dog has. It can be because of a previous owner,  the breeder, or it can be because of you, too. Make sure to give your dog enough care and space at the same time, make very clear limits on what he can do and he can’t. Consistence is very important too.
Don’t keep your dog chained, no matter what, because it leads directly to aggression.
It is very important for him to feel comfortable and to get positive feedbacks. Negative training can never lead to a solution, it’d only make things worse!
If you keep a positive atmosphere, all dogs have the possibility to live well-balanced.

Avoid unnecessary vet bills! Do your dog’s basic health check!

The narrow line between training and abuse

Many dog owners think that their Mastiff is the smartest in the world. There’s no problem with this, up to certain a point. This point is when the owner expects as much from the dog as if it really was the most intelligent creature the world has ever seen. They expect them to learn everything right away, whereas dogs need time to learn things, the same way as we, humans do. Just in a different way Well, the point is, that training requires time and patience. It can be different for all dogs, but we do have to keep this in mind and take the time and energy to train our English Mastiff.

Another common mistake (also because of the lack of patience) is to give up. Many people think that they have already tried everything but the dog doesn’t want to learn. In this case, maybe the methods are not the best, or they need more time. There are no dogs who wouldn’t be able to learn at least a few commands. Giving up is never a solution.

So, if we have the time and the patience we can avoid the next, and maybe the biggest mistake: to turn training into abuse. Probably you expect me to tell you where this line is. I can’t. This is something the owner should know. Training is all about communication. If you know your Mastiff, if you pay attention to him, you see how he feels. Unfortunately many dog owners don’t have this ability, because they only keep pets for entertainment, while a dog is much more than that.

Going back to training, a very important rule is that your goal should be that your English Mastiff obeys to commands because he is keen to do so. NOT BECAUSE HE IS AFRAID. Many-many owners forget about this, and feel the training successful, but actually they are making their dog unhappy. How can someone live happily in fear? No way. These owners are only keeping a dog to make themselves happy, and don’t feel the responsibility they should.

So the point is, that ‘positive training’ is possible. Actually, that’s the only way.

The first difficulties most English Mastiff owners face is potty training their puppy. As with general training, the main principles remain the same: a positive, rewarding approach and a lot of patience is required. There are, however a few tips and tricks that will make the whole process faster and easier for both puppy and owner. Find out what Sharda Baker has to say on the topic, who has developed her best practices by years of trial and error.

Please comment if you have something to add.

There are various types of Mastiffs including the English Mastiff, German Mastiff, Anatolian Mastiff, Cuban Mastiff, Spanish Mastiff and a lot more different types. Although there are various kinds of Mastiffs, they all descended from the ancient Alaunt through the Pugnaces Britanniae.

These types of dogs have a desired temperament which is reflected in all formal standards. Mastiffs’ behavior reflects a combination of dignity and courage, but they can be very calm and affectionate to their masters. They may be very protective that when an unfamiliar person approaches it or its owner, it will position itself immediately between its master and the stranger. This breed is innately good natured, easygoing, calm, and is surprisingly gentle for its size. It can be a well-mannered house pet that is why it is preferred by most pet owners, aside from being typically loyal and exceptionally devoted.

The Mastiffs’ generation started even before the First World War which means their descent existed for more than a century already. To know more about the entire history of your Mastiff, go for The History and Management of the Mastiff, and learn how to properly train, socialize and take care of your pet.

Dogs have become such an important part of our society, that the need for them to fit in well with other human beings and not pose a threat or a disturbance is critical to their long term acceptance by our neighbors and others around us. Not all people are dog lovers and to make sure that they’re not inconvenienced by our pets, training is essential.

Also, dog training is an integral part of a working dog’s life for them to be able to assist humans in activities like hunting and police work. Training dogs is a specialized skill since the key difficulty lies in how to communicate efficiently with them.

All training of dogs is a repetition of the basic principle of reward and punishment in various forms and combinations. Communication of these signals is the key to proper training. One very important thing to remember is consistency of signals. The reliability of the training depends on how well a dog is able to be sure of what your signals mean.

It must also be mentioned that different dog breeds take to training differently. Dogs like the iconic German Shepherd are very easily trained due to their high intelligence. Another important factor is the emotional state of the dog. A dog that is frightened, anxious, or insecure doesn’t train well and this reflects the importance of factors like proper socialization of puppies.

A lot of studies have shown that proper puppy socialization goes a long way towards ensuring a good temperament and receptivity towards training. Lots of handling, petting and generally being around humans in their everyday life goes a long way towards making a dog well behaved and easy to train.

Training English Mastiff puppies should not begin too early however, as there is evidence to show that before a certain age, the brains of puppies are not significantly developed enough to process complex learning.

Professional dog trainers are best when it comes to training your dog as they will ensure that the proper habits are set for life, including how to behave around strangers. For the safety of your dog, it is your duty as an owner to ensure that he or she is well trained.

Fed up with cleaning up after your puppy?

The Mastiff Master Training Guide,  Written by Steve E Peters renowned Mastiff trainer, tells you exactly how to house train your puppy. It contains detailed instructions that are easy to apply in practice. Save yourself the headache and frustration and become a Mastiff Master.