Malcom and Family

[merlins mastiff]

I`ve just realised that i have probably the definative before and after pics .
He we have Angel at just 8 weeks old , all together ahhhhhhhhhhhh

8 weeks

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And here we have the same cute little puppy at three years old

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So if you are thinking of a First time Mastiff puppy ,remember they wont be little sweet furry bundles for very long !

[LS]

Wow she looks lovely.
Will mail you privately.
Keep the pictures coming

[shontelle1985]

All of your dogs are amazing!

I'm about to pick up my first rescue Mastiff on Saturday. I am sooo excited as I have completely fallen for this breed. It's beautiful to see your pictures and hear your stories and I think you are such amazing people, your dogs were so lucky that it was you who rescued them.

Any tips on how to ease a mastiff into a new home gently? I also have a greyhound pup and he absolutely adores dogs so I'm hoping that he will get on with the Mastiff as well as your Bear gets on with your rescues!

Any tips you can give me on the re-homing process would be very much appreciated. I've had dogs all my life but this is the first rescue I've taken on.

I can't wait!

Keep up your amazing work

Shontelle.

(P.s, so sorry to hear of the loss of 2 of your dogs last September, I hope the new addition is helping to fill the void)

[merlins mastiff]

hI SHONTELE
We have been watching your posts on Alfie and I confess to being totally in love with that boy. I understand you are going up this weekend for nina, she will be a good place to start in the breed. We have found owning a Mastiff becomes a lifelong passion, roll on winning the lottery so their would never be a Mastiff without a home. The best starting off point with your rescue is time, we have found in general that you really start to see the character of your dog around 3/4 months on. Make sure you introduce them properly in the first place and take your time introducing new enviroments and experiences. If you encounter any particular problem post it there are plenty of long term owners out there only too willing to help. We will watch the forum closely next week for an update.
Dont be afraid to ask what may seem a silly question we all started somewhere.
moira

[shontelle1985]

Hi Moira

I'm actually going up to take a look at Alfie as well. Nina is a very nervous dog and that worries me slightly because I have young children and i'm a bit concerned that she might feel overwhelmed and snap at them purely out of fear.

I completely fell for Alfie too as soon as He was on the forum and was bitterly disappointed because I didn't think I was going to be able to get up there for him. But I have managed to sort it now so that I can get up to Lincolnshire on Saturday. I understand that you have offered him a home too if I don't take him? That's brilliant, it's good to know that he will have a good home to go to either way.

Thanks for the tips on settling in, I'm sure we'll be fine. I'm really excited about it and have been told by so many Mastiff owners that once you have one, you'l never be without one!

Thanks for the reply, I'll let you know how it goes on Saturday and will be posting updates and pictures when I have Nina/Alfie settled.

Take Care,
Shontelle.

[merlins mastiff]

Hi Shontelle
I understand your concerns about Nina obviously I dont know her history but Debbie will put you in the picture about that, Ninas problem may not be that she is by nature a nervious dog, from her write up she has lived with an elderly lady I assume from a puppy. She is most likely not to have been socialized so everything can be new and scary, basically the bottom has just dropped out of her world. Quite often we have found being with another dog gives them confidence but it does take time. With either dog be carefull with the greyhound pup as his first instinct will be playmate and your new arrival may not appreciate that at first, Nina because everything is strange to her and Alfie because he will not be feeling top notch and he is an older dog and we really dont know what he may have experienced prior to coming into rescue.Rescue are always faced with the daunting task of trying to home a dog based on information supplied which can at best be scanty. Unfortunately our currenr bitch would not entertain another girl in the house so we would not be able to take nina. Both dogs will need a quiet area to go in your home to get away from the hustle and bussle for a while until they intergrate, make no mistake about it they will decide on the speed at which they do that, allow your rescue to come to you for affection, dont try to force the issue. I know our first instinct is to give them a great big hug to show how much they are wanted and loved and we know why we are doing it but your dog may not understand at first.
Our bitch has the sweetest nature you could wish for, her idea of the perfect day is to put her head in your lap to be fussed. This same confident loving girl when recovering from surgery would curl her lip and growl at anyone other than us who came remotely near her, poorly dogs can feel vulnerable. I wish you the very best with which ever dog you decide to take home. Even after having giant breeds for over 40 years I still come across things I have to ask advice about
regards Moira

[shontelle1985]

Hi Moira

Thank you for the advice. I'm planning to introduce the dogs on neutral territory at first and walk them together because I know from experience that it is generally the best way for dogs to get to know each other. I won't leave them alone unsupervised at first, just let them really get to know each other and take it slow. My Greyhound has a crate that we leave the door open to and he goes in there whenever he wants a bit of peace and quiet. We'll do the same for the rescue.

I know I'm going to immediately want to shower the rescue with lots of love and attention, as you said, that's imstinctual, but I will do what you suggest and take it at the dogs pace. I just want to do everything I can to make the transition as smooth and easy as possible for the rescue, I want it to know that it is safe and loved and secure in it's new home.

I'm really looking forward to tomorrow, I can't wait to get up there and meet them. I'll let you know how it goes.

Thanks again
Shontelle.

[merlins mastiff]

Hi Shontelle
Seens as if you are pretty well organised, the neutual walk and the crate(assuming the dog will use it) seem just the ticket, dont over worry if the dog is off there feed in the first few days, this is relatively normal it is part of the settleing process, but dont be tempted to leave the food down just because they havnt eaten it. 30 mins then take it away. I havnt met a mastiff yet who wont eventually eat. A problem you may or may not encounted is *new home/change of diet runny bum*, dont forget to take your dog to the allotted toilet area so they know were to find it, but mistakes are bound to happen for a few days.One of our early dogs took almost 6 weeks to get his head arround night time cleanliness yet it only took him 4 days to master daytime toilet arrangements
Take care on the drive, it will be a very long day tommorow and its due to pour with rain.
regards Moira

[shontelle1985]

Hi Moira. I have posted on the forum under alfies rescue page, can u please take a look when u have the time and see if there's any advice you can give? Thanks.

[merlins mastiff]

AND THEN THERE WERE THREE AGAIN!
Six weeks ago Granpa came to join the familly

well everybodys nearly looking in the same direction

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You may know him as "poor starved alfie " but he and we feel that Grandpa suits him much better and at least he stops when I shout OI GRAMPS.
We went off to Plymouth to fetch Gramps when it became obvious that things weren`t working out with his new mum and he took to Angel and the Bear straight away . Unfortunatly I managed to terminally damage my car on the way back ( we got home ok !) so we now own a new shiny Renault traffic van ( well the bank does for the time being) known around here as the Mastiff mobile , plenty of room for three dogs and all the camping gear .Every time I looked at a car Moira would always pipe up with , "well yes its very nice but where are the dogs going to sit" .
Gramps is still on his two meals a day and bodying up nicely ,

taken two weeks ago

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Of course feeding him more often than the other two means that he is fed on his own away from angel and bear much to there annoyance

are you doing food in there?

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[merlins mastiff]

Space in the louge also became a bit of a problem as we now had three dogs and two sofas.

oooos got all the room then ?

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How ever a quick tour of the charity shops produced a third dog sofa and now every body is happy as the dogs circulate around the room taking it in turns to share a sofa with Moira and Me .

cor luxury !!

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Ok I know some ones going to say we are spoiling them but as they are all rescues I feel they have earned a bit of the good life and we have a very simple rule , if you dont like the way we live , dont come around !
Granpa continues to amaze me in the way he moves , we have found over the years that Mastiff tend to split in to two sorts , the ones that think and act like little old men at about three years of age and the other sort which are still idiot pups at ten and above , Gramps is very definantly in the last catagory
We live VERY close to a country park and also next door to the sea so the dogs are out for exercise every day regardless of the weather , and as we have such a choice of walks the dogs get to discover new smells and animals ( squirrels , badgers, fox`s etc etc ) every day which helps to stimulate their brains as well as keeping them fit .

did we have to come the long way round then ?

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[merlins mastiff]

Bear and Grandpa are settling in with each other and after all its only been seven weeks since gramps joined us , we had a couple of minor swearing matches inthe first few of weeks which was only to be expected but Grandpa is quite happy to be subservient to the bear , all Gramps wants is a warm bed , plenty of food and loads and loads of cuddles

So the moral here is directed to all of you would be mastiff owners who are not sure about taking a rescue , Go and take a look at Poor starving alfies pics and the look at him now , despite being abandoned and starved this old boy has the sweetest nature and just loves every body , Physically he`s on his way back to his optimum weight and developing muscles daily , There has been no expensive vets treatment and no special expensive food , all he eats is Tripe and complete mixer biscuit , which works out to about £6.50p per dog per week, we supply the love free of charge and it is returned with serious interest . Despite suffering the worst that humans can throw at them , these noble dogs are still loyal ,trusting and loving to their new owners and it doesnt take very long , in fact it some times seems to be the case that the worst they have been treated the more loving they become in their new familly , small fluffy bundles of puppies are very cute and lovable but from our experience untill a mastiff grows his brain at around three and a half years old , a mastiff puppy is just a canine yob , hes a hooligan in a fur coat , I know the expected life span of a mastiff is supposedly around 8 years or so but with proper food and exercise our dogs have still been going strong at 11-12 years of age ,
So please dont think about a rescue and then buy a puppy , GIVE THAT RESCUE A CHANCE AND A GOOD HOME , you`ll never regret it .

a new playmate

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[shontelle1985]

Oh my gosh, he looks incredible! They all do. I was gutted that it didnt work out with him but just look at him now. Looking much healthier and happier. He's a serious credit to you and Moira and the time, love and effort you put into your dogs. They're all extremely lucky to have found you

[MA5T1FF]

Malcom, That was the loveliest thing to read. Granpa looks wonderful and I cant thank you enough for all you have done. Keep updating us.

Those final words are so true. It would be good to educate people in to taking an older rescue. They all want a young one. The "oldies" are so rewarding.

Debbie.

[merlins mastiff]

Thank you for your kind words Debbie but in truth its literally our pleasure as the dogs are their own reward.
With regards to the oldies I understand the reluctance of people to take an older rescue but I believe that a lot of unwarrented misconceptions still circulate about the older dogs .
We took our first Mastiff twenty odd years ago in the days when Derek was running rescue and to be honest I didnt realise that you could be fussy about what dog you took , I was just so gratefull that I was being allowed one of the rescue`s , for years afterwards I had a sneaky feeling that Moira & I were registerd as " the idiots ", as in nobody else will take this dog , phone the idiots, the`ll take him and we invaribly did. We have had the last laugh though as our oldies have all been wonderfull characters in their own rights.
Many years ago as a young lad I was allowed to stay up and watch a Sherlock Holmes film on the new colour telly ( Yes I can remember black and white TV`s) I`m not sure what the film was about , some thing to do with Chinese Midgets , submarines and loch Ness but at one stage Holmes & Watson had been caught sneaking around a Scotish castle and were to be escorted from the grounds by the game keeper. The Game keeper arrived flanked by two huge dogs , heads like a bull, feet like a shire horse and as wide as a silver back gorilla , I was instantly smitten and when told by my father that they were Mastiffs I resolved there and then that one day I was going to have one of those marvellous beasts .

Thirty years later ( OUCH!) my wife and I decided that it was time we had a dog , now I`m very lucky in having a wife who is smarter than me , her response was fine as long as its a giant breed , and of course I wanted my mastiff.
I had never heard of dog rescues but fortunatly Moira had been involved with great Dane Rescue, so a quick call to the Kennel club ( yes ,it was pre the web- no comments thank you !) put us in touch with OEMC rescue , the form was duly filled in and then we arranged to visit the Bullif kennels to be vetted so to speak.
( continued )