My daughter rescued a dog a almost 2weeks ago who is adorable but huge... His owner had passed away and no one in the family took him so he went to a shelter. They never adopted him out as people thought he was too big...he then went to a kill shelter. Well luckily a nice lady told my daughter about his story & her hubby and her went to meet him. Love at first sight! My g-son loves his 2 yr old mastiff/dane who is a great match for they are like brothers. Playing, eating and sleeping or snuggling but can be the "counter surfer" so one can not turn their back if food is on the counter. Prolly his only bad habit but he will not do it if your looking or eating. Weighing in at 152lbs and well over 6ft tall, he is the "gentle giant" who is actually can be lazy at times...lol He is quite the couch/bed potato but does love to play with the wee one. Amazing how intelligent he is, not an aggressive bone in his body but he will bark when someone enters and then lick them to death. He greets me with putting his paws on my shoulder's and gives you a hug. Think his previous owner did a wonderful job socializing him with people/animals as he looks scary but is a big baby. Little on the needy side presently as he does not like to be alone at all. I am sure it is due to being thru so much recently. Does not chew or act out when left alone. My daughter loves him because he is a good watch dog and his bark is fierce although highly doubt he would attack. He has already been exposed to so many people as she is young and has many frds/family. Now my g-son rides him like a pony...hysterical! I have fell in love with him...actually has made me want a dog again after losing my Buddy last year. I spend lots of time with Duke while watching my g-son...I call him my g-son too but the bigger one..haha This is a pic of his first night at my daughter's house...he immediately ran to her bedroom and claimed that bed too! He has already put on most of the weight he lost while in the shelter..
what a good friend for a 2 year old hopefully when your grandson is 10-12 years old her will have great memories of the dog....what a great friend and playmate....good luck... trouble with big dogs...they make big piles......lol
Thanks and yes he does make HUGE piles! Pees like a race horse too! Not graceful when walking on smooth surfaces and seems to slip a lot! Always looks as though he is ice skating when trying to run with my g-son in the kitchen. I had to get a carpet runner for him,,,lol Easy to manage when walking outside which surprised me. My lab was big and loved to pull people yet this giant is laid back. For being 2yrs old which is puppy years when you have labs, he acts like an old man. Nothing phases him while on walks which is a good thing being he could knock me down if he wanted to! haha
Beautiful dog :thumbs-up: After his last Rottweiler died, my buddy went to English Mastiffs. They are both over 200 lbs. and go thru over $200/month in dog food! They do have an intimidating bark, don't they :yikes:
You got that right! He is quite intimidating with his bark not to mention size..lol I really don't think his name was "Duke" as he does not answer when you call him yet if I call my g-son, he comes running too. Then again he follows him anywhos. Been calling him "tiny" as a joke and he answers to it..maybe his previous owner had a nickname. Mr.A...do mastiff's generally stare at you? Just curious as I never met a dog who likes to look in your eyes as long as he does. At first I thought he may have trouble hearing but that is fine. He just likes to look at peoples faces/eyes...kinda weird but I don't mind. Most dogs only stare when you eat..haha Wondered if it is his breed or maybe he learned to read people? He is bright and seems to hang onto every word. Even helps my g-son put toys away which I also found odd. Seems I learn something new about him daily... Wow your frd has 2? That is like having extra people living with you for they do take up lots of room..lol He is still on the thin side from being in the shelter. Packing on weight now so his bones aren't showing as they did when she got him.
Mr. A...just to show you how thin he was when she got him. This is a pic of him looking out the sun-porch window with the little one. And my g-son is tall for just turning 3yrs old! You can see his ribs but he is filling in nicely now. She got him that couch to sleep on from a yard sale. He still prefers to sleep with the boy or anyone who let's him in their bed. Kinda hard to keep him off beds/couches. Also did not know they prefer being inside? Could be the heat? I still get him to walk with me..
What a beautiful dog Mermaid. Awesome rescue for sure. Glad to see that hes back to a healthy weight. When I rescued Scotch he under fed and needed some healthy weight added. I know the shelters have to stretch the food but its so sad when they are too thin. Scotch used to crap huge piles as well. I was like damn man you are a 60 lb lightweight and crap 3 lbs at a time. once I got him on awesome food it was less than a third of previous droppings. Problem with big dogs is they require alot more food than my lil guy. at $55 to $60 per 30 lb bag it can be pricey t feed a mastif/dane.
Thanks BigBud! You and Mr.A are spot on with how much they can eat..lol But is is nice to see him gaining weight now..wonder how much he will weigh in next month? Maybe he won't be as big as a pure English Mastiff being he is half Great Dane..still the biggest dog our family has had. You are right about shelter's as they do have to stretch the food with all the dogs/cats they have. Been looking for a dog as well...been almost a yr since Buddy passed and I miss having one. Especially since she got Duke..realized how much I love having a dog around when I watch him. Been keeping an eye on the local shelter's/rescues but I can only adopt one who is able to be around young children or other animals. Too much traffic in/out of my house with kids. Maybe one will find me ...
Mermaid, Please dont discount an American Pit Bull Terrier as an option. My boy is AMAZING with children. He absolutely LOVES them. A friend of mine has a 3 yr old who has had multiple heart surgeries. Scotch just is sooo gentle with him. lets him tug on his ears, tail and cheeks. You do have to be EXTREMELY selective with an APBT because an improperly socialized one can be dangerous. Oe will select you for sure.
Ooh what a awesome dog !! Have fun with the big goof ,,i have a "large" specimen 2,,he's my best buddy In fact he looks a bit like mine greets, Hup
Aww do ya? Post a pic..would love to see what he looks like. BigBud...nahh I know Pit's can be just as nice with kids or people as any breed can be. All depends on how the dog is trained, socialized and usually their genetic make-up. Most of the time, mixed breeds or mutt's make the best dog as they are not closely bred.
i gave u a pm with a pic of my dog The breed is still not in large numbers here ,,so i rather not post my m8 here Hups
it took so long to respond. I made a point to stop and ask re: staring, as I'm living away from home and don't see his dogs as often as in the past. He said Otis does stare alittle, but not Milo. In my experience, dogs do their growing up 'til 2 yrs., with 'spurts' until 3. I could see him putting on some more weight, but, as you've stated, he's part Dane, so I would bet him never to fill-out as much as an English Mastif. Last night I downloaded the few pics. I have of Milo and Otis Milo at 1 yr./just topped 200 Milo has Parots (?) Disease. He can eat/drink normally, but otherwise can't keep his tongue in his mouth A few months ago, Otis was diagnosed with CA. Since it was only in his RF leg, they opted for amputation. Thus far he's CA-free with chemo. The t-shirt is my buddys and he's a big boy Updated Milo in the back of his wagon. Our wagons are wide, so this gives a good idea how big English Mastifs get Good luck with yours :thumbs-up:
