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English mastiffs are one of my favorite dog breeds. They are giants and look quite dangerous, but in reality, they are very gentle. They are a perfect family dog (If you have a big house).
But before you go for this breed, you must know a few things. One of the most important things to know before deciding which dog breed would be the best for you is to find out how active that breed is.
English mastiffs have an image that they are very lazy. In this post, we are gonna find out if this rumor is true or not.
They are a bit lazy, but not that much. English mastiffs are the largest dogs, they are heavy and tall and because of their enormous size, they need quality sleep to be active. Once they are fresh, they love going for a walk, and they like following their owners.
Tbh, every giant breed is somewhat lazy, not only English mastiffs.
However, with good training and a healthy diet. You can turn your lazy English mastiff into an active dog easily.
English mastiffs can be stubborn, they can be hard to train, and they do take time to understand the instructions, but once they got it, they become a perfect canine companion.
Those who say that English mastiffs don’t need exercise are just wrong. They need exercise, in fact, if you wanna keep your dog fit and active, you have to give it at least 30 minutes of exercise/walk daily.
Leaving your canine giant untrained/lazy would be disastrous for its health.
They would become lazier and lazier, and I guess no dog owner wants to see their dog laying on the ground for hours.
English bulldogs are lazier than English mastiffs. In fact, a big publication (Readers digest) published a list of the laziest dog breeds, and they ranked English bulldogs at number 8 on their list.
English mastiff wasn’t even listed. English mastiffs might look very lazy due to their insane size, but the truth is far different.
They are working dogs, they don’t like sitting/sleeping all day. In fact, around 2,000 years ago, English mastiffs were used as guards and fighter dogs.
Work is in their DNA!
While English bulldogs are known for their laziness. They are a cute and faithful companion, but they aren’t as big as English mastiffs but they still relax more than them.
This is not true either. Saint Bernard is lazier than an English mastiff. They both are huge, and they both are lazy, but English mastiffs are a bit more active than their canine rival Saint Bernard.
30 to 35 minutes of walking daily are important for mastiffs, but if you can invest some more time, then shoot for an hour.
One hour of exercise a day is recommended by UK Kennel Club. However, if you go for more than an hour a day, it won’t be good for your giant buddy as over-exercise can overheat their bodies.
English mastiffs have massive body that gets heated easily. Exercise is important to keep your mastiff healthy but over-exercise might be a bad idea.
Avoid hardcore jumping exercises as they might hurt their joints. Avoid continuous running as well, give your buddy time to calm down.
English mastiffs grow rapidly during the first 18 months of their lives, that’s why giving them a healthy diet during this period becomes necessary.
According to experts, English mastiffs need a pure meat diet. It means for puppies, 25-27% protein and 12-15% fat content is recommended, and for adults 21-25 % protein and 8-10 % fat.
Puppies need more protein as they grow rapidly. While adult English mastiffs have a much more stable diet.
Furthermore, if your English mastiff is old, decrease the protein percent. Give them less than 21% protein as a high amount of protein diets might give your mastiff diseases such as renal and hepatic failure.
Also, avoid giving excess dietary calcium and vitamin D as they contribute to hip dysplasia.
Yes, they do sleep a lot, in fact, they need at least 16 hours of sleep in a day. Small dogs need less sleep compared to their big counterparts.
Mastiffs have a bigger bodies and to feel fresher, they have to be well-rested. If they don’t get an adequate amount of sleep, they might become aggressive and develop other behavioral problems.
Lack of sleep can also affect their immune system, it can make their immune system weaker, and that could increase the chances of infections.
They are a little stubborn, but they aren’t too hard to train. Training them might take time but eventually, you’ll find that your canine companion is understanding commands and obeying them.
It’s really important to train your mastiff as early as you can. According to canine behaviorists, start training them once they are 8-10 weeks old.
Training an English mastiff might take up to 6 months.
They drool but not too much. Almost every giant breed drools, but the best thing about English mastiffs is that they don’t drool unnecessarily, they only drool when food is closer to them, and when they are feeling hungry.
I have written a depth article about this, if you have time then click here to read it.
I hope you found this post helpful!
Thanks for your precious time!
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