Any tips for a new Bullmastiff puppy? Questions

Discussion in 'Bullmastiff' started by salben05, Mar 27, 2016.

  1. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    Any tips for a new Bullmastiff puppy?

    Hi,
    We are bringing home our new bullmastiff puppy tomorrow. He is a male named "Lenny" and is a purebred. We have three children the youngest is 2year old and this is our first pup. The breeders have children so i'm hoping this will mean that Lenny feels socially comfortable around children. Does anyone have any unique or great tips that have helped with house training their new puppy.? do you think that puppy preschool is imperative to their social growth? we want Lenny to be a beautiful sooky cuddly house member, not a overly protective aggressive guard dog. He is our new family member so we want him to grow and fit in comfortably. do you think that treat training is good or just the use of words i.e. no and good? Just a few questions for real owners out there and what you think has worked.!
    Thank you all in advance. This forum is going to help getting great information for our new child! :) lenny.jpg
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  3. CaroleC

    CaroleC Member

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    Welcome to the forum Salben and, (currently), little Lenny.

    My best tip for housetraining is to be sure that you pop him outside after every drink, every meal, and every sleep. Watch his body language, is he looking for a place to 'go'? Use a special word - I say Quicky, and be prepared to stand there with him until he obliges. A short happy word, (Yes!), paired with a treat, will show him that he has done the right thing. I see that you have young children, and it can be hard to keep your eye on everyone at the same time, so I have sometimes resorted to putting a couple of cat bells on a puppy collar, to warn me that they have woken up.
    Socialisation is very important, I would want him to have as many happy experiences as possible while he is at this impressionable age.
    There are a variety of training methods, but do choose a positive reinforcement type. Clicker training is highly rated, but it can be a muddle to manipulate a lead, a treat, and a clicker box. I find the, short happy 'Yes!' + treat, can work just as well.

    I'm afraid that I have no special breed knowledge to offer, but I'm sure one of our Bull breed fans will be along soon.
  4. Chris B

    Chris B Member

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    Agree with all Carole has said and would add not to forget children training :)

    As this is your first pup, it is important for your children to learn to respect the pup which includes not pulling him about, over-hugging him and very importantly to respect his space when he needs to rest
  5. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    thank you both for your reply. we have had a few accidents but we are starting to know his routine after that and have had 3 successful outdoor toilet episodes with rewards. I have picked up that 20mins after he drinks he wee's so thats a start. we are definitely teaching the kids to respect his space when sleeping. Do either of you believe in crate training at night for his sleeping? as in he has a area that is enclosed, (not fully roof enclosed) to go to when its bed or rest time? i have found that he wanders to different areas, not his specific bed area to sleep, so we have made him a temp wooden sleep box you could call it for a sleep and toilet for overnight. I can't think of anything else as he sleeps in the living area of our house as our laundry is under the house. thanks
  6. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    he is just one cute relaxed puppy so far. That face just makes you smile. Also we keep his food outside due to the younger kids getting into it. How frequently should he be taken out to drink water.? I know this may sound silly but i'm just trying to learn and give whats best for him. lenny 2.jpg
  7. Malka

    Malka Member

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    He should have free access to water all the time. Not just taken out at specific times so he can drink.
  8. Chris B

    Chris B Member

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    I've always used a cage at night until fully toilet trained.

    I agree that water should be freely available. While you can set mealtimes, drinks should be there for as and when thirsty
  9. GsdSlave

    GsdSlave Member

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    Yes water should be freely available, some people do with-hold water a couple of hours before bed time but I ‘never have. When you say his food is kept outside do you mean you leave food down all the time?

    Ive never used crates and believe it prolongs house training,(if they are left all night without being taken out at regular intervals ) I had large cardboard box by my bed and alarm set for every 2 hours for first week

    Then every 3 hours after a week or so they would whimper if they wanted to go, yes it’s a pain at first, but by twelve weeks old they slept through the night.
  10. CaroleC

    CaroleC Member

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    The problem with a crate for a Bullmastiff is that it is not going to last him for very long. However they can be useful, if rather bulky, items to have around. I agree with what the others have said about allowing free access to water.

    What a gorgeous photo of Lenny. Those eyes just melt your heart! Hope you will post more as he grows.
  11. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    His first night was a success. He didn't whimper or cry at all (I was prepared for it). We had him in like a timber cot style bed to sleep in and he did one small wee on the pad. I had to do this as I am learning the steps of having a puppy and a open bed he didn't seem secure in. I have 3 children and thats easy to me, a puppy is a different story. If he is not in a crate style area for sleeping or small gated area, i'm not sure how I teach him to go to bed at night and stay there. If he wasn't secure he would wander and I would be up all night watching him. I have done plenty of research on mastiff puppies, his food and needs etc I'm just finding small things tricky and like ideas of how others have done it.
    I feed him under an outside area and i'm not sure why i do this i guess it was habit, keeping the young 2 year old away from him why he eats. Although I know that i have to teach him eventually with taking away his food while eating and give back to train him around the kids. He eats premium dog biscuits ATM and he doesn't eat the recommended amount (which is ok i know we all eat differently) although he tends to walk away then come back for more a minute later. Then walks away and comes back again. He never just stays and eats. so dinner time takes a while. Is this what puppies do and then eventually they just eat constantly until full at dinner time?
    My routine and ideas I had planned have gone out the window when we brought him home, as text book doesn't always suit everyones lifestyle. I will have to find a area inside then that I can put his water. We have a gated lounge room for our child and Lenny seems to hang with us all so he doesnt really have readily access to the whole house as we want to be able to watch him with toilet trainig. we take him out every hour to wee and drink or when he shows signs of either. I wil have to think of a better plan. its all about learning as I go. He seems super happy and content so thats the most important thing. Thanks again for your help.
  12. Chris B

    Chris B Member

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    Please don't take food from him while he's eating. It's the quickest way to turn a dog into a food guarder going. Instead, add tasty morsels so that hands approaching his food are a good thing
  13. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    really! ok thank you for your advice. I was actually told by the pet store I got his food from, that eventually I needed to take away his food half way through then get him to wait, then give it back. This is so he won't be protective and bite if one of the kids interrupted him. I know he is a puppy now and its too early. i'm just gathering tips for the future. Thanks
  14. Jackie

    Jackie Member

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    i will wholeheartedly endorse the above.........do NOT take food away from him while he is eating, as above this is a sure way to teach your dog to guard his food........

    Teach your children that when he is eating they must allow him to eat his food in peace, I know you have a small child, but the consequences of him defending his food from your children is unthinkable.

    Look at it this way, imagine the most tasty food you like, you sit down to eat, and then an arm comes over your shoulder and picks some of it of the plate, this goes on time after time, and eventually you will start to be on edge when you eat, always looking around to see who is going to pinch your food, eventually you will snap, and slap away that hand....... your dog will use his mouth and teeth to do the same.

    I have never had a food guarding dog, I have never gone through a routine of teaching them to give up their dinner, hence my dogs have never had to feel they need to guard it.

    I allow them to eat their food in a designated place, they are left alone to eat......

    I can if I need to take anything away from my dog if I need to by teaching them the " give it up" command, but that is completely different to removing a dogs dinner from him........ the two are not the same and the results you want from removing his food will not be the right one.
  15. Jackie

    Jackie Member

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    Just to add, people who give that sort of advice really have no idea about dogs, they usually buy into the domination theory , and teaching the dog who is boss.

    P.S.........your pup is lovely, but how old is he, he looks awfully small for 8 weeks old ?

    where are you buying him form ?
  16. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    Thank you for your advice. The owner of the pet shop has a cross mastiff, and this was something she did when her kids were young and it worked. I do separate him and his meals from the children always as they would prob try and eat it. I want my puppy to be socially connected with lots of people and animals. He is going to be with us all the time, so its important to me to help grow him into the dog that will allow this. He is not our guard dog he is our pet and we protect him. He was actually the biggest puppy of the litter. the photos may not look that way. He is definitely a bigger puppy then I've seen before ;) he is half the size of my 2 year old and we purchased him from a breeder in Sydney. He loves his water bowel close by and thats a Xlarge bowl!
    lenny 3.png
  17. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    I love this advice thank you. I will do this.
  18. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    as he is still a pup, should I be feeding him 3 times a day or just stick to the morning and night.? Lenny tends to get bored with eating and move back and forth for a while at meals. Should I just let him feed for a time limit then take away his food until next meal.? Again I know he is a puppy, I'm just trying to create good habits for him if not now the future.
    I know he is only still young, but at what age can a bullmastiff go walking. I know after all needles are completed is the earliest. I just get conflicted answers saying that they should be limited exercise, others say they are active dogs, then others say they have weak joints so you should be careful until they are 2years old. Again I'm looking for advice and value your advice as your actual owners of bullmastiff and have experience with this breed. I want Lenny to be healthy so any advice would be great thanks.
  19. Malka

    Malka Member

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    Do you intend to always feed him outside? Because if you do he will never get used to your children being near him at food time.

    Then you must teach the children NOT to eat it. Even a two-year-old will understand more than a very young puppy, especially one who has only been with you for a day.

    Regarding him loving his water bowl close by, he does not need an Xlarge bowl at his age. What he DOES need is a small water bowl with a small amount of water in it that he can go to whenever HE wants water, not when YOU want to give him some. As he gets bigger, then you can buy a larger bowl for him.

    Water is a necessity - that picture of seeing him laying next to an empty bowl is not cute or because he loves it - it shows that he is thinks water is a treat and he is waiting for more. Is that the way the breeder did it? Just give him water when she decided to?
  20. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    I'm not sure if this website is to critize people or to help with advice. I am a person that loves to help out people and you are just pointing out so much negative. Yes I think it's cute. He is happy so we are happy. A smaller bowl might be practical for a small pup, but in all honestly does it make a big difference? It's a bowl with water and I was actually showing the size with some sort of comparison of my gorgeous healthy boy.! Yes I can teach my son that, but he is trying to adjust to having another living thing that takes up a lot of our time at the moment. So I have to try and address all, and as a mum of three now 4 with a puppy I'm trying my best thats why I seek help. If your out to put people down with negative comments, just move on and do that with someone else please, I'm looking for guidence from people that have been through this and can throw me a few tips. Not negative comments about the size of a bowl. Thanks
  21. salben05

    salben05 New Member

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    [




    Is that the way the breeder did it? Just give him water when she decided to?

    No that wasn't the case. She was actually an amzing breeder and lenny is very well settled pup as a result. so she has done a great job to start with. I'm a Mum we feed or breastfeed our babies at certain times. Again this is new to me as a owner of a puppy. It may seem stupid to you, but we have to learn somewhere. Yeah I feel dumb but a least I'm doing the research to help grow my knowledge. Throw out some kind advice, not just dig the negative. like our mums would say, if you have nothing nice to say, don't say nothing at all. Thanks.

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