Monday, December 19, 2011

Significant Information About Spanish Mastiffs

By Fabio Garcia


The name for the Spanish mastiff in Spain is Mastn Espao. People kept this big dog as it was strong and skillful and it offered good service as a guard dog as shepherds took care of sheep in the grazing areas. The Spanish mastiff is also brave and has a good reputation of defending and protecting livestock from predators like wolves and others that harm herds of livestock.

The most popular belief is that Spanish mastiffs descended from the Greek dogs which people introduced in Spain in the year 1000 BC. The people who introduced the dogs were mainly Greek and Phoenician Marine traders who visited the Iberian Peninsula often in that period. The Greeks are famous for using dogs similar to the Spanish mastiff in battles and wars because of their big sizes and strength.

During the conquest of North and South America the Spanish also used the Spanish mastiff as well as other Molossers to fight the North American tribes including the Mayans and the Aztecs. These dogs which had been trained for combat were feared by the native Indians due to their fierce nature and strength.

The visual appearance of the Spanish mastiff is that of a huge and imposing animal. It is similar to other mastiff breeds in appearance and has a huge head which has loose folds of skin combined with the characteristic double dewlap on the dog's neck.

Normally, male Spanish mastiffs grow to a height of up to thirty inches at the withers. Their weight ranges from 110 to 140 pounds. Females on the other hand grow to be 28 inches and their weight ranges at 110 to 130 pounds. You can also find Spanish mastiffs which are very big to the point of being double this size.

The Spanish mastiff has a longer muzzle in comparison to the muzzles of other mastiff breeds. Furthermore, the dog has extremely small eyes and triangular-shaped drop ears. The coat of this dog is generally of reddish or fawn color but you can also find mastiffs having coats of brindle, black and the coat color of a wolf. The coat of this dog has fur with a woolly texture that keeps it warm along with the heavy layer of skin underneath.

The Spanish mastiff is short but strong and healthy. Its chest is like that found on animals with too much weight and the shape of its body is rectangular with adequate muscles and heavy, strong bones. The Spanish mastiff shares the double dewclaw characteristic of the hind feet with the Great Pyrenees breed. This dog has a low tail which has a fringed texture. This is very agile dog that moves smoothly disregarding the truth that it is large in size.

Typically, there are two kinds of Spanish mastiff. The first type of mastiff is heavy whereas the other mastiff is light. In Spanish, these mastiffs are identified as Mastn Pesado and Mastn Ligero.

The mastiff that weighs more is the type of mountain dog originating from the northern area of Spain and because this dog is very attractive, it can serve as a show dog. The mastiff with less weight is agile and runs faster and you can find it in the southern region of Spain. These mastiffs are not regarded as two different breeds but rather as regional breeds which are slightly different from the other Spanish mastiff.




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