| Our Goals and Philosophy |
| GENERAL: We are living one of our dreams of loving and being loved by our Mastiffs. Even though it has only been a short time compared to the years many have devoted to this breed, we have spent almost every day since our first Mastiff came home learning more and more about the breed. We named our Mastiff home Harmony because we feel it encompasses many of our goals. It begins with the proper environment to raise our Mastiffs in, then our research in finding the line of Mastiffs we feel will be sound in temperament, structure and health, which will give us a fabulous foundation for continuing to better the Mastiff breed. In order to maintain our Harmony here at home our Mastiffs are taken out to obedience classes, they are socialized with many humans, other animals and get along wonderfully with each other. Our goal with the Mastiffs in our home right now is to raise healthy, well tempered, family companions that we also enjoy showing. We will strive to meet the goal that all our dogs receive their Canine Good Citizen Certificate and those that we feel would be good Therapy dogs, also receive their Therapy Dog Incorporated titles. We will work hard towards this goal. OUR BREEDING GOALS: Our goal in breeding is to breed as closely to the standard as we possibly can while concentrating on a Mastiff with a sound temperament, good health and consistent type. In using the term "type" I am referring to a Mastiff with substantial bone, head and depth of body, while maintaining a balanced structure enabling a smooth and consistent gait. This may or may not be obtained by using all of our Mastiffs currently residing with us - time and growth will tell. We will work diligently towards our goal to produce healthy, well tempered, quality Mastiffs that will first and foremost become a beloved, trusted and healthy family member to either us or a home that we feel appropriate for placing a puppy in when that day comes. Our hope in working towards this goal is that the quality of Mastiffs we produce will be able to be competitive at showing and/or contribute to a breeding program. We feel showing and/or breeding a Mastiff is an extra special "perk" that should not be taken for granted nor should a Mastiff ever be purchased or kept for the sole purpose of the "perks" he or she might possess. A Mastiff is a pet and valued family member first and foremost. OUR BREEDING PHILOSOPHY: When we endeavor to breed any of our females to a male or any of our males to a female, whether we breed within our line or go outside of our line, it will be for the soul purpose of hopefully producing a puppy that is an improvement upon one or both of the parents used in the breeding. We endeavor to select breedings based upon different factors. Most likely it will be based upon the attributes that are physically seen by the human eye. Every so often the attributes seen are not reproduced in a breeding. In the same vein, a dog or bitch may be known for throwing quality attributes into a breeding that a dog or bitch does not posses in appearance themselves. We do believe that appearance of the dog/bitch used in a breeding along with the pedigree behind them is a key component to a quality breeding. The line that we breed is well known and has been bred to and within itself over many years and has produced many quality mastiffs of great temperament, structure and health meeting the breed standard. We believe in fully heath testing all of our Mastiffs and will endeavor to do so before they are bred. We are not members of the Mastiff Club of America at this time and this is our choice. We are taking our time to learn about the club and all aspects of it. With that said, we do respect and abide by the majority of their Code of Ethics. The exception is the age at which we choose to breed a bitch. The MCOA COE states that a bitch should not be bred until 22 months of age. We believe that the health of our females is paramount and sometimes that may require breeding before 22 months of age, spaying without any breeding or breeding after 22 months of age. We have done much research on the health of female mastiffs and their reproduction system. Our research has led us to believe that the first breeding on the 3rd heat, 4th at the latest is best for the reproduction system of the female and leaves less chance for a pyrometry (uterine infection). With this said, we would not endeavor to breed a bitch on her 3 heat if she was under 18 months of age or if she was not physically mature. An example is Dreamer. She was bred on her third heat cycle at 19 months. Dreamer is 30 inches in height and 185 pounds at the date of breeding. She is a deep bodied bitch, healthy and mature as well as fully health tested. We do belong to the Redwood Empire Mastiff Club and are members in good standing. The Code of Ethics for our club states that a bitch cannot be breed before her third heat or 20 months of age. We are within the guidelines of our local AKC recognized club. If you have any questions regarding any of our breeding practices, please do not hesitate to contact us, we will be happy to discuss anything with you. After attending our first MCOA National Specialty this past May 2008, we are very encouraged by many of the goings on in the club. We were very impressed with the advancements being made on the health front by certain members. It is absolutely one of our goals and commitments to contribute monetarily to both the MCOA health testing fund as well as to certain rescue groups when are blessed with a successful breeding. The following are some links that discuss the age of breeding: Discussion from the Mastiff Community Article on Breeding Article by Dr. Hutchinson on Breeding Another Article by Dr. Hutchinson on Breeding Thanks for visiting and be sure to check out the furry kids - you can find them by clicking the links above. |
| Dreamer 12 Months |
| Dreamer 19 Months |