Mastiff

A mastiff is a large and powerful type of dog.[1][2] Mastiffs are among the largest dogs, and typically have a short coat, a long low-set tail and large feet; the skull is large and bulky, the muzzle broad and short (brachycephalic), and the ears drooping and pendant-shaped.[1][2] European and Asian records dating back 3,000 years show dogs of mastiff type.[3] Mastiffs have historically been guard dogs, protecting homes and property, although throughout history they have been used as hunting dogs, war dogs and for blood sports, fighting each other and such animals as bears, lions and bulls.[2][3]

For other uses, see Mastiff (disambiguation).

The Mastiff by Philip Reinagle, 1805

Historical and archaeological evidence suggests that mastiffs have long been distinct in both form and function from the similarly large livestock guardian dogs;[2] they also appear to be genetically distinct.[4] The Fédération Cynologique Internationale and some kennel clubs group the two types together as molossoid dogs; some modern livestock guardian breeds such as the Pyrenean Mastiff, the Spanish Mastiff and the Tibetan Mastiff have the word "mastiff" in their name.[5]

Many older English sources refer to mastiffs as bandogs or bandogges, although technically the term "bandog" meant a dog that was tethered by a chain (or "bande") that would be released at night, the terms mastiff and bandog were used interchangeably.[6][7] In the 20th century, the term bandog has been revived to describe some lines of large mastiff type guard dogs.[6]

List of mastiff breeds

Extant breeds

Breed	Alternate name(s)	Country of origin	Use	Image
Aksaray Malaklisi	Turkish Mastiff	Turkey	Guard dog and livestock guardian
Alano Español	Spanish Alano and Spanish Bulldog	Spain	Bull-baiting and big game hunting
Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog	-	United States	Guard dog
American Bulldog	Old Southern White Bulldog, Old Southern White, English White Bulldog, White English, Hill Bulldog and Country Bulldog	United States	Guard dog, catch dog and farm dog
American Bully	Am. Bully and Bully	United States	Companion dog
American Mastiff	-	United States	Guard dog
Boerboel	South African Mastiff	South Africa	Guard dog
Boxer	German Boxer and Deutscher Boxer	Germany	Guard dog and big game hunting
Broholmer	Danish Broholmer and Danish Mastiff	Denmark	Guard dog
Bulldog	English Bulldog and British Bulldog	England	Companion dog
Bullmastiff	-	England	Guard dog
Campeiro Bulldog	Brazilian Bulldog, Countryside Bulldog and Pampas Bulldog	Brazil	Catch dog used in slaughterhouses
Cane Corso	Italian Mastiff, Italian Corso Dog, Italian Corso and Cane Corso Italiano	Italy	Guard dog and catch dog
Cão Fila de São Miguel	São Miguel Cattle Dog, Chien Fila de San Miguel, Saint Miguel Cattle Dog, Azores Cattle Dog and Azores Cow Dog	Portugal	Cattle-herding dog and catch dog
Cimarrón Uruguayo	Cimarron, Uruguayan Cimarron, Cimarron Creole, Maroon Dog, Cerro Largo Dog, Perro Cimarron and Cimarron Dog	Uruguay	Guard dog
Dogo Argentino	Argentine Dogo and Argentine Mastiff	Argentina	Guard dog and big game hunting
Dogo Guatemalteco	Guatemalan Dogo, Guatemalan Bull Terrier and Bullterrier Guatemalteco	Guatemala	Guard dog
Dogue Brasileiro	Brazilian Dogo and Brazilian Dogge	Brazil	Guard dog
Dogue de Bordeaux	French Mastiff, Bordeaux Mastiff and Bordeauxdog	France	Guard dog
English Mastiff	Old English Mastiff and Mastiff	England	Guard dog
Fila Brasileiro	Brazilian Mastiff and Cão de Fila Brasileiro	Brazil	Guard dog
French Bulldog	Bouledogue Francais	France	Lap dog
Gran Mastín de Borínquen	Puerto Rican Mastiff, Mastín Borincano, Becerillo de Borinquen and Perro Barsino de Hacienda	Puerto Rico	Guard dog and hunting dog
Great Dane	Deutsche Dogge, German Mastiff and German Boarhound	Germany	Big game hunting
Neapolitan Mastiff	Mastino, Mastino Napoletano, Italian Molosso and Can'e presa	Italy	Guard dog
Olde English Bulldogge	-	The United States	A re-creation of the extinct Old English Bulldog
Perro de Presa Canario	Canary Mastiff, Canary Catch Dog, Canarian Molosser, Presa Canario and Dogo Canario	The Canary Islands	Guard dog, catch dog and dog fighting
Perro de Presa Mallorquin	Ca de Bou, Majorcan Mastiff, Mallorquin Mastiff, Mallorquin, Perro Dogo, Presa Canario Mallorquin, Dogo Mallorquin, Majorcan Bulldog, Mallorquin Bulldog and Silverback Mastiff	Spain	Bull-baiting
Pug	Dutch Mastiff	China	Sociable and gentle
Serrano Bulldog	Brazilian Mountain Bulldog and Mountaineer Bulldog	Brazil	Herding dog used in slaughterhouses
Spanish Mastiff	Mastín Español, Mastín español de campo y trabajo, Mastín ganadero, Mastín Leonés and Mastín Extremeño	Spain	livestock guardian
Tibetan Mastiff	Dogs-Khyi and Tsang-Khyi	China	Guard dog and livestock guardian
Tosa	Tosa Inu, Tosa Ken, Tosa Tōken, Japanese Fighting Dog, Tosa Fighting Dog, Japanese Mastiff and Japanese Tosa	Japan	Dog fighting

Extinct breeds

Breed	Alternate name(s)	Country or region of origin	Era	Use	Image
Alaunt	Alaunt de Boucherie	Europe and Central Asia	Classical antiquity and the Middle Ages	Hunting, guarding and dog fighting
Alpine Mastiff	Barry Dog and Saint Dog	The Swiss Alps	Classical antiquity to 19th century	Guarding
Bandog	Bandogge	England	14th to 19th centuries	Guarding
Bullenbeisser	Bärenbeisser and German Bulldog	Germany	Extinct by World War II	Bull-baiting and bear-baiting
Cordoba Fighting Dog	Cordoba Dog, Cordobese dog and Perro de Pelea Cordobes	Argentina	Extinct after the 1920s	Dog fighting
Dogo Cubano	Cuban Mastiff, Cuban Dogo and Cuban Dogge	Cuba	16th to late 19th century	Recapturing runaway slaves
Fila da Terceira	Terceira Mastiff and Cão de Fila da Terceira	Portugal	Declared extinct in 1970; being re-created	Catch dog
Molossus		Southern Europe	Classical antiquity	War dogs, hunting, guarding and dog fighting
Old English Bulldog		Great Britain and Ireland	17th to 19th century	Bull-baiting and dog fighting
Toy Bulldog	Miniature Bulldog and English Toy Bulldog	England	18th to early 20th century	Lap dogs

References

1. Oxford Dictionaries 2019.
2. Young & Bannasch 2007, p. 49.
3. Encyclopædia Brittanica 2019.
4. Parker 2012, p. 45.
5. Hancock (2001).
6. Fogle (2009), p. 36.
7. Wynn (2011).

Bibliography

• Hancock, David (2001). The mastiffs: the big game hunters, their history, development & future. Ducklington, Oxon: Charwynne Dog Features. ISBN 9780951780114.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Fogle, Bruce (2009). The Encyclopedia of the Dog. New York: DK Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7566-6004-8.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Encyclopædia Brittanica (2019). "Mastiff: Breed of dog". www.britannica.com. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved 9 September 2019.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Parker, Heidi G. (2012). "Chapter 3: The history and relationship of dog breeds". In Ostrander, Elaine A.; Ruvinsky, Anatoly (eds.). The genetics of the dog. Wallingford, Oxfordshire: CAPI books. pp. 38–53. ISBN 9781845939403.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Oxford Dictionaries (2019). "Mastiff". Lexico.com. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 9 September 2019.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Wynn, M. B. (2011). History of the mastiff: gathered from sculpture, pottery, carvings, paintings and engravings. Read Books Ltd. ISBN 978-1-4465-4892-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Young, Amy; Bannasch, Danika (2007). "Chapter 4: Morphological variation in the dog". In Ostrander, Elaine A.; Giger, Urs; Lindblad-Toh, Kerstin (eds.). The dog and its genome. Cold Spring Harbor, New York: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press. pp. 47–66. ISBN 9780879697815.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

External links

• Media related to Mastiff at Wikimedia Commons