The Dogue de Bordeaux, Bordeaux
Mastiff, French Mastiff or Bordeauxdog is a large French Mastiff breed—and one
of the most ancient French dog breeds. A typical brachycephalic molossoid type
breed, the Bordeaux is a very powerful dog, with a very muscular body. This
brawny breed has been put to work in many different capacities, from pulling
carts and hauling heavy objects, to guarding flocks and, historically, the
castles of the European elite.
Appearance
The
Dogue de Bordeaux is a well balanced, muscular and massive dog with a powerful
build. The Dogue's size should come mostly from width and muscles, rather than
height.[citation needed] The breed is set somewhat low to the ground and is not
tall like the English Mastiff. The body of the Dogue de Bordeaux is thick-set,
with a top-line that has a slight dip (topline is never completely straight)
and a gentle rounded croup. The front legs should be straight and heavy-boned,
well up on pasterns, down to tight cat-like feet. The straight tail, beginning
thickly at the base and then tapering to a point at the end, should not reach
lower than the hocks, and is set and carried low. The breed is to be presented
in a completely natural condition with intact ears, tail, and natural dewclaws.
It should be evaluated equally for correctness in conformation, temperament,
movement, and overall structural soundness.
Weight
The
breed standards by European FCI and the American Kennel Club specify a minimum
weight of 99 pounds (45 kg) for a female and 110 pounds (50 kg) for a male.
There is no formally stated maximum weight, but dogs must be balanced with
regard to their overall type and the conformation standards of the breed.
Height
The
standard states that the desirable height, at maturity, should range between 24
to 27 inches (61 to 69 cm) for male dogs and from 23 to 26 inches (58 to 66 cm)
for females. Deviation from these margins is considered a fault.
Head
The
massive head is a crucial breed characteristic. The Dogue de Bordeaux is
claimed to have the largest head in the canine world, in proportion to the rest
of the body. For males, the circumference of the head, measured at the widest
point of the skull, is roughly equal to the dog's height at the withers
(shoulders). For females, the circumference may be slightly less. When viewed
from the front or from above, the head of the Dogue forms a trapezoid shape
with the longer top-line of the skull, and the shorter line of the underjaw,
forming the parallel sides of the trapezoid. The jaw is undershot and powerful.
The Dogue should always have a black or red mask that can be distinguished from
the rest of the coat around and under the nose, including the lips and eye
rims. The nose colour in red-masked dogs should be brown, in black-masked dogs,
it must be black. The muzzle should be at most a third of the total length of
the head and no shorter than a quarter of the length of the head, the ideal
being between the two extremes. The upper lip hangs thickly down over the lower
jaw. The upper lips of the Dogue de Bordeaux hangs over the lower lips. The
skin on the neck is loose, forming a noticeable dewlap, but should not resemble
that of a Neapolitan Mastiff. Small pendant ears top the head, but should not
be long and hound like.
Coat
The
standard specifies the coat to be 'short, fine, and soft to the touch'. Color
varies from shades of fawn (light, coppery red) to mahogany (dark, brownish
red) with a black, brown, or red mask, although the red mask is true to the
breed. White markings are permitted on the tips of the toes and on the chest,
but white on any other part of the body is considered a fault, and a
disqualifying one if the pigmentation goes beyond the neck.
Health
While
larger breeds of canines tend to have shorter life expectancy, the life
expectancy of the Dogue is still shorter than even breeds of comparable or
larger size. According to data collected by the Dogue De Bordeaux Society of
America, the average lifespan of the breed is 5 to 6 years. A veterinary
database in the UK showed similar figures. In the American survey, the oldest
dog in the record was 12 years old. The Society is actively recording dogs that
are 7 years old or older to celebrate the longer-lived dogs.
Because
of its brachycephalic head, the Dogue can be affected by breathing problems.
Some may be heat- and exercise-intolerant as a result. The FCI standard
considers excessive shortness of breath and raspy breathing in the Dogue a
severe fault. The brachycephalic head shape can also encourage ectropion—an
outward rolling of the lower eyelid— which can lead to conjunctivitis (eye
inflammation) and bacterial infections. Under the UK Kennel Club's Breed Watch
system, the Dogue is classed as a Category 3 breed (formerly High Profile
Breed), meaning it is a breed "where some dogs have visible conditions or
exaggerations that can cause pain or discomfort."
Aortic
stenosis is a disease of the heart valve in which the opening of the aortic
valve is narrowed. Symptoms include exercise intolerance, exertional syncope (fainting
from physical exertion) and sudden death. One study suggests a high
predisposition in the breed. No severe cases were found in adult dogs, and most
moderate to severely affected dogs died before one year of age, leading the
authors to speculate that the disease is more severe in the Dogue than in other
breeds.
Another
heart problem in the breed is dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition in which the
heart becomes weakened and enlarged and cannot pump blood efficiently. Some
affected dogs may die suddenly without showing any signs of problems. Others
may die from congestive heart failure after several weeks or months. Affected
dogs are often euthanized at an early stage to avoid suffering.
An
estimated 5% of dogs may be affected by footpad hyperkeratosis, a thickening of
the footpad and sometimes nose. X-rays submitted voluntarily to the Orthopedic
Foundation for Animals shows that more than 50% of Dogues in the database are
affected by hip dysplasia.
Reproduction
Data
from the Norwegian Kennel Club indicates a mean litter size of 8.1 puppies
(ranging from 2-17) for the breed. The breed has a high stillborn and early
neonatal mortality rate, with a stillborn rate of 14.2% and early neonatal
mortality (death within 1 week from birth) of 10.4%. The average across all
breeds in the study was 4.3% stillbirth and 3.7% early neonatal mortality.
Excluding stillborn and early deaths, the mean litter size is 6.1. UK Kennel
Club data shows that 27.8% (5 of 18) of Dogue litters were delivered by
caesarean section.
Thank you so much for sharing such a nice post. Indeed, the dogue de bordeaux dog is one of the most affectionate, loyal and extremely protective breeds to his owner.
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