# Tibetan Mastiff



## siberian (Aug 23, 2011)

If anyone has had experience with this breed I would like to hear good, bad, any info on them. Thank you to anyone that can help from personal experiences.


----------



## RanchoMadonna (Feb 20, 2011)

You might want to check out the yahoo Working LGD group. there have been quite a few posts over the last few months that have discussed various members' experiences with them.


----------



## Grazer (Dec 23, 2011)

I've always been interested in the breed, but I've never actually owned one so I can only tell you what I've been told by people who have had the western bred TM.
From my understanding the TM from Tibetan/Chinese bloodlines are a little more challenging.

Nonetheless they are often described as loyal family protectors for experienced owners and if introduced at an early age they do make very good LGD's.
They do require a lot of socialization and a minimum of a 6ft fence. 
The TM is often stubborn, independent and will not always obey orders, but then again most LGD's are like that and for an experienced, patient owner who understands the pack hierarchy that shouldn't be much of a problem.
They require considerable attention from their family and an average amount of exercise.
But it's also important to mention that the Tibetan Mastiffs matures very slowly, it actually takes them 3 to 5 years to mature.

Also it's important to note that TM usually comes in 2 varieties: the mastiff-like Tsang-Khyi and the shepherd-like Do-Khyi.
Keep in mind that the heights and weights can quite differentiate between these 2 varieties and that most TM breeders in Europe and USA have the smaller mountain-type variety (Do-Khyi). So if possible visit the parents of your future puppy in person. 

Also although the TM is a very healthy breed and can often live up to 14 years of age, they can suffer from a few specific health issues: hip dysplasia, entropian, hypothyroidism, otitus and CDIN. I'm not sure about bloat though.

Like I said, I've never actually owned one so hopefully you'll find a (former) TM owner who can tell you more and advise you on a good breeder.
Good luck!


----------



## siberian (Aug 23, 2011)

Thanks for the replys. Tried the yahoo group, have a hard time following. Grazer, thank you (would try to spell immensly, but not sure how to spell it:smack) for the time you put in. Thats exactly what I have read. Also picking up that some folks have great sucess with them. Will keep searchg, and will let you know if anything interesting comes my way


----------



## Grazer (Dec 23, 2011)

You're very welcome and since English isn't my first language either, I often have problems with spelling as well lol
If it wasn't for mozilla firefox spell check add on I got, my spelling would be all over the place 

Keep us updated on this thread and I hope you'll find the TM puppy of your dreams!


----------



## Goatress (Feb 4, 2011)

siberian if you find good links to TM info please post up in the links section for the rest of us. I find them interesting too. Thanks.


----------



## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

On another note: some people have tried supplementing their puppy's diet with vitamin C and this appears to keep them from getting hip dysplasia. This is assuming the puppies are from a well cared for litter.


----------



## BarbadosSheep (Jun 27, 2011)

There was a news program on TV a year or so about this breed and it's popularity among he Chinese as a status symbol. They are selling for insane amounts of money (over $200,000 US) and apparently the Chinese are having trouble keeping them alive. The report did not say why, other than it looked like the dogs were having a hard time adapting to suburban and city life. I suspect that since they were selling for for crazy amounts that little care was paid to genetics or inbreeding. I'll look and see if I can find a link to that video....it was interesting and very sad at the same time.


----------



## Grazer (Dec 23, 2011)

Yes because owning a Tibetan Mastiff is a status symbol in China, some of them ended being sold for up to 1,5 mil dollars over there.
But not all TM are that expensive in China, just certain lineages from Tibet.

The problem is that these dogs are often sold when they are already mature dogs who have lived for the most part in the country, already settled in their behavior etc.
So naturally they are going to have very, very difficult time adapting to the city life in China.
And from what I understand having pedigree's for dogs is still a very new thing in China, so a lot of TM's sold for that much money could possibly be inbred.


----------



## TedH71 (Jan 19, 2003)

I've always liked the breed...just not seen one in person or have actual experience though.


----------



## JasoninMN (Feb 24, 2006)

Here is a youtube video of a mongol bankar which is probably closer to a real Tibetan mastiff then the stuff china is breeding. China is taking anything that looks TM and breeding it. They import a lot of dogs from the U.S too. They want the super hairy dog that's often pictured. I wish I could understand the language in this film.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bwrDvLMFag"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bwrDvLMFag[/ame]


----------



## Grazer (Dec 23, 2011)

Thanks for the link Jason. That's sadly what happens to every breed that becomes popular over night (over-breeding, inbreeding, selling it to whoever for money etc).
And for as long as we'll keep having unethical breeders all over the world, it will never end..


----------



## Haven (Aug 16, 2010)

JasoninMN said:


> Here is a youtube video of a mongol bankar which is probably closer to a real Tibetan mastiff then the stuff china is breeding. China is taking anything that looks TM and breeding it. They import a lot of dogs for the U.S too. They want the super hairy dog that's often pictured. I wish I could understand the language in this film.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bwrDvLMFag


Great vid, thanks. Those are some really docile horses being ridden while a 100+ lb dog latches onto it's tail, lol.


----------



## siberian (Aug 23, 2011)

Talked to many, many TM breeders recently. Lucky to find some that seemed really breed knowldgable. One kennel inpaticular, Kesang Kennels has some that really impressed me. After many talks and tons of questions we will be picking up a girl from Ron this week. Anyway, he has a pretty informative site, and a vast amount of info to offer.


----------



## lexa (Mar 30, 2012)

BarbadosSheep said:


> There was a news program on TV a year or so about this breed and it's popularity among he Chinese as a status symbol. They are selling for insane amounts of money (over $200,000 US) and apparently the Chinese are having trouble keeping them alive. The report did not say why, other than it looked like the dogs were having a hard time adapting to suburban and city life. I suspect that since they were selling for for crazy amounts that little care was paid to genetics or inbreeding. I'll look and see if I can find a link to that video....it was interesting and very sad at the same time.


That is actually because in China there is no culture of raising dogs of any kind. In Russia about 15 years ago, dogs were stolen in mass and bought cheaply and sent by train loads into china. Most of them would make it to the boarder only when accompanied by russian person, Chinese could not keep them alive and had little care to do so.
In 2003 I have read a story about a dachshund that got stolen from hunting trip, resold and sent to China. Her owners mobilized members of the huge pet forum to help find her and she was finaly found on the train near border. It was a cool but chilling thread. People were posting updates.


----------



## siberian (Aug 23, 2011)

lexa, there is some good evidence as to what you have said. A book that impressed me quite a bit was titled "Big Dogs of Tibet and the Himalayeas" by Don Messerschmidt. Matter of fact , I would consider it a must read by anyone seriously interested in them. He has traveled there extensivly and discusses tratment of the dog, uses and some very good info as to feeding and how it affeced/effected the dogs due to political reasons. 

Anyway , Wish was born on Dec 14. Loving this dog. Very intelligent. Has learned to drop an object down at the top of the stairs and then push it with her nose to watch it drop down each step. Very good with our sons, including a 6 yr old with Downs Syndrome. Could care less about chasing outside cats, chickens or going after our other dogs. 
They do require lots of short training for obedience, yet very sensative to corrections.


----------



## keno12 (Apr 10, 2012)

Do you have a link to the breeders website, Siberian?

I have a (rescued at 10 mos) Japanese Mastiff (Tosa Inu) and she is...I can't pick one word to describe her. We got her from a family of four (2 small kids, who got her from 'Santa'...BAD IDEA, at 8 wks old), and as she grew, the kids got scared of her, because she grew fast, and got BIG. They also did NO training with her whatsoever. Or vet visits. (RAGE!:flame

So we rescued her, worked endlessly with her, and now she's a dream. The only other animals we have are dogs (and many foster dogs that come and go), but she is very loyal to us and protective of our property. Just her bark and size alone is enough to deter anyone, which is enough for us, for now.

All this, I guess, to say, that Mastiffs are great. We got really lucky with her. Doubt we will find another free one in our lifetime, but my SO and I would love to own another Mastiff. Hard to justify paying for one though, since we are actively involved in rescue work. 

Enjoy your dog!:happy2:


----------

