| ign="center"> | | | | Bullmastiff, was just what gamekeepers needed to |
| Bullmastiff Origin | | | | watch their estates as his darkcoat and quiet |
| The Bullmastiff origin and history display a great | | | | demeanor could surprise poachers, and then, rather |
| example of a purpose-bred dog with a lineage that | | | | than maul orkill the criminal, they would pin them to |
| can be easilytraced and understood. The | | | | the ground without biting them. The |
| Bullmastiffdog breed history originates from England | | | | Bullmastiff origin, then, arises from this practical |
| and while its history is not aslong and storied as other | | | | application and wascommonly called the |
| breeds, it is a close descendant of one of the | | | | "gamekeeper's night dog". |
| oldestbreed of dogs in England, the Mastiff. The | | | | |
| Mastiff, a giant dog breed thatdescended from the | | | | Bullmastiff Dog Breed History |
| Alaunt and the Molosser, is believed to have been | | | | The Bullmastiff dog breed was used for some time |
| introducedinto ancient Britain more than 2000 years | | | | as the gamekeeper's guard,however, eventually the |
| ago. | | | | Bullmastiff was used in other capacities, such as |
| The Bullmastiff, however,was only introduced in | | | | asentry or guard dog as well as work with the army |
| about 1860 when the Mastiff was crossed with the | | | | and police. Thecrossbreeding between the |
| Old | | | | Mastiff and the Bulldog and the magic 60/40 |
| English Bulldog. At this time, gamekeepers | | | | mix,continued, but eventually a purebred line was |
| needed a dog to help protecttheir estates and flocks | | | | formed. |
| from game poachers, mostly poachers of deer from | | | | In 1924 someconformity was established in the |
| theirestate. The Mastiff was apparently too | | | | Bullmastiff dog breed and it was recognized bythe |
| slow and cumbersome for the job andthe Bulldog | | | | English Kennel Club in 1924. The American Kennel |
| was too small to be effective. The solution was | | | | Club later wouldrecognize the breed in 1933. The |
| a mix of about | | | | dog was famously used to guard the DeBeerdiamond |
| 60% Mastiff with 40% Bulldog, thus creating the | | | | mines in South Africa as well as John D. Rockefeller's |
| Bullmastiff. | | | | New York estatein addition to being used in |
| This new dog called the "Mastiff with a touch of bull" | | | | emergencies such as the one in Mau-Mau Uprising in |
| or more commonly | | | | Kenya. |