Growth and your Mastiff, is bigger always better?

In relation to Mastiffs, no! There are variations with height and weight in the English, Australian and American standards - the Americans seem to like them BIGGER! Sometimes this is done at the dog's expense health wise. When raising your dog keep them lean throughout their growing period. A whopper of a dog is a big bragging point with some people, the old 'mine is bigger than yours' mentality! Having the biggest, heaviest Mastiff will earn you no prizes except for the most expensive vet bills when your dog (inevitably) ends up with hip and joint problems.

We raise Mastiffs not as show ponies or crowd pleasers, but as working members of our family. They are not much good at their job of guarding if they can't give chase without collapsing on the ground exhausted after a few steps.

Growth patterns.
Mastiffs spend their first 8 weeks as boofy little bundles of wrinkles as the photos of 5 week olds to the right show) with very little nose. This 'snub-nose' look enables the pups to be able to suckle milk from the dam - a bit like human babies. They will put on approximately 1 kilogram per week.

In the 3-9 month stage they go through the tall gangly teenager look, all legs and often quite skinny with enormous paws in comparison. They are very uncoordinated and klutzy. They will often have periods of rapid growth and voracious appetite then periods of not eating, so much to the point that you get worried and think they must be ill. It is at this point most owners start changing the diet and tempting them with all sorts of foods. Avoid this at all costs! You will end up with a fussy eater who develops a taste for the wrong types of food. Continue to give the same diet regardless of the dog refusing.
Personally I think this stage is a self-preservation one, they have an innate ability to know what they need and when they need it - like they know how to protect their own joints! Weight gain is highly variable at this stage but it should slowly increase. Don't try to get rid of that skinny look by overfeeding, it is a normal stage.

During this stage you will notice your Mastiff grows at an uneven rate. At times he/she will seem taller at the rear than the front, other weeks it is the reverse and they look almost like a German Shepherd with the shoulders taller than the rump. These lopsided growth spurts are normal and not to worry about - they are not a sign of 'dodgy' genetics or bad breeding.

Think about desexing your animal in this period if you don't want them to breed. Don't believe all you read about sexual maturity or breeding age at 12-15 months. Someone we knew ended up with an unexpected and unplanned litter when their 9 month old got pregnant!

9-15 months you will see a rapid gain of muscle as the dog begins to fill out. Maintaining a steady diet is important so this doesn't happen too quickly. MOST females will reach sexual maturity during this time - factor this in if you don't want to breed and haven't previously de-sexed her (or him!).
In the earlier stages growth can still be a little lopsided and uneven (as above) towards the later stages much of their height has been attained so it won't be as noticeable.

2-3 years is when a Mastiff is considered an adult. This doesn't mean they have stopped growing! They will continue to fill out and gain size (outwards rather than upwards). So if your Mastiff reached the optimum recommended weight in the previous stage you know you could have a potential problem, as they are still gaining at this age. Cut down on the calories and give more raw chicken than red meat. The animal should display good form now, the previous un-even growth pattern should have ended and it should have a nice straight back. Many consider them to be at their prime at 4 years of age.