Mastiff Rescue
Since our first generation of Mastiffs has passed on, we have been very busy being parents to our children (soon to have a page or two of their own), and have not had time or resources to return to the world of dog showing and/or breeding. What we have been doing is working with Mastiff Rescue through the Friends of Rescued Mastiffs (FORM) organization (visit the FORM website) .
Tina and I have been involved at several levels. Since Tina works in San Antonio, she is the first to hear of Mastiffs (or possible Mastiffs) in local shelters. She then finds the time - somehow - to visit the shelter and evaluate the situation. Is the dog really a Mastiff? Is there any known history of the dog? What kind of temperament/personality does s/he have? If there is any chance of adopting the dog, if it is a Mastiff, we go to the next level. Since we can't foster any more dogs here, that usually involves arranging for transportation to foster homes. I have been called upon to evaluate a dog a time or two myself, too.
For the most part, though, my job has been to do home visits and evaluate the possibilities for placing rescued Mastiffs in homes of people who have applied to adopt them - we call these "forever homes." I have done many of these visits over the years, and helped to place several dogs. Basically, what I have to do is to determine the suitability of the home for a Mastiff, and then try to get the realities of Mastiff ownership across to the applicants, including the good, the bad, and the ugly. One of my favorite tricks is to bring either Junior or Tiny along, and ask the applicant(s) to give the dog some water... It's easy to tell how the family feels about slobber when I do this! If they still want the dog after having seen and heard all of that, and if the environment is suitable, then they become eligible to adopt a Mastiff.
The feeling of having helped such wonderful animals to find new homes - sometimes saving them from certain death at the pound - is really awesome. Of course, there is a certain danger that a dog we have evaluated may come home with us and never leave (read about Tiny), but the risk is worth the rewards. Having experienced the joys of adopting Mastiffs (read about Junior and Clayton) through FORM ourselves, we really get a good feeling from doing our part to give back to the breed and the organization.