History of the Neapolitan Mastiff


The Neapolitan Mastiff is a rare breed of canine that is known by many
different names. Such as the Italian Mastiff, Neo Mastiff, Mastino, and the
Mastino Napoletano in the Italian translation. Italy is recognised as the official
home of the Neapolitan Mastiff and the breeds historical roots come from this
Country. If it was not for the devotion of some Italian breeders the Mastino
would more then likely be extinct today.

The Neo has been a recognised breed since 1949, and has now been widely
accepted into the Working group of many different Kennel Clubs. In history
the Mastino breed can be traced as far back to 3000 years before Christ.
Historical figure, Alexander the Great was instrumental in the creation of the
Mastino. He was know to have crossed the giant Macedonian and Epirian war
dogs with the short-haired "Indian" dogs to create the Molossus. The
Molossus or Molosser were characterized by having a wide, short muzzle and
a heavy dewlap. Originally these dogs were used primarily in battle against
tigers, lions and man. These canines had become known as the war beasts of
Rome. It was when the Roman invasion of England occurred access to large
mastiff type dogs were introduced.  These dogs were then crossed with the
formidable war beasts of Rome. The result of these cross breedings are the
descendants of the Neapolitan Mastiff you see today. The Molossus is easily
recognised as the forefather of the Mastino Napoletano.

The Neapolitan Mastiff is a large, very powerful animal. They have an
abundance of skin and extensive wrinkling of the face. The skin is very loose
over the entire body and can be pulled up showing that there is no
connective tissues holding the skin down to the body. The lips are long and
have an inverted V shape to them. The skin hangs long under the chin and is
referred to as the dewlap. It is in my belief that due to the lack of connective
tissue that affect the skin this also is transferred to the joints. Neapolitan
have a cat like gait and they seem to roll as they move, unlike any other
breed of dog I have ever seen. The paws of the Neo are webbed to the end
of the toes and are generally very large compared to the rest of the body.  
The Mastino is extremely devoted to their families and are superior defender's
of person and property. In Italy there primary use in recent history was to be
guardians of estates. Therefore the Mastino is the stay at home type and
they do not have a tendency to wander far from their own estate. They are
bred to detect unwanted intruders and deter them from returning. Many say
that the Mastino's serious looks are enough to deter any intruder. The Neo is
a very intellectual breed, with the uncanny ability to learn at a very rapid
pace. As a result no harsh punishments or corrections are required, just a firm
tone from a displeased owner is usually all it takes.