Beowulf Mastiffs review: bad breeding practice 67

I have owned Mastiffs for quite a few years and have had several. None of them from Susann, however. First of all, I find it really difficult to believe these horrendous stories about Susann. While I have never met her in person, I have e-mailed her many times and spoken to her on the phone asking for assistance with an issue I was having with one of my Mastiffs from another breeder. She was extremely nice, pleasant, professional and helpful. And no, she is not a personal friend of mine. How many breeders do you know who would offer help and advice when you didn't purchase the dog from them? Think about that. Susann has an excellent reputation as a Mastiff breeder, producing some of the top Mastiffs in the country. I think what many of those doing the complaining fail to realize is that this a a very large dog breed and prone to many different health issues. I lost three of my Mastiffs (from another breeder - also a top show breeder) from various very bad diseases. Breeders do what they can to rule out congenital health issues, but there are no guarantees. I suspect that some of the complainers were new to the breed and probably shouldn't have gone with this breed in the first place. The dogs are NOT long-lived. Most giant dogs have a rather short life expectancy. Big dogs can have BIG problems. I've gone through it myself with three Mastiffs. All of them died before they were 4 years old. Again, I did not purchase these dogs from Susann. And I purchased them from a very well-respected, reputable breeder. The complaints I have read about Susann's unwillingness to talk to people or deal with issues is so far from anything I have experienced that I think it must be fiction . . . or perhaps these people had become verbally abusive. I know people think that $3, 000 $4, 000 is a lot of money for a dog and it's a very big loss both emotionally and financially. But that's what these dogs costs. Plain and simple. And vet care is very expensive these days.So if you cannot afford the problems that may crop up, don't buy this breed dog. But I don't think it's fair to trash the breeder - especially one who is so well respected. Dogs can have all kinds of problems. Maybe these people should have chosen a poodle and not a Mastiff. These negative remarks are VERY upsetting, having dealt with Susann and found her a warm and wonderful person. And you can verify who I am by looking me up on Facebook. My name is Ruth Howell. And NO, Susann is not a friend. I simply know OF HER and am currently considering acquiring another Mastiff - this time from her.

My second mastiff from Beowulf Mastiffs just died this morning. He was 1 and a half years old. Our first dog from them died at 3 years old of epilepsy. I'm heartbroken and angry. We are thoughtful, kind and loving owners. We took our dogs on walks, they were up to date on their shots, and most importantly they were loved unconditionally. It's not fair to me, my kids and especially the dogs, that this breeder is getting away with this. Clearly, there's an issue. Maybe not with every dog they produce but how many dogs need to die before something is done? I have never left a complaint on the internet before. I am a small business owner and I understand how much harm a bad reputation can do. But, my vet said this morning: you are your dogs biggest advocate. They offered to provide paperwork or anything they could do to help get the message out and try and shut this breeder down. So I am leaving this message to give my beautiful babies a voice. And I am begging Beowulf Mastiffs to please consider the idea that maybe something is severely wrong with the lineage of your dogs. If you are considering purchasing an English Mastiff, they are truly one of the sweetest breeds, and there are several exceptional breeders out there, but don't take your chances with Beowulf. There are just too many complaints on this board alone to give anyone peace of mind. I would also recommend looking to an English Mastiff Rescue League. There are many wonderful Mastiff's looking for homes. They might not be as pretty or cute as a puppy but the best dog I ever had was a 7-year-old English Mastiff who was rescued.

My question for all those who talk about epilepsy being just a statistic and Ms Everett's ratio's are low. I have a bowl of M&m's and there are 50 in it. If I tell you 3 of them will you eat 5, 4, 3, 2, or even just 1? Probably not. So if you value your life so much why even take a 1% chance of passing the genetic marker on to even one puppy. It's cruel to the dog and the family who get's this precious life will have to live with watching their dog suffer and maybe even have to make the decision to kill the dog the paid for and welcomed into their home and made them a part of their family. Stop playing Russian Roulette with these precious lives.

I purchased an 18 month old male from her in the early 2000's. He was a one that just wasnt going to make a show dog. He was a forward dog and very athletic. He settled in but after about 6 weeks he started become dominant and actually smashed his muzzle with teeth showing into the face of my then 8 year old son. I called Suzanne to tell her and it was all our fault she said... it was a problem within our family. We previously owned a beautiful and massive male rottweiler who died from bone cancer at just 7 so we knew how to handle big breed dogs. Her husband came the next day to pick him up. After a few years we contacted her again and she said she had real nice 8 month old male who once again just wasn't going to make it as a show dog. He was timid but was told he will adjust in a few weeks. Well he never did and was timid his entire life until. Taking him to PetSmart obedience classes was helpful. My mother in law who was the biggest dog lover that ever walked on this earth loved him. not long after we got him he raised his head and hit the top of his head on the drawer when he lifted his head. My MIL was standing there when it happened and the dog thought she hit him. He never trusted my MIL again and would do everything he could to avoid her until the day she died. We called Suzanne to ask her what we could/should do and her response was: it is a problem within your family there's nothing wrong with the dog. He did live til 9 when he blew out a hind ACL and after surgery he just never really recovered and the rest of his joint wore out and we put him down. In short if I can summarize : Susanne and her husband are the greatest mastiff breeders in the world when everything goes well but just don't count on them if not going well. It will be your fault - never theirs.

I am a previous owner of a mastiff from a very reputable breeder on the west coast. We had a huge contract but the breeder was wonderful. I have read every comment about Susann and this is truely shocking to me. Our beautiful girl that was not BM had many normal health issues including but not limited to chronic UTI's allergies and ear problems. She was cared for as our own children one if whom was autistic. She was a big beauty. I do not know anything about epilepsy but our dog at her check up 6 months before she died was perfect. 6 months later at the age of 9 was put down due to metastasized cancer originated from hemangicarcinoma ( cancer of the spleen ) This was very Tramatic on our whole family and took over a year and a half before we considered another, first calling upon our previous breeder who had been dealing with health issues. I researched breeders for 3 months reading and calling and I found Susann to be very similar in knowledge and recommendations as our previous breeder. We chose not to have another fawn and wanted a apricot brindle. Our luck kept getting worse since all the litters were not yielding the puppy we wanted. Susann was very patient and genuinely upset she could not provide us with a puppy. Most of the litters we're not large 4-6 puppies. I know of a couple larger fawn litters. Knowing we wanted a Christmas puppy she had a littler of fawns that would be ready right before Christmas and although we didn't want a fawn or a male she offered us this beautiful boy and we fell in love with him immediately. So we made arrangements. Susann was in constant contact over the next 31/2 weeks. It had been almost 11 years since we had a puppy and she always responded to my text messages or emails and still does to answer any of our questions. Phone calls aren't as easy to get but if anyone who owns their own business knows it's hard to make alot of calls. Maybe not right away but in a reasonable time frame our questions answered. Our baby boy is now almost 5 months. He his such a love. I couldn't imagine a day without him. Our vet is amazed by his great confirmation for a pup and he is very healthy. We are raising him per her advice but we were never told we had to feed or do anything per her instructions but she gave a good starting point. He came with recommendations on shot schedules which we have had to alter due to our state laws and she helped us with what shots should be given when. I have never met her in person but the people in the show world would not put their name or reputation on the line to support a backyard breeder with a hot temper and caged dogs. We were even invited to come and see where they live and how their animals are cared for and to spend time with our new puppy. It is just too far from PA to Arkansas for a visit. People who want to hide don't invite strangers to visit if they aren't good people, that's just pure common sense. Our boy loves all of us and has the same mastiff demanding personality of our heaven girl. He always wants your attention and loves to please. We are also in contact with a handler here in PA recommended by Susann who we send photos and videos to for future prospects of show. He is not only a seasoned handler of many breeds but a judge. Although our mastiff pup can navigate stairs he only does so for a bath and is guarded by a person in front and back to prevent injury. He's very stubborn at times but we have a busy house. I recommend pet insurance with these extra large breed dogs because vet costs can be very expensive. It saved us thousands with our previous dog for appointments meds emergency visits since she would always do something stupid on a weekend. These were not the breeders problems nor were her other health problems. In her older age she was having difficulty getting up in the morning from the floor so I started research on orthopedic beds and settled on K-9 Ballistics. Within 24 hours she was up without stiffness and jumping around. This gave her 2 years of continued comfort where she chased the kids and played in the snow. I have and will not say anything negative about Susann and for the first time we are finally expecting our girl in about a month. Susann has been nothing but a lovely person even when I needed some advice on our boy since their personalities are so different. She made no demands on us except to give him lots of love. As far as a breeder of her size having kennels our previous breeder had many outdoor and indoor kennels as well as many indoor adult dogs. She had full time staff that worked her program with her and her dogs and breeding program. A few of the dogs were together in a very large outdoor area and she warned us to keep the kids away from the fence. She called them her old grumpy ladies. They were very loud and barked at us the whole time. They would make a great alarm system when living in the country. Of the 4 female puppies ready to go, they were in a large long outdoor kennel under a blanket of beautiful trees and they were all together. Next to them was another young fawn female who eventually was shown on her website as earning her points and championship. I can't tell you how many dogs and kennels there were. When she heard of our dogs death she was extremely sad over her diagnosis. They had dealt with many cancers but she was the first with hemangicarcinoma. Susann Everett's contracts are minimal compared to our other breeder whom you had to had permission to breed, spay or neuter the dog. What health guarantee she gave and at what time it no longer was valid. If there was any major health concern the dog was to be brought to her vet for examination with all health records. Unless the dog was unable to travel they would use FaceTime and phone calls to make recommendations for the dogs care. The health guarantee was void if any of her stipulations were breached by a certain age including the weight of the dog through the lifetime of the animal. If there was any negligence on the part of the new owner the contract was void and she would not be responsible for the dog. We have children between 24-8 and one with disabilities. But they all understand that although our BM boy is large he is a baby and very fragile as he grows fast. Not alot of rough house and he is confined to a smaller area of the house. He has learned his footing pretty good on hardwood floors but running chasing and fun is outside in the field so he has better footing. He is only in the crate at night or if we are out. We try to limit no more than 4 hours in the crate during the day if needed at all. Mastiffs are not ones to like being alone and as our female did they follow you everywhere. My opinion unless proven otherwise would be for you to make your own decision for yourself. These forums don't account for all people who own a BM puppy/dog. Her Facebook is full of different families and pictures they send her of some of her dogs pets and show dogs. Talk to them go see their set up and spend some time around. You aren't given a 100% chance of having a perfect baby but unless the doctors tell you all your children will carry a deadly mutated Gene do you stop having children? Just because I have an autistic child didn't prevent me from maybe having a girl. And 5 years after my autistic son was born, I have a beautiful smart and sassy little girl who completed our family of boys. You can't predict or prevent medical problems in animals either. I have thoroughly enjoyed the emails, talks, and photos Susann Everett at Beowulf Mastiffs and I have had over the last 7 months. Be your own judge!