Fila Brazileiro - The Brazilian Mastiff

Do you know how the camel walks? Well a camel, (when walking), uses two feet on one side of its body then the other two on the other side of its body; this is how the Fila Brazileiro walks, this causes a rolling rocking movement that makes this breed of dog truly unique, and a major hit at the dog shows.

The Fila Brazileiro is an old breed that most likely started with the dogs belonging to the Portuguese herders but, it is said that the influence from those dogs is very little if any, the primary breeds that made up the Fila Braileiro was the 15th century English Bulldog, the Mastiff, the Bloodhound and the Rafeiros.

The Bulldog gave the breed an unforgiving and stubborn attitude, the Bloodhound contributed to the Fila Brazileiro’s excellent sense of smell and tracking abilities, the Mastiff is the breed that gave the Fila its big powerful compact body and the Rafeiros contributed to various little things.

The Fila Brazileiros is a dog that was used to bring runaway slaves and prisoners back alive (when slavery was legal in Brazil); alongside the Fila Brazileiros was also used to hunt big game, usually to hold them alive and at bay until the hunter arrived to claim his prize. However, the Fila Brazileiro was mostly used to guard the flocks of sheep and goats and most importantly to guard the home and family.

The Fila Brazileiro went on like this for some time until 1946 when an official standard went up and the dog began to show up in dog shows and breeders started breeding to the specific standards of the Fila Brazileiro. With his fame growing, the Fila eventually made it to the United States of America where people had a great appreciation for this dog’s hunting and guarding abilities. Today you will find the Fila Brazileiro in dog shows all over the world as this dog breed becomes a bigger and bigger success.

The Fila Brazileiro is a big dog with a big personality, this is not a breed recommended for the average dog owner, this is a dog that considers that his whole purpose for being on the planet is to guard the home and protect the family. As we look at several other guard dog breeds that are in the world today, we will notice that, although they were dangerous at one time, now they have had all their aggressiveness bred out of them.

This is not so with the Fila Brazileiro, this dog has not changed one bit; if a person comes in to your yard that the Fila considers an intruder, he will most likely attack that person…these dogs need to be well socialized from a young age because when they reach five to eight months old, they will consider any person that they do not know as an intruder that needs to be taken care of.

This is a breed that can never be left alone with a person that he does not know, but on the other hand the people that the Fila Brazileiro considers, "his family" will be treated with the utmost respect and love, you will not have to worry about your children because this is a breed that will accept to be tortured by a child, as long as the child is part of his family. You will never have to worry about your house and property not being safe while you are gone because they will be protected, not just guarded but also protected.

There are people that are trying to breed the aggressiveness out of the dog and produce a milder Fila Brazileiro. This dog is the pride of Brazil, the dog that stood by the Brazilian’s side through thick and thin, and now these people want to take all that out of the breed? I’m afraid there are people that consider that as unacceptable. One other thing about this breed: if you are looking for this dog in the States be advised that the Fila has a more mastiff look about him compared to the hound looks this breed has in Brasil.

Always invest in a purebred pedigree animal because the backyard Filas are known to have uncertain temperaments.

The Fila Brazileiro , a great name for a great dog!