Broholmer puppies

About the Broholmer

The Broholmer is a Danish mastiff, kept for centuries as a guard on estates and farms and brought back from near extinction in the twentieth century by a small group of breeders working from the surviving dogs. This is a heavy, broad headed dog with a short coat and a calm, deliberate way of moving. The temperament is friendly and even: quiet in the house, watchful rather than aggressive, and strongly attached to the family they live with.

Exercise is moderate rather than punishing, meaning walks a few times a day, play in a fenced garden and some training to keep the mind working, and growing puppies should not be pounded with hard exercise. Grooming is a weekly brush with nails, ears and teeth kept up. The breed is quiet and not much of a barker, which suits many households. Keep the size in mind: an untrained dog of this weight is genuinely hard to manage on a lead.

What to expect at eight weeks

At eight weeks a Broholmer puppy is sleeping around 18 to 20 hours a day, is not house trained, and cannot hold on for more than an hour or two at a stretch. A giant breed puppy at eight weeks is already heavy and will keep growing for up to two years. Controlled growth matters more here than in any other size class, so a large breed specific puppy food and no overfeeding. Energy is on the lower side for the breed, but every eight week old puppy still runs in bursts and then crashes. Grooming is straightforward, but start handling the coat, feet and ears in week one anyway so it is never a fight later. The socialisation window is open and closing: everything they meet calmly now, from vacuum cleaners to men in hats, is easier for the rest of their life.

Health worth knowing about

Conditions this breed is reported to be predisposed to. Predisposed does not mean inevitable, it means ask about it.

• Hip and elbow dysplasia, screened by radiographic evaluation of breeding stock
• Bloat and gastric torsion, a surgical emergency in deep chested dogs
• Entropion and ectropion, eyelid faults found on an ophthalmologist evaluation

Your Broholmer puppy's first six months

• Vaccination schedule, dated for your country.
• Worming and parasite schedule.
• Feeding calculator. Set expected adult size to Giant for a Broholmer.
• Adult size predictor, to check growth against the 40.8 to 68 kg adult range.
• Puppy names and the first week checklist.

Kit sizes: crate 48 inch (48 x 30 x 32 in, 122 x 76 x 81 cm) for an adult of up to 68 kg, the largest size in the chart, which tops out at 49.9 kg, so measure the dog before you buy; chew toys made for large breeds. Worked out the same way as the crate size calculator. PetMD bases a crate on the dog's own measurements, not weight or breed alone, so measure once the puppy is home.

Buying guides for this

• Do slow feeder bowls work? Choosing one for a puppy that gulps
• Best crate for a puppy: wire, plastic or soft, and how to size one with a divider

Other giant breeds

More on the Broholmer

Previous: Brittany · Next: Brussels Griffon

Sources

• akc.org for adult weight and height, life expectancy, energy, grooming, shedding and the temperament ratings, coat type and health notes
• fci.be for country of origin
• Health notes from Broholmer breed information at https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/broholmer/. Discuss any of these with your own vet.

Photo: Pleple2000, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons, cropped. All photographers are listed on the photo credits page.