Renee!!! Tell me about your Filas.

[filarotten]

I have dragged Brutus with me everywhere for the past 5 years that would allow him to go...and then some. He has even been in the bank, they love him.

I have to be aware of my surroundings, not so much because of Brutus, I trust him. He is very stable and reliable, but I never know what some idiot person might do. Trust me, there are some idiots out there that will place themselves in harms way. One cop/security guard comes to mind when Brutie was young.

Brutus is also a good example for Titus. He is so confident. I honestly don't think Brutus is afraid of anything. Can you tell I love this dog with my heart and soul?

 

[HayleyMarie]

Brutus is also a good example for Titus. He is so confident. I honestly don't think Brutus is afraid of anything. Can you tell I love this dog with my heart and soul?

Haha no, really?:lol-sign:

Yes, I can really tell and Brutus sounds like quite the stand up guy.
Thanks to both you and Renee for answering all my questions. The Fila is right on the top of my list now

I told Tyler all about the Fila last night and he is also very interested in the breed.

A confident, protective non Dog Agressive breed is exactly what we are looking for in the future. I hope I will be able to meet one soon. Even though they are really rare here. BOOO.

 

[Renee750il]

I hope you get to meet some REAL ones, Hayley. Like any other breed, there are some strangely bred dogs out there.

I will freely admit that a lot of the Fila crowd thinks that handling our dogs the way Linda, Buckshot and I do is wrong, wrong, wrong according to conventional wisdom -- and some d@mn us because they want to build an ultimate badass rep for the breed.

We part ways in our thinking from the first group because we believe our dogs truly have the capacity, intelligence and adaptability to live and move successfully through the modern world and must, in order to thrive and prosper individually and as a breed, and our dogs have proven us right over and over again.

The second group . . . well, no explanation for why we part ways with THAT bunch.

 

[HayleyMarie]

Renee and Linda could you guys direct me to some good breeders, even is the USA. There are very few in Canada and I dont really know if they are any good. The closest one is in BC.

If we do end up choosing the Fila for our dog in the future then we probably will have to ship..Booo!!

 

[Renee750il]

Filas get shipped quite often. They seem to take it pretty much in stride.

Or we might be able to arrange a transport Everyone seems to want to smooch a smooshy faced Fila pup, lol.

 

[Angelbears10]

I have to agree with Renee. Now, this is coming from a newbie Fila owner(so take it with a grain of salt, I'm no expert).We have had Cane for a year now. It has however taken me a little time to understand what the fila people that I respect were trying to tell me. These dogs will take care of business if the need arises but they are not uncontrolable monsters and there is no need to try and make them monsters. They will put there life on the line for you because they love you sooo much not because you isolate them and only bring them out to be agitated. Any breeder that tells you not to socialize and stretch the boundries with these dogs is one to run away from!

Now that being said, I will not take Cane out except to the vet and Fila gatherings not because of Cane but because I am a weak handler and honestly did a lot of things wrong with Cane.

Listen and learn. They have a couple of unique traits, that you as the owner need to learn, accept and incorperate into your training. If you will do this, you will have one of the best dogs there is.

Happy Fila hunting!

 

[HayleyMarie]

Oh another question.

How bad do Fila's slobber??

 

[Miakoda]

Honestly, my Cane Corso/Shar Pei cross and my Olde English Bulldogge slobbered a lot more than Jazz did. However, when they drink water is when it looks like the 2nd flood has occurred.

 

[Renee750il]

Kharma only drools if she is very hot or if there's food involved.

She does get quite soaked when she drinks. They don't like to lap water like normal dogs, lol, they like to stick their muzzle in a deep bowl and drink deep

 

[Sweet72947]

Opie was only half Fila, however my observation was that he didn't really drool much. He did a little for food, and when he was hot. Opie also liked to slop his water around. I have fond memories of being in his run with him, him getting a drink of water, and then deciding to sniff my hair and dribble water down my back.

 

[HayleyMarie]

Kharma only drools if she is very hot or if there's food involved.

She does get quite soaked when she drinks. They don't like to lap water like normal dogs, lol, they like to stick their muzzle in a deep bowl and drink deep

HA! You should see Emme drink. She does the exact same thing. And if the drinking bowl is big enough she has to put her two front feet in it and splash around.

So water does get all over the place and we have towls constatly by the doors so we can whipe her feet.

 

[Renee750il]

So you're already used to having a drippy faced dog, lol!

 

[filarotten]

Yay for drool towels! Males do seem to drool a little more than the females. If Brutus starts drooling excessivley, for no apparent reason, I have learned to look at his ears, it is usually a good indication of an ear infection.

If the monsters are outside running around, they do get frothy, drinking water, and waiting for a treat, or wishing it was a treat, turns on the drool faucet.. Cheese, seems to be the drool trigger in this house.

All three of mine have the same unbreakable habit. The minute they come in from the outside, all three will shake their head. Drool flies in a million different directions if you don't get to them with a drool rag before they walk in the door, or right at the door. Just make a mental note of that.

 

[Renee750il]

Kharma only does that if she's at my mom's, lol. She loves to make my mom react :rofl1: She'll go stealth mode and dunk her face in the water then sneak back -- and I think she has her cheeks full as well -- find my mom and soak her, then prance around and toss her head when Mom squalls.

 

[SweetAdeline]

Do Filas tend to be high energy dogs? My COs spend a good deal of time laying about doing nothing.

 

[Renee750il]

They are high energy when there is work to be done. Most of the rest of the time they recharge