Xerxes de Castro-Castalia

My number one compromise, when it comes to breeding healthy, typical and sound Bullmastiffs, starts by myself and my dogs. I have been entirely devoted to breeding happy and good looking Bullmastiffs for the past almost 20 years trying to ensure that each puppy is a perfectly typical animal according to the Standards, with a great character and an easy-going personality and with a strong health.

I have never understood breeding as a mean of making money but as a passion, a hobby, the only way to try to perpetuate the exceptional qualities of this magnificent breed.

Rasputin de Castro-Castalia

All the dogs and females I use for breeding my litters are HD-free, with grading A, A2 or B. They all have their DNA certificate as well.

Before they are mated, I have them thoroughly checked by my Vets, to ensure they are absolutely healthy and show no signs of any hereditary or acquired health problems whatsoever. I favour natural matings and spontaneous whelpings and will not chose to perform AI nor planned C-sections; in fact, in these almost two decades there have only been to C-sections performed to two of my gals. The first, when “Cotilla” produced her third and last litter, because she was carrying eleven gigantic puppies of well over 600 to 800 grams each, and her uterus was so distended her contractions could not determine the expulsion of the puppies. The second, when “Fetiche” produced her third and last litter, since there were two puppies stuck in the cervix, one with a frontal presentation, the other with a backwards presentation and none could advance to the vagina. There were also 11 puppies in that litter, of which all but the two first survived to the C-section.

Nabucco de Castro-Castalia

Incredibly enough and although I have assisted 28 whelpings, of which 26 by myself and two at the surgery table with my Vets, I still feel immensely excited and moved every time I have one of the wet newborns in my hands. I cannot help crying with emotion when I help them take the first breath and I dry them up and put them to suckle from mom’s nipples. I spend endless hours watching them sleep, move around, push back and forward, open a gap between the bunch to get to the biggest nip, and sitting by their side in the whelping box and letting them climb up to my lap and stay there for quite a while, when they are bellyful and quiet!

And I can’t help it feeling proud of each of my litters and each of my puppies as I see them grow to become gorgeous youngsters and promising adults. I haven’t had children of my own, but I guess that what I feel about my pups is very similar to what a mother feels for her kids.

(Original text written by Christina of Lima-Netto and Federico Baudin specifically for this web page and protected with Copyright. Not even whole can be reproduced not partially by any way, without Castro-Castalia's express assent in writing)