Breeder Ethics....

The Fila Brasileiro is a courageous, powerful Mastiff. It is amenable with its human family, making a very loyal loving companion. Extremely dedicated to his owner. A Fila will protect you without a moments hesitation. He feels that is why he is there. Once you bond with your Fila you and your family will become his whole world. You do not teach your Fila to protect you, as he does this on his own. It is the breeds nature to be loyal and protective of his family. This trait of the Fila is called "Ojeriza". They love kids in their own family and take a lot of abuse from them. Ask anyone who has kids and Fila's and they will tell you how unbelievable it is how gentle they are with the children in the family. Fila's make great family pets and are gentle, loving, loyal and very protective. They will also bond with other pets in your home. Bold and very wary with strangers. This breed makes a wonderful guard dog. It needs a dominant owner who understands the alpha pack instinct. Proper socialization and understanding of the breeds instincts are the key to successful ownership of a Fila. At anywhere from 2 - 5 months of age you will notice that your Fila does not like strangers. You do not teach him this it is bred into him. He will only make up to people that he feels you trust.

Some breeders breed the Fila to have a temperament in which they say is more like the original Fila Brasileiro temperament. One breeder who claims to breed to the original Fila type states, "You cannot socialize a Fila to like people. You can obedience train them so that you are in control, but you cannot socialize them to like people. A Fila WILL attack a stranger. Period. If they have the proper temperament, they WILL. "Ojeriza" translates to "Hatred and loathing of strangers". You do not make them mean and vicious... they ARE... and there is no doubt about it. They are not a dog for a person who has an active social life."

However, more and more breeders such as Harley Acre Filas are toning the breed down, even the breeders in Brazil are breeding a more tame Fila. It is said that the original Filas would let the farm workers onto the property and so, the original Filas were on the milder side. Other breeders beg to differ on the issue of whether the original Filas were milder or more harsh. The controversy continues in the Fila world on whether or not to breed a Fila with a milder temperament or with the harsher temperament. The owner of Harley Acre Filas states "In the years to come I think it will be normal to hear of the breed being more open to strangers. I myself have both temperaments and the harsher temp dogs go nowhere and do nothing. What kind of life is that for a dog ? My tamer dogs will not attack (unless taught to) but he will scare the living daylights out of intruders and nobody will ever enter your property unless you ok it. No matter how much you socialize them they will always be wary of strangers. The tamer Fila is not mean and vicious unless you make them that way. Your Fila just wants to make sure that his family members are never in harms way and he is always on guard. If you choose a tamer Fila, when you get your Fila as a pup you have to decide then just how much you want to socialize him. If you socialize him at an early age by taking him around strangers it will be easier to handle him when strangers are present. If you choose not to socialize him you must be aware that no longer will the next door neighbor be able to just walk right in."

Just because you breed a milder Fila to a milder Fila will not guarantee you a litter of mild-tempered Filas. Some littermates will be mild while others may still retain the harsher temperament. Filas will always be wary of strangers, even the milder Filas will be wary and all Filas will do what it takes to defend what is theirs. There are some Filas in which you can never socialize enough to make them allow a stranger to pet them. Part of it depends on how the dog is raised as a puppy and part of it is in the dog's blood. Outstanding courage, determination, and bravery are part of his characteristics. He is docile and obedient to his owners and family and extremely tolerant with children in his own family. His faithfulness became a Brazilian proverb. He is always looking for the company of his master. One of his characteristics is his "ojeriza" towards strangers. He shows a calm disposition, self-assurance, and self-confidence, not being disturbed by strange noises nor when facing a new environment. An unsurpassed guardian of property, he is also inclined, by instinct, to hunt big game and to herd cattle. The Fila is NOT a breed for the average pet owner. Some Filas may drool, especially after getting a drink.

However, in the right hands I don't believe that this animals temperament as described is necessarily a problem, not every dog needs to be safe to take out into public - as long as the buyer is educated about what they are getting into and responsible about ownership.

The true temperament of this breed is to NOT accept strangers...the immediate family is completely safe. Judging the breed, the dog is disqualified if the judge can touch the dog. I would say going out in public wouldn't be where this breed of dog should be

BUT there are also some pretty low life people who can afford the price tag that comes along with a dog like that from them...thats what worries me.

If the Fila's popularity starts to take off, do you think that the good breeders should then try to mellow the temperment a bit, in order to help keep the breed out of trouble?