- grey, lead grey and black, but also brown, fawn and deep fawn (red deer).
- Permissible: A little white patch on the chest and/or on the tip of the toes
- All these colours may be brindled
- Permissible: Hazel, dove-grey and isabella shades
About the Neapolitan Mastiff
Origin: Italy
- Typical life span
- 7-9 years
- Size
- Large — from its typical weight
- Weight
- Male
- 60-91 kg
- Female
- 50-68 kg
- Height
- Male
- 66-79 cm
- Female
- 61-74 cm
- FCI status
- Recognised by FCI
- FCI group
- Pinscher and Schnauzer - Molossoid and Swiss Mountain and Cattledogs
- Origin
- Italy
- Also called
- Mastin Napolitano
- Known hereditary risks
- Not researched yet
About
What is a Neapolitan Mastiff?
Massive and powerful ancient guardian breed with distinctive heavily wrinkled face, loose skin, and imposing presence. Despite its formidable appearance, it is a steady and loyal companion with protective instincts.
Neapolitan Mastiff history and origins
Ancient Italian guardian descended from Roman molossus war dogs. The modern breed was refined in the Naples region where it served as estate and farm guardian, and was revitalized in the mid-20th century as a distinct breed.
Neapolitan Mastiff appearance and size
Males typically weigh 60-91 kg and stand 66-79 cm at the shoulder; females 50-68 kg and 61-74 cm.
What the breed standard says
- Bred for
- Protection and guard dog
- Behaviour and temperament
“Steady not aggressive. Guard dog of property and its inhabitants, always vigilant, intelligent, noble and majestic. loyal, and”
Quoted from FCI standard n°197. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Breed reference from The Dog API.
Characteristics
- Size
- Large
- Exercise needsRead from what the breed was bred to do, in the registry’s own words: “Protection and guard dog” That is a working purpose, not a measured exercise requirement — an individual dog’s needs depend on its age, health and household.
- 2 of 5
- Easy to train
- —
- Amount of shedding
- —
- Grooming needs
- 2 of 5
- Good with children
- —
- Cost to keep
- —
- Tolerates being alone
- —
- Intelligence
- —
- Health of breed
- Not researched yet
Pros & cons
Pros & cons for the Neapolitan Mastiff
What you get with the Neapolitan Mastiff
- Purpose stated in the standard: “Protection and guard dog”
- The standard describes the breed as: “Steady not aggressive”
- Low grooming needs, fitting for a busy owner — the coat is “Short and hard, dense, of the same length all over.”
What you are taking on
- Shorter-lived than a crossbred dog — median 9.3 years across 360 animals, against 12
Drawn from sources rather than written as an opinion — cited health research, the registry’s own standard, and peer-reviewed longevity. FCI breed standard; McMillan et al. 2024, median age at death. One breeder’s animals can differ from any of it, and an empty column means we hold nothing for that side rather than that there is nothing to say.
Characteristics
FCI standard · Neapolitan Mastiff
Coat and colour
As the FCI standard sets it out. Every line below is the standard’s own wording, tagged permissible.
Coat
Short and hard, dense, of the same length all over.
Uniform short length that measures 1.5 cm maximum.
Must not show any trace of fringing
Colour
- Preferred
- Permissible
- Undesirable
- Disqualifying
Preferred, permissible, undesirable and disqualifying are FCI’s own words about the breed. They describe what the standard asks for — not an assessment of any individual dog, and not ours.
Shortened from FCI standard n°197 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
What the standard penalises
What a judge marks the Neapolitan Mastiff down for, and what puts one out of the ring, in the registry’s own words. This describes the breed standard — it is not a checklist for the animal in front of you, and a pet with a disqualifying fault is an unshowable dog rather than an unhealthy one.
Severe faults
Marked heavily against a specimen in the ring.
- Pronounced undershot bite.
- Tail carried too high.
- Size bigger or smaller than the limits allowed
Disqualifying faults
Puts an animal out of the ring altogether.
- Accentuated convergence or divergence of the cranio-facial axes.
- Topline of muzzle concave or convex or very aquiline (Roman nose).
- Total depigmentation of nose.
- Overshot bite.
- Entropion / ectropion.
- Wall eye; total de-pigmentation of both rims of eyelids; cross eyed.
- Absence of wrinkles, folds and dewlap.
- Absence of tail whether congenital or artificial.
- Extensive white patches; white markings on the head
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the Neapolitan Mastiff in general; any individual animal can differ.
Health guide
What to ask for in a Neapolitan Mastiff
No breed-specific health panel has been written up for the Neapolitan Mastiff on this platform yet. That is a gap in our records, not a clean bill of health — ask the breeder which hereditary conditions their lines are tested for, and ask to see the results for both parents, dated and from a named laboratory.
Gallery
No photographs yet
This is where Neapolitan Mastiff owners’ own photographs will go, from the pet profiles they keep here. Nobody has added one to a public page yet.
A photograph in a pet profile stays private to its owner. We will not put one here unless they ask us to.
Puppies
No puppies listed right now
No Neapolitan Mastiff breeder has a record on this platform yet, so there is nothing to list. That is a gap in our coverage, not a fact about the breed.