Are Bullmastiffs good in hot weather?
Bullmastiffs are among the breeds most at risk in summer. Their short muzzle makes cooling down very hard, and heatstroke can develop fast.
How Bullmastiffs handle the heat
The cooling problem
Bullmastiffs are brachycephalic, meaning their short muzzle leaves little internal surface for panting to cool the blood. In warm weather this is a serious limitation, not a quirk, and it is why flat-faced breeds are massively over-represented in vet heatstroke cases every summer.
Practical summer management
Shift walks to early morning and late evening, and skip them entirely on the hottest days. Carry water on every outing, provide deep shade in the garden, and give access to cool floors indoors. The pavement test is simple: press the back of your hand to the ground for seven seconds, and if it is too hot for your hand it is too hot for paws.
Never leave any dog in a parked car, conservatory, or caravan, even briefly and even with a window open. Interior temperatures climb to lethal levels within minutes.
Exercise in warm weather
Bullmastiffs have modest exercise needs, which makes summer easier to manage. It is straightforward to shift their activity into the cooler hours without leaving them under-exercised.
What temperature is too hot?
There is no single cutoff, because humidity, age, weight, and coat all matter. As a guide, take extra care above 20C and treat anything above 25C as high risk for a flat-faced breed like this. When in doubt, keep them home and cool.
Personality and summer walks
A powerful guard breed with a gentle family side. The Bullmastiff is fearless with strangers but deeply affectionate with those it loves.
A loyal dog keeps pace with its owner on a hot walk rather than dropping back into the shade on its own, so the owner has to be the one who decides the outing is over. A calm dog tends to settle in the shade without much encouragement, which makes hot weather considerably easier to manage than with a more driven temperament. Protective instincts stay switched on in hot weather, and a dog that feels the need to patrol or respond to noise outside may not choose to rest even when it should.
Heat, training and behaviour
Teaching a dog to settle in the shade
Bullmastiffs respond reasonably well to basic settle training, which helps on hot days when the aim is simply to keep the dog calm and off its feet during the warmest hours.
Barking and restlessness in a heatwave
Bullmastiffs rarely bark much, so discomfort in hot weather is more likely to show as excessive panting or reluctance to move than as noise.
Family and other pets in a heatwave
Bullmastiffs generally do well around children, though hot weather adds a job for parents: making sure excitable play with kids in the garden does not run on longer than the dog can safely handle. A cat in the same household should have its own cool retreat well away from this breed, heat or no heat.
Cost and ageing in hot weather
Bullmastiffs typically live 7 to 9 years, and older dogs of any breed regulate heat less efficiently than a fit adult, so senior bullmastiffs need shorter, cooler outings and closer watching during a heatwave. Insurance for a Bullmastiff in the UK typically costs about £55 to £110 a month, and heatstroke is exactly the kind of sudden, serious vet visit that cover exists for. A Bullmastiff puppy, usually priced around £1000 to £2500, overheats more easily than an adult dog as well, since puppies have less developed temperature regulation and tire without always showing it.
Full guide to Bullmastiffs
Read the complete Bullmastiff guide →