Gibbs-Son of Nigel Bear X Buttercup Born: 03/21/08
Ziva-Daughter of Neil X Gretle Born: 08/23/07

Sent: Saturday, January 30, 2010
Subject: Gibbs & Ziva

Hi Lucy & Fredericka!
Time for an update on the kids 🙂 I’m attaching some recent pics of them for you. Everything is still going very well and we love them both to death! They attract so much attention when we’re out on walks. People driving by stop to ask about them & they love the attention. We took them to my office a few weeks ago and all work stopped for about 20 minutes…wouldn’t be surprised if you get a couple inquiries for puppies!

Went to the vet last week for a nail trim and weigh in. Gibbs is about 195lbs (he won’t stand still on the scale!). Ziva is now 148lbs and has filled out nicely. She has no trouble at all holding her own with Gibbs. Hope all is well with you both out there at the farm. Let me know if you have any trouble getting the pictures to open. I think I downsized them enough to get through. Take care & talk to you soon!

Dave & Sarah

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Sent: Friday, April 17, 2009 3:35 PM
Subject: GIBBS AND ZIVA

Just wanted to drop you a note to let you know that Ziva has adapted to her new home and her new best friend Gibbs without much fuss. Of course she had a few hours of uncertainty in the beginning, but before we knew it, she was making herself part of the family.

Our first American Mastiff, Gibbs, is a neutered male and as of his vet visit a couple of days ago, weighs in at 163lbs. He turned a year old in March. He’s a big, goofy dog who loves everyone…people, dogs, cats….he’s not picky. So when Ziva (spayed female) arrived, he was in 7th heaven. His tail hasn’t stopped wagging since she got here! Ziva on the other hand wasn’t overly pleased by his obvious affections for her. She stayed pretty close to us and out of Gibbs range initially which was expected.

We introduced them last Saturday night (same day we picked her up from the farm) in a big open grassy area near our home, then went on a walk around the neighborhood to work off some energy. We didn’t try to walk them close together…one of us followed the other and there were no problems. We set up the laundry room for Ziva and she slept through the night. Sunday afternoon, we took the dogs on another walk. About mid-way through, Ziva would inch closer to Gibbs and sniff the way dogs do, however, Gibbs was not allowed to return the favor. 🙂 At the end of the walk, they were sitting side by side on the path.

By Tuesday, Ziva was initiating contact with Gibbs and by Wednesday, they were fast friends. Gibbs has about 45lbs on her, but she’s very good at letting him know when she’s had enough. They race around the backyard together and in the evenings, they wear each other out with wrestling matches on the livingroom floor (which she often wins) or they lay near each other knawing on bones.

We are very blessed to have Gibbs and Ziva.

Take care & God bless-
Dave, Sarah, Gibbs, & Ziva

Sent: Sunday, March 22, 2009
Subject: Gibbs Update

Hi Fredericka & Lucy!
Today is Gibbs 1st birthday! We celebrated w/ a birthday cookie made by a local dog bakery and went around the neighborhood giving out pieces of it to his four legged buddies. We hare having a wonderful time with him. I’m including a couple of pictures so you can see how he’s grown.

He was at the vet last week for some minor surgery…he had an extra tooth growing out of the roof of his mouth. It came out no problem and he was back to his usual self within a day. He weighed in at 156lbs.

As you can see by the photos, he loves hamming it up for the camera, romping through the snow, and chasing water coming out of the sprinkler. We can’t imagine out lives without him. We are so grateful to you for letting us become part of the American Mastiff family!