Fila Brasileiro

Devoted to its household, openly hostile to strangers.
A Fila Brasileiro
Photo: patrizia2010
Adult male
50–65 kg
110–143 lb
Adult female
40–52 kg
88–115 lb
Lifespan
9–11 yrs
Class · Watchdog

What it's like

The breed is devoted and protective towards its own household and patient with familiar children, yet openly hostile to strangers. Brazilians call this trait ojeriza, and the standard treats it as typical of the breed rather than as a fault, so show judges are not expected to handle the dog. At home it is generally calm and quiet but reacts quickly to intruders.

Day to day
Activity
A good daily walk and play
Intelligence
Learns readily, likes games
Handler demand
Needs an experienced owner
With people
Affection
Affectionate on its own terms
Loyalty
Sticks close to its people
Independence
Decides for itself
Around the home
Sensitivity
Average
Voice
Barks to alert, then settles
Prey drive
Likely to chase small pets
Breed explains only about 9% of how individual dogs differ in behaviour1. Meet the dog. A good breeder breeds for temperament as well as health, and matches each puppy's personality to the right home2,3.
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Living with one

It has a short coat. It sheds through the year rather than in big seasonal moults. Plan on a brush once a week. It needs a moderate amount of exercise compared with other breeds.

Size and growth

A Fila Brasileiro is a giant dog, heavier than a Rottweiler and lighter than a Great Dane. Males end up clearly heavier than females. Its weight is an estimate, not a published figure.

It is a large, heavy-boned molosser with a long body, a broad head and hindquarters set slightly higher than the withers. Its defining feature is thick, loose skin that hangs in a marked dewlap at the throat and folds along the neck. The coat is short, smooth and dense, and is commonly fawn, brindle or black, sometimes with a dark mask. Its characteristic gait is a pace, moving both legs on one side together, often likened to a camel's.

Puppy growth

Reference curve · community data appears as owners log
By about 5 months, a male Fila Brasileiro puppy is already as heavy as a grown Labrador. They grow fastest between 4 and 5 months old. They keep growing past their first birthday, longer than a Beagle does. Most males grow into the size large-breed puppy foods are made for.
Fully grown
13 mo
Both sexes, at 99% of adult weight5
Male
Female
Shaded: expected range
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Age
Male
Female
2 months
8.7–11.3 kg 19.2–24.9 lb
7.0–9.1 kg 15.4–20.1 lb
3 months
14.0–18.2 kg 30.9–40.1 lb
11.2–14.6 kg 24.7–32.2 lb
4 months
20.8–27.0 kg 45.9–59.5 lb
16.6–21.6 kg 36.6–47.6 lb
5 months
28.1–36.6 kg 61.9–80.7 lb
22.5–29.3 kg 49.6–64.6 lb
6 months
34.9–45.4 kg 76.9–100.1 lb
27.9–36.3 kg 61.5–80.0 lb
7 months
40.2–52.3 kg 88.6–115.3 lb
32.2–41.8 kg 71.0–92.2 lb
8 months
43.9–57.1 kg 96.8–125.9 lb
35.1–45.7 kg 77.4–100.8 lb
9 months
46.3–60.2 kg 102.1–132.7 lb
37.0–48.2 kg 81.6–106.3 lb
10 months
47.8–62.1 kg 105.4–136.9 lb
38.2–49.7 kg 84.2–109.6 lb
11 months
48.7–63.3 kg 107.4–139.6 lb
39.0–50.6 kg 86.0–111.6 lb
12 months
49.3–64.0 kg 108.7–141.1 lb
39.4–51.2 kg 86.9–112.9 lb
15 months
49.8–64.8 kg 109.8–142.9 lb
39.9–51.8 kg 88.0–114.2 lb
18 months
50.0–64.9 kg 110.2–143.1 lb
40.0–51.9 kg 88.2–114.4 lb

Lifespan

No vet study has measured how long Fila Brasileiros live yet. The 9–11 years shown is a general figure without a published source.

Where it comes from

The Fila Brasileiro grew up on Brazil's cattle farms, driving cattle, hunting jaguars and guarding the farmstead; its name comes from filar, to seize and hold. The breed club CAFIB describes it as a colonial-era blend of several breeds, chiefly the English Mastiff, Bloodhound and Bulldog, that settled as a breed in the 19th century. Its standard asks for a 'camel's pace', and it is banned in the UK4,7,8.

The Fila Brasileiro took its modern form in the twentieth century, when Brazilian enthusiasts set out to record and preserve the working farm dogs of the interior. A written standard was drawn up in the mid-twentieth century, and it later gained international recognition. Disputes over correct type later produced rival breed bodies within Brazil, each keeping its own standard, and the split remains.

Breed standard

The Fila Brasileiro is judged against standard no. 225, in group 2, Pinscher and Schnauzer, Molossoid and Swiss Mountain Dogs4.

Questions people ask

General guidance for dogs rather than a measured Fila Brasileiro figure: most females have a first season somewhere between six and fifteen months, and cycles then settle to roughly every 180 days. Smaller breeds tend to start earlier and larger ones later, so a giant breed is most likely at the late end.

Compare with related

Dogo Argentino
Pinschers & molossoids · Large
Black Russian Terrier
Pinschers & molossoids · Large
Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
Pinschers & molossoids · Giant
Bullmastiff
Pinschers & molossoids · Giant
Or compare the Fila Brasileiro with any breed you choose
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Sources

Uncited on this page: Lifespan — no reviewed source yet, so it is a general reference figure rather than a published one.
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