Role of the dog in home defense

[RetiredUSNChief]

I've got two young kids (daughter turns four in a couple weeks, son will have his first birthday in March), and my wife and I have been giving thought to getting a dog in the next year or so, or maybe around the time our son turns three years old. We're fairly settled on a purebred lab. Not so much for the hunting/field work (I don't do much bird hunting at all), but mostly for just having a great family dog - plus we both really love the looks and attitudes most labs have.

Question is this: is a properly socialized lab still going to be protective to the point that she would raise hell if a stranger were to enter our home at night? I mean, every dog raised with a family can sense a stranger is uninvited in that sort of scenario, right? Reason I ask is I would definitely want the dog to be socialized wih both people and other dogs, but I would hate it (for obvious reasons, I think) if my dog greeted a nighttime burglar with a wagging tail just because we taught the dog to be friendly.

Are my expectations unrealistic? Or will the dog still "sense" it's duty to protect its family? I don't want or expect my dog to sacrifice itself fighting off an intruder. I do, however, want my dog to raise hell if strangers (to the dog) come around in the late hours of night when the family is sleeping - even if they don't actually try to come inside.

My brother has a Fila, and I know that breed of dog will do what I want - but I want a dog that will be as friendly with new, welcome guests as it will with family. I want a dog that can understand, even if it requires some reassurance, that not every new person is a threat.

Our dog will live in the house, by the way.

The answer to your question is "yes, a lab will raise hell if a stranger attempts to break into your house."

Every dog is different, of course, because every dog is as much an individual as people are. Labs are among the most sociable family dog breeds, are easily trainable, extremely intelligent, and outstanding with children. They don't see every new person as a threat and take their cues from their family owners on this matter.

 

[RoboDuck]

I live in a rural area and don't have neighbors. My three dogs are two Belgian Malinois and a Giant terrier. I sometimes need to go out to my barn at night and these dog are a great comfort to take along .

 

[stevek]

Our dogs are our kids, it's as simple as that. All I want them to do is give us a warning, my wife and I should be good to go from there.

 

[joneb]

The intruders worst nightmare

 

[sixgunner455]

My dog's job is to make noise and wake me up. My job is to come rescue her with the flashlight and noisemaker.

I've shot a coyote that was stalking her when we were hunting quail, why wouldn't I do something about it when someone wants to kick her to get access to the house?

Thing is, any dog that defends you or your home with its teeth may well pay for it with its life, whether from the bad actor or from the law later. I recognize that, and because I had a couple of tiny kids when I got my dog, I decided to get a noise-maker rather than a fighter. She sleeps on my son's bed part of most nights, splitting her time between there and the door to my room.

 

[Big JJ]

Dogs make bad guys go to somone else's house.

 

[skoro]

I've wondered how well one of these would work...

http://www.amazon.com/Safety-Techno...1420994685&sr=8-1&keywords=dog+alarm+security

 

[Warp]

I've wondered how well one of these would work...

http://www.amazon.com/Safety-Techno...1420994685&sr=8-1&keywords=dog+alarm+security

Not, would be my guess.

 

[Deltaboy1984]

Dogs, cats, and geese all give you a early warning and extra time prepare to meet the threat. On the farm the geese always gave the first alert.

 

[david58]

Dogs, cats, and geese all give you a early warning and extra time prepare to meet the threat. On the farm the geese always gave the first alert.

And geese can be MEAN in addition to noisy. If our move to the country happens as we'd like, geese will be one of the layers in the alarm system.

 

[Nom de Forum]

Dogs, cats, and geese all give you a early warning and extra time prepare to meet the threat. On the farm the geese always gave the first alert.

Geese have history of providing warning of sneak attack going back to at least the 390 B.C. siege of Rome.

“According to legend Marcus Manlius Capitolinus was alerted to the Gallic attack by the sacred geese of Juno ("the Capitoline geese")”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Allia

 

[Nom de Forum]

And geese can be MEAN in addition to noisy. If our move to the country happens as we'd like, geese will be one of the layers in the alarm system.

Yup, every year in the park just down the street from my house they bite kids and dogs. Nothing like a pissed-off goose or gander to give a kid or dog a healthy respect for our feathered friends.

 

[RetiredUSNChief]

Yup, every year in the park just down the street from my house they bite kids and dogs. Nothing like a pissed-off goose or gander to give a kid or dog a healthy respect for our feathered friends.

I had a goose get violent with me once at a park back in my home town. They can put on quite an impressive show, and can nip like heck.

That particular one, though, only bit me ONCE. He was quite thoroughly discouraged from ever doing that to me again. Park geese can be...interesting. They're used to being fed by humans and will often flock to people for feeding. Then they may get pretty darned violent about it in the process. Once in a while (like this one), one may get it through his/her head to just come up all by themselves and then attack. That was my situation.

I don't blame the goose...it's inherent in their nature and they're being fed by people all the time. But I wasn't in a position to be able to back away, so...

Probably would have been hung out to dry if it would happen today.

 

[cluttonfred]

On geese...

I remember reading that at some point U.S. military bases switched from attack dogs to geese patrolling between the inner and outer fences. Since the "intruder" was as likely to be a soldier sneaking off base without a pass as a bad guy trying to sneak in, geese were less likely to cause serious injury but still scared the bejeezus out of the intruder and raised a huge ruckus to attract the human guards.

On dogs...

A friend of mine once agreed to check in one our Cairn Terrier (think Toto but beige not black) while we were away. Having never before been to the house, he came by for the first time in the wee hours after a late night poker game. When he opened the gate, the dog barked exactly one time, then rolled over on her back so he could scratch her belly. Needless to say, we love our dog but don't count on her as a security system. ;-)

 

[Johnny_B_Goode]

My dogs were feral when I got them. They were to old to be totally socialized when I found them. There is window in a dogs life when they can be totally socialized but that window is gone in just a few months. There are advantages to have feral dogs as watch dogs but that is another thread. The behavior of my dogs might give you an insight as to why your dogs do the things they do. My older female stays in the house. My younger male stays in the barn, both dogs are house broken. The male is crate trained. When I tell him to get somewhere, he goes in his crate. My female is not crate trained. She will either go in the bedroom or under my desk when I tell her to get somewhere, both dogs obey hand signals.

Both dogs will obey and do almost anything I ask them to do when I am present. When I leave the room and someone is present is when things get screwy. If I go into another room and my female dog is laying under the desk she will not bother you as long as you remain seated. But if you get up for a glass of water or a trip to the bathroom the dog will try to force you back in your seat. In the dogs mind I told you to sit there. When I am not present the dog will do what she sees fit. Her idea of proper is to put you out of the house. She will not let you come into the same room I am in until I call her.

When I am walking with friends and the dogs are off the leash neither dog will tolerate someone catching up to from behind. The dogs think they are watching my back. This does not happen very often. Only a few people are comfortable around my dogs off the leash. Most people wait in the car until I catch the dogs. In fact, I close the gate when I let the dogs run free, but Murphy is everywhere.

When I am gone my dogs are on auto pilot. They see their areas as a sanctuary. My female goes nuts when someone is on the porch. I had to buy a sliding door blind and modify it for the front window so I can buy replacement slats. She is going to let you know she is here and do her best to keep you out. My neighbors have observed missionaries knocking on the door. Some of the missionaries must think I am hiding. They will knock and wait with the dog trying to jump through the window. One pair of missionaries stood on the porch for a good five minutes with the dog going nuts. Finally my neighbor across the street drove over because he thought they were trying to break in.

My male is a little more mellow. He will bark when someone comes in the field but he is not on full alert. If the person remains he may quit barking and go lay in his crate. But once you try to open the gate or approach the fence he goes ballistic. I learned a lot of lessons with my female. My male is much better trained. When I tell him to stay, he will sit right there until I give him permission to move. I have not tested him with any of my friends when I am not present. I doubt I will test the male. He is almost 10 months old. He weighs 70 lb and he has a lot of filling out to do.

 

[Surculus]

I've wondered how well one of these would work...

http://www.amazon.com/Safety-Techno...1420994685&sr=8-1&keywords=dog+alarm+security

Worked fine for Steve Martin in L.A. Story. If real life wasn't just like the movies, where would any of us be?



I like dogs [real ones], but if I lived in an apartment or condo, the electronic version might be a viable means of discouragement. Of course, your neighbors would be able to figure it out in short order, when you never took Brutus for walksies, but the casual property theft element [unless one of the neighbors' kids] would likely steer clear based on the noises generated by the device.

 

[cluttonfred]

...our Cairn Terrier (think Toto but beige not black)...

On the other hand, our house is well-protected against flying monkeys...I am just sayin'....

 

[greenmtnguy]

We have two Golden Retrievers and a yellow lab that will all raise a ruckus as soon as they hear anyone come in the driveway or step onto the porch. From outside, it sounds like a pack of wolves are trying to get out. So, they definitely have the first alert thing happening and if I am in the house or even within the neighborhood I can come running with appropriate equipment. IF anyone heard that racket and still wanted to try to get inside, they'd have to be really desperate. I don't think that things would go too well for them to be attacked by 3 dogs at once, with an angry owner close behind with a couple firearms.

 

[Joea132]

My dog acts as my alarm system. Our house is 100 yards off the road and she knows when every car drives past. The second they pull in the driveway, she jumps on the windowsill and assesses the vehicle. I would know before anybody could approach the house. And any noise outside the house makes her go bonkers. I usually will grab a gun if I don't have one and investigate. I always wondered if an intruder did break in and kept approaching, would I worry about shooting my dog?

I have an awesome dog, especially considered she was a physically abused rescue dog.

 

[Warp]

My dog acts as my alarm system. Our house is 100 yards off the road and she knows when every car drives past. The second they pull in the driveway, she jumps on the windowsill and assesses the vehicle. I would know before anybody could approach the house. And any noise outside the house makes her go bonkers. I usually will grab a gun if I don't have one and investigate. I always wondered if an intruder did break in and kept approaching, would I worry about shooting my dog?

I have an awesome dog, especially considered she was a physically abused rescue dog.

Most dogs aren't going to do anything like run up and jump on/tear into an intruder, probably wouldn't be an issue.

Lots of people have dogs and lots of people have home defense firearms. Have you ever heard of a case of the dog being shot by the homeowner? I've looked through read of heard of seen report son etc a fair number of events over the years now, can't recall one of those.

 

[george burns]

I have owned 3 Labs in my life. One American, and 2 English. The English is shorter and has longer hair. All are and were excellent guard dogs, in the sense of letting us know when someone was around the house.
Sometimes to a fault.
The smartest one was the American Lab, Who could figure out and anticipate most of what you wanted before you did.
They were all smarter than my 2 Rotties, as far as that goes, although they also were good at alerting us. I think most dogs will do that even my Sharpei would let me know if there was someone even in the hall when I lived in an apartment.
My wife is really good at training dogs, I am good at spoiling them. My dogs have always slept with us, and if that head pops up, I have my eye on one of my nearby weapons. We love all dogs but Labs have become the central breed for us. They are as smart as you allow, and as stubborn as you let them be.
I would get another Rotti, but both mine passed early with bone Cancer and seizures, I spent more money on them than some cars I have owned. I even had a prosthetic leg made for one, by a pediatric specialist who made them for kids. They have been so inbred that it's just hard to find healthy dog.
Our Labs parents were both OFA certified, she is hopefully ready for long life. I don't doubt that every one would give their life for us.

 

[Officers'Wife]

We have three pedigreed mongrels. The two larger ones are trained to work cattle and do their jobs very well. Whether by accident or design all three are well socialized but there are certain actions you do not do. The largest is Dawg who tips the scales right at 60 pounds. He is a gentle giant that will greet a stranger with a doggy smile and wagging tail... unless... Do not get closer than 6 feet to either of the kids until Dawg has become accustomed to you. If you make either my daughter or me nervous for whatever reason do not attempt to enter the house or get closer than what he considers his "safety zone." If you do he will obey me to "sit" provided you stay away from Donna. I have idea none what he would do if someone she was afraid of actually touched her. I would prefer not to find out.

Our first line of home defense is a Charlois bull that expects a treat whenever a car pulls into the driveway. Once the treat is thrown out the window you may use his driveway at your leisure. Otherwise he is going to stand in front of your car. Warning, he hates loud noises and all that horn is going to do is put you in a situation where you are going to have an upset 3/4 ton of beef on the hoof that does not have your best interests at heart.

 

[2zulu1]

My dog only barks when there's a reason, and then it's low pitched to alert me. In the middle of the night, I get out of bed to check. Last summer he alerted before dawn, looked out the bedroom window and saw a large black bear waddling about 30ft away.

I've given up counting the number of rounds we've shared together, 12,000-14,000 plus, including automatic weapons. He gets excited everytime the range bag is being loaded.

He was bred to be an involved dog, he was off leash when I shot a coyote, we're a good team. Little did I realize that the next time we saw a coyote, he took off after it.

West German championship breed lines, has the ability to go over the top of an automobile should the need arise. Living out in a very rural area, he earns his keep, plus he takes up the whole back seat in the pickup.

 

[MacTech]

This is Cooper, a 3 year old shelter rescue Portueguese Water Dog, I'm his third owner, and he's in his Forever Home

His jobs on the farm?

1; be my bestest buddy and workout pal, he's helping me shed some extra pounds
2; be an early warning system (which he excels at), insanely strong for his size, 40 lbs of solid muscle, hyper-vigilant and with a loud, resonant bark (decibel level.... 110 dB, Peak bark frequency; approx. 700-ish Hz, a low bass-y bark) that sounds like it comes from a much bigger dog, his observational talents are on a hair trigger, and he's fast, bloody fast, he can reach top gait in about 1.5 strides
3; keep my pasture raised chickens herded together during the summer

I have a very short list of best dogs I've ever owned, and Cooper is right up at the very top, tied with the black lab I had as a kid, Valentine

In fact, Cooper is on the bed with me right now, lying across my legs, asleep, but should any unexpected or out of place noise occur, he'll alert instantly

this is an example of his jumping prowess, my nephew is about 5' tall

 

[AKElroy]

My 4 year old Boxer is 105 lbs. To visitors he comes across as shy, sitting on his haunches, staring intently. He was a very boisterous jumper at first, but took to gentle but stern "corporal" punishment to stop. Now, he pays attention without jumping.

He is a great dog, very protective and enough muscle to discourage bad intent. Helps me rest easier when I am away. He has become part of the family, so I feel for the OP seeing that disturbing event.