Thinking about getting a guard dog that could also hunt

[Fletchette]

My definition of a good guard dog isn't a half-crazy, mean dog, but a truly loyal and smart dog willing to defend his/her family. Alert, quiet until needed (few false alarms) and willing to be aggressive when needed. I'd also like it to be able to do some hunting occasionally (mostly pheasant, rabbit, etc.) The ulterior motive for this is to train the dog not to be gun-shy in case of an emergency. Any advice?

I had a dog like this as a boy, a mutt (German Shepherd with ?) that was fantastic. Great with kids (my younger sister poked him in the eye as a toddler - not even a growl), trustworthy family dog but always on alert and fearless.

Recently I found out about Belgian Malinois, and they look suspiciously like by boyhood pal. I am beginning to wonder if this was his father. Only difference is that my dog had a bit of white on his muzzle.

Does anyone have experience with the Belgian Malinois breed? Would it have the qualities I am looking for?

 

[The Real Hawkeye]

My definition of a good guard dog isn't a half-crazy, mean dog, but a truly loyal and smart dog willing to defend his/her family. Alert, quiet until needed (few false alarms) and willing to be aggressive when needed. I'd also like it to be able to do some hunting occasionally (mostly pheasant, rabbit, etc.) The ulterior motive for this is to train the dog not to be gun-shy in case of an emergency. Any advice?

I had a dog like this as a boy, a mutt (German Shepherd with ?) that was fantastic. Great with kids (my younger sister poked him in the eye as a toddler - not even a growl), trustworthy family dog but always on alert and fearless.

Recently I found out about Belgian Malinois, and they look suspiciously like by boyhood pal. I am beginning to wonder if this was his father. Only difference is that my dog had a bit of white on his muzzle.

Does anyone have experience with the Belgian Malinois breed? Would it have the qualities I am looking for?

The Belgian Malinois might have a bit too fiery a temperament to be an ideal family dog. They make great attack dogs, but they will generally not trust anyone other than a family member, and might well bite someone who merely enters the property or approaches the children. I have had two German Shepherds, one Doberman and two Pitbulls in my life. My Doberman would have been perfect for your family. He loved children, was friendly to invited guests, was suspicious of the uninvited, and aggressive towards those who didn't mean well. He was also professionally protection trained, and would defend on command with a very hard bite and hold, if necessary. My German shepherds were too suspicious of strangers, and even after being introduced would not stop behaving aggressively towards invited guests until they'd come to know them very well. My Pitbulls, on the other hand, were too indiscriminately friendly towards everyone they met to make very good guard dogs. A sweet word from anyone would get their tails wagging, and you couldn't convince them that there was ever born a man with bad intentions, so although they are great with kids, the only thing you'd have going for you with them is that most people think they're crazy and would likely not test them for that reason. My recommendation is a Doberman, so long as you are willing and able to make the proper efforts to establish early on that you are the alpha male.

Here's my current buddy. You wouldn't know from the picture that he loves everyone, and just wants to play. I like the fact that most bad guys think Pitbulls are crazy biting machines. Oh, and if by hunting you mean a dog that will grab a huge forocious boar by the ear and hold him while you walk up and slit its throat, this might be the breed for you. Probably not, however, what you meant by a hunting dog, though, right?

 

[TallPine]

Does anyone have experience with the Belgian Malinois breed?

Yep - one of my daughters has one.

They are very, very, very protective and very, very, very suspicious. You have to be very careful with them - one time the kids were all playing a little rough with some friends and the dog jumped in and started to attack one of the kids. Luckily no great damage was done, but they all had to be really careful after that.

OTOH, I am positively assured that nobody is going to hurt my daughter while that dog is with her.

Malinois are a herding breed, not a hunter. If you're still interested in one though, there is a breeder (very good line - lots of champions) not far from us. I'm sure she would ship anywhere.

I don't know why a Lab or Golden or similar breed would not be an adequate guard dog. Our half grown Golden is very friendly in general, but if somebody comes walking into the yard, he starts in on a very deep throated bark and growl (even family members until he recognizes them). The bird dogs are very people oriented and very eager to please.

 

[Fletchette]

I don't know why a Lab or Golden or similar breed would not be an adequate guard dog.

My folks had a Lab when I was young - she was not very freindly and pretty lazy. My folks also got an Irish Setter (not a Lab or Golden, but similar in my mind, although I may be mistaken). She was lovable and freindly but not very smart and a fraidy-dog. If someone knocked on the door she ran away and hid!

Of course, these were individual dogs and I cannot say that the whole breed all behave this way.

I've heard that Goldens make great family dogs but have not heard anything about their protection abilities.

My boyhood pal could also be a little agressive during rough play, so perhaps he did have some Belgian in him. I was a typical boy however, and did not mind a few scratches from play bites. He could sometimes knock me over when we played frizbee so as to get the frizbee!

 

[Arc-Lite]

Check into the German Shorthair... not a big dog, but puts 100% in everything they do.

 

[iluvlabs1]

My wife and I have had labs forever...long before we met, married and had our wonderful children. I've hunted a few times with friends who had labs. With all the dogs I've had the pleasure of knowing, I've never encountered a breed more loveable, goofy, obedient, ingenious, playful, protective, slobbering, shedding, brain-damaged, loyal and affectionate....my eyes are watering a bit remembering them all.....

 

[The Real Hawkeye]

The German Shorthair would be a good compromise between protection and hunting. They are pretty good bird dogs, and can be trained to track, but generally not both. Also, they sort of look like serious dogs, so someone might think twice before testing one.

Additionally, the Chesapeake Bay Retriever is known as a tough dog that can retrieve, if that's the kind of hunting dog you had in mind. I heard of a case of one who attacked an armed attacker who broke into his master's home with a gun in his hand. The dog came out of the kitchen from the man's side and tore into the gun holding hand till he dropped it, and the bad guy ran out the door. The owner said the dog never had any training as a protection dog, and just figured it out for himself that this guy meant ill and what to do about it. That shows some spunk and protective instinct. Perhaps not every example would act that way, but they are known for being tough dogs in general, while also being good family dogs.

 

[Ivy Mike]

I think you would be better off avoiding a sporting breed if possible. Retrievers in particular, while quite loyal are also very people friendly as a general rule. Not ideal for a guard dog. Great hunting companions though. We are starting to see problems in these popular breeds though. More labs are getting aggresive and more goldens are having hip problems. Bad breeding and bad owners are starting to hurt the breed.

You may actually want to consider forgetting about the guard requirement all together and just look for an alarm dog. My beagle always lets me know if there is someone about. He has a fairly loud, deep bark that always catches attention. They are usually good with kids and as a hound, would probably make a decent hunting dog although they are a bit small and not as immune to cold as say a lab or golden retriever.

I would avoid a bully breed. One, they tend to be bad guard dogs. They were bred with more animal aggresive tendencies rather than human aggresive. Their handlers need to be able to control them in a dog fight. The bad press they get is usually unfounded and stems from bad owners and bad situations. Great family pets though as long as you've got the time to train and have kids who understand what owning such a dog means. They are not for everybody.

I'm a little biased though. I've got both a female pit mix and a male beagle.

I suppose the answer I'd give would be Rottweiler or maybe a German Shepard

 

[Fletchette]

My wife and I have had labs forever...long before we met, married and had our wonderful children. I've hunted a few times with friends who had labs. With all the dogs I've had the pleasure of knowing, I've never encountered a breed more loveable, goofy, obedient, ingenious, playful, protective, slobbering, shedding, brain-damaged, loyal and affectionate....my eyes are watering a bit remembering them all.....

Our next door neighbor has a lab - your description is perfect!

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

They haven't been mentioned yet, so I will.

English Springer Spaniels.

I had a pair (mother and son). They were great pets and hunters, good with the kids, and believe it or not, fiercely protective. Bred for hunting upland game, but they will gladly jump into the river and retrieve your duck, too.

When we had ours, my wife decided to have her niece, Karen, come over and do some house cleaning. Now the dogs knew Karen and had never had a problem with her (or anybody else). Sandy told Karen to just go into the backyard and get the key out of a hidden place in the garage to get in the house. The dogs would not allow Karen into the backyard when we weren't there. Karen said the dogs were baring their teeth and growling, something I had never witnessed from these dogs. If Karen came over when we were there, no problem.

Make sure you get one out of English breeding stock though, the Americans have been turning them into show dogs.

RIP, Daisy and Brutus.

 

[pete f]

Ahhhhhh DOGS.

do you want a Guard dog, IE and attack everything that should not be in the house dog? get a shepard or dobie or a pitbull. and then get tons of insurance. Cus you will be paying out like mad.


If you want to get a hunting dog, figure out what kind of hunting you are doing and then train him/her correctly to be your loyal hunting dog and the protective and possessive home guard will grow out of the dog.

If you are going to hunt ducks and geese, get a dog for that, if you hunting pheasants or grouse, get a dog for that. Then learn how to train a dog to hunt were you can hand and eye control of the dog...that level of trust and faith between the two of you will guarantee a protective dog.

Also train the dog that the house is in his command. Do not open the door without the dog at your heel. let him bark, praise him for barking. then calm him and keep him close while you open the door. Allow him to sniff the new arrival a few times and then sit him down and mean it. develop a routine, Dogs will understand, when you go walkin with the dog, if some one starts to follow you, stiffen, and allow your self to get down wind of the new walker, this will tip the dog that you do not like people coming from down wind and that un known people are not considered safe till you see them. Dogs learn very very fast. within 2 weeks of our new puppy going on the leash, he understood that when i was alert he was to alert too.

This dog IS very protective now, to the point that NO ONE would make in to my living room who has not been introduced to the dog with out serious interaction with the dog. A neighbor Kid found a set of keys and thought he would enter the house, we found the front door open, the keys in the door and the dog sitting at the front door till we got home. A neighbor saw the kid walk up to our door and then run away moments later.

A good guard dog can be as small as a jack russell. or a beagle. The whole point as far as i am concerned is warning, physical intervention is far less important than letting me know a stranger is about. We had a city inspector walking about one morning early and the Dog was in a tizzy, growling, snarling the whole time. This guy exhibited the sort of i belong here attitude that would come from walking around other peoples houses a lot and the dog did not want that all.

 

[Ivy Mike]

Pete, I can't tell you how wrong you are about pitbulls.
In fact, your use of that particular term tells me that you aren't really all that up on the background and nature of these dogs.

Bully breeds are normally loving, sweet, loyal dogs. They are intelligent and desire to please their masters. They posses great strength both in a physical sense and of will.

To get these animals to attack a human, need to train them to do it.

Now, you can train any dog to attack a person, but when dealing with bullies, it takes more. These animals were not bred to go after people and only the worst examples do.

To the original poster, I ask you; Please do not get a bully breed and expect it to be a good guard dog. They make great pets for the right owner, but there are other breeds better suited to going after people.

GSDs are a prime example. They are used all the time by police to bite bad guys.

 

[tater_salad]

and then get tons of insurance. Cus you will be paying out like mad.

This does bring up a good point. While I also disagree with your generalization and prejudice of the different breeds, the insurance issue is a real one. I would check with your agent before getting any breed and make sure that you will still be eligable for coverage should you get x breed of dog. I know that my insurance company has a 'banned list' that you could have problems with coverage or claims if they find out you have one. Something to check into, all I had to do was just give my agent a call and he rattled off a list of a half-dozen or so breeds that are not allowed. I also understand that some cities alltogether are banning certain breeds, so you may want to research that as well to ensure that by owning a particular breed of dog, you won't be breaking any local laws. It is unfortunate that this is what our world is coming too, although I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised.
Another thing you can do is check out the AKC web site, http://www.akc.org, they have a list of all of their different breeds and the distinctions and traits of each. While not all breeds are covered by AKC, it is a place to start. Once you get a list of several breeds that you're interested in, follow up with AKC's breeder registry and start talking to local breeders. If you talk to the breeders that are registered with the AKC, it's hard to find a better source of information on their particular breed.

 

[Pilot]

Check into the German Shorthair... not a big dog, but puts 100% in everything they do.

I have a German Shorthair. They are good watch dogs as the only bark when they hear a strange noise or someone comes to the door. They don't bark at everything like many other dogs. Mine is a male and IS a big dog. He is on the tall side for a Shorthair, 85 lbs and all muscle. They are great dogs, but must get exercise daily.

 

[The Real Hawkeye]

Ahhhhhh DOGS.

do you want a Guard dog, IE and attack everything that should not be in the house dog? get a shepard or dobie or a pitbull. and then get tons of insurance. Cus you will be paying out like mad.

Not true at all. Over the last approximately 40 years, I have been through two German Shepherds, one Doberman Pinscher and two Pitbulls. I have NEVER had any problems with them attacking the wrong people. Trespassers have been chased off the property, yes, but I am talking about people who climbed over a six foot privacy fence. You have never seen human beings jumping like they jumped over that fence to get away from my dogs. These dogs, however, were the Shepherds and the Doberman (owned at different times, not at once). The Pitbulls I've owned would actually be glad for the company if someone climbed the fence, so you are completely wrong with regard to their natures. I've had plenty of people walk in on my Pitbulls, such as gardeners that apparently cannot understand the English instruction never to enter my yard without knocking first. The typical Pitbull reaction to Central American gardeners suddenly bursting into to their personal space is to wag their tails, grab a toy and attempt to initiate play time with them. Pitbulls are people dogs by nature, due to factors having to do with their historical purpose for being bred. They can be trained to attack people, and they can be made into mean dogs with concerted effort, but this is as far from their nature as training a Greyhound to retrieve ducks would be. There is a certain element in our society, however, who thinks the effort to make Pitbulls mean is worth while. This is unfortunate, because it has contributed to the common misunderstanding of the breed, not to mention various and sundry ill-conceive breed-specific bans on them in certain cities. Take it from someone who has raised German Shepherds, a Doberman, and two Pitbulls in his lifetime thus far. While German Shepherds and Dobermans ARE by nature aggressive towards uninvited unknown human beings on their territory (though not inappropriately so, if raised right) aggression towards human beings is just not a natural attitude of Pitbulls.

If you want to get a hunting dog, figure out what kind of hunting you are doing and then train him/her correctly to be your loyal hunting dog and the protective and possessive home guard will grow out of the dog.

If you are going to hunt ducks and geese, get a dog for that, if you hunting pheasants or grouse, get a dog for that. Then learn how to train a dog to hunt were you can hand and eye control of the dog...that level of trust and faith between the two of you will guarantee a protective dog.

Also train the dog that the house is in his command. Do not open the door without the dog at your heel. let him bark, praise him for barking. then calm him and keep him close while you open the door. Allow him to sniff the new arrival a few times and then sit him down and mean it. develop a routine, Dogs will understand, when you go walkin with the dog, if some one starts to follow you, stiffen, and allow your self to get down wind of the new walker, this will tip the dog that you do not like people coming from down wind and that un known people are not considered safe till you see them. Dogs learn very very fast. within 2 weeks of our new puppy going on the leash, he understood that when i was alert he was to alert too.

This dog IS very protective now, to the point that NO ONE would make in to my living room who has not been introduced to the dog with out serious interaction with the dog. A neighbor Kid found a set of keys and thought he would enter the house, we found the front door open, the keys in the door and the dog sitting at the front door till we got home. A neighbor saw the kid walk up to our door and then run away moments later.

A good guard dog can be as small as a jack russell. or a beagle. The whole point as far as i am concerned is warning, physical intervention is far less important than letting me know a stranger is about. We had a city inspector walking about one morning early and the Dog was in a tizzy, growling, snarling the whole time. This guy exhibited the sort of i belong here attitude that would come from walking around other peoples houses a lot and the dog did not want that all.

I think the remainder of your post makes a lot of sense, and I agree wtih the gist of it.

 

[The Real Hawkeye]

Pete, I can't tell you how wrong you are about pitbulls.
In fact, your use of that particular term tells me that you aren't really all that up on the background and nature of these dogs.

Bully breeds are normally loving, sweet, loyal dogs. They are intelligent and desire to please their masters. They posses great strength both in a physical sense and of will.

To get these animals to attack a human, need to train them to do it.

Now, you can train any dog to attack a person, but when dealing with bullies, it takes more. These animals were not bred to go after people and only the worst examples do.

To the original poster, I ask you; Please do not get a bully breed and expect it to be a good guard dog. They make great pets for the right owner, but there are other breeds better suited to going after people.

GSDs are a prime example. They are used all the time by police to bite bad guys.

I assume a GSD is a German Shepherd Dog? Yes, it is easier to train one of them for authentic human aggression than to train a Pitbull for it. I have seen Pitbulls trained in attack work, and in their case it is usually done so that, from their perspective, they are just having a good time. It is not typically real aggression, however, with this breed, but rather a game that they can take to very enthusiastically. With German Shepherds and Dobermans, it is not necessary to make it a game for them to do it well. They take to real aggression towards people very easily. I had a protection trained Doberman who took this work very seriously indeed. For a Pitbull, usually, it is an extension of a game of tug of war. They are just taught that enthusiastically biting a person's arm is just another kind of game for them to throw themselves into wholehartedly. As for the human on the receiving end, it wouldn't matter whether he was being attacked by a German Shepherd, Doberman or Pitbull. He'd be at the receiving end of a world of hurt either way. I only make the point that with Pitbulls you need to trick them around a natural aversion towards human aggression, while with Dobermans and German Shepherds, you need only encourage them to give expression to their inbred tendancy towards human aggression. The difference is due to the fact that guard dog breeds were bred over centuries for the characteristics of 1) suspicion of all strangers, and 2) a suppressed inhibition towards human aggression. Contrarily, Pitbulls were bred for centuries for the opposite characteristics with regard to people. This is because they are sporting dogs, not guard dogs. They were bred to be handled by just about anyone, so they had to be indiscriminately friendly towards people or they would not be bred for the game. Only those dogs who were easily handled by strangers, even in the midst of a dog fight, were useful for the sport, so their gene pool is chock full of that characteristic.

 

[Old Dog]

get a shepard or dobie or a pitbull. and then get tons of insurance. Cus you will be paying out like mad.

I've owned GSDs for 30 years and have never needed insurance, nor have any of my insurance companies ever even asked what breeds of dogs I might own.

A professionally-trained GSD will not attack indiscriminately. I've bred, raised and trained Shepherds for years. They're fine guard dogs; they can be trained to only attack someone who's behaving aggressively to a family member. But, as anyone who is familiar with the breed knows, GSDs are one of the finest dogs around as far as getting along with children and are tremendously loyal to all family members. My oldest dog (the original Old Dog), who sadly passed away last year, accompanied me duck hunting on a couple occasions and was known to go in the water after ducks (he apparently had identity issues and thought he was a Lab).

I recommend separate dogs for each function, however.

 

[roo_ster]

Check into the German Shorthair... not a big dog, but puts 100% in everything they do.

The German Shorthair would be a good compromise between protection and hunting. They are pretty good bird dogs, and can be trained to track, but generally not both. Also, they sort of look like serious dogs, so someone might think twice before testing one.

You may actually want to consider forgetting about the guard requirement all together and just look for an alarm dog.

I own two German Shorthaired Pointers, a male & female. The GSPs were designed to be all-around dogs:
Pointers
Retrievers
Varmint killers
Trackers
A completely different philosophy than the English, who had a dog for every job.

A GSP is enthusiastic and optimistic...and athletic. The short hair lets you see their well-defined musculature.

They are impressive to look at, especially the male. Very well-muscled and lots of folks are intimidated at first.

My GSPs are pretty darned serious about their house & yard guarding duties. They want a job to do when they are not hunting. The female is my early warning system. Hers is a deep, "don't eff with me" bark. The male waits until folks are closer. If he signs out, I know someone is close and act accordingly.

I don't know if they would actually attack a stranger in their territory, however. Nobody has jumped the fence that I know of.

They make terrific hunters and alarm dog. If you want actual human-aggression, you might be better served with one of the shepherd breeds.

Good luck.

 

[Fletchette]

Thanks for all the advise.

I should probably clarify that I would want to hunt with this dog only as a secondary function as compared to guarding and protecting family.

My intent is to have a dog that is alert and barks when he/she hears a possible intruder, but not barks all the time. I will not abuse the dog in training; I believe that a dog should be led, not oppressed. All that a person need to do is establish who is boss, and that does not mean abusive boss. I only hit my childhood buddy once when I was ~14, and that was right after he broke my leg (torn knee ligament, required surgery) trying to knock me over to get a Frisbee. I immediately apologized to the dog, and still feel badly about it - he was only playing. Playing rough, but playing.

I consider myself to be a pretty good dog person; so I know what to expect and is expected. I do not mind a dog that is aggressive enough to bite an intruder (I expect it!), and will happily deal with the legal/insurance ramifications rather then the death of a loved one. Looking back, my German Shepherd/unknown was probably a bit aggressive for most people, but was fine for me. He was loyal and faithful, and I had no worries leaving him with my little sister, but he had to be introduced to strangers, including children.

I am willing to work with the dog and establish discipline, so I do not believe this to be a problem. The Belgians are very intriguing as the appearance and demeanor are very similar to my “ideal dog”; the gate and posture are identical, as well as the emotions. Looking at Belgians in aggressive attack training by professionals you can see the dog is having a blast, wagging his/her tail and obeying commands – not out of control.

That said, I will look into German Shorthairs and Dobermans as well. I do not need a dog immediately, but training in the summer is nice compared to winter…

 

[pete f]

What i was trying to say was get a dog and train it to be an atack dog and you will need insurance. having a GS pit bull dobie etc was just picking on what a civil jury is going to say when your trained guard dog goes postal on someones kid.

I SAID IT WRONG< I SHOULD HAVE BEEN CLEARER >>

yes i know there are some gsd and pit bulls that can be and are nice house dogs. Dobies too, but the perception is vastly different.

Some of this is blamed on the AKC and some on unethical breeders. the AKC for years wanted GSD and DP's to have narrow heads with close set eyes to meet some "appearance" guideline. To win shows your dog had to look a certain way. This influenced some breeders to inbreed enough to cause some serious defects in the strains. Collies were also subject to this and the breed has really lost standing because of the effects.
Unethical breeders have also really caused some issueds in the lineage too.

I know three people who have sheltered pitbulls thinking they could correct the dogs aggressive behavior and these were experienced dog people and of the three not one still has the dog, two were forced to be put down for aggresive behavior, and the other never behaved and got hit by a car after chasing another dog. I think there has been some really REALLY bad genetics introduced into the pitbull lineage in the underground market. sure they maybe some nice ones out there, but the mold has been set by a lot of precedent and if you end up in court over a dog bite, you will need that insurance. And if your agent has not asked you what kind of dog you have you need a new agent. My HO policy has a much higher rate for certain breeds. I know huskies, St bernard, pitbull, dobies and a couple of others are an increased premium.

I have not met a NON schizo Doberman in a long time. These too seem to have been bred for looks by some and for aggression by others and now seem to be really nutty dogs. I AM sure someone out there has a wonderful one which will change the diapers on the the toddler, but I am in and out of houses all day long, and i see dogs, lots of dogs, and that is my voice.

GSD seem to be the better of the bunch, for some reason you do not see them as addled as the others i talked about. Although you still see them as service dogs and police dogs of late, they have lost some of the cachet that they had when i was growing up. so some of the bad seems to have been weeded back out. When i was in high school i worked part time at a truck shop and home heating oil delivery business. We had supplied guard dogs that were let loose inside the shop every night. I tell you after seeing that guy and his dogs, it was no wonder that people had bad perceptions of GSD for a long time. I also worked on a crew for a while that had a GSD as a shop dog and she was a good dog unless she was going into season. then she got ornery.

THE POINT OF WHAT I WAS saying is this. Get a hunting dog and have a dog that will do both jobs with you. hunt and watch dog. get a guard dog and just have that. a guard dog. yes it may be a companion and a very good onetoo, but so wil a hunting dog, and a hunting dog trained well will automatically become a watch dog. Hunting dogs were bred to be working dogs. dealing with man on a one to one basis. bred to be smart first.

NOT blaming the dog any of this but the human intervention.

and besides, the best dog i have ever had the pleasure of hunting behind was a chessie/gsp mix . the momma and the papa got together MUCH to hte displeasure of both owners but ohhhh the off spring were the best working dogs i have ever seen. so you might get lucky with a pound mix.

 

[pete f]

one more thing. one nicer thing about training a puppy in the cold is that you can train them to urinate defecate on command. most puppies are not real keen on cold and if you tell them to "go pee go poop" and then take them indoors and give treats when they accomplish this is a great thing. On a car trip I can now pull the dog out of the kennel and say the magic words and with in a minute or two he has accomplished this. This separates the "play time" from the "potty" time and really is a nice secret weapon to have in January in the middle nowhere truck stop with the wind howling.. Another trick my wife taught the dog was "belly up" after walks. When the dog comes in the house, on command of belly up the dog rolls over and presents his feet to get wiped off. Wife grew up on a working beef farm hated her dog walking in with cowsh$$ on its feet.

 

[V4Vendetta]

I have no dog now. But I used to have a dog that would be great for alerting me if someone was coming down the driveway or if there were deer outside. She died last year. Bear was as much a part of my family as my mom. She was part Chow, part something else, all love. My advice is to find a dog that you love & that loves you in return. Then they will truly want to protect you.

 

[Havegunjoe]

You don't need a killer.

You need a dog that will warn you if someone is coming near your home. I have a Chocolate Lab the warns me whenever someone is near the front or back door. I don't want a dog that will kill the neighborhood kids, just give me a warning so there are no surprises. She is a great pheasant dog too.

 

[The Real Hawkeye]

What i was trying to say was get a dog and train it to be an atack dog and you will need insurance. having a GS pit bull dobie etc was just picking on what a civil jury is going to say when your trained guard dog goes postal on someones kid.

I SAID IT WRONG< I SHOULD HAVE BEEN CLEARER >>

yes i know there are some gsd and pit bulls that can be and are nice house dogs. Dobies too, but the perception is vastly different.

There you go again making the same two mistakes, and you don't even know it. Mistake correction number one: It is not true that MOST German Shepherds and Dobermans are bad dogs. Mistake correction number two: Pitbulls should never be placed in the same category as German Shepherds and Dobermans. It is the rare Pitbull that has any native aggressiveness towards or suspicion of human beings. If we are seeing bad behavior of Pitbulls raised in bad inner city neighborhoods, its because of the way they were raised. These dogs are treated like dirt by the worst scum of the earth. Any dog raised like that will become unpredictable and dangerous. I don't care if its a Golden Retriever. You are mistaken in associating this with the genes of the dog. Virtually EVERY PITBULL I'VE EVER MET that was raised by a normal human being, and that's a lot, was the sweetest dog you'd ever want to know, with virtually no suspicion of, or aggression towards, strangers.

Some of this is blamed on the AKC and some on unethical breeders. the AKC for years wanted GSD and DP's to have narrow heads with close set eyes to meet some "appearance" guideline. To win shows your dog had to look a certain way. This influenced some breeders to inbreed enough to cause some serious defects in the strains. Collies were also subject to this and the breed has really lost standing because of the effects.
Unethical breeders have also really caused some issueds in the lineage too.

I know three people who have sheltered pitbulls thinking they could correct the dogs aggressive behavior and these were experienced dog people and of the three not one still has the dog, two were forced to be put down for aggresive behavior, and the other never behaved and got hit by a car after chasing another dog. I think there has been some really REALLY bad genetics introduced into the pitbull lineage in the underground market.

No, there are some really bad people who own Pitbulls. Unfortunately, the scum of the earth has an interest in this breed because of the very true fact that they are extremely tough and tenacious fighters. But that is not good enough for them. They make every effort to make them mean towards people too by the way they raise them.

Sure there maybe some nice ones out there, but the mold has been set by a lot of precedent and if you end up in court over a dog bite, you will need that insurance.

The "mold" was set by many centuries of breeding to strain out any trace of human aggression. That cannot be broken by a few decades of bad ownership. What you are seeing are the results of bad ownership, not a bad breed. Whether you realize it or not, there are some truly evil people in this world, and they too like to own dogs. They don't like Golden Retrievers, because Golden Retrievers are not able to woop every dog in the neighborhood. They like Pitbulls, to the great misfortune of the members of that breed.

And if your agent has not asked you what kind of dog you have you need a new agent. My HO policy has a much higher rate for certain breeds. I know huskies, St bernard, pitbull, dobies and a couple of others are an increased premium.

It's none of my agent's business what kind of dog I have, or even if I have a dog. If any were to ask, I'd immediately get a new agent.

I have not met a NON schizo Doberman in a long time. These too seem to have been bred for looks by some and for aggression by others and now seem to be really nutty dogs. I AM sure someone out there has a wonderful one which will change the diapers on the the toddler, but I am in and out of houses all day long, and i see dogs, lots of dogs, and that is my voice.

You've got a real attitude problem, don't you? Dobermans being suspicious of strangers, and displaying aggression are doing exactly what they have been bred to do for centuries. This is not being schizo. These dogs love their own family members, and will protect their owners children and property with their lives. That's what they are for. If you don't like dogs that are actually worth something, that's your problem.

 

[Dave R]

Lemme try to make this simple. Get a hunting dog. The dog will naturally want to protect its "family." That's what they do. It may not attack an intruder--that's fine. All you really need it to do is sound the alarm and get in the intruder's face. Turns away all but the most serious agressors. And those, it'll at least slow down.

Individual dogs vary by personality. Some are naturally more paranoid than others. But most normal dogs learn pretty quick to understand who's "in the pack" and who's not.

Get a dog you'll enjoy. Most all hunting dogs will fit that bill. They'll do the protection thing by default.

When I got my dog (who is not a hunting dog, just a family dog), the thing I liked best is that I didn't feel the need to get up when things "go bump in the night." I learned pretty quick that, if it was anything to worry about, the dog would let me know. The only downside is, a neighbor cat in the yard is something she thinks I need to know about. But on those rare occasions when the neighbor teens came over to get one of my kids to sneak out, the dog made sure we knew something was up. That gave me confidence that NO ONE was going to get in, day or night, without facing the dog. And criminals do NOT want to face the dog.