Dogs, watch dog or home protection?

[BigJon10125]

and he WILL nail anyone that comes in that he doesnt know.

Like their leg or do you mean attack?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[oneshot]

HIGH POCKETS...

Great looking dog...I love big dogs!
Nothing beats the companionship of a BIG lovable and protective canine.


To the OP...

I have two dogs, a three year old Irish Wolfhound (Maggie) who is a lover, not sure about the watchdog part yet...no incidents.
The other is a 6 month old Rhodesian Ridgeback (Gunner) who WILL be a fine watchdog. He's afraid of nothing... He came from a breeder who has about 7-8 full grown RR at her place. She had two litters totaling 20 pups. When I got Gunner, she told me that the pups all stayed by the house, but one of the pups, yes Gunner, was going out on the property in the midst of the other full-grown adults to let them know that there was a new Sheriff in town. Yep, he's definitely got the personality to protect the home. He's very lovable with us and our little buddy (5 year old) from across the street, but he's very inquisitive, very bold, fears nothing. I even tried a tactic with the vacuum to see what he'd do. He was watching it and backed up a bit from it...when I went towards him, he backed up, waited a few seconds and attacked it...yep, he's going to watch the house.

Here's the new sheriff at 8 weeks and 14lbs...he's now 6.5 months and 80+lbs
Attachment 67950 Doesn't he have that "new sheriff" look?

^^^ret^^^^^^

I probably don't need to tell you, Rhodesian Ridgebacks were bred in South Africa to hunt lions.
They are very fearless and protective.
The SA families often leave the RR's with their children outside there to protect them from all the wild nasty critters.

[DMan]

When I ask about dogs what I'm hearing is they are great watch dogs and "MIGHT" even protect you when you are home but unless they are highly trained, professional BG's know how to handle them...

Food for thought - How many homes are broken into by professional BG's? versus thugs looking for something to steal so they can get some drugs? I am not worried about the professional BG because they are very rare, most are amateurs that think jail is their home. Professionals BG's know how to case a house, make entry with the least risk possible. (i.e. nobody home). Sure a dog may not stop them, but then again, if I am not home I need to worry about protecting myself from BG's that may attack my person, versus stuff in my home.

Regarding dogs, some dogs are easily distracted or scared. Other dogs develop such a bond with their master and pack that when a member of the pack is attached they defend against the attack to protect their pack. I have one of both. We know this from experience, so does the guy that tried to hit my wife several years ago.

[Arborigine]

Today, the pup was the thief. I went inside for a minute, when i came back she was chewing on a shop rag and I had to search for where she scattered the lug nuts for my truck. One is missing, hope she didn't swallow it, these are the big ones.

[tacman605]

A lot depends on the person(s) who are trying to break in. As stated many times the sight/sound of a dog is enough to deter lower rate thugs but those who plan the break in normally factor in the dog. I have arrested thieves who came prepared with pepper spray, heavy coats with towels duct taped to their arms to catch the bite of the dog (Note the plan did not work as the dog bypassed the offered arm and bit lower center mass) but in theory they had it all worked out.

My English Bulldog who passed away was 74 pounds of dog 14 inches off the ground and was easily irritated by strangers around the house whether we were home or not, it interfered with the after breakfast pre lunch nap. My wife purchased her current companion who is simply a noise maker unless it involves her chew toy then it's game on.

Not sure what she is. Haircut like a schnauzer, spots like a dalmatian and the energy of a methhead. Here she is at the groomer's home after her salon day.

sasha at groomers.jpg

[Camjr]

I don't need a dog to defend. I want my dog to be vigilant and alert. For that reason, I prefer herding breeds and shepherds-that's all I've shared my home with for nearly two decades. My faithful companion for the first 14 years was a very large Australian Shepherd, and now my constant companion is a rescued GSD named Fritz that became part of our family at 10 weeks old. Neither dog would let anyone get within 3 houses of mine in the neighborhood (unfortunately, I live in a cookie-cutter suburban neighborhood on the outskirts of the DFW area) without alerting and letting us know. I have windows in the fence so he can keep an eye on the rear of the house as well (windows are covered with expanded metal).

I don't know if he would go after someone that entered the house for nefarious reasons while we were or weren't home, but the fact that there is a German Shepherd barking at the window or door will probably cause an evil-doer to go to another house. He has free reign inside and out in the back yard behind locked gates and a tall fence via a dog door.

Here's my eyes and ears:



Cheers!

[Spirit51]

Today, the pup was the thief. I went inside for a minute, when i came back she was chewing on a shop rag and I had to search for where she scattered the lug nuts for my truck. One is missing, hope she didn't swallow it, these are the big ones.

She may have to go to Dogshaming Really funny site. My Buddy dog is cruising for a place there. He knows why.

[RKM]

I would never rely on my dog, not matter what it was, to be a "guard" dog without proper training. You can easily rely on bogs to be a watch dog and act as an alarm system, or early detection system. It takes nothing more than a Boston Terrier for that role. Which is the same role a 120Lb Rottweiler would likely serve, unless trained as a guard dog. The Rotty would easily be much more intimidating. Though, many BG's may know ways to handle dogs of any kind or any size. By handle I mean deal with... dog treats, steaks, or having the ability to communicate well with dogs and trick them into not being a threat. These are things, well trained guard dogs would not be as susceptible to.

I'd certainly hope, that if a BG broke into my house without me there that my dog barking and acting aggressive, which he does a very good job at, would be enough to be a deterrent. But that's all he is... a deterrent. I don't have any faith that he would actually attack somebody, not without any training.

When we had our GSD, he's was 120lbs of wuss. He barked a mean bark, but take a step near him, he'd scurried away to another room. We had him put down almost a year ago due to health problems at the age of 10. He'd be 12 this coming June. Our other dog, who we still currently have, has a VERY vicious bark and growl, he doesn't show fear and will not back down, but at the same time, he's not aggressive in anyway. He's more intimidating than our GSD ever was. When they were together, they could have been a great deterrent. But probably not much more.

[Tala]

I think the point of the thread is that dogs are only a deterrent, most pets are not attack/guard dogs.
Most of us understand that, and are ok with it. I don't think too many of us are laying our guns down because Fido is on watch.

Oftentimes, all you need is a deterrent, you may never know how effective it is because the badguy passed on. Just have a plan if it doesn't work out.

[azrn]

i agree; dogs are a great alarm for those at home and also may keep the bad guy from entering your house when you are not at home. but that is a big maybe. be thankful for the early alarm and don't depend on the dog to keep out the bad guy when you are not home. azrn

[Olduser]

...they are great watch dogs and "MIGHT" even protect you when you are home...

Mine will simply alert and say something like, "We're going to get you won't we Dad."

[DannyB1954]

Big dogs are a liability in several ways. If they ever do go nuts on the neighbors kid, or dog, they can do a lot of damage. A lot of Insurance companies charge a premium on home owners insurance if you have one, or will not even carry you. They eat a lot, and what goes in comes out. It is not that I don't love them, it is just impractical for me. I have an RV, and a lot of parks and camp sites will not let you in with a large dog. My dog is about 18lbs, which is about as large a dog that I would want in my lap. I guess you could call her an alert type of dog. She barks, and I bite if necessary.

If they don't allow dogs in heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went. Will Rogers

[Brady]

Bailey is very good watch dog. She acts like she's gonna eat somebody. She caused 2 Deputies to back up the other day.




Hopefully she won't be spoiled into oblivion. She likes it way too much!

[msc8127]

We had a recent burglary attempt at our home while the wife and I were both at work. I have a female pit bull that is 16 months old in the back yard, and apparently the would be thieves didn't want to try their luck with her, so they decided to try busting out a glass in the garage door to be able to pull the garage door opener bypass rope which would allow them entry to the garage. Well... My huge black lab, who is actually more protective than my pit stays in the garage during the day, so as the idiots tried to grab the bypass lever he put a good bite on one of their arms, and pulled the idiot's arm down onto the broken glass. That was the end of their break in attempt apparently, and the guy was later caught at the ER getting his arm taken care of.

So, in my opinion, dogs can be tremendously effective in protecting the fort.

sent via iCarry

[K_9twofive]

A good friend of mine used to have a dog named Gideon. Gid was some kind of a mastiff cross, about 115 lbs, and the ugliest, meanest looking dog you've ever met. Seriously, he looked like somebody crossed a junkyard dog with a D11 dozer. He also didn't have a mean bone in his body...loved everybody. His owner, Rachel, stood 5'1" and about an even hundred pounds. She was pretty, though, and got hit on a lot, especially in a college town. Having a wicked sense of humor, Rachel (who also carried a G19 way before it was cool), trained Gid to growl and show teeth on command, and his command was her grabbing his collar and saying, "easy, Gid." And believe me, when a dog this big and ugly growled, it made an impression.

So picture the scenario: Rachel is out walking some sunny evening. Tipsy frat boy matches pace with her and tries to put his arm around her. Rachel smiles, apologizes sweetly for her dog's bad manners, grabs Gideon's collar and says, "easy, Gid." Frat boy finds urgent business elsewhere as Gideon rumbles a growl that would put a Kenworth to shame.

Always loved that dog.

Sent from my Motorola on a very tiny keyboard. Awkward autocorrects are not unexpected.