# Characteristics of a great guard dog??



## Velinda81 (Jul 7, 2004)

I have one GSD, Nadia (eight yrs) who was given to me when she was 1 1/2 she is our first GSD. She is a great guard dog, since i enrolled her in obedience training right away she's learned the basic commands. She notifies us right away when cars arrive at our front gate or if there is an animal or person walking around the property. We also live in the country so I usually take her out on walks off leash since not many animals or people are around. She has gone camping, attended walkathons with us occasionally. Being that she is getting older we thought it was time to look into getting another GSD. We are currently waiting for another GSD (male puppy) to reach at least 8 wks before bringing it home since I read boy and girl GSD's get along better. I've read that socialism is very important however my husband feels that by exposing our new puppy to people and other dogs it would make it less of a guard dog. I enjoy having dogs for companionship my husband on the other hand wants security since our home is also his office. Being a general contractor he has sheds of equipment, tractors, trucks etc....What is the real answer to this question, what makes a great guard dog? Extremely confused, please help.


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## Cassidy's Mom (Mar 30, 2003)

> Originally Posted By: VelindaI've read that socialism is very important however my husband feels that by exposing our new puppy to people and other dogs it would make it less of a guard dog.


Your hubby is WRONG! Not exposing your puppy to people and other dogs is far more likely to create a fearful dog that reacts defensively to new experiences, because he's so rarely exposed to them that he hasn't learned how to recognize the difference between a friendly stranger and one who means you (and him) harm.


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## Anja1Blue (Feb 27, 2008)

I agree - your husbands view of things has landed many dogs on the dangerous list, or in shelters where they are immediately PTS. A well bred GSD is going to be naturally protective- but without experience in the real world of people, other animals, and different situations (in other words, socialization) you will have an untrustworthy dog which will NOT be safe around anyone but yourselves, since it will have no experience of judging friend from foe. These dogs generally have to be shut away when friends or other family members visit, because you are going to have to worry about someone getting attacked/ bitten. An overprotective, unsocialized GSD is a time bomb waiting to go off........

_______________________________________________________
Susan

Anja GSD
Conor GSD - adopted from this Board
Blue GSD - at the Bridge


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

I'll just add a bit to what the others have said.

The more we expose our pups and dogs to the world, the more our dogs see what the world normally looks like. He'll learn what regular people walking down the street should act like; how people who are approaching you with smiles on their face, glancing at your dog, with the intent to chat with you about your puppy, look like. How people sitting at Starbucks or shopping at Petsmart conduct themselves. He'll have a world view. 

Your puppy, if exposed to a huge variety of people, will see that white/black/Asian/Latino/young/old/disabled/ etc -- most people act a certain way and they do him (and YOU) no harm. They're just folks. And most folks are people that can be glanced at, assessed and not given another thought.

With this sort of information, when your puppy sees someone who is acting unusual -- we all know the type: they look at us odd; they follow too close; they're wearing clothing that is very unusual for the season -- he'll know something is up. THAT's when he'll become protective. He'll watch that person very carefully. If the person gets too close, perhaps he'll give a warning stare. If the person meant no harm, he'll simply move on a little bit faster. If the person continues to move in, then your dog will become even more protective. 

Without a vast database of how people NORMALLY act, your dog won't be able to determine what is abnormal behavior. As Susan said, you'll have a dog that is fearful of everything because everything is abnormal to him. He'll be anxious; You'll be anxious to have him around you (because you know he's not trustworthy around other dogs, strangers, even children). Your anxiety will make him more anxious. A fear-driven dog is good for no one. 

A happy self-confident dog is a loyal protector of the family. He'll know how much to assert himself and when. I wouldn't want any other kind of dog, ever.


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## 3K9Mom (Jun 12, 2006)

I'll tell you a story I've never told here before. 

About a year and a half ago, I was outside with my dogs in the front yard. I had stepped inside to grab a soda and I heard two very low barks from my GSD. He was my service dog -- extremely well socialized. He would usually bounce around the front yard when he was playing with my also very well socialized senior beagle/spaniel mix. If a neighbor he knew walked by, he'd let out a high excited bark to say hello.

But this bark make the hair stand on the back of my neck. I looked out the front door and closed it immediately (I peeked through a window as I called 911). There were two men in very heavy jackets (it was August and it was HOT) standing in the middle of the street at one end of my yard, near the neighbor's house. They didn't look like they belonged here. Camper stood in the middle of the yard staring at them. He looked HUGE in his aggressive stance. My little beagle senior stood next to him. I could hear her growling. Camper didn't say a thing. The front fence and fence between our and our neighbor's house is one he could leap without any effort.

The guys looked at the dogs and started to walk down the street. Zamboni and Camper walked up to the fence and slowly walked the entire fence line with them, never uttering a peep. The guys turned and looked back at them, then kept going down the rest of the street. They looked back again, then turned down the next street. My dogs stood at the fence staring down the street for about 3 more minutes, like they were making sure they were really gone. When I opened the door, they didn't even turn and look at me. 

I live in a safe neighborhood. I have no idea who those guys were. But I have no doubt that they meant to do harm. My dogs knew it and they made it very clear that they would protect their home, their owner, and likely our neighbor's yard as well. 

Socialized friendly happy dogs. If you met Zamboni, you'd say "her?" Yeah, her.









I've never seen either of my dogs do anything like that before or since. Service dogs are not supposed to protect their owners. That's not their jobs. My kids simply stood their ground. They've seen (and met)thousands and thousands of normal people and recognized immediately that these guys weren't acting normal. They didn't instantly attack (which Camper could have). They didn't freak out. They gave a reasonable measured reaction, which worked. 

THAT is what you want.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

I agree with the others,,all a good guard dog needs is the "look" and/or a big bark ))


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## zyppi (Jun 2, 2006)

Your husband might find it interesting that puppies raised for seeing eye dogs are also suitable for law enforcement..
http://www.gebcuyahoga.org/faqs2.htm

Stable temperament, obedience, socialization are all part of any working dog.


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## Metalsmith (Mar 25, 2009)

Excellant posts here. I'll just add a bit more. 

I had a friend whose family always kept a rottie. When he was a puppy, they went out of their way not to introduce Grizz to anyone outside the family. They were sure this would make him a better guard dog. 

When I came over(when just about anyone came over) to visit, they had to put her 130lb Grizz away in the back bedroom. I'll never forget the first, and one of the few, times I visited. We were listening to music in the living room and the rottie was let in from outside. The moment he saw me he fixed me with laser-like stare and uttered a deep, rumbling growl. I knew enough about dog interactions to know not to look him and not to make any sudden moves. My friend and her brother did nothing until that growl transformed into a snarl with teeth bared. They _finally_ dragged him out of the living room and shut him in the back bedroom where I could still hear him growling when I left a few moments later. 

Scared the **** out me. I remember them being rather proud of their "guard dog". I heard from another friend a while back that they had get rid of their current rottie because that dog had bitten their 6 year old nephew in the face. I don't know the circumstances surrounding that bite, but I'm willing to bet that their "method" of making a guard dog had a lot to do with it.

You do not want an unsocialized dog. I think it's best to have a dog you can take out in public and one you won't have to put away when you have friends over.


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## Velinda81 (Jul 7, 2004)

Thank you all for your responses. I will read these comments to my husband after all I simply love to prove him wrong.


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## Velinda81 (Jul 7, 2004)

My husband says "Okay, okay I get the picture, thank you very much for telling me we can enjoy our dog with family and friends knowing he'll protect when he needs to."


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## Catu (Sep 6, 2007)

Another example. Early this year I went to a SAR Congress, Diabla is not a SAR dog, but my teammates are also my friends and, obviously, dog people, so they had no problem with her tagging along. During three days we lived, ate together and obedience trained with 40 people Diabla had never seen in her life. She even made a small demonstration to prove a point of how a dog with the right genetic and early preparation can understand some things the first time on the field that not a year of hard training can teach to the wrong dog.

But it happened the Congress was in a jail installations. We had little contact with the recluses and all of them were of "the good ones" (no rapist, killers or something like that) but between all the new people Diabla was able to distinguish a member of one of the SAR teams to the recluses way before me (most of the people were new to me too and sometimes I honestly didn't know if they were part of the meeting or curious residents looking at the exercises). She never acted aggressively to the recluses, but her attitude was very different from what I've ever seen before... and she got the point, a silent serious glance can be a worst deterrent than an hysterical barking.

How did she know? How she distinguished friend from foe? I don't know for sure, but I'm sure than to be exposed to hundred of friendly, good people and another thousand that she just had to ignore was a key factor.


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## JerzeyGSD (Jun 26, 2008)

> Originally Posted By: VelindaMy husband says "Okay, okay I get the picture, thank you very much for telling me we can enjoy our dog with family and friends knowing he'll protect when he needs to."


Great to hear.







Amazing how a GSD can be both a loving pet for the entire family and all of their friends to enjoy as well as a guard dog. Good luck in your search for a new addition.


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