What Breed For A House Guard Dog?

[Jet Gorgon]

Hey, Mobi. I spent more on new shoes and one pair of Nikes than I did on <deleted> dog food when I had munchkin babies. Never mind running around the neighbourhood trying to find the mate to one shoe. But, face it, we are suckers. Verbal scolding, holding up mangled shoe, finger-wagging...the dog whimpers down, we go off in a huff and then melt when the nose snuggles up under the elbow. And then you tell them the trouble they caused and they whimper and you say ya, Ok, and then all's fine until next time...

Are we on the new page yet...?

[Nienke]

11 pages already but did the OP choose the guard dog already? And which one? Pic's?

Getting curious

Nienke

[November Rain]

Bottom line to them is money. You pay, they'll keep on what they're doing. The only way to stop them is to remove money from the equation by not buying. Sadly, though, yes, these are living, sentient beings, rather than inanimate objects.

Absolutely right, NR.

Please, people, listen to this! The ONLY way to stop this kind of puppy farm cruelty is to STOP buying from them.

You may 'safe' that particular puppy, but with that the horror goes on for the mother dog, who is kept in a (often small) cage 24/7 and needs to produce every half a year. Often she is kept under not too hygienic circumstances, doesn't receive the proper (health) care and the nutritious food she especially required during pregnacy, weaning and to recover after the weaning. Once she can't produce anymore, she is dumped on the streets or kept under even more horrific circumstances somewhere hidden out of sight in a cage 24/7, dying a slow and most miserable death. Not to mention what happens to the litter mates of the puppy you 'rescued'.

With that one (or two) puppy you safe, you keep the misery of many other dogs ongoing.

So, PLEASE, DO NOT BUY from them!

Of course, there are people who have bought a pup from one of those markets or pet shops and the pup grew into a healthy adult. Unfortunately, there are many many others who were not lucky with their purchase and went through lots of misery and high vet bills.

IF you want to safe a dog, then you'd better contact one of the many rescue organisation. There are also full-breds coming in there.

Nienke

Agree one million percent. You cannot imagine the miserable life many of these breeding bitches have. And the potential for illnesses etc... Don't buy purebred dogs unless you have visited the breeder, seen the mother & are happy with everything you've seen!

[Jet Gorgon]

Make potential first-time guardians watch that Benji movie, with the sick breeding bitch, so they can vision what puppy farms are like.

I think the OP is long gone.

It's just the dog lovers left, sharing snaps of our cuties.

Edited June 5, 2007 by Jet Gorgon

[baboon]

My wife has a little yappy thing who thinks he is hard as nails.

My St. Bernard "Hitler" is a good barker too. I have yet to see anyone setting eyes on her that will open my gate afterwards. She would not do anything but her sheer SIZE is enough to put people off; not a good idea to find out this is the one savage St. Bernard. They are really good around children too.

[jetjock]

At one time, I had also entertained the idea of having one of my dogs professionally trained as an attack/guard dog. One of my good friends that had 20 years experience training attack dogs for the military talked me out of it. He told me that he felt that once a dogs natural inhibition of attacking a human was broken down, the dog should never be totally trusted as it would always be a potential time bomb no matter how mild mannered it appeared to be on the surface. He felt that a large dog that would bark was a much safer detterent for the average pet owner since most people that are willing to go past a dog's bark are usually willing to kill the dog. Even though I had many years of training my dogs for obedience trials, I concurred with my friend's opinion and decided against attack dog training.

Here is a picture of my attack dog. He will viciously attack any food offered to him. He is a mix with the best attributes of all his breeds. He is 50 kg. of solid muscle and has the loving mild mannered personality of a Lab, the strength of a Rottweiller, and the speed of a Rhodesian Ridgeback. Here is a picture of him in his 'ready to attack' position

Edited June 16, 2007 by jetjock

[Jet Gorgon]

He is lovely Jetjock. Do you always have to sleep on the couch?

[endure]

I saw a Dogue de Bordeaux in the flesh for the first time last week. What a stunner!

[brianinbangkok]

don't know much about breeds.

but i think rotweillers would be too big for me.

but any breed does a good job at guarding a home and land? does the standard thai dog, mutt do ok?

Just my 2 cents here for the OP.

I agree with MTW and other posters here.

You should decide on what dog is best for you depending on you experience handling dogs.

Do not get carried away and underestimate the time and money it takes to take good care of a dog.

Also do not get a dog type that does not fit with you , fact you say “ I think rotweillers would be too big for me.” Indicates your not confident enough to handle a Rottweiler.

Dogs sense this insecurity and that could cause lots of problems as the dog will try and become you boss…. Especially in dominant breeds like Rottweiler or Dobbermans.

Just think about this for a moment , it has always happened with every dog I have had , the moment the did something really naughty and I have to punish them , do you think you have the guts to grab your Rottweiler by the neck if he is growling and showing his teeth at you ?

If you hesitate he has won over you, he will feel he is senior to you in ranking, you have lost your authority over the dog.

If you want the dogs to take care of themselves and stay outside most of the time I agree with other posters, get a Thai dog they are much better suited to the hot weather and less susceptible to disease then any imported breed.

And much easier to handle then a Rottweiler.

I have had several Rottweilers , several Boxers and a Basset hound

Rottweilers will inflict massive damage to other animals and people if they attack, and this breed is definitely not a dog for a beginner. (Somebody who had no dog before).

It is an excellent guard and protection dog but a risky dog around kids.

(Thai law actually states Rottweilers must always be on a leash in public places).

Rottweiler and other dogs with long hair will keep you busy sweeping up all the hair they lose, all the time…

Boxers hardly lose hair at all, and only drool if you feed them during your dinner , just never start doing that.

Boxers make an excellent guard dog, they are brave and loyal and will give their life to protect you and your family.

And are MUCH safer around children.

Basset Hound are just lovely dogs , loyal and will make lots of noise if somebody comes to you house , but as a guard dog ? nah J

Nienke do you know what is better then having a boxer ?

Having 2 boxers J

Edited June 17, 2007 by brianinbangkok

[Nienke]

page 12, page 12 ???????

Where's the boxer WHERE'S THE BOXER?????

[brianinbangkok]

Here he is Nienke,

[Nienke]

Here he is Nienke,

Wow, he looks gorgeous and huge. Must be twice as big as my little boxer was. Plus he's the same color red as mine was. I love that color.

You've made my day!

Nienke

[Nienke]

Here is a picture of my attack dog. He will viciously attack any food offered to him. He is a mix with the best attributes of all his breeds. He is 50 kg. of solid muscle and has the loving mild mannered personality of a Lab, the strength of a Rottweiller, and the speed of a Rhodesian Ridgeback. Here is a picture of him in his 'ready to attack' position

Wow, THAT's an example of a real hunk! Beautiful dog!

Your friend is absolutely right about (not) training dogs for attack. Here there are dog trainings schools that train lab's goldens and all sorts of molossers for attack and often without the involvement of the full owner. Especially when it concerns the molossers, Bbrrrrrr!

Nienke

[sextudor1]

don't know much about breeds.

but i think rotweillers would be too big for me.

but any breed does a good job at guarding a home and land? does the standard thai dog, mutt do ok?

get a doberman..... best for land and house if you find rotti slightly too big for you

[joeuk1]

Good guard dogs are trained not bred , to have a real good guard dog he needs to be kept alone not with other dogs , and needs to be trained to guard .

My choice of a good guard in Thailand would be Thai ridgeback or Ban kaew of the imported breeds you cant beat a German shephard the last GS i had would have eaten someone that came into the property uninvited but he was trained that way .

JB

[dogfather]

don't know much about breeds.

but i think rotweillers would be too big for me.

but any breed does a good job at guarding a home and land? does the standard thai dog, mutt do ok?

Hi,

Just a few hints from a trainer. If you do not have any experience with dogs then keep your hands off the working dogs. Then even a good old big lab might do the trick or even the so called thai mutt.

Regards

D.F.

[mixed]

At one time, I had also entertained the idea of having one of my dogs professionally trained as an attack/guard dog. One of my good friends that had 20 years experience training attack dogs for the military talked me out of it. He told me that he felt that once a dogs natural inhibition of attacking a human was broken down, the dog should never be totally trusted as it would always be a potential time bomb no matter how mild mannered it appeared to be on the surface. He felt that a large dog that would bark was a much safer detterent for the average pet owner since most people that are willing to go past a dog's bark are usually willing to kill the dog. Even though I had many years of training my dogs for obedience trials, I concurred with my friend's opinion and decided against attack dog training.

Here is a picture of my attack dog. He will viciously attack any food offered to him. He is a mix with the best attributes of all his breeds. He is 50 kg. of solid muscle and has the loving mild mannered personality of a Lab, the strength of a Rottweiller, and the speed of a Rhodesian Ridgeback. Here is a picture of him in his 'ready to attack' position

Lovely dog! Any idea what types of dogs he has in him? I agree regarding a large dog that will bark, this will scare of most ppl and if they are still willing to enter they are probably willing to kill the dog.

[Mai Krap]

For most people the simple answer is Thai dogs but even they need responsible owners and a wall. Currently I have dogs inside my wall that are mine but the neborhood also has dogs that hang around out in the front and nobody can come around at night without awaking my household.

Security is in numbers, not size, nor bite. Multiple small dogs are a much better general security than one or even two large dogs for many reasons, not the least of which is poisining. They are also more likely to have one awake or patroling at the correct time and as a pack are very intimitating.

I have a background in Military and Police Dogs, At one time I and another man were importing dogs from Holland to sell to the Air force in Houston Texas. I mention that only to say that I have a broad background in this area so my observations not that of the average pet owner. If someone wants a Police type dog thats great but they are not the answer for anyone who is not prepared to spend a minimum of 6 hours a day with the dog and training is a life long affair.

Currently Rotwielers are the most dangerous dog in Thailand so buyer beware, The breeding programs here leave much to be desired. It seems everytime I hear of dogs attacking children its rottwielers or a mix. The fact is the bloodlines here are just bred to close causing the ruining the breed. Hip Displaysia and pain makes dogs that would not normaly bite attack under unpredictable circustance, its the equivelant of feeding them gun powder. I would be very active in checking the background of any Rottwieler breeder if anyone wants one, they can be great dogs but they can also be a nightmare.

For myself I currently have American Pitbulls but they are not the answer for most people. As one poster already pointed out they require much maintence and responsibility but I believe he went over the top in his description of them and furthermore he has never owned them. By his own admision his dog sounds much more dangerous than any single 35 pound pitbull. It is true they will kill cats but more importantly they kill snakes, they kill snakes better than any dog in Thailand and will survive a fight with a snake better than any dog in Thailand hands down. For that single reason they are worth the trouble one has to put up with to own them here. If any Pitbull ever shows agression towards children by growling or showing teeth under most circumstances it should be put down. The reality is Pit Bulls are not people biters and should never ever be encouraged to bite any human under any circumstance and those that do train them as people biters are just incredibley ignorant persons who know nothing of the history nor purpose of the breed. Sure they will bark through a fence and they have a terrible reputation but its one having owned and worked with many of these dogs over the last 25 years and being around countless others I believe is undeserved, afterall Petey from the Little Rascals never bit any of the kids, nor Spanky, nor Alphalfa, or even Buckwheat.

The major deturance for criminals to avoid breaking into your home when you are there or not is the bark not the bite. Nobody with any experiance in working dogs ever wants their dog to bite unless they personally tell it to take that action and direct it towards one individual person. The biggest hurdle to overcome in K9 training is the "Recall' which means getting the dog to stop an attack after you initiate it, If your dog does not have the training to stop biting a human you never ever want it to start biting one. Barking, thats what you want if you have pets or yard security, snakes are what you are more likely to need defending from, this year my dogs already killed 3 snakes, one large rat, and alerted me in the middle of the night with constant barking to find two very large scorpions next to my porch on seperate occaisions.

Austrailen heelers make great cattle dogs but poor pets, they tend to bite kids and snap at adults after you walk by. Chows are a terrible choice for this climate uinless you plan to let the dog sit under air conditioning, They are also biters, I cant imagine anyone having them here.

Dogs I reccomnd are Soi Dogs of short hair and gentle nature, I like the ones with ridgebacks but Thai Ridgebacks from breeders are sometimes bred to close making them biters of kids. Any of the short haired terriers from hunting backrounds can make incredible dogs here, they are ten times the mouser of any cat. The Jack Russle Terrier would be my number one choice if I wanted a smallish but incredible dog capeable of barking, mousing, and killing snakes. Heres a wiki link for those who are interested in them......Wiki for Jack Russle Terriers

[elfe]

yes! if you want your house to be secure, take in a bunch of soidogs! they are for free, sturdy, intelligent, lovely personalities, hardly any health problems, treat them well and they will not be a danger for you or your kids if not trained (of course never let any kind of dog alone with kids!), they will guard your place perfectly, will kill snakes, scorpions, centipedes and anything else unwanted in your garden and house, are social with each other and provide entertainment with their plays, don't need aircon or frequent bathes etc. they come in many styles and usually live much longer than most breeds.

and - they are COOL

[Sheryl]

Agree wholeheartedly...Soi dogs ("Thai mutts") not only make good watch dogs but are, for obvious reasons, ideally suited to the climate and conditions in Thailand and, while any dog requires significant care, they probably are the lowest maintainence type you can get.

And with all the dogs in urgent need of homes it really seems wrong to me to go out and buy one.

All that said, if you do want to talk about breeds, I stand by my chihuahua (who was a "rescue", not a purchase!). Whole neighborhood is terrified of him and I have to go out and secure him in advance before the neighbor who cleans daily dares show up at the gate. He may be small, but he barks up a storm accompanied by menancing circling and snapping. Quite a perfromance and I have no doubt that he would not only bite but firmly latch his teeth onto the ankle of any intruder.

[jubby]

Like someone said, the ops probably long gone.

But if he/she's still around I would say don't get a dog just for Security. I was thinking about dogs yesterday; I love dogs, I've had a Manchester Terrier (small doberman type) , English Bull Terrier, and recently the wife had a minature Poodle with Katoey tendancies. The poodles now with the inlaws. The other dogs went to enthusiasts in the UK.

I personally can't deal with them, they take too much time and patience, and they restrict your movements, tie you down. Can't stand to see how the thais let them wander around the village scavenging ; I've had two under my wheels in the last six months, one went all the way under the Car and then got up and ran off, the other appeared less lucky. And NO I wasn't speeding, I saw them, anticipated there movements, slowed down, as much as you can with other vehicles behind and then they shot across the road under my wheels in search of a fight or female on heat. I counted twenty potential casualties on my journey to town yesterday, all stood in the Highway not moving, Maybe its the time of day or month or something, but the next one that doesn't move I'll stop and kick it clear across the road; my wife won't drive to town because of them. I'm getting a bit off topic here, so to re-iterate dont buy a Dog just for security, make sure you have the time for them. Most Thai houses are pretty secure with wrought iron around the windows etc. Keep your wall low so everyone can see that you have nothing to hide, Spread a rumour that you have evil spirits . Seriously you wouldn't try to rob a thai House in my village , you'd get a machete or .38 calibre hole in you.

If Someone really wants to rob you or if your Dog appears a threat to a Thai who likes to take a shortcut across your land, they'll just poison it. It happens a lot.

cheers,

Jubby

[Nienke]

Security is in numbers, not size, nor bite. Multiple small dogs are a much better general security than one or even two large dogs for many reasons, not the least of which is poisining. They are also more likely to have one awake or patroling at the correct time and as a pack are very intimitating. Aha, so when one considers adopting a dog better to adopt three Just kidding, I completely agree with you.

I have a background in Military and Police Dogs, At one time I and another man were importing dogs from Holland to sell to the Air force in Houston Texas. Thou Americans, can't do without the Dutch, can you? I mention that only to say that I have a broad background in this area so my observations not that of the average pet owner. If someone wants a Police type dog thats great but they are not the answer for anyone who is not prepared to spend a minimum of 6 hours a day with the dog and training is a life long affair.I'm glad you mention this. These kind of dogs are very energetic with a very high drive. Wonderful animals, but not exactly the kind one wants as a cough-potato petdog.

Currently Rotwielers are the most dangerous dog in Thailand so buyer beware, The breeding programs here leave much to be desired. It seems everytime I hear of dogs attacking children its rottwielers or a mix. Although I agree with the remark that breeding progams here leave much to desire, I would like to add that many of these dogs aren't well socialized let alone trained. Further, it's often because the enormous damge that a rottweiler can inflict, that it comes in the news. Many other dog bite incidents aren't reported, therefore it looks as if it is so often the rottweiler that bites children but in fact it is not. I get more often complaints/stories of Thai dogs that bite people/children than from rottweilers.

The fact is the bloodlines here are just bred to close causing the ruining the breed. Hip Displaysia and pain Saw a Rott becoming Thailand champ. This dog had clearly hip displasia makes dogs that would not normaly bite attack under unpredictable circustance, its the equivelant of feeding them gun powder. I would be very active in checking the background of any Rottwieler breeder if anyone wants one, they can be great dogs but they can also be a nightmare

If any Pitbull ever shows agression towards children by growling or showing teeth under most circumstances it should be put down. The reality is Pit Bulls are not people biters and should never ever be encouraged to bite any human under any circumstance and those that do train them as people biters are just incredibley ignorant or worse ... solely money-minded ...persons who know nothing of the history nor purpose of the breed.

The major deturance for criminals to avoid breaking into your home when you are there or not is the bark not the bite. Nobody with any experiance in working dogs ever wants their dog to bite unless they personally tell it to take that action and direct it towards one individual person. And here is comes back to total obedience before training for the biting. Thank you for putting your experience in here. The biggest hurdle to overcome in K9 training is the "Recall' which means getting the dog to stop an attack after you initiate it, If your dog does not have the training to stop biting a human you never ever want it to start biting one. You would be surprised how many people have called me or passed by in the past years to ask if I could train their dogs for the biting, but didn't want to obedience train them first. So, I refused ... Barking, thats what you want if you have pets or yard security,

Dogs I reccomnd are Soi Dogs of short hair and gentle nature, I like the ones with ridgebacks but Thai Ridgebacks from breeders are sometimes bred to close making them biters of kids. Any of the short haired terriers from hunting backrounds can make incredible dogs here, they are ten times the mouser of any cat. The Jack Russle Terrier would be my number one choice if I wanted a smallish but incredible dog capeable of barking, mousing, and killing snakes. Heres a wiki link for those who are interested in them......Wiki for Jack Russle TerriersJacks might be small and excellent hunters, they certainly aren't that easy to keep. There are quite some cases with dominance aggression under the Jacks with also a high percentage of bite incidents.

But then again, whatever dog might be chosen, it always comes back to proper socialization and education of both dog and owners are of extreme importance (next to the breeding of course).

Nienke