metaldad904
Well-Known Member
I'm always obsessing about dogs, one breed to the next and while quite a few fascinate me lately I've been wanting to start narrowing down my choices to find my "perfect" next breed. I will give you the criteria i'm looking for and then some breeds i'm fond of as well as some pros and cons with each that i know of.
Criteria:
Protection-I want a true protector, a dog that I have no doubt will engage an intruder and do whatever it takes to protect my daughter and my home. I have Greta, a female CC and she puts up a big show but i am seriously doubting if she will actually be willing to engage anything (she's a giant wuss about EVERYTHING).
Tolerance of other animals-I already have a female CC, female APBT and female Shorkie so would need one that is capable of being trusted with the rest of the fur family.
Ability to identify true threat vs non-threat-It is not atypical for family members to stop by unannounced, especially my grandparents plus when i purchase my new home (hopefully in these next few months) my father will probably be stopping by a lot to help me while i'm at work and keep my pups happy.
Size-I want something big, and when i say big i mean biiiiiig. Greta is about 110 lbs and i'd like my next one to push close to 200 if not over if possible. I love big dogs and nothing would make me happier than having a true giant.
Appearance-This seems shallow but that's life, dogs that catch my eye are the start of my obsessions usually. For example, not really a huge fan of Fila's just b/c to me...they look like oversized bloodhounds, just my opinion haha.
Breeds that have caught my eye and have considered with some pro's and cons:
Caucasian Ovcharka-I have been doing a huge amount of research into this breed, they intrigue me so much its insane. Pros-Protection instinct is very high, extremely large, intelligent. Cons-Protection instinct may be too high in some ways, it seems like they may be overly defensive at times but that could be exaggerated. Fuzziness, while its cute i'm not sure how keen i am about the amount of hair they have. Health, i've heard a lot about health problems with'em.
Neo-A well bred Neo is just breathtaking to me, i can't get over how beautiful they are. Pros-Enormous. Supposedly quite good protectors, laid back for the most part. Cons-Not very athletic, lots of potential health problems.
Tosa Inu-I confess i don't know all that much about this breed but something about them peaks my interest. Pros-Big, protection is high, athletic. Cons-I have seen very few outside of the standard brown or fawn type of coloration and frankly, that's my least favorite color. I like black, blue or brindle typically in dogs. Dog aggression, i have read a lot about them being difficult to keep with other pets which could always be untrue thus why i'm posting to get more truth on matters.
Tibetan Mastiff-They are quite magnificent. Pros and Cons are similar to the CO but they don't seem "quite" as stranger aggressive.
Boerbel-I don't know much about them, not as much information i can find that really helps me, i just like their look a lot. Don't have a pro/con list b/c i don't have enough information as of yet.
Giant Alaskan Marmalute-I honestly didn't know they existed until about a month ago and stumbled across someone who told me and i ran to the internet. I always liked the normal breed but just weren't all that big imo. I won't bother with a pros and cons just b/c I'm still trying to figure out if they are all that much different from a normal one other than size. My one big complaint is Malamutes aren't really known for protection.
There's my list and please, if you have any suggestions for other breeds feel free, just what i can think of at the moment that has been high on my list. Nothing i'm said is etched in stone, just based on things i've read and what others have said that have owned them and i know every dog is different.
Also, lemme give you a big of my life. I'm 29 years old, 3 dogs as you already know and a pre-teen daughter. I will be buying my own house within the next few months, looking for something hopefully a little outside of a town but possible in town. I'm in Southwestern Michigan near the Indiana border. No big cities, the house would have a good sized privacy fence and i am adamant about all my dogs being in the house. I eventually plan on getting a couple pygmy goats, chickens and maybe some other things which is partly why i would like something that knows how to protect. I work between 40-50 hours a week but make sure i spend quite a bit of a quality time with my pack, daily long walks and on off days we like to go hiking and any other fun activity we can think of. Anything else just ask.
Criteria:
Protection-I want a true protector, a dog that I have no doubt will engage an intruder and do whatever it takes to protect my daughter and my home. I have Greta, a female CC and she puts up a big show but i am seriously doubting if she will actually be willing to engage anything (she's a giant wuss about EVERYTHING).
Tolerance of other animals-I already have a female CC, female APBT and female Shorkie so would need one that is capable of being trusted with the rest of the fur family.
Ability to identify true threat vs non-threat-It is not atypical for family members to stop by unannounced, especially my grandparents plus when i purchase my new home (hopefully in these next few months) my father will probably be stopping by a lot to help me while i'm at work and keep my pups happy.
Size-I want something big, and when i say big i mean biiiiiig. Greta is about 110 lbs and i'd like my next one to push close to 200 if not over if possible. I love big dogs and nothing would make me happier than having a true giant.
Appearance-This seems shallow but that's life, dogs that catch my eye are the start of my obsessions usually. For example, not really a huge fan of Fila's just b/c to me...they look like oversized bloodhounds, just my opinion haha.
Breeds that have caught my eye and have considered with some pro's and cons:
Caucasian Ovcharka-I have been doing a huge amount of research into this breed, they intrigue me so much its insane. Pros-Protection instinct is very high, extremely large, intelligent. Cons-Protection instinct may be too high in some ways, it seems like they may be overly defensive at times but that could be exaggerated. Fuzziness, while its cute i'm not sure how keen i am about the amount of hair they have. Health, i've heard a lot about health problems with'em.
Neo-A well bred Neo is just breathtaking to me, i can't get over how beautiful they are. Pros-Enormous. Supposedly quite good protectors, laid back for the most part. Cons-Not very athletic, lots of potential health problems.
Tosa Inu-I confess i don't know all that much about this breed but something about them peaks my interest. Pros-Big, protection is high, athletic. Cons-I have seen very few outside of the standard brown or fawn type of coloration and frankly, that's my least favorite color. I like black, blue or brindle typically in dogs. Dog aggression, i have read a lot about them being difficult to keep with other pets which could always be untrue thus why i'm posting to get more truth on matters.
Tibetan Mastiff-They are quite magnificent. Pros and Cons are similar to the CO but they don't seem "quite" as stranger aggressive.
Boerbel-I don't know much about them, not as much information i can find that really helps me, i just like their look a lot. Don't have a pro/con list b/c i don't have enough information as of yet.
Giant Alaskan Marmalute-I honestly didn't know they existed until about a month ago and stumbled across someone who told me and i ran to the internet. I always liked the normal breed but just weren't all that big imo. I won't bother with a pros and cons just b/c I'm still trying to figure out if they are all that much different from a normal one other than size. My one big complaint is Malamutes aren't really known for protection.
There's my list and please, if you have any suggestions for other breeds feel free, just what i can think of at the moment that has been high on my list. Nothing i'm said is etched in stone, just based on things i've read and what others have said that have owned them and i know every dog is different.
Also, lemme give you a big of my life. I'm 29 years old, 3 dogs as you already know and a pre-teen daughter. I will be buying my own house within the next few months, looking for something hopefully a little outside of a town but possible in town. I'm in Southwestern Michigan near the Indiana border. No big cities, the house would have a good sized privacy fence and i am adamant about all my dogs being in the house. I eventually plan on getting a couple pygmy goats, chickens and maybe some other things which is partly why i would like something that knows how to protect. I work between 40-50 hours a week but make sure i spend quite a bit of a quality time with my pack, daily long walks and on off days we like to go hiking and any other fun activity we can think of. Anything else just ask.