giving your pups a good role model

I recently visited a buddy's yard and he had some pups that he wanted to be watchdogs. They were four months old and very lazy, non attentive and so on. He was kind of worried because whenever someone made noise outside of the gate, they would only lay there and look without alert. So I recommended a older dog from my yard to help out. He asked what that would do. I told him the pups will catch on to what he does . Leaving my dog there for three weeks made a big change in their behavior. They are no longer the same bunch of pups from before lol .. Any one ever tried that out for anything with a less experienced dog? This might be a norm to you folks on here lol I just thought it was pretty neat

 

I have a belgium shepard that rub the watch dog trait to all my dogs. They bark at any movement and sound around the yard. No unfimiliars can enter the gates.

 

Is the Belgium shepherd the first to react in the yard?

 

Alot of watchdogs sleep alot,it doesnt mean they r not alert..I know people with American Bulldogs and they sleep alot..you look at them and think they are lazy and slow and never alert..Wrong...they are very alert even whil sleeping..I have saw them asleep and out of the blue jump up to confront something that u didnt even know was in the yard..And dont think those big,lazy lookin dogs cant move lol.It depends on the breed.Thier are other breeds out there that sleep alot to..but are very good watch dogs.

 

I like the bulldog as a watchdog..very,very laid back and calm until it feels like its family is threatened..thats my kind of watchdog..to each thier own though.

 

not always. The others are just as alert as she is.

 

My dogs do that during the day. Look lazy all day untill it gets cooler. But they each have a nice spot picked out around the yard. One thing about the shepard that amazed me one time was wen she were busy eatng and just suddenly ran towards a cat walking on the boundary wall. Im still wondering how she knew the cat were there while eating and facing her bowl lol.

 

I think there is a difference between watch dog and gaurd dog. Watch dog is supposed to be alert at anything and let the owner know what's up but not nessiarly react/defend. You can have a good watch dog that is not a guard dog or that is physically incapable of gaurding. A gaurd dog doesn't always bark or patrol but instead they survey the situation and know what is going on in their territory and react if it feels it needs to gaurd. What an AB is and what you descride is a gaurd dog. U know the little pikaneese dogs where used as watchdogs in acient china, and where paired up with tibetan mastiffs. the little yappy dogs were on their feet running around on the lookout. While the muscle slept but came when it was needed. just to give an example of the difference. And I think your are exactly right about american bulldogs, and that is what I liked about mine too. I rather have a gaurd dog than a watchdog, but neither would be an apbt for me.

 

Pups will always learn from an older dog and a good technique to use when trying to get pups to do something u want

 

You want to use a hummer for a drag race, if you want a watch dog get a breed made to alert. IF you want a guard dog, get a breed that was created to protect. It really isn't rocket science...

 

I use older dogs to teach younger dogs... It makes sense to me... I do it when I leash train and when I want the pups to pick up on certain behaviors

 

not sure about watch/guard dogs. but we always use older dogs as "role models" for young dogs. i believe they learn from other dogs better then we can teach them.

 

Monkey see monkey do. Works well if you have a dog that won't do what you want. Say you have a dog that won't run a mill let it watch another do it and it will catch on. The mill is just an example as it will work with most activities.

 

If ya want gaurd dogs get,g/b/ shepards...or jus get a yappy jack russel or some-sort...the thing with the bull breed's in gaurd dogs is there over-drive..they just won't stop or come off prey as quick as a shepard etc;etc;......jus a opinion.....