Advice pls for watch/guard dogs!

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Hollyhorse

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We have recently moved to a new house in the country so we can have our horses at home
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We have 15 acres and a yard with stables, manege etc, close to the house. The local equestrian centres and livery yards all have guard dogs due to regular break-ins in the past and have advised us to do the same. This appeals to us as we've always had dogs and presently have two 'indoor' dogs. One of the ladies has offered us both of her kennels, each with a run, to keep by the yard. We are interested in getting a doberman and a hungarian vizsla. Please note the dogs would be in the kennels at night and anytime during the day when we are not around. The purpose of getting them would be to alert us to intruders by barking as the house is not far from the yard, they're not going to be roaming around free to attack! What we're wondering is whether it's best to have one or two dogs, and if two would it be better to get them at the same time (so two puppies together) or buy one and then the other when the first is a year old or something? Any tips, advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated as we've never have guard/watch dogs before so this is new to us!
Many thanks
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Why don't you put some CCTV cameras up, with motion sensors and connect them to the house (with wireless)? It's cheap and much more effective than hoping the dogs will bark. I am really sorry but I don't think this is a good enough reason to buy a dog!

I am also quite confused about what you expect the dogs to do. Dogs tend to bark at anything that moves, are you going to be running out of the house to check every time they bark? Why do they have to be in the kennels when you are not around? It's very dangerous to actually buy or train a dog to attack people and then manage this by keeping the dog in a kennel when you are not around.

I think you are much better off with a camera and you can pick one up at your local DIY store.
 
fatarse2 - thanks for that, very interesting as a friend has 2 hungarian vizslas to guard their yard but maybe they're the exception! I might stick to the dobermans in that case.

Booboos - I think you've misunderstood! We already have alarms, motion sensors, laser in doorways and CCTV cameras but all the latter provides is a video of the culprit after they've robbed all my tack! We live in the country so no close neighbours or anything/anyone that moves around to set the dogs off, we've seen evidence of foxes and badgers in the fields but that's not by the yard so I can't imagine anything setting the dogs off other than potential thieves. The surrounding equestrian centres and livery yards also have all the alarms and cameras which haven't stopped break-ins, but the dogs have. We've been at our new house for just over a year and have already had one break-in, fortunately only £5000-worth of stuff was stolen...
We are not buying more dogs for the hell of it, I work around the yard all day so they have constant company, walks and exercise. They will simply sleep in the kennels rather than in the house by the aga! I don't intend to train my dog to attack people (hence I made the point that they are to alert us during the night only) and by having them in the kennel it abides by the law which states that they can't be left roaming around unaccompanied. While we're finding a suitable guard dog(s) we have been putting one of our other dogs in the kennel at night (a labrador) who has been fine, she's just not a permanent option as she can't really cope with living outside!
I hope that clears up what we're offering and what we're looking for?
 
Dobermanns are good watch dogs but they bark at everything so they would probably bark all of the time.

They also hate being cold as they have very short coats so will probably be more miserable sleeping outside than your labrador who at least has a thick double coat.
 
Why not just get a German Sheperd. They are such intimidating looking dogs - and will bark when strangers are around.

To my mind, your just as well having them as house dogs - because if they are confined to a kennel or a chain - they can't help deter unwelcome visitors. However, opening the back door and seeing a large dog heading your way can.

Vizsla's are lovely dogs - rather wimpish though......
 
Dobermans tend to be very vocal dogs though and like the sound of their own voice (in my experience anyways!
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Although it you go for a German Shepard, make sure and research into it's breeding etc the reason police, army etc are nwo using Belgian Shepards is due to GSDs becoming so inbred and of poor breeding that their either away with the fairies and have no fit purpose or they are wired up wrong and difficult and agressive to deal with. (A police officer told me this so I apologise if the information is incorrect)
 
Charisl - good point about dobermans, hadn't thought about that but makes sense as our manchester terrier is, in effect, a miniature doberman and her coat is very thin so definitely wouldn't cope with the cold!

Also didn't realise they were so vocal, we definitely don't want to be woken up in the middle of the night for nothing all the time...

GinaB - I've heard that about German Shepherds as well which is why I was thinking of other breeds, but sounds like this is still a breed to strongly consider.

AmyMay - I would ideally like the dog in the house, my only worry is that they wouldn't hear people creeping around the yard from the house... when our yard was broken into a few months ago neither of our two dogs in the house (manchester terrier and lab) heard anything. The kennel has a run attached.

Are there any other breeds I should be considering? My friend has a rhodesian ridgeback which is quite intimidating.

Thanks for all your replies
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My Dobes are the biggest wimps ever - they hate the rain and cold with a passion!
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How about Rotties?? We have a gorgeous one on our yard, as soft as anything but loads of people are scared of him as he is so big.
 
My rottie is the softest creature in the world and an entirely useless guard dog, but if another dog barks, the noise he makes copying them and the sight of him running towards you would probably be a good deterrant! We always joke that the combination of my friend's JRT and my rottie is an ideal guard set-up, as she (the JRT) will bark like mad at the slightest noise, which then makes Kaib get out of his bed and join in, whereas usually he might get up and look out of the window, if he even bothers to do that...never barks! But once you hear his 'woof', that sounds like a proper guard dog!
Rotties do also have really thick coats and would happily sleep outside.
 
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Although it you go for a German Shepard, make sure and research into it's breeding etc the reason police, army etc are nwo using Belgian Shepards is due to GSDs becoming so inbred and of poor breeding that their either away with the fairies and have no fit purpose or they are wired up wrong and difficult and agressive to deal with. (A police officer told me this so I apologise if the information is incorrect)

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OUCH *wounded GSD owner* I know of so many fantastic GSD Breeders that try so hard to stop the 'bad' breeding, as long as you do your research you will be Ok. I have seen many other breeds far more 'away with the fairies' than my lovely sheppies. I have a GSD and my mum in law bred them, and used them on the livery Yard for pets/protection and they were great, very protective of their 'own', its a breed trait. (which is what makes them ideal.) I had a BSD too, and they are fizzy, but timid and standoffish by nature. Totally different breed personalities!
Mind you, I love Rotties and R. Ridgebacks too.
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But I would always vote GSD. A loyal, protective and loving breed. (which can pull a mean face lol)
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Mind you, for sleek and muscley.... rotties, hmmmm tough call!
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Bit of a sweeping statement Gina B (or your policeman friend) , but will let you off this time
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Yes, there are some temperament problems in GSDs but with a bit of research there a plenty of good ones out there. From personal experience, the reason why some forces struggle to get GSDs is that a) they aren't prepared to pay a decent price, and b) there has been some quite bad publicity in the last few years as to how certain forces train their dogs and people who were previously happy to supply the police stopped doing so. Tbh if the OP just wants a dog to bark than a JR is as good as any, for a visual deterrent as well either a Rottie or GSD. Imo you can't beat a Shepherd, but bear in mind they are very intelligent, you would have to give it some training otherwise it would soon get bored , and that is when problems start.
 
I have two dobes, they have just great dogs and good guard dogs too, However they do feel the cold so much, When they are at they stables with me they wear coats! I wouldnt personally keep them outside as they would hate it.. I have had my heating on in my house for most of the winter 24/7 cause they just hate the cold.
 
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I have had my heating on in my house for most of the winter 24/7 cause they just hate the cold.

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I thought I was the only one who did that! Must be the Dobes, one of mine actually whines when she is cold until you sort it out
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I have had my heating on in my house for most of the winter 24/7 cause they just hate the cold.

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I thought I was the only one who did that! Must be the Dobes, one of mine actually whines when she is cold until you sort it out
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The only big dogs I see wearing coats in the frigid winters over here are Dobies, Great Danes, Viszlas and the odd Boxer. Do Dobermans only have a single natural coat, then?
 
Really interesting! Looks like dobermans and vizslas wouldn't be ideal but I do like german shepherds and rhodesian ridgebacks so that's fine! I take my lap dogs to weekly dog training classes so intelligent dogs shouldn't be a problem. I also like to research the family of a dog before buying a puppy anyway and meet both the mum and dad if possible so hopefully will be able to avoid buying an 'inappropriately' bred german shepherd.

Would it be desirable to have two? So they have company and two make more of a noise and are more intimidating than one. In which case I think I would get one german shepherd and one rhodesian ridgeback
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If I were to do that then I presume it would be sensible to get them both as puppies at the same time so I don't have problems with the older dog being defensive/protective of the yard to the new dog?
 
My YO loves my GSD she thinks owns the place. She patrols the yard and will tell us when ever someone comes on the yard. There is normally about 7 dogs belonging to various owners and she is fab at guarding. We even have Giant Shznuazer(sp) who is a fully trained personal protection dog and my GSD knocks spots off of her.
 
Don't get me wrong, I have never met a bad GSD and think they're a great dog, but just passing this info on (although I'm sure OP is aware of the research that goes into finding the breed that is just right for you
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I would also agree with a rotti or shepherd they are extremely territorial of their sorroundings, and look very menacing, also very hardy for the outdoors.
 
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The only big dogs I see wearing coats in the frigid winters over here are Dobies, Great Danes, Viszlas and the odd Boxer. Do Dobermans only have a single natural coat, then?

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Yes, it is very short with no undercoat. Great for me as I'm allergic to dogs but can't live without them! Also not much moulting.
 
Fair enough, I am sorry I misunderstood you.

For what it's worth our German Shephard never barks at anything, whereas the German Spitzes (which were bred to be watch dogs I think) bark at EVERYTHING. It's enough to drive you mad and we've had to work really hard to stop them from doing it, so maybe they are the dogs for you?
 
Although a long coated GSD does have much longer hair they don't have an undercoat like the normal coat does, so the coat is not waterproof, so they really are not more suited to outdoor life. This is why the long coats were not allowed under the original breed standard, as the coat would not protect them out in all weathers. No matter what breed I am sure OP will be providing a warm , draughtproof kennel for the, I got the impression that she wants a dog to be kennelled outside not left out in all weathers.
 
Our kennel is really nice with a big attached run so they can be inside the warm enclosed kennel part which is nicely padded but can come out n move around the run should they wish. Very interesting about the long coated GSD though, to be honest I was thinking more towards the short-coated one anyway.

SunshineTallulah - gd point, though the dog would still very much be a pet - spending all day with me, playing n having lots of exercise, he would just sleep in the kennel at night rather than in the house. But a valid point thank u.

I'm now just thinking toward getting the one dog and a GSD, but whatever I do rest assured that I will be doing lots of research into the dogs I'm interested in as I want to make sure it's not just the right dog for me but I'm the right home for the dog.

Thanks for all your comments
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With regard to the point about breeders selling "pets" to live outdoors, when I was breeding I probably would not have sold an 8 week old puppy to sleep outdoors on its own. That is because I am a big softie and would hate to think of the little thing parted from its siblings and spending its first nights shut on its own. You may find some breeders feel the same way. This is in no way a criticism of how you plan to look after your dog, sounds as if it will have a great life. Quite often breeders will run on a pup until it is a few months old and then decide to part with it if it hasn't made the grade (something else I was no good at), this might be a good option for you, as the pup would also be nearer to being old enough to guard. Or alternatively what about a rescue, although I do think you have to do a lot of research when ahving a rescue GSD, you really need as much of its previous history as possible. Anyway good luck with your search.
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Although a long coated GSD does have much longer hair they don't have an undercoat like the normal coat does, so the coat is not waterproof, so they really are not more suited to outdoor life. This is why the long coats were not allowed under the original breed standard, as the coat would not protect them out in all weathers. No matter what breed I am sure OP will be providing a warm , draughtproof kennel for the, I got the impression that she wants a dog to be kennelled outside not left out in all weathers.

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Sorry but thats SO not true! I have one at home and Mum in law bred longhaired, all of which had double coats. Longhaired Gsds can be born to parents with short coats, and occur randomly as well as being bred. My dog (although doesnt) has an ample coat for living out.
Sorry had to add a little there.
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I do know that normal coats can produce long coats, altough both parents have to carry the gene. I have bred quite a few over 20 plus years of breeding, although have never used a l/c dog or bitch! And I can remember when having a long coat in your litter was not a good thing, and yet now you can charge more for a long coat than a normal coat, bizarre
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. Yes some longcoats do have the thick undercoat but not all, their under coat is a different texture. I was just trying to point out that a longcoat would not necessarily be better protected to live outside. They can also get wonderfully muddy in wet weather!
 
GSD sounds like a good choice, I'd be inclined to get two though so they have company overnight.

It might be worth contacting some of the rescue societies as some of their dogs will be suited to living outside. I've found with my rescue's that they turn into lovely loyal dogs when they find themselves in a good loving home.
 
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