On Nov 21, 8:59 am, montana wildhack
wrote:
On 2007-11-21 01:35:50 -0500, junoexpress said:



What I hear you and (also Beth in Alaska) saying is that the Kuvasz's
natural protection instinct is so high, that without constant
socialization throughout their lives, there is a good probability they
will be overly protective (or what I would call dangerous). With
socialization and a *job*, this can be managed.

Saying it and doing it are two very different things. The Kuvasz of our
acquaintance is a danger to humans and animals. He is hyper aggressive.
Again, he is owned by very experienced dog people who live rurally. He
is not their only dog.

Maybe they are not meant to be around a lot of
people in the first place, and supposed to be by themselves a lot
outside.

I think you are misinterpreting the information and romanticizing the
idea of a protection dog. You do not want a dog that will attack any
living thing it sees. Not socializing, not training and not making the
dog a member of the family will ruin the dog and put you and others at
risk.

For the purposes you describe, I would not choose a Kuvasz. From your
explanation of a protection dog, I would strongly suggest that you find
Shutzhund near you and spend time understanding what that is all about,
then making your decision from there.

The best protection dogs we have had were mutts - one was a Lab mix and
the other a GSD mix. They could intimidate people without being
dangerous and were very friendly dogs. We have two dogs now that serve
as protectors - one is a warning dog and the other is not interested in
having anyone we don't invite around the house. Both are sweet fluffy
dogs that know the difference between friends and strangers.

If you think you need a dangerous dog to protect yourself, you're
probably better off buying a gun. Anyone who wouldn't be warned off by
a regular, run-of-the-mill protective dog may have one, too. At least
you can control a gun.

A lot of what happens with a dog is owner-dependent in my opinion.
However, dog temperament is always a variable. When you add that to an
equation where you already have a breed that has a very strong
instinctive predisposition to guard, it seems to me that getting a
Kuvasz for what I want probably is an unnecessary gamble. It seems to
me that you are right: there are a number of other dogs that could do
what I want (in terms of protection), but are more easily trained and
more easily controlled. Most of what a guard dog is *is* visual
intimidation: a silent Doberman just watching someone is usually
enough to deter anyone from getting any closer to find out the dog's
intentions. In the end, it sounds like a Kuvasz is a working dog and
it's really made for a very specific guarding purpose.
I'm pretty good with dogs, and normally I might just write off what
you said. However, what I find as I do more research on the Kuvasz is
that the *majority* of owner stories are very similar to the one you
describe. I've yet to come across an example yet of someone who
said,"Yeah, we just picked him up, he runs around in the backyard,
never had to do that much with him and he's fine." Not one. They are
more along the lines of people having to go to great limits to control
these dogs. And in my mind, when you have a dog that you do not have
control of that's not protection.

Thank you again for your advice,

Matt