[liarw]

Hi, I'd like to know a few things about this breed and if a kuvasz would be a good guard dog.
Is it difficult to train?
Is it too aggressive?
I live in Brazil (sorry for grammar mistakes) and this is not a common breed around here and I'he heard different opinions: Dog breeders say they're great guard dogs but are docile and dog trainers say they're very difficult to train and are agressive.... I'm lost ç.ç
Thanks for your attention
Lia

 

[Amaryllis]

Does "docile" have some sort of other meaning in Brazil? (Not making fun of your English, it's much better than my Portuguese, but docile?)

Here's a breed club temperament description:

The Kuvasz is a very intelligent, assertive dog, combining great strength with quickness and speed that is often unexpected in a dog of its size. A Kuvasz is unwavering in its loyalty and devotion to its family, be they people or animals. There is no threat he will not face in protecting those he loves. He is independent in nature, and is discriminating with strangers. He makes his own judgements about who he will consider his acquaintances. This often leads to comments about "aloofness", which seems to add to his noble demeanor.

Pretty much the opposite of docile.

 

[Selah Cowgirl]

First we need to know if you want a guard dog or a personal protection dog. These are two different jobs and while the kuvasz might be good at guarding, they might make a lousy personal protection dog.

Kuvasz are livestock guarding dogs (LGD), they are traditionally used to protect domestic animals in range land and pastures. Like most LGD they are independent working dogs and training to use them for their indented purpose is very easy generally you let them grow up with the heard. They eat, sleep and play with the animals they are protecting. That being said they don't have the same inbred desire to please and adore people that most domestic dogs have. Now if you raised one correctly and we able to transfer the LGD traits towards your family and property that would be great.

I know a few LGD's who are great at protecting their herds from coyotes and cougar but are not worried when people come into the herds or onto the property.

 

[liarw]

Does "docile" have some sort of other meaning in Brazil? (Not making fun of your English, it's much better than my Portuguese, but docile?)

Here's a breed club temperament description:

Pretty much the opposite of docile.

No it doesn't have another meaning, I when people say docile they mean with the family you know?

 

[liarw]

First we need to know if you want a guard dog or a personal protection dog. These are two different jobs and while the kuvasz might be good at guarding, they might make a lousy personal protection dog.

Kuvasz are livestock guarding dogs (LGD), they are traditionally used to protect domestic animals in range land and pastures. Like most LGD they are independent working dogs and training to use them for their indented purpose is very easy generally you let them grow up with the heard. They eat, sleep and play with the animals they are protecting. That being said they don't have the same inbred desire to please and adore people that most domestic dogs have. Now if you raised one correctly and we able to transfer the LGD traits towards your family and property that would be great.

I know a few LGD's who are great at protecting their herds from coyotes and cougar but are not worried when people come into the herds or onto the property.

So here's the deal: I'm moving to a house on 2013 and I'm going with two other gilrs so I wanted a guard dog really, to guard the house. Along with the guard dog I would also get a Samoyed (cause I'm in love with it and also they would keep each other company =]) Both would be females. Right now I'm between a kuvasz or a CANE DA PASTORE MAREMMANO ABRUZZESE (didn't find how do you spell it in english and it's from Italy so I put the "original" name of the breed sorry) they're very similar fisically at least...

 

[Selah Cowgirl]

It sounds like you want a dog who will alert you to strangers and be on patrol but not a personal protection dog. Any dog can do this, Sammies are great all around dogs and if brought up correctly and trained right could do the job you are asking of it. Hell your yorkie will alert you to strangers on the property.

Maremma Sheepdog/Cane Da Pastora Maremmano Abruzzese are a lot like the kuvazs as they have the same purpose of LGD, they are going to be a lot like each other and probably won't do so well if they are going to be on a small property. Both these breeds need lots of room to work or lots of exercise. They also need a fenced in area or else they will make their own boundary and "work" that area.

 

[liarw]

Geez my yorkie really is a hell of an alert dog haha I used to have to come up the stairs on 2am (I live on the 3rd floor) like The Flash or she would wake everybody up xD Yeah well what I want is a dog that will protect the house by alerting us but also react if the situation asks for it. But don't get me wrong, what I really want is that any of them never need to do this. I think that the fact that there are two big dogs in the house will scare any thieves and stuff away. The point is that some dog trainers were telling me that a Kuvasz is a really difficult dog to train and is really aggressive so the owners usually have problems with them... And I've never had any dogs besides my yorkie (wich is really tiny- if she was missbehaving and didn't obey I could just get her off the ground and problem solved). But dog breeders say they're not that difficult... Makes it hard to decide you know? And I just found the Maremma Sheepdog which is really similar...

 

[Selah Cowgirl]

I would look into a German Shepherd then, they are great dogs, love their people and easy to train. From what I can tell you don't want an aggressive dog, but you need an assertive, confident dog with the correct training. Look at some French Ring and Schutzhund training, these dogs make great pets with the right handling and will do exactly what you want if you know how to work them correctly. A PPD is not an easy dog to own, but very rewarding.

 

[liarw]

Yeah the german shepherd was my first and obvious choice (in Brazil when you say guard dog you get: German Sherpherd, Rottweiler or Fila that's it - that's what everybody gets). But that's what made me research about other breeds that could also do the job and I liked the kuvasz because of other characteristics that the others don't have - like almost don't smell, doesn't get sick easily (I don't know if it's everywhere but german shepherds have a high cancer rate) and is big and fluffy (I have to say that because I really love huge fluffy dogs - of course it's not what makes me choose the breed but it's a plus) and I don't know but I guess the fact that everybody has a German Sherpherd makes me go for another breed...I guess I like different things xD I know I'm not going to live in a farm, it's a house but it really has plenty of space for both dogs to run around and stuff and as you said the Samoyed can also work as a guard dog. That's why I was thinking about the kuvasz (and the Maremma sheepdog now) cause they have the guard instinct but people were just making me doubt saying the kuvasz was too aggressive and can be too much trouble...The alerting thing is like you said, any dog will do that, but I was looking for one that would be more efficient in "scaring" intruders (which I guess any big dog that shows an aggressive behaviour towards them will do). I mean the German Shepherd would probably be the best breed for what I'm looking for, but it just doesn't attracs me...

 

[Amaryllis]

LGDs aren't docile with anyone, family or not. You can't breed a dog to do that sort of job (that requires independent thought and decision making) and then expect them to be docile in any situation.

Honestly, a GSD would be a much better choice. LGDs aren't for the inexperienced or the situation you describe. You do see people owning them in suburbia or even in apartments, but that takes a degree of socialization and training that most of us, and I include myself in this, can't manage.

 

[Selah Cowgirl]

I disagree with the docile comment, I know a Great Pyrenees who is extremely friendly and sweet. I used to work at the ranch every day granted but he still greats me without any malice when I visit now. He is a big sweetheart who is a love and really enjoys playing.

Also I am not sure if I have ever heard a LGD bark...

 

[MountainDogs]

I would only recommend an LGD (livestock guardian dog) to people who have a lot of experience with dogs and don't mind their independent, stubborn nature.
Kuvasz is in general more aggressive towards strangers on their own property than say a Great Pyrenees or a Maremma.
The ones I've met in Hungary were all serious guard dogs.
Many years ago we had friends who acquired a Kuvasz puppy as a property/family guardian. The pup's parents were very good at their job.
These people socialized the puppy a lot.
One time when the puppy was 6 months, my uncle went to visit them, but he entered the backyard without waiting for the owners first.
That 6 month old puppy immediately jumped him and teared up his sleeve.

Kuvasz can be wonderful dogs for the right owners. They need experienced, firm, consistent but also a loving owner that will never use force with them.
Like most other LGD's they are very distrustful of strangers, but very loving towards their family when treated well.
They can be very independent and quote aloof. They need a lot of space and a job to do (guarding).
Like all LGD's they are nocturnal barkers, and they will use their deep, loud bark every time they hear something unusual.
A proper socialization is a must; it will not train out the Kuvasz's innate protectiveness, but it will help him to discriminate between something that is simply new or unusual, and a threat.

 

[blenderpie]

Keep in mind that this is just my personal experience as far as this story, but objectively I wouldn't recommend a kuvas to anyone who wasn't planning on using it as a working dog.

When I was young, my dad decided that he liked the kuvas. He did months of research and contacted various breeders, and eventually we got a puppy. We took her to puppy classes, she played well with other dogs, and liked people. Once she was no longer a puppy, she decided that the house was hers to guard. She growled and twice bit friends who came to our home (that she had met many times before) and went on to skip our fence and attack a neighbor and his dog that were walking across the street. My dad had to make the choice to put his year and a half year old dog down because he knew he wouldn't ne able to find a new home for her after that. He thought he could accommodate the needs of the breed after owning dogs for twenty years and learned the hard way that livestock guardians are a class of their own that, even with the best intentions, are best left to people who will do with them what they are bred for.

 

[hanksimon]

I suggest only one dog, the samoyed, b/c they will bark, deterring most intruders. A guard dog might be a little more difficult for a new owner.