A Schutzhund golden retriever. (And it’s not a blond hovawart!)
I checked the other photos that were uploaded by this user on Wikipedia, and the dog is obviously a golden retriever, not a hovawart.
The photos were uploaded by the Wikpedia user Barras, and on close examination, you can tell the features of this dog are very much those of a golden retriever. The angles of the head are very different from that of a hovawart, and the limb to body ratios are very similar to what one would expect from a retriever.
Now, this is the breed that can carry an egg a half mile without breaking it.
But I guess you can train one to do these sorts of behaviors, too.
I guess if the dog thinks it’s retrieving a person, it’s not that different.
It’s just way outside of what they are normally used for.
Schutz ist nicht Retrieverwerk! (pardon my fake Deutsche).
I saw some a Shutzhund Labrador video a few months back. The dog’s body language said: “This is a fun game” rather than “I’d like to take you down”. I think that’s a good thing. I don’t think retrievers should be trainable to make proper, fierce guard dogs. If anyone is breeding retrievers that would make it, they deserve a good chewing out.
I had a German friend who went to Schutzhund 6 in Germany with a couple boxers. He just shook his head when I asked if his present dogs (both Labbies that he bought from me) would make it at Schutzhund.
why not? for these breeds, it’s just a variety of play behavior.
Different from the breeds designed for actual protection work.
I’ve seen videos like this of many different breeds…
Has anyone ever bred one of those other breeds to have very high bite inhibition and a very soft mouth?
That’s what retrievers are supposed to be.
I wonder if you might be messing them up by breeding for the exact opposite trait.
Granted, they can learn to use their jaws for real. (Miley does– on rabbits).
But that’s not what a retriever should do.
Exactly. The best justification for having breed standards to make it possible to predict what you’re going to get when you buy a pup. The ‘trademark’ of retrievers is one of a friendly, safe, biddible dog. If I choose to buy a retriever, or rescue one, I don’t expect to get a dog with a hard mouth and high bite inhibition. If I breed retrievers, I don’t want my ‘trademark’ corrupted.
Likewise, even if you could train a retriever to take schutz as a calling, rather than a game, you’ll end up with an inferior guard dog, simply because bad guys are less likely to be deterred by a growling retriever than by a growling Dobie or GSD.
Huh. Now there’s a mindbender. Also thanks for increasing my dog breed vocabulary…I was convinced you’d made up “Hovawart” until I decided to Google it, just in case. Hehe.
Hovawarts are Goldens from the Mirror Universe (Star Trek reference). They’re just missing goatees. ;)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirror,_Mirror_%28Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series%29
Some Goldens can learn to play the “tug” game very well. (the key is teaching the rules– when to grab/hold, when to release). Yes, it is a game; but “bite inhibition” really means that the dog understands when and how to use or to inhibit the force of its mouth. I’ve known a number of Goldens that could dispatch critters (possums, groundhogs, etc) with a single flick of the head, yet carry a bird or a kitten most tenderly.
Very true. I have two Spaniels with very soft mouths. They can retrieve eggs without breaking them and hold vienna sausages in their mouths without denting the skin. I also play tug with them and they grip just as hard and pull just as tenaciously as my Jack Russell Terrier. Some people say you should never play tug with gun dogs, but it’s really only about teaching when is an appropriate time to bite down.
can a golden retriever be a guard dog???? is there any videos of a golden retriever doing bite work and attacking on command like in the picture??? how can my golden to attack on command like the golden in the picture??? plz someone answer plz
I would suggest against it.
This is the only attack golden retriever I’ve ever heard of.
There are plenty of Labradors that do it.
But is there a video of this dog attacking
No.
Is there any video of a golden retriever attacking on command
Can a golden retriever protect his owner or can it be trained to do so??? Is there any dog trainer that can make my golden retriever attack on command???? Please I really really need help please someone answer my questions plz
And why isn’t there a video of this GRD attacking ???
Schutzhund is not simply about aggression, although the protection aspect does require that the dog act aggressively to protect the human. Schutzhund is more about the dog having conscious control of its behavior, and complete obedience to its human partner. Protection is one aspect of Schutzhund, and it’s the part that gets the most press and makes the most spectacular photos, but schutzhund also includes a tracking assessment and one in obedience to both basic and advanced directives. A Schutzhund title cannot be obtained unless the dog masters all three aspects of Schutzhund – obedience, tracking, and protection.
That being said, of course there are some breeds more suited than others to this type of training. But Jen is right; it is a fun game for the dogs. The same dog that can take down a full-grown man can also gently carry fragile objects in its mouth. I had a very “sharp” female GSD who routinely carried young kittens and rabbits around without harming them.