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Bear protection breed
Hello all...
Any advice or thoughts on which breed is most likely to have the disposition and senses (smell, sight, hearing) to make a good backcountry companion while providing protection and early warning for bears (and other critters)...
Mike
________
wholesale vaporizer
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Re: Bear protection breed
My Norwegian elkhound proved to be excellent on all accounts. good luck with your choice. Plenty of breeds that can handle what you need
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Re: Bear protection breed
Both of my German Shepherds have done an excellent job of shoo'ing away yogi's during huckleberry picking season. They're also very smart, loyal, etc. I couldn't ask for better companions.
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Re: Bear protection breed
mother in law.
lousy companion but can turn a bear inside out with the flick of its tongue :lol:
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Re: Bear protection breed
If you can find a male lab shepard cross, very good dog for this, very loyal and from personal experience can say will stand up to bears, 2 face personality when theres an intruder/bear ect.....
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Re: Bear protection breed
I have a bouvier/rotty cross that is perfect, furry and warm and will stand up to anything. She's also beginning to figure out cotote hunting. Just don't tell the rottie/lab and pittie that round out the "pack"
Kim
http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q...DSC_0043-1.jpg
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Barracuda
mother in law.
lousy companion but can turn a bear inside out with the flick of its tongue :lol:
LMAO!!!!!!!
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Re: Bear protection breed
Shelton says to stick with any of the working or sporting breeds. They are most likely to stand between you and a bear.
My choice would be with one of the protection or working breeds - German Shepherd or a Rottie. But I'm sure there are many breeds that would fit the bill.
In practice, I think it depends more on the individual dog than the breed. Most dogs don't like bears instinctively, so it can be a matter of attitude.
Some dogs have a lot of attitude and others, even from the same litter, can be softer.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Personally if I was only looking for protection collie lab cross. that collie speed is important if the bear is a fighter. People can say try this dog or that dog but the fact is most dogs don't like bears and will chase them unfortunately the ones that run away easy are not the ones you have to worry about. You would be surprised how few dogs will stay in a bear fight for any length of time the last thing you need is the dog hiding behind you and this happens alot. In my neck of the woods I depend on having good bear dogs as the run ins are often. Any dog that won't hold its own on a mean bear is not welcome back home. My kids and wife are to important to me.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
chilcotin hillbilly
You would be surprised how few dogs will stay in a bear fight for any length of time the last thing you need is the dog hiding behind you and this happens alot. In my neck of the woods I depend on having good bear dogs as the run ins are often. Any dog that won't hold its own on a mean bear is not welcome back home. My kids and wife are to important to me.
Thats why I loved my elkhound. Every bear we came across he made sure he was btween us and the bear. Unfortunately there were times he always kept the bear at bay and would not let it leave. lol
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Re: Bear protection breed
For both alerting and engaging a bear you want at least two dogs . Even a good bear dog can get injured or killed in a flash. A pair of Airedale terriers will be hell on everything - once keyed up they will not quit. Loyal and tough they are. Raise them with other animals otherwise they can be dangerous to other dogs and domestic critters.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Monashee
For both alerting and engaging a bear you want at least two dogs . Even a good bear dog can get injured or killed in a flash. A pair of Airedale terriers will be hell on everything - once keyed up they will not quit. Loyal and tough they are. Raise them with other animals otherwise they can be dangerous to other dogs and domestic critters.
The problem with airdales is you need to have some brains in a protection dog. Airedales deffinately lack that. There is no way you could call off the dogs in a bear fight. Much like a hound you will get your dogs back when they are good and ready unless you plan on using tracking collars. Airedales are fine for bear hunting but I would stay away from them for protection dogs.
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Re: Bear protection breed
border collie shepard cross. super loyal,protective and loyal.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Barracuda
mother in law.
lousy companion but can turn a bear inside out with the flick of its tongue :lol:
You can borrow mine,FOR FREE!!:lol:
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Re: Bear protection breed
expensive but there is a breed called the Karelien bear dog, it has been bread in scandanavia for hundreds of years for the sole purpose of bear hunting / the alberta Co's use them for bear controll.if I had a spare grand lying around I would get one
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Monashee
For both alerting and engaging a bear you want at least two dogs . Even a good bear dog can get injured or killed in a flash. A pair of Airedale terriers will be hell on everything - once keyed up they will not quit. Loyal and tough they are. Raise them with other animals otherwise they can be dangerous to other dogs and domestic critters.
You mean airheads?
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Re: Bear protection breed
I will get this in before Everett does, a HEELER. tough as nails. loyal, hate bears and take up no room in a tent or plane :-D.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Our Sheppard(Red German) is a beast! Gonna try out the baby bernese this year he's a suck, but also a buck 25 at 10 months
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Re: Bear protection breed
Originally, Boxers were bred for hunting Bears and Wild Boar.... While this practice is now frowned upon in the doggy circle (any hunting with this breed, FTM), I know that mine has always been the first to alert a 'presence' AND will jump into the ring when either called upon, or commanded. As a bonus, he will also retrieve; Grouse, bunny's, squirrels,,, what have you. Can also be pretty darn good at blood trailing.
Very versatile dog IME but they don't like being cold-n-wet as they get older (no undercoat).... And they/mine don't swim worth shit but gets along with anything that comes by, as long as it's "right" (keen sense to stuff that isn't "right") - I've had friends tell me, of whom haven't been into'd to the pooch, that there would be no way in hell of reaching into my p/u if I weren't there and he's in the back seat (protective of surroundings - Later role of the breed).
Are ALWAYS on the 'alert', but have a NASTY habit of 'left-hooking' ya in the balls (OUCH!), when playing around.
What ever you get, make sure it's WELL disciplined, ie; will come when called (always) and won't leave your side unless told so - A dog that marches to its own drum is pretty useless IMO and can actually be hazardous in the bush - As with any mutt, training is key.
Good luck!
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Re: Bear protection breed
you want a good bear dog? get a akita agreat bear dog.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
one horn buck
you want a good bear dog? get a akita agreat bear dog.
I had a friend that owned one, it HATED anything w/ 4 legs..... Literaly ate little doggy's at the ferry term. (2 that I know of, d e a d ).
No kidding...
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Re: Bear protection breed
The truth is, you [ or most ] probably don't require a dog that's going to chew bear fur. A "yappy" dog that makes lots of noise, along with a loud bell attached to it's collar is going to alert / encourage 99% of the black bears to move along.
Exactly *how much* bear protection do you need? and for what sorts of activities?
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Re: Bear protection breed
Buddie of mine had an Akita/lab cross, He never attacked dogs. But he was very protective. When we were 16-17 drinkin and smokin down at the beach you could see the cops flashlights comming and busting people at their fires. Well they would get to about 100yds and Max would sit up and growell and at 50 they cops would just turn around and leave. All the while Max never left the sitting position and never barked. Just growelled a 175lb dog growell to say " go away now"
Me i got a lab and a maverick
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Mr. Dean
...What ever you get, make sure it's WELL disciplined, ie; will come when called (always) and won't leave your side unless told so - A dog that marches to its own drum is pretty useless IMO and can actually be hazardous in the bush - As with any mutt, training is key.
Absolutely Mr. Dean! :mrgreen:
A great many breeds can and will address the role being sought here, some a tad better than others. The key VERY much is all in their training!!
Not for everyone by any means, but my vote goes to Wolf Hybrids. Been raising and training them for near 30 years now. They DO require a LOT of time, a LOT of patience, a LOT of room, a LOT of exercise, a LOT of love and support, and a considerable dedication to the all important training aspect. Most folks simply don't have what it takes to address all of these on a constant basis. For those that do, you end up with a VERY loyal Companion! Super intelligent, blessed with the best nose in the biz, and of course protective when required.
Our current female Asuilu ("Probably" in Inuvialuktun) has absolutely no fear of bears, cats or any other living thing. Took a spell to keep her under control when she gets wound up. But now that has been successfully addressed, I'd rather have her along my side than another with a gun in the vast majority of confrontational encounters.
Here's a pix:
http://gallery.fishbc.com/albums/Ironnoggin/Asuilu.jpg
She is a mix of 1/2 Arctic Wolf, 1/4 German Shepherd, and 1/4 Lab. Very well disciplined, and absolute HELL on anything that decides to eff with her "pack". Not at all difficult to understand once you see her with her "Game Face" on!
http://gallery.fishbc.com/albums/Iro...lu_Warning.jpg
Eventual plan is to breed her with our new male Amaruq (Wolf). Although he's a tad too young at 4 months (4 months, milk teeth, 45 plus POUNDS!) she has been actively encouraging him this past week - suffering from the "heat" it seems... :wink:
He's 1/2 Timber Wolf 1/2 Alaskan Husky. Methinks they will eventually produce some damn fine looking pups. Those of the kind that, again with proper and rigorous training - will more than meet the demands of the most intensive back country hunter in terms of both Companion and Protection Animal.
Just this ol' Redneck's 2 pesos. As always, your mileage may vary...
Cheers,
Nog
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Re: Bear protection breed
]
Just curious and not at all trying to be facetious - but how exactly do you know that either dog was parented - on one side or the other - by a timber/arctic wolf??
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Tenacious Billy
]Just curious and not at all trying to be facetious - but how exactly do you know that either dog was parented - on one side or the other - by a timber/arctic wolf??
No Worries Billy. I get asked that all the time. I have been involved in this matter for 3 decades. In Western Canada (Including the Arctic) it's a pretty small circle of Folks who do likewise, and many know the others players involved. For many years I simply raised my own, selecting "Breeders" from Folks I knew well to supply the required ingredients from time to time. Unfortunately when we lost Munuqsii (Camp Watcher) last fall, he signaled the end of 5 generations descending from the same lineage.
When it came time for the eventual replacements, we were careful to deal with breeders we knew. The first outside our own lineage was Asuilu. I knew of her father's relocation as a pup to where is today. By good fortune I ran into the folks that ended up with him, and collected Asuilu as a pup. DNA analysis (I have an excellent working relationship with a vet research lab) conclusively confirmed her heredity within a few weeks of arriving home.
Amaruq was simply blind luck. When Munuqsii passed, The Missuz and I were heartbroken - he was with us over 16 years and it very much stung. I was in Alberta at the time (guiding whitetails), and although I wanted to come home, duty calls the loudest. A few days of moping later my Buddies took me out to a ranch for what I assumed was simply another meet and greet with a landowner. BUT, they had a litter of pups (3 weeks at that time) which they claimed were 1/2 Timber Wolf. When I questioned where they got the "wolf" from, they informed me it had come from a fellow I know well in the Western Arctic. A quick call (right in front of them) confirmed what they were saying. The mother also came from the Western Arctic, a fellow I know that breeds them (Alaskan Huskies) for racing purposes. Not only had he provided the female, but had taken a couple of the pups she produced and was very happy with them. Not often I will openly question people like that, but I've heard far too many "wolf" stories to believe most. Once I decided to bring Amaruq home, a simple drawing of a little blood, and off to the lab again. Not only could they be positive about the heritage, they could actually tell me what part of Canada the wolf had originated in (better data base with Timbers over Arctic Wolves).
DNA typing has become more common over the past decade. Now, with some institutions carrying large data bases, it is possible to identify EXACTLY what your pup is made up of. Of course here the key is the data base - the larger the better. Most vet clinics will only have those related to domestics, which is why I work with a Research Facility that has a much broader spectrum of information to compare test results against.
A couple of sites that help explain the process:
- http://www.ehow.com/facts_5291568_ge...ting-dogs.html
- http://dogs.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Dog_DNA_Test
You surely can't always tell by "looks". Asuilu does look her part, but Amaruq "appears" to be damn near anything but. Strange how the world of genetics works, one can rarely be certain of any given output when mixing stocks!
A pix of Amaruq at 11 weeks:
http://gallery.fishbc.com/albums/Iro...gs_11wks_4.jpg
Not overly "wolf" like in appearance. Might change, but methinks he is now wearing his "colors" and won't differ from that overly much with age.
Cheers,
Nog
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Re: Bear protection breed
Very cool! Thanks for the reply.
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Re: Bear protection breed
OK.......... Seeing pic's, I can no longer resist. :wink:
Old Joe;
http://api.photoshop.com/home_93c183...2f47bb7ba33775
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Re: Bear protection breed
they are somewhat uncommon, and kind of tough to get a hold of, but have you heard of a rhodesian ridgeback? I've got an 8 month pup and he's awesome! haven't really had him out hunting yet, but they were originally bred to bay lions in africa, s you know they have the balls for it. the lady who owns his father has 3 and says hers have treed bears on the property several times and chased them away when ot for walks. sounds like they do the job to me. they are super friendly and loyal to. and they look super cool. comes with a built in mohawk!
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Re: Bear protection breed
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
bmx_slinger
they are somewhat uncommon, and kind of tough to get a hold of, but have you heard of a rhodesian ridgeback? I've got an 8 month pup and he's awesome! haven't really had him out hunting yet, but they were originally bred to bay lions in africa, s you know they have the balls for it. the lady who owns his father has 3 and says hers have treed bears on the property several times and chased them away when ot for walks. sounds like they do the job to me. they are super friendly and loyal to. and they look super cool. comes with a built in mohawk!
Have a buddy who spent huge $ on a ridgeback. Can't judge a breed on one dog - needless to say it is one of the most neurotic and useless dogs I've ever seen. They've got other dogs and have owned other dogs in the past without any issues. Last I heard they were trying to give it away.
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Re: Bear protection breed
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Originally Posted by
GoatGuy
Have a buddy who spent huge $ on a ridgeback. Can't judge a breed on one dog - needless to say it is one of the most neurotic and useless dogs I've ever seen. They've got other dogs and have owned other dogs in the past without any issues. Last I heard they were trying to give it away.
HA too bad about that. The ones that i have met were super chill and laid back. I see youre a kelowna man. is this dog in town too?
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
bmx_slinger
HA too bad about that. The ones that i have met were super chill and laid back. I see youre a kelowna man. is this dog in town too?
Used to be - don't think so anymore.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Get a gun you don't have to feed them. just razzing ya , I'm sure you'll get all the info you need I learned lots just reading all these posts
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Mr. Dean
What ever you get, make sure it's WELL disciplined, ie; will come when called (always) and won't leave your side unless told so - A dog that marches to its own drum is pretty useless IMO and can actually be hazardous in the bush - As with any mutt, training is key.
Couldn't agree more.
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Re: Bear protection breed
12 to 14 Tosa inu dogs should keep a grizz of your case for awhile.
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Re: Bear protection breed
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Originally Posted by
jaywill
Nice lookin' dog. Never heard of them before so had to do a little research. Interesting history. Akitas are similar looking and had similar jobs (elk, antelope, boar, and bear hunters), just a different geography.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w...r/P1020161.jpg
Our Akita is very aware of bears. She will watch coyotes, and deer pass by the property with some interest, but when a bear is near she literally vibrates. Very tuned in.
They are extremely loyal, and very protective. Ours seems to be a very good judge of character as well. We were sitting on the tailgate of my truck outside the camper waiting for the wife one day. An unsavory character walked up and commented on the dog. Went to pet her, and never got closer than about 3 ft. The dog made no bones of the fact she didn't like him. She's very choosy as to who she will let near our stuff.
You do have to watch them around other dogs, especially smaller ones. They tend not to play well with dogs they don't know. No problems with other animals raised on the property or our neighbours dogs, but strange dogs beware.
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Re: Bear protection breed
i always chuckle when folks mention those:twisted:
many of the breeds folks have mentioned if they havnt been used in the last generation or two or they are show dogs that have had the brains bred out of them and the drive diluted then they dont cut it .
a dog for bear protection is a completly different set of wants then a hunting dog.
If it were just for protection i would go for a tight working cattle dog or collie type, smart fast and loyal .
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Re: Bear protection breed
Quote:
Originally Posted by
bmx_slinger
they are somewhat uncommon, and kind of tough to get a hold of, but have you heard of a rhodesian ridgeback? I've got an 8 month pup and he's awesome! haven't really had him out hunting yet, but they were originally bred to bay lions in africa, s you know they have the balls for it. the lady who owns his father has 3 and says hers have treed bears on the property several times and chased them away when ot for walks. sounds like they do the job to me. they are super friendly and loyal to. and they look super cool. comes with a built in mohawk!
You know,,,, I once had a female B. Lab that had a 50% cross of Ridgeback, in her. Good dog - Never had the opportunity of testing her nerve but was very bright, attentive, and obedient. A great retriever that out-classed our male, pure bred, blackie - He was one STUBBORN S.O.B.
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Re: Bear protection breed
Protection ? None.
Early warning ? Almost any breed.