Have you ever wondered if Vizslas would make good guard dogs? A few weeks ago, I received a message from one of my friends, asking the same question. So I decided to write a helpful article just for you.
Are Vizslas good guard dogs? Generally, Vizslas cannot make good guard dogs. They are just watchdogs. Since Vizslas have all the requirements of guard dogs, They can make good guard dogs with proper training, patience, time, perseverance. Moreover, the behavior of the owner can make a huge impact.
Although Vizslas are excellent watchdogs, they can make good guard dogs with a certain set of procedures and with some proven tactics. So, it’s time to find out how you can do that.
What are the meanings of “Guard dog” and “Watchdog”?
Many people have misunderstood the meanings of these two terms. “Watchdog” and “Guard dog” have completely different meanings. So, having a good knowledge of these terms will make the process easier.
So let’s figure it out in a few seconds!
A watchdog
Commonly called “Alarm dogs.” These dogs are accustomed to alerting their owner if something goes wrong. For example, If a trespasser or stranger arrives, they tend to notify their owner by barking.
Obviously, watchdogs usually bark a lot. But they are not attempting to engage with the threat by biting or any kind of way.
We can recognize watchdogs in several sizes and shapes. The high strength, size, courage are not significant factors of a watchdog.
But think a little bit. The vizslas have qualifications to become guard dogs.
A guard dog
Commonly these creatures are dogs which used to guard livestock properties.
So guard dogs are also much alert the same as watchdogs. The unique thing is they are more likely to engage with the threat. In most cases, they tend to bite.
The guard dogs give a clear warning of the threat before the attack.
Typically we can see two types of guard dogs.
- Huge and short-coated mastiff/ bully type
- Livestock guardian dogs that have thick coats with massive bodies.
In fact, we can see some terrier breeds and some shepherd breeds.
Well, now you have explicit knowledge of these two types of dogs. So let’s go ahead and understand how vizslas can become good guard dogs.
By the way, Read this to understand whether Vizslas are good with cats.
What makes vizslas are suitable to become good guard dogs?
As I mentioned above, we can identify watchdogs of various sizes. Because they only need to warn their owner. Thus every watchdog cannot become a guard dog. It requires many qualifications.
So those qualifications are,
- Size
- Loyalty
- Intelligence
- Energetic
The size
Obviously, this is the first qualification to become a good guard dog. Because without a robust vast body, how can afford such kind of responsibility? Have you seen a 5-foot-tall skinny bodyguard?
So without any argument, vizslas can pass this qualification in order to become good guard dogs.
Loyalty
When we consider the most loyal dog breeders, vizslas can take a higher place. If a dog is extremely loyal to its owner, it can become an excellent protector.
Intelligence
Vizslas are very intelligent dog breeds. Because they are one of the most excellent hunters in the canine world.
As vizslas have good intelligence, it’s straightforward to train to become good guard dogs because we don’t wanna put too much effort into training them.
Energetic
Vizslas are incredibly energetic and active dogs. They can react to something anytime throughout the day. I personally know that many people keep them as hunting dogs. Most of them used to hunt all day.
This is the outstanding feature that vizslas have, which is suitable for excellent guard dogs. Because they have these qualifications, it is straightforward to defeat the opinion of the common people.
What makes vizslas not suitable to become good guard dogs?
There is always the wrong side. Vizslas’ some temperaments can make them not deserve to hold that kind of responsibility.
Those temperaments are,
- Gentle
- Quite
- Stubborn
- Affectionate
Gentle
Normally, vizslas are known as a gentle dog breed. But if they try to be gentle for everyone, vizslas cannot become good guard dogs.
Quite
Many vizslas have proven that they are a somewhat quiet breed. They usually do not tend to bark every time. But don’t misunderstand. Vizslas used to whine or cry throughout the day.
But as a watchdog, vizslas tend to bark at every stranger. So you have to teach them to bark at questionable strangers.
Stubborn
We already discussed that vizslas are one of the greatest intelligent dogs in the canine world. It makes them easy to train.
But another outstanding feature that is somewhat unique to vizslas is they are stubborn dogs. It makes it hard to train.
They can be stubborn due to several reasons. A high anxiety level can be one reason. Today many people used to left alone their vizslas for hours. It may occur because of the busyness of the people.
But you must keep in mind one thing. If you are busy enough, it’s arduous to turn vizslas into good guard dogs.
Affectionate
Many gourd dogs are not affectionate dogs. But vizslas are such an affectionate breed. May owners have told me that their vizslas tend to bark if someone knocks on the door.
After all, when that stranger arrives to inside the home, they just jump toward them and start extreme licking.
That drives me nut because that sounds like crazy. So this type of vizslas needs specialized training to become good guard dogs.
How to train vizslas to become good guard dogs?
So now we have discussed the good and bad temperaments of vizslas. However, with a good training schedule and plan, it’s a totally doable thing.
As we discussed before, vizslas are somewhat stubborn dog breeds. As they mature, it can be so hard to train their new traits.
However, if you start the training since their puppyhood, it may be straightforward to turn vizslas into good guard dogs. But honestly, this is not going to happen overnight. It requires patience, time, perseverance.
But honestly, this is not going to happen overnight. It requires patience, time, perseverance.
You can use your verbal praises and puppy treats to help them achieve such a thing. So let’s understand how you can train them!
There are two methods that are most effective.
- The verbal cue method
- The boundary method.
The verbal cue method
This method is an efficient way to get your job done. Here you have to train them to bark to noises that can make feel them questionable.
Get something your vizsla tends to bark frequently. Now you are going to practice the “bark” command.
Then use the bark command to encourage him to bark. So whenever he is doing well, don’t forget to reward him with puppy treats.
You can do this successfully at night. Use your own means to indicate that there is something suspicious outside the home. Then use the “bark command. Again, whenever he is doing great, don’t forget to reward him.
In this way, vizslas can begin to become good guard dogs. But there is much more to do. So let’s dig deep in.
Well, now you have to do a small activity.
Let’s assume that your dog is now trained well to bark on that command. Wait until night. Then tell someone to stay near the house in the dark. (The dog should not be able to recognize him)
Then use the command to encourage to bark at the person. You must be able to grow suspiciousness and curiosity in their mind. Use your own words to accomplish that.
Surely now, your dog will start to bark. Tell the person to flee by screaming. Train him to bark until the stranger is Imperceptible. Then give some rewards to him.
The boundary method.
Actually, this method is slightly easy rather than “the verbal clue method.” If vizslas need to become good guard dogs, they should be able to identify the area he needs to protect.
In this method, we are going to do that. Take a morning walk with your vizsla around the house. During this walk, let him concentrate and identify his territory.
In the evening, take another relaxing walk with him. Let him stay focused during the walk and don’t beak his attention.
So you have to continue this process for a few weeks. Eventually, he will realize that what is his territory and the defense area.
With these activities, the vizslas will become guard dogs.
But the key factor to success in this method is your vizsla must have socialized. Then he can recognize your friends separately and suspicious people.
It’s effortless to socialize them with dog parks. Furthermore, you can accomplish that through obedience classes as well.
What are the common guard breeds?
After you read these things, if you are no longer interested in vizslas, many other dog breeds are considered to guard dogs.
Here are the top 15 guard dogs,
- Akita
- Appenzeller sennenhund
- Australian shepherd
- Bullmastiff
- Catahoula leopard dog
- Caucasian shepherd dog
- Chesapeake bay retrievers
- Doberman Pinscher
- Estrela mountain dogs
- German shepherd
- Giant schnauzer
- Puli
- Romanian Mioritic shepherd dog
- Rottweiler
- Staffordshire bull terrier
Conclusion
Vizslas are known to be a potent hunting variety. At the same time, they are excellent guards. So many vizsla lovers have a common problem. “Are vizslas good guard dogs?“.
Well, this whole article is an in-depth investigation of that matter. I hope you enjoyed it.
