Hello from Sun Valley/Los Angeles, Ca.

Theres something special about these dogs that just call to me, so I figured I'd join to try & learn a bit more about them.

To be honest, I'm not sure if its the right dog for me, But then again thats why I joined to ask lots of questions..

Here's what I'm looking for :

1st: I want a dog to protect our home, I don't live in the best part of town, nor is it the worst & we've lived here so far going on 5 months & have seen nothing to worry about.
But I want a dog that will make sure people knocking or snooping around will be aware that he is on duty.
I dont want an attack dog just one that seems threatening enough to make crooks want to skip our home & move on to another.

2nd: I want a dog that not too big as to fit on my 16 foot fishing boot & a dog that would enjoy going out on the boat with me when ever I go.
Sometimes up to 3 times a week.
I was considering a larger breed but am having 2nd thoughts because I don't think he would fit to well on my boat.
I would prefer a dog that loves water & likes to swim, so if he ever fell off my boat I know he would be ok.
I really don't think making a dog wear a life vest in the heat of the summer all day would be fair to the dog.

I'd like a dog that liked to play fetch & stuff like that so we can exercise together.

Then again I don't want a dog that is a hyper ball of energy, because I don't know if I would give him enough to do.
I dont go jogging or anything like that so the dog would get regular walks & trips to the park & days on my boat & stuff like that.
He would be an inside the house dog with his own back yard & also front yard, but for the most part would hangout in the back ( not so much in the front yard ).

Anyways as I said I'm here to learn & hope you guys can help me decide if a staffy is a good breed for me..
FYI, I was all set to get a Chesapeake Bay Retriever, but the mother lost her littler..
& since that gives me time to think about this, I'm now looking deeper into the idea of a staffy.

They seem the perefect size for my boat & yet still big enough to help protect the home & probably still small enough to still be a lap dog.

Blanco wrote:1st: I want a dog to protect our home

Then a Stafford is probably not the right dog for you!! A Stafford with the proper breed temperament loves all people friends and strangers! My Saxon would lick anyone who broke into our home and probably help them carry the TV and other valuables out! The same is true of American Pit Bull Terriers and American Staffordshire Terriers with proper temperaments so they would not be good guard dogs, either.

Funny as you said in my other post, dogs are individuals & here you say otherwise?

Either way my Pit Bull I had years ago was very protective of me & also was very people friendly.
But he always could sense when i was nervous about something & he was a GREAT protector.

A dog like that don't need to do much but growl or bark at strangers to do the job I'm actually asking a home protection dog to do.

I dont want an attack dog.
I want him to let them know he is there on duty alerting us if you get near & while doing so looking sorta scary.

I must say a Staffy sure looks a lot more scary than a poodle or a jack russell in my eyes...

I'm not sure what you think I mean by Protect our home?

An alarm system is design to protect the home yet it does not attack.

Hi &

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hello and welcome

you should find all the answers you need here

Hello.

Although Staffs are people friendly they will protect their family if they sense danger and they can be trained to deter as well by barking on command like a knock on the door etc. Our last Staff Bid would bark and sound really vicious behind the fence and people soon moved on or commented thinking she was some hugh Rottie. She also prevented an attack on myself by chasing away 2 youths that had snook up behind me to do goodness knows what I will never know as my Bids stopped them in their tracks.

Swimming yes they will and some do enjoy it mine however hate water with a passion. Well bath time anyway.

As long as they are exercised with 2 good walks a day with plenty of stimulation (fetch, tugging games etc) they are fine, although as far as i'm aware all staffs will have a hypo a day where they rush around like an idiot with ears flat running through and jumping on anything that gets in their way!! ( This behaviour I am assured is normal and lasts for a couple of mins)!

Hope this helps a little and good luck with your decision.

Louise and Bodhi

Hiya and welcome, I'm affraid my bitch would help any burglers out not deter them! x

Hi & welcome.

Staffs are known to be people friendly, and are not very good house guards. Having said that, they will protect their human family with their lives if necessary, and can be taught to bark at the door or any strange noises they hear.

Most staffs can be boisterous and very active. That doesn't mean that they are hyperactive, and will settle very well as long as they are excercised properly on a regular basis.

Since they were compared with a Pit earlier, whats the energy level compared to a Pit?
I loved & miss my 'ol Pitt very much.
He was the greatest dog & went everywhere with me.
People use to call him my other 1/2. LOL!

Hello and welcome to the forum

hi there !
My staffy Jethro is a useless guard dog.. he runs up to anyone and everyone wagging his tail... tries to get into stranger's cars !! Don't know how he would go if I was threatened... probably run away with his tail between his legs !!

Blanco wrote:Funny as you said in my other post, dogs are individuals & here you say otherwise?

No need to respond in a smarmy manner. If you don't like my response feel free to ignore it, I will probably be ignoring your future posts as well. Yes, as I said all dogs are individuals, but pure bred dogs often have breed specific traits. That's all I'm trying to say. Have a nice day.

Hi and welcome

Our Sky barks at the door if we say "who is it" other than that she just runs to the door to see who it is and if they're going to make a fuss of her lol

She is protective of me, barks if my husband gives me a cuddle

She has one or two good walks a day and is happy pottering about and quite chilled indoors

Our last dog was more protective but then she was a guarding breed, a Dobermann! We never thought we could have a more loyal and affectionate dog after her but although Sky's not so much of a guard dog she is extrmely loyal, loving and affectionate and we have totally fallen in love with Staffies

I agree my kaiser is not very protective of his home if a work man comes round he will pop his head round have a look and then go back in his bed or he just trys to lick them to death he doesnt even bark when people knock at the door so he isnt a good guard dog.

vanessa wrote:hi there !
My staffy Jethro is a useless guard dog.. he runs up to anyone and everyone wagging his tail... tries to get into stranger's cars !! Don't know how he would go if I was threatened... probably run away with his tail between his legs !!

yeah I also read about that somewhere & they said that its makes them easy targets for Dog Nappers...

But heres a good video that proves some of them seem to love the water.

Hi & welcome to the forum