Are Bernedoodles Protective? Can Bernedoodles Be Guard Dogs?

Bernedoodles are among the best family dogs; they are ideal for families with children due to their sweet and gentle nature; they can also get along well with other pets.

Bernedoodles have many great qualities, such as being incredibly friendly, caring, and affectionate, but being protective is one of them; let’s find out.

So, are Bernedoodles protective? Bernedoodles are protective of their family and loved ones; however, they may display defensive behavior such as barking or growling when someone gets too close to you or if a stranger approaches you in the streets. Still, they’ll never attack someone because Bernedoodles are not aggressive .

There is more to that answer, keep reading if you want to know more about your Bernedoodle, and can they make good guard dogs? And how to train your Bernedoodle to become a better guard dog.

Table of Contents

Are Bernedoodles Protective?

Bernedoodles are protective of their family, and since they are prone to separation anxiety, Bernedoodle sometimes can become territorial.

Bernedoodle was bred to be a hypoallergenic breed and be proper companions for families, so when breeding a Poodle and the Bernese Mountain Dog, the guarding traits aren’t exactly on the breeder’s mind.

That is why Bernedoodles are such a friendly and happy breed, but one of their parent breeds is the Bernese Mountain Dog which is descended from the mastiff-type dogs. You can learn more about their history in this article on the Merle Bernedoodle.

Even though they were slowly bred to be just working dogs and neglecting their guarding abilities, they still have it in their genes to be protective of their family, and sometimes their instincts quick in and make them a little possessive.

Bernedoodles are incredibly loyal and devoted to their family members, and it’s the ideal trait for protective dogs.

However, just like any other breed, it’s essential to socialize your Bernedoodle from a young age so they can grow up and mature appropriately without being too afraid of people or aggressive with strangers.

Can Bernedoodles Make Good Guard Dogs?

Yes, Bernedoodles can make good guard dogs; they are protective, loyal, and good barkers, Bernedoodles are also incredibly smart, so you train them to guard you properly.

Their guarding traits are inherited from their Bernese Mountain Dog parent because they were used for hunting in the mountains.

However, they are not one of the guard dogs that can attack someone or take the matter into their own hands; and they will just bark, show their teeth, and growl at them, and in most cases, that’s actually enough to scare people off.

5 Reasons Why Bernedoodles Are Good Guard Dogs.

Bernedoodles can make good guard dogs for many reasons, so let’s get to them.

Protectiveness
Loyalty
Instincts
Intelligence
Balance

Let’s briefly discuss each of these reasons:

Protectiveness

The most crucial thing in any guard dog is having a protective personality and wanting to keep their family safe and away from any threat.

Bernedoodles are incredibly protective of their family because they usually get too attached to some of the family members, leading to separation anxiety.

However, in some cases in Bernedoodles, they can get too protective that it turns out to be territorial and possessive.

So that’s why it’s important to socialize and train your dog from a young age because, without them, your Bernedoodle can get a little aggressive with strangers or people too close to you, especially if they have a favorite person.

Loyalty

Loyalty is also one of the essential traits in guard dogs because that’s one of their motives to keep you safe and protect you.

Even though most dogs are loyal, every dog’s loyalty can differ; some dogs have it. Still, it only comes out as a never betray or forget a person that fed me, but Bernedoodles display their loyalty in protecting the people they love with their lives if they had to.

Instincts

The instinct of Bernedoodles isn’t the best, but it’s still there, and sometimes it quicks in; the only thing that matters is that they can sense when there is a potential threat, and that’s something not all dogs can do.

Some dogs can sense the threat and alarm you that there is something off going on, and some may think that everything is a threat, even a plastic bag, but Bernedoodles have a good call when it comes to determining whether everything is normal or not.

Intelligence

Bernedoodles are an intelligent breed because one of their parent breeds is the Poodle, the second most intelligent dog in the world.

Their intelligence helps them pick up things quickly, making it easy to train them to become better guard dogs.

Balance

Bernedoodles are the perfect balance when it comes to guarding. They are not too aggressive, which makes them difficult to live with, can be dangerous around children, and are not too gullible to think that everyone is a friend, even someone who just broke into the house.

However, if you are just looking for a guard dog and not a cute family pet that can protect you to a certain level, then maybe you should consider getting another breed such as the Belgian Malinois, German Shepherd, Rottweiler, Doberman Pinscher, Rhodesian Ridgeback, or a Bullmastiff.

How To Train Your Bernedoodle To Become A Better Guard Dog?

If you want your Bernedoodle to become a better guard dog, here is what you can do.

Socialize them
Teach them basic commands
Go through the whole house with them
Test Them
Get a fake Intruder
Practice

Socialize them

It would be best if you socialized your Bernedoodle early so they can mature without having any irrational fear that can make them look silly as guard dogs.

You can take them to a socializing class or socialize them by yourself; all you need to do is introduce them to new things, such as other animals, random objects, and people of all ages.

Try to introduce them to as many things as possible; if your Bernedoodle seems to be scared or anxious about something, take them closer to that thing slowly and let them approach it by themselves and smell it and figure out what it is until they are finally comfortable around it then you can move to another.

You should socialize your dog when they are between one and sixteen weeks.

Teach Them Basic Commands

You should teach your Bernedoodle the basic commands such as sit, come, bark, leave it, and lie down.

This will help you through so much and can make every other future training more manageable, and you should also train them in the basic commands in a place where you want them to guard.

Go Through The Whole House With Them

You should go through the whole house with your Bernedoodle every day, multiple times, so they can be familiar with every inch of the house and feel more confident in it to be more territorial with the whole house.

Test Them

After letting your dog be familiar with every inch of the house, you should start testing them by leaving them alone where you want them to guard it the most, such as the yard, the front door, or maybe a room with your most valuable objects.

Get A fake Intruder.

Get A friend or family member they haven’t met yet and let that person come up to them and make a noticeable sound as they walk.

If your dog is guarding the front door, let the person knock on the door; if they are defending the yard, let them knock on the fence; when your Bernedoodle starts barking, that person should act scared and start running off. If your Bernedoodle didn’t bark, you should keep trying this till they finally do.

There is a bit more to dealing with intruders, and I discuss this in detail in my article on how will a Golden Retriever handle an intruder here, so make sure to check it out as the advice and training methods explained there still apply to other dogs.

Practice

Now that your Bernedoodle barked at the stranger, you should keep practicing, but by adding more obstacles for your dog to be prepared for any situation, such as the stranger giving them treats or throwing them a ball, your dog should not be distracted from the threat.

So whenever your Bernedoodle gets distracted, tell them to “leave it” and keep practicing till there is absolutely nothing that can distract your Bernedoodle.

Will A Bernedoodle Attack An Intruder?

The answer is no; Bernedoodles will not attack an intruder. They are not an aggressive breed, so they won’t attack anyone.

The closest thing to attack that they may do is to jump on you from excitement when you get home or when you tell them that it’s time for their daily walk.

It’s also essential to socialize your Bernedoodle and train them not to bite or jump on everyone to greet them.

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