Dogs' differing personalities.

We have three Newfoundlands that look so much alike it's hard to know whose who but their personalities are so different.

!. Big Momma. 165 lbs. Our first, she is the matriarch. What she says goes. No growling, no challenges. She will communicate with me until I figure out what she wants.

2. Big Male. 160 lbs. Spoiled. Doesn't think he's a dog. Always wants to sleep on my bed. Growls when I put him out. Not neutered, He's a stud dog. Never pees inside even after prolonged periods. Outside he'll pee on everything he sees.

3. Smaller Younger Male. 140 lbs. Always challenging the bigger male even though he's fixed. Growls at mealtime. Pees on things.

I don't trust any of these dogs around other dogs. If something goes wrong it would be really bad even though Newfies are gentle in nature.

I thought my dogs were big until yesterday at PetSmart. Saw a Great Dane/Bull Mastiff mix. 210 pounds. The owner said he was a little overweight so he was bigger than this dog.

What weird personality traits do your dogs have?

Yep, not only with dogs. I have dogs, birds, cats and they all have their own little personalities.

I've had like 6 Labs now, 4 of my own
& 2 my dad had when I was young, Barron & Flash
pretty much were my dogs too
I walked trained & fed them
they followed me everywhere

I think most all dogs have their own quirks/similarities within the breed even
I think so in my personal experiences anyway
#1 my 2 different yellow labs
Flash & Dan the Man were more rambunctious,
wanted to run &/or escape, good flushers, lots of energy
some are a lil' hyper-ish for a lab
(others I know too)
#2 the 2 chocolate labs Lord Budnicks & now Elvis
I've had are really middle of the road, more mellow
but far more territorial, really good field dogs/hunters flushers/high retriever drive
(others I know too)
#3 the 2 black labs I've had, Barron & The Duke
were really homebodies, stayed around the house
on a leash or not or where ever I was at or the kids were at or pool-side
really good patient hunting blind dogs & good field dogs & flushers/retrievers

all 3
the yellow, chocolate & black labradors are loyal as hell
all great with kids & usually other dogs too
all of them were easy to train & very food &/or very toy driven,
especially sticks, tennis balls, plastic bottles & decoys
or stuffed animals all seemed to be fair game
all were very playful, even when geting up in years
all were protective of the kids or any lil' kid that was around, theirs or not
most all love the water, from small as a puddle to the ocean

I sort of think it's more the breed similarities of specific breeds,
even within the colors of the same breed, some are more closely related
maybe more inbred (?), to get specific colors originally
Labrador Retreivers, they were at one time the most popular AKC/UKC
registered breed of dogs 'for a long time'
(that's not why I owned them)

I've had or familiar with a few different types of Shepherds/Working dogs
(my middle sister trains them, had them as kids too)
my oldest sister is a Veterinarian/she was a MD 1st
she's had a bunch of labs also...
My mom was more of a toy Poodle type, my stepdad was a cat person
he has a small mixed breed terrier now...

I've had Bull Terrier male King & 2 American Staffordshire Terriers
male & female Alfred & Baby
(in my younger days) great breeds also, stubborn, energetic, but loyal
& obedient when trained properly, very protective especially of children
sort of territorial too, some aren't "allegedly" great around other dogs
of the same sex, I never found that to be true with any of mine...

We are a dog family, we are all dog lover/dog people
every family gathering is loaded with dogs

no bad breeds just bad owners

if any of that makes any sense

Most think prairie dogs are just rodents.....well, they are but they have their personalities too. Used to have a matriarch that kept the other 3 in line. She had them all going to the 'bathroom' in the right place and doing what they were supposed to do. Have another female that 'tried' to be the matriarch but that didn't work out too well lol. She got a good slash across the back of her neck that had me worried for a bit but she made it ok. It's been pretty interesting with these to say the least. the 'And yes, I've had a canine before too and well, never expected the 'novelty' of having a PD to be anything more than that but man, it's been way more!

big scary boy.......loves everyone, especially kids, but we have to be careful.... he doesn't know how big he is

Here’s our 3 pugs. They couldn’t be more different.

1) Tiny...male, most in-tune with his inner wolf. Chases cats and birds. Would rather be outside than inside. Rescue dog that lived on the street. Serious demeanor. Tan sitting on haunches.

2) Coco...female, completely domesticated. Not sure theres much instinct left. Fantastic tennis ball chaser. Doesn’t like to walk on wet grass. If it rains she’ll poop on the patio. Diva. Tan laying down.

3) Pepper...male, likes doing whatever bigger brother Tiny wants to do. Happy-go-lucky. Thinks all humans are good. Self confident, but clueless. Black

They certainly are you unique, it is interesting what traits get passed down from the breed. For many years we had 4 dogs. Our pug lived to be 17 and was certainly all about looking after my wife. Our Boston terrior made it to 16 and would bark at my wife if I would hug her. I think you could say I was her person.

Now we have Sadie our border Collie and Penny our mix. Sadie now 11 has been fetching and been VERY attentive to what ever goes on since she was a pup.
Penny was a rescue, her mother was a pug Boston terrior mix, her dad was obviously a big dog.. She was tiny as a puppy so we were quite surprised when she passed 70lbs. She is a unique dog, just like a pug she has to have something shoved in her mouth..and you can never find your shoe cause she picks one up and carries it around. Usually ending up in the yard. She learned to fetch from the border Collie and is a talker.
...and if you notice we have a cat that thinks it's a dog.

One of my dogs used to bark like crazy everytime the floor was being swept or mopped. Then a Green Cheek Conure (small parrot) showed up outside our window and we adopted it. The bird noticed the dog barking the next time the broom came out and started (barking/squawking) in sync with the dog until the broom was put away. Dog decided he didn't need to bark at the broom anymore because the bird does it for him. The bird still squawks like hell eveytime it sees a broom.

Sam69sat said:

One of my dogs used to bark like crazy everytime the floor was being swept or mopped. Then a Green Cheek Conure (small parrot) showed up outside our window and we adopted it. The bird noticed the dog barking the next time the broom came out and started (barking/squawking) in sync with the dog until the broom was put away. Dog decided he didn't need to bark at the broom anymore because the bird does it for him. The bird still squawks like hell eveytime it sees a broom.

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A buddy of mine had a parrot that will 'ring' just like the phone....and then would do it whenever he wanted attention! Pretty cool bird too....

This is my sons 2 year old Siberian Husky (aka my grand child ) She is sweet but strong willed. Thinks every other dog is ready to play with her. She is very attached to her master. When they visit us and my son leaves the house for more than a few minutes she goes through some serious separation anxiety, does not like being left behind. Lots of barking and howling.

My Husky is 45lbs and very gentle. My Pitbull is 100lbs and nasty if he doesn't know you. Of the two the Pitbull is more affectionate. When they fight the Husky puts the Pitbull right down. Knows exactly where to get him.

we got a 3 yr old Alaskan malamute female she weighs 128 lbs loves my wife to death but just tolarates me , but very protective of both of us . last dog was half wolf and half great perenese , she howled with the coyotes and talked back to me worse than a mad wife everybody got a good laugh at her with me .

My Springer spaniel is fat and lazy. Doesn't listen to me. He sleeps on his back stretched out on the couch every night. Snores loud.
When Fox news is on he will sit upright on the couch and stare at the TV.
Chases the cat everywhere.
Won't let anyone cut his claws and screams and thrashes if you try, so I have to take him to the vet and pay for them to strap him down and sedate him or whatever they do.
Is a well trained bird hunting dog, but the last time I took him dove hunting he wouldn't give back the bird.
Favorite treat is ice cubes.
Doesn't bark.
Gets the newspaper from the curb every morning.

67charger383 said:

My Springer spaniel is fat and lazy. Doesn't listen to me. He sleeps on his back stretched out on the couch every night. Snores loud.
When Fox news is on he will sit upright on the couch and stare at the TV.
Chases the cat everywhere.
Won't let anyone cut his claws and screams and thrashes if you try, so I have to take him to the vet and pay for them to strap him down and sedate him or whatever they do.
Is a well trained bird hunting dog, but the last time I took him dove hunting he wouldn't give back the bird.
Favorite treat is ice cubes.
Doesn't bark.
Gets the newspaper from the curb every morning.
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he's awesome!

My 1st yellow lab Bozco was amazing, so obedient so much that if I told him to do something that he knew was wrong, he would look at me funny. He died young 11 months was poisoned along with 4 other dogs in that small town.
2nd yellow Ace was a great dog a lover, hunter, and retriever as good as most at all 3. Great nose for downed birds. Was 14 when I had to put him down.
3rd was black lab mutt, long story how he came to me, he hated me and would growl as I drug him to the truck and lifted his 110 lb *** in the truck. He walked behind me on our first hunting experience and when he did venture off he got bit by an electric fence. I was the only one he knew so he came to me and I loved him up, from that moment he was my dog and became very protective of me and Ace. Eventually he became a great hunter with a no stopping him in the field attitude.
4th was yellow Boz yes I know repeat name. Good hunter great yard dog, loved kids very gentle
5th chocolate Titan, high end dog. Pointing lab and he is a great pointer, only fault in the field is he hunts close. Put him on a dead bird and he will find it. His point is solid and beautiful, he will hold till the bird moves. He was so fast but arthritis is getting him. In his prime I watched him chase down a winged pheasant jumping a 20 foot creek with out loosing his stride. Smart dog but stubborn.
Looking at a new puppy now

I have 3 Australian Shepherds, all brothers and sisters but still have completely different personalities. The names are Jake, Elwood, and the sister Mary. Jake is of course the big one and recently weighed in at 93lbs. He is laid back and tolerant of the other 2 that constantly torment him. He carries a stuffed animal around, twerks when he walks and loves to sleep. He is timid around strangers and I believe would be a handful if pissed. Fortunately, he doesn’t get mad. Elwood is the skinny one... runt of the litter. He weighs about 52 lbs. Elwood is vocal and has a fragile soul. Raised voice CRUSHES his spirit. He will sulk until he is sure you aren’t mad. He requires you to sit with him while he eats 1 kibble at a time. I’ve tried to test wills with him but always lose. He also suffers from Lupus so he is limited to us exposure which I’m sure doesn’t help his need to be with us. He is the ALPHA. Mary is a hussy (as my wife refers to her.). She has the prettiest blue eyes and the personality to match. Sassy, Bitchy, demanding and pouty when she doesn’t get her way. She has food aggression so has to eat in the corner, between the couches. Jake is allowed in her space but Elwood is not allowed within 10 feet of her food bowl. She is a cuddler. She likes her time alone until the evening but sleeps with her head on the pillow at night. Our 2 cats love our dogs and will actually spend most of the day running with them on our 3 acres. It is certainly funny to see 3 dogs and 2 Tom cats running around together