What do you consider to be the most "difficult" breed? Controversial

Oz has changed a few minds at training ....

Jack Russel Terriers can be a pain in the butt!!!! Love em though.

At different points in my life different breeds have been right for me.

Right now I have a Lurcher (but his main mix is saluki & greyhound). And he is very low energy, has no noticeable shedding beyond say what a cat would so easy to hoover. Tiny amount of combing needed for his fluffy ears and tail. 10 minutes to shower. Has a gentle nature toward absolutely everyone and every dog. Does not need constant attention or guidance, nor does he run or 'play' in the house - he just sleeps lol!

This is the ideal dog for someone like me who has two young children, is single so can only offer time limited walks. And I'm often nipping out for a few hours with the kids so know he is happy enough to be alone for a couple of hours.

Difficult dogs for me would be collies, GSDs and husky type dogs.

Have come to dislike GSD's. They tend to be "snappy" and despite being intelligent... it takes a lot of patience to train them. They also tend to bark too much. Had one named Derrick (rescue GSD) when I was young. He barked all night long and lots during the daytime as well. It was insane, we could do nothing to stop him for weeks on end. He was finally given away by my parents.

Jade (GSD/Pitty) is a mess, too. Very unintelligent, easily bored and just skirts away rather than trying to listen and learn commands. Snappy when out and barky when in. Also possessive of her space and will wee and whatnot to claim it. VERY growly, as well... even when she isn't angry and is just playing.

She is also VERY snuggly and loves to snuggle up to people and invade their personal space and is VERY reluctant to leave said space (at all) and has to be repeatedly shoved down and told to get off. This is cute for a while, but quickly gets annoying. She also reaches her paws up and smacks you and scratches you trying to get closer.

Also she is scared of her own shadow... and stuff that isn't scary at all, such as lamps. She constantly stinks/has B.O., a problem I have never had with my Lab mixes (or really any other dogs). She HATES water, as well so baths and whatnot are always a mess. She sheds INSANE, whereas my Lab mixes don't really shed. She won't stay still to be properly groomed, either.

She snaps her jaws shut on any treats you hand her and it's been very hard to get her to lessen this. Hates kids, dislikes most adults, dislikes most dogs and all other bitches. Is okay with cats, but gets growly with them sometimes. Won't let me hold any of her feet for claw clipping.

I could go on and on. A right struggle to deal with, she is! But love her I do and endeavor to keep her as happy and content as possible.

As a trainer I find Poodles are sometimes bit slow is picking up basic commands, Border Collies & all types of Terriers can be stubborn, however I find Staffies, GSD's Rottweiler's Doberman's & Newfoundland's are very easy to train, if the rescue home have any Springers, Cockers & Labadors in I will pass these dogs on to the other trainers as these dogs can be very highly strung & takes ages to get them just to walk on a lead without jumping all over the place, (we get them in around 1 year old as owners can't cope with them, most have never had any basic training at all) coming to my favourite breeds to train are lap dogs (toy breeds) these little monsters have big attitude problems they don't realise just how small they are & will stand their ground growling at you, but once you have broken down the barrier they have put up, they then become the best dog to train as they love to please you & will do anything for a kiss.

If you get a GSD from good breeding from mentally stable parents they are the most easiest breed to train, problem is too many are bred from bybs, puppy farmers and people who dont have a clue what they are doing, if you breed from a neurotic bitch you will have neurotic pups, likewise people cross the lines without knowing the genetic differences in temperament & drives of the lines.

Sorry but I find your post to be very derogatory, Having been brought up with and owned Gsd’s all my life and worked them in competitive obedience I find them very easy to train and eager to please, though some needed more input than others, its all to easy to condemn a breed for the owners lack of ability to understand that breed and the individual dogs needs.

I also trained my Akitas in obedience which needed a completely different approach,.

I don't think one can say any breeds are more difficult than others all breeds and individual dogs can present challenges, as with any breed good breeding is the key.

Have to agree, one wonders why the police would use should a breed if they were that bad

For me, it is not a particular breed as such that is difficult but a type........i.e. rescue dogs. For anyone taking on a dog from a shelter or rescue organisation they are going in blind as it were, and sometimes the previous history of the dog, which is usually unknown, causes massive problems. We have had three, and each one has been very difficult in it's own way. Very often, as with our dogs, it is virtually impossible to totally overcome these problems and one just has to manage the situation as well as one can in order to give the dog the best possible life whilst making it liveable with!

Hmph. You are entitled to your opinions as I am entitled to mine. I said nothing to you and I added my post because of the thread topic. You don't like it? Fine, but I still have my right to post it. In defense, dogs are not always well bred here and I have only owned one pure bred GSD and he was a rescue.

If one cannot say any breed is more difficult then others, perhaps you should tell that to everyone here and not just single me out because I picked YOUR favorite breed? BTW congrats on your competitive obedience and whatnot. I never said nor implied that they were impossible to train or disobedient.

I like Labradors and Lab mixes, but some people say they are wicked dogs and they are VERY high (#1, I think) on the bite list in the UK. Their opinion. Funny, since they are the most popular breed here, too and are hardly found on this list. Certainly far from first.

I am FAR from the only person to ever find GSD's "difficult". I see them mentioned by others here, and they also have a nice, high spot on the bite list as well. It's good that you view them differently from me, I guess. But it doesn't matter, won't make me change what I said.

Jackie, leave it to you to agree with someone who disagrees with me. But I digress.

Police use them, yes. What does that mean? Police use pit bulls as SAR and drug sniffing dogs (not in the UK, of course). Police use many breeds. They use Labradors as bomb dogs. The GSD is high on the bite list, as is the pit bull and Rottweiler, which I have seen used as police dogs. The Malinois is also used a lot as the health of GSD's isn't always as good because of bad breeding.

Also, if you have seen some of the way they are trained for said police work (especially in some parts of America), you might hold your tongue a bit. It is often done in a cruel and forceful manner because these dogs are indeed not always easy to train.

Do I mean all GSD's? Nope! That would be absurd. I mean the ones I have met and owned, sans one. I do not have time to study up on tons of GSD's for the sake of it. I knew a very nice one named Coco (almost all black), who was gentle and calm as it gets. But I have not met any other nice ones at all. My personal experience. Like it or leave it. Really doesn't matter.

Then that's what you should have said.....
You will find that most people will defend their breed when others give a false impression of them.

You simply cannot be an expert on the breed after owning just one, and for a short while too!

You should have just said(if you really had to)that you have come to dislike gsds because of your bad experience with ONE and then referred to the single dog in your diatribe..instead of the whole breed.

Of all the dogs I have owned [and bred] I have only had two "difficult" ones. One was a Griffon of my breeding who was "difficult" as she had springs for legs and if you turned your back on her you frequently found her on your shoulders! Otherwise she was a typical Griff - easy to train and quick to learn.

The other is my current dog, and she is only "difficult" due to the crossed wires in her brain - and she is only "difficult" at times.

I do not know enough about many breeds to know whether there is a difficult breed.as such.

Difficult breeds? I could not say.

Difficult owners? Definitely.

I'm shocked by the amount of posts here calling dogs "dim", "unintelligent", and "slow to learn". I would imagine those people claiming that of their dogs or dogs they've worked with has not really explored other options to encourage their dogs to want to learn. I don't know, I just find it rather sad when people refer to their dogs as dumb or whatever. My boy is NOT eager to train and finds the whole process rather boring. Because of his reluctance to learn he could well be one of those unfortunate dogs to be lumped under as "dim". But intelligence comes in many forms and one could argue that a dog using his own brain to determine what he/she deems worthy of repeating and learning is actually the most intelligent of all.

I think Azawakhs, they are so unlike any other breed and crazy intelligent, but I would LOVE to be owned by one myself

I find Newfies hard work, not for the fainthearted, as the drool, long fur and hours of grooming take lots of love and patience, but we love him and he is just the most lovable dog we have had. He is nearly nine and we have never heard him growl, he just loves everything and is loved by everyone, as for male dogs being more aggressive I don't think so.

Quote (You are entitled to your opinions as I am entitled to mine. I said nothing to you and I added my post because of the thread topic. You don't like it? Fine, but I still have my right to post it. In defense, dogs are not always well bred here and I have only owned one pure bred GSD and he was a rescue.) If one cannot say any breed is more difficult then others, perhaps you should tell that to everyone here and not just single me out because I picked YOUR favorite breed
Not sure where you got the impression I ‘singled’ you out, the only reference I made to you personally was that I thought your post was derogatory, the rest was in general. if one chooses to post on a public forum they should be prepared to get subjective views and doesn’t mean they are being singled out.
Bashing a breed in public when one's knowledge is limited having based it on only having owned one of the breed will get a reaction.
Quote )Also, if you have seen some of the way they are trained for said police work (especially in some parts of America), you might hold your tongue a bit. It is often done in a cruel and forceful manner because these dogs are indeed not always easy to train. Sadly there are still many Old School trainers about even in the UK who believe in using ‘harsh methods, but that’s not to say it’s because the dogs are not easy to train.
I like Labradors and Lab mixes, but some people say they are wicked dogs and they are VERY high (#1, I think) on the bite list in the UK
As regards the bite list in the UK, as far as im aware there is No official dog breed bite list ‘though we have certain banned breed ‘types’ Pit Bull Terrier,
Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, Fila Braziliero

I disagree with BSL, in that any breed of dog can bite.

Having owned boxers for years and listening to the comments on " they are nuts, and you can't do anything with them" for as long as I can remember, I know just believe it's not the breed but the owner OR trainer who does not know how to utilise the breeds natural intelligence .

Now taking on a new breed, ( after a lot of research) I have found myself with another extremely intelligent dog, and the challenge for me to find a way to utilise this and encourage him to work with me..I am sure there are plenty of breeds that display this wilful streak, I just need to find a way through it.....

GSD slave, I said you singled me out because you quoted my comment and called it "derogatory" which is your opinion of it. I hardly bashed the breed. I am not for any form of B.S.L. Not sure where you got that from. I never said nor implied that any laws should be put into place regarding any breeds.
Also, while I have only owned one of the breed, I have met several... only one being a nice and well behaved dog. Owning a dog isn't the only way to judge them. I also NEVER said they were bad dogs or anything, just said I've come to dislike them because the ones I meet tend not to be very nice dogs.
I never said I was en expert on the breed (or any breed, I own mutts and have mostly owned mutts)! My gosh are you people reading what I say or reading what you want to? Also, though I have only owned one, I have met several so I wasn't going only on the dog I've owned.
I'm going on what I have experienced and seen, and because of that... there is nothing on this site that will make me take back my statement or amend it. I know that not all GSD's are "difficult" (I never said that anyway) and that some are great dogs. Hell, most of them could be great dogs for all I know... but not the ones I've met and so I avoid them when I can (I also avoid American Pit Bull Terriers, Chihuahuas, and a few other breeds).