mixed breed behaviors...

[fancychicken]

I was just curious..for those of you who own mixed breeds. Can you notice their distinct breed traits/personalities in them or not.

Shamous is a GSD/LAB mix. He definately switches back and forth between the breeds. Like last night..

GSD=bark like mad at anything approaching the perimeter of the house. Warn all those with in a 10 mile radius that a moth has breeched the front porch entrance, charge at the door to eliminate the intruder.....

LAB= Run so fast at the door that you miscalculate the entrance and crash head first into the door jam. Get distracted by microscopic crumb on floor and forget all about the moth

[Fuzz Puppy]

Let's see, Bailey is a Hound/Lab mix.

Hound: Loves to sniff absolutely everything, run after animals, and is a brick with legs.

Labrador Retreiver: Loves to swim, like you pretty much can't get him out of the water.

[Ritz459]

Originally Posted by fancychicken

LAB= Run so fast at the door that you miscalculate the entrance and crash head first into the door jam. Get distracted by microscopic crumb on floor and forget all about the moth

ROFLMHO!! Yep, that's a lab allright! Fits Sadie to a tee.

Rose is a Lab/Cattle Dog/GSD mix, but she doesn't act like one. She acts more like a Greyhound or something.

Cattledog: When she was a pup (like, six weeks old) she tried to "herd" our neighbor's cows....almost got trampled in the process and I just about had a heart attack! The rest of the litter was right along with her and man, were those cows not happy!
She also likes to chase things (like cars! Finally breaking her of that though). She also loves to hunt mice, rabbits, moles, shrews....anything and everything. She is also leery of knew people and will just stand back about twenty feet and bark.

GSD: She has to bark at EVERYTHING. Maybe this is the cattedog in her too, but if there is the slightest "intruder" withen a mile radius of our yard, we know about it! She also has a shriller bark, like her mother, who was the Cattledog/GSD cross.

Lab: her looks and her "I love to be pet by my favorite mommy" attitude. Aside from that, she doesn't really act like one. She dislikes other dogs that are "pushy" (she is fear aggressive toward them), she isn't good with smaller animals because of her preydrive (except our cat, and then he has to be inside), and doesn't trust knew people...but she does love kids. Even strange kids that she doesn't know she is extreamly trusting of and is very gentle with them.

Malamute: Ok, so she isn't part Mal, but she was raised with one! lol So she talks all of the time. And she only barks when she is alerting us to something, everthing else is an "Aroooo-row-row-row". LOL She is also a stubborn little booger, and while smart, thinks obedience is tiresome, much like a Mal.

[Sugardog]

Oh yeah, I have a German shepherd/Akita mix. She is only 1/4 akita, but it really makes a difference in her behavior.

She's got the loyalty of a German shepherd (follow master around EVERYWHERE), but she has that hardheadedness of an Akita, so you have to keep on her all the time. If she is outside and finds a scent that is interesting enough, she will ignore you calling her and make you physically go over and get her. It dosen't matter how good the reward is for coming, if she doesn't want to, she won't.

[Rivsky]

River is a Cavalier x Labrador and he displays the traits of both in that he is super friendly with dogs and people alike, loyal and affectionate (although the last two probably apply to almost all dogs!!!).

As far as the Cavalier traits he needs to be inside with us when we're home and is always eager to participate in whatever we are doing. He also has SO much patience with everyone and is super adaptable - will go from racing around at the park/beach to just chilling at home in front of the TV.

He is also really smart but the one thing he doesn't do which surprises me given the two breeds is that he is a fairly picky eater - although he has got better as he's gotten older!!

[IceyBlueSibes]

Hmm, when Sarge was around:

Boxer: Always goofy when I played with him.

GSD: Very protective. Barked at anything that came down "his street".

Kelso is a GSD/Something mix. I can't really pinpoint the other half.

LOVES people, unless it's night time or something doesn't sit right with a situation he "sees". Skittish of new dogs around him, but acts like a big bad dog when he's inside the house. You'd think he wanted to tear them apart LOL

He's protective, but quiet at the same time. He only barks when he needs to. I almost wonder if he has some type of ACD or Kelpie in him, because he LOVES to chase, and particularly nip when he does. He's not a huge cuddle bug, but he'll come for attention when he wants to. And STUBBORN? Geesh... LOL

But the only thing is the protectiveness as far as the GSD goes. Not quite sure what else is thrown in there.

[Beryl]

I don't know if the incessant barking is a GSD thing. My GSD never barked unless it was necessary to alert me and then it was very brief. The protectiveness, loyalty and staying close sounds like his traits though.

My childhood cockapoo was the best and only mutt I've ever had.
Cocker - mellow, loyal
Poodle - sensitive ("bidibility"?) and playful
Except for the mellowness of a Cocker and the need for attention of the poodle, the 2 breeds have very similar temperments.

[IceyBlueSibes]

I don't know if the incessant barking is a GSD thing. My GSD never barked unless it was necessary to alert me and then it was very brief. The protectiveness, loyalty and staying close sounds like his traits though.

Sarge had those last few traits, which I loved. He did bark at everything, but I think it was a matter of being undersocialized. I had done some research (when we were working on his "wanting to protect me from everyone and everything" phase) and came across the fact that if GSD's are left unsocialized, they can become aggressive or overlyprotective <-- that being his biggest problem.

I'm glad that Kelso doesn't bark too much because we know something is up if he does. But I do miss my Bub barkin' at everything... LOL It was a pain at times when he was around, but that's one thing I miss the most.

Hmm. My childhood buddy was a GR/ChowChow mix.

GR: Looked a lot like a retriever and was friendly with everyone. So very smart too.

ChowChow: She had that little bit of protectiveness to her, and a thicker coat. She'd alert us when someone was at the door, but never showed any aggression to anyone. The only time was when she bit a boy who stuck his face right up to hers when she wasn't aware he was there. He ended up spooking her and she nipped his face. She never cared for boys because they always teased her, but she was never mean to them.

I used to have a Rottie/Dobe mix, but I was way too young to even remember what he was like. We really didn't have him for very long though because he was just too much. He was a high energy dog, and knocked my cousin and I over if he was off leash. We found a great family for him.

[Swiftwind]

Harley is a Jack Russell Terrier x Maltese.

He definitely has a LOT of JRT traits, such as:
barking
jumping (bouncing)
intelligence
stubborness
protectiveness

I'm not too familiar with the Maltese breed (we do have two living next door to us), they're always barking as well.

He also has a 'watch dog' trait - not sure where that came from.

[Dogsareme]

Mudd is an Alaskan Malamute/Pitbull cross.

Malamute Trait: She talks ALOT. And likes to Aro-roo-roo at the squirels in the yard.

Otherwise I have not really noticed much of the pitbull in her manners. She is however a dominate female and will do fine with other dominate dogs but is awfully grumbly with them compared to submissive dogs which she will just play and play and play with. I don't know if that really has anything to do with a pitbull though. Oh and she also LOVES training. Is that a pitbull trait?

[fancychicken]

I find it interesting how they "swich" personalities/ traits.

Daisy, my other dog is just such a good girl and very content just hanging out. She's a Rottie/hound mix.

The minute she's outside though, that nose of hers never leaves the ground. She's also a hider. Anything she wants to keep from Shamous (who must have EVERYTHING ) she stashes out in the weed, to be plled out at her own disgression.

[rmci]

Baxter is a Cattle Dog/Basset Hound mix; No longer "herds" me, acts more like a basset. Drools, snores, licks ya to death. I wish he would stop blowing his coat like a cattle dog

Rusty is a dachshund/boxer mix; looks like a long legged dachshund but acts like a small boxer, such a clown. Talkative, paws the air, kindney beaning, bows a lot. His dachshund trait may be burrowing under the covers & digging, though I think boxers do this also.

[Doglover1988]

I'm not entirely 100% sure about any of my mixes lol.
I know that Gracie is probably a rat terrier x lab the rat terrier in her chases down and kills everything, rats, rabbits, squirrels, ect...

Zoe is Cocker spanial mixed with something else, not sure what though probably some type of hound because she has killed alot of things like gracie I have even seen her point before.

The owners who brought lucy into the pound said her mother was a lab x basset hound but were unsure as to exactly what the father was but guessed german shepherd x chow. I believe her father was an australian shepherd or something. The herding dog in her tries to herd the dogs and me but sometimes the hunting dog in her kills small animals. I can trust her with my rabbits and ducks though. She just runs circles around my ducks.

[rmci]

How could I forget! Rusty also does the famous Woo Woo Song of a Boxer

[Sophie45]

Sophie is a GSD/Boxer mix.
GSD-definitely the dominant trait in her! She is the perpetual guard dog, and barks (very briefly) at any person who walks down the street and is very "nosy"-needs to know what everyone is doing, all the time. Sophie only barks when she feels a need to do so, I didn't think that GSD's were known to bark incessantly...?
She is also a complete "mama's girl"-extremely loyal, and wants to know where her master is all the time (even when we are around people she knows, she is friendly towards them, but doesn't like leaving my side), she is also extremely eager to please-constantly doing things she knows make me smile. VERY VERY wary of strangers, especially men, not kids though-I think she thinks they are a different type of dog!
Boxer-she does "box" a bit when playing, can be very playful and goofy. She definitely is much more GSD, she is-even at 6 mos. old-very laid back and mellow (for the most part), which is usually the polar opposite trait of boxers.