BOTH my dogs did their jobs today...

[SizzleDog]

Scary thing happened today, but luckily nothing came of it, and my dogs proved to me *again* what wonderful Dobermans they are.

I was in the bathroom getting ready for work this afternoon... so I had the water running (brushing my teeth) etc. I heard the dogs bark in unison but didn't think much of it - they enjoy barking at passersby. I came out of the bathroom to see what they were barking at...

... and there was a STRANGER standing in my living room! My sliding glass door was open (it usually is unlocked during the day when I'm home) and the guy was literally paralyzed with fear... Ronin and Ilsa had barked at him (HE was what they were barking at) and had backed him into a corner. Ronin was on one side, Ilsa on another - both completely tense, staring this guy in the face and growling.

I asked him what he was doing in my living room, and he said something like, "Are you Ashley? Is this Ashley's apartment?"

To which I responded, "NO, this is *not* Ashley's apartment and I'm not Ashley - if you don't know who the person you're looking for is, why the hell did you just walk into what you thought her apartment was?"

The guy apologized and asked me to call off my dogs. I called them, and they BACKED away from him and stood at my side, still tense and staring the stupid guy down. Where the heck did my dogs learn to BACK away from someone instead of turning their backs on him???

The guy advanced into the apartment a few steps and ROnin IMMEDIATELY snarled and stepped forward at him.
THEN he quickly backed out of my apartment and apologized again... it was really odd.

Thinking back on it... I wonder if he was looking for a girl named Ashley, or if he was looking to snatch stuff. We *do* currently have a theif in the complex who has been stealing packages left at doors, and I *did* have my new camera and my laptop in partial view from the sliding glass patio doors... my fault, I know. I also have quite a large TV and an extensive DVD collection.

I somehow doubt he was a theif though - as we all know, dobes have an uncanny ability to sense "good guys" from "bad guys" from "just plain dumb guys". Maybe Ronin and Ilsa didn't bite him because they sensed he wasn't there with bad intentions... or maybe I'm just trying to explain their behavior, I don't know. They were both very threatening towards him however, and I could tell they were prepared to bite if he came any closer... and they DID back him into a corner.

All I know is that they are ALL Doberman (despite their "wussy American show lines" and Ronin's "job" of "prancing around the show ring"), from nose to tail nub, and I'm very proud of them, and grateful for what they did today - I love my Dobermans so much!

 

[jess2416]

wow!! what a scary experience :yikes: you should be proud of your puppers They deserve a BIG treat

 

[RD]

Good dogs! That IS weird, I honestly don't think the guy had good intentions...

 

[jason_els]

Great news! That certainly ended happily but....

This guy was likely a robber. You were very lucky he wasn't armed. Nobody is that stupid and anyone really innocent won't mind you calling the cops to sort it out. Mistakes happen and nothing says you have to press charges if his story checks out.

Call the police ASAP and give them a description of the guy and file a report. Other people may have seen him around the complex or filed complaints against him or he may have a record. You'd be doing yourself and your neighbors a big favor.

Your dogs behaved beautifully! Congratulations again on having such well-trained and intelligent dogs.

 

[ihartgonzo]

That's awesome! =) Lots of cookies for Ilsa & Ronin!

Gonzo has done the same thing in a very similar situation. I was getting ready in the morning, alone, and a delivery man bringing flowers OPENED the door to set them inside (I guess because they don't allow them to leave them outside, and I didn't hear the doorbell). I walked out after hearing Gonzo barking like I had never heard him bark, and looked downstairs, and the man was just standing there with flowers petrified. Gonzo didn't touch him, he just held him in one spot (basically Schutzhund style) barking furiously. I was very proud of him, & I told the flower guy he's very lucky. ;]

I would waaaay rather have dogs that bark & hold before biting. It shows that Ilsa & Ronin are good judges of character, and have good bite inhibition.

 

[Buddy'sParents]

Wow, GOOD dogs!!!! Did they get bones for that?

 

[SizzleDog]

I'll do that, Jason - it was a really odd situation (and I DO have witnesses - my neighbors saw it apparently) so I'll report it to the police as well as my landlord.

And the interesting thing is... neither of my dogs (to my knowledge) have been trained to do what they did. I've had Ilsa since she was eight weeks and have never done any protection training, and Ronin... I can't be sure of him since I got him at 18 months. I do know his previous owners put him through one of those barbaric "doggy bootcamp" places, but I think it was just for obedience... but WOW they were ready to go further than just guard - you could see it in their eyes - that look of pure hate and anger that chills you to the bone.

This is not the first time for either of them to show their "true Doberman colors" - but it was certainly the latest "incident" to mark them as great examples of the breed's hallmark temperament.

 

[jason_els]

Dogs know. They can literally smell the fear in someone who doesn't mean well or is very frightened of them. They also do NOT like their home invaded by someone they don't know any more than you do.

My brother was eating breakfast in the diner with some friends one morning and he had a tool to give back to this guy he borrowed it from and my brother told the guy to just grab it from the truck. So this guy goes out to my brother's truck and opens the door.... huge mistake. My brother's dog was in there and she lit-up like he had never seen before. He slammed the door shut and went back inside while Maddie just went bananas. My brother said this guy came back into the diner shaking he was so frightened. He wasn't happy my brother didn't warn him about, "the attack dog," in the truck.

And what dog did my brother have? A whippet! Maddie was a happy-go-lucky girl who wagged her tail at everybody and loved walking-up to people and she was a wonderful influence on my puppy at the time. He never imagined she would do such a thing.

Well later that year we were driving from Colorado back to New York and broke down very late at night on Route 80 in the sticks of nowhere. The jack was broken and then something weird happened. A tuck stopped just ahead of us and someone got out of the passenger side and ran up into the woods! My brother and I thought, this wasn't good but thought Maddie would see or hear or smell someone before we did so we took her out of the cab and tied her to the passenger door. Maddie picked it up immediately. She went from being a sleeping little black ball to the most alert dog I'd ever seen. She kept scanning the woods and sniffing the air and growling as she paced. Twelve pounds of suddenly formidable dog. Whomever it was didn't bother us and a nice Marine saved our asses by having a working jack (as my BROTHER didn't have a working one in the truck ).

Dogs know. They really really do. One of the reasons they're our best friends.

 

[RD]

I totally agree, Jason. They know.

I have a Border Collie... rofl. He loves everyone and will usually welcome people into the house. Sometime last year, a guy came to our door saying he was a college student selling things for some class he was taking. Dakota took an instant dislike to him, but since he was a young dog we thought he was just being quirky and actually reprimanded him for it. He persisted throughout this guy's visit and, at the end, he got hostile and short with us when we wouldn't buy anything immediately. Since he was going door to door, we notified our neighbor (a cop) before he got there. The neighbor noticed that this guy circled his house and checked the entries before he rang the bell. I don't remember exactly what happened after that, but the guy was a complete fraud and was most likely casing houses. He got arrested.

Anyway, what I was getting at is that Dakota KNEW something wasn't right with this dude, the minute he walked in the door - and Dakota hardly ever takes an instant dislike to people. I am positive that dogs can sense apprehension or fear, even nervousness. Over and over again, Dakota has proven that he has excellent judgment. I trust him completely, now. If he doesn't like something, there's a REASON for it.

 

[jason_els]

My uncle had a border collie, Festus. What a smart dog! He loved working the farm. He'd herd cows, follow the tractor across the street and into the fields but was smart enough to use the drainage culvert, never crossed the road. Brilliant woodchuck killer too. He'd toll the hole, then bark at the woodchuck until it was stunned and then jump right over it, grab the back of the neck and it was all over for the chuck. He loved to talk too. He'd wander down to our house or my grandparents' house just to come visit and see people when he wasn't working. He liked to come and sit on the patio for cocktail hour and make odd rooing noises and whines as if talking with everyone else. Never bothered the barn cats and was fine with horses too. Just an all-around perfect dog. I'd love to get one but I think I'd bore it to death being a work-at-home guy.

 

[ACooper]

Great work doberbabies!! I agree with the others..............I doubt this guy had 'honest intentions' at all. Do you know of any 'ashley' in your complex at all??
I think it is EXTRA great that they didn't feel the need to tear him a new one on the spot, it was enough for them that he was immobilized!! You have dogs of integrity and character.............not to mention good judgement.

You just know if they would have bitten him, he would have given a sob story about "just making a mistake looking for ashly" and there would inevitably be a bunch of idiots somewhere to jump on his side! (even if his story were true, who just enters the side door of someones house if they are unsure of an address??)

And if his story is true................he has one heck of a good story to tell ashly when he finds her...........HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

 

[jason_els]

Yeah, they deserve filet mignon for that performance!

If they did tear him apart I doubt he'd get much sympathy. It's legally breaking and entering. A woman alone, in the shower, it's just too Janet Leigh for anyone to defend.

 

[oriondw]

Great story!


Great restraint on the dogs part.

 

[Zoom]

Way to go Dobie Crew! They should get a big juicy bone each for that!

 

[ACooper]

Yeah, they deserve filet mignon for that performance!

If they did tear him apart I doubt he'd get much sympathy. It's legally breaking and entering. A woman alone, in the shower, it's just too Janet Leigh for anyone to defend.

I see the logic..........you see the logic...........but who would've dreamed Mickey D getting a law suit over hot coffee?? :lol-sign:

 

[shazbot]

WOW....how creepy, so happy your had your puppers, give them huge hugs. I bet if he was a theif, he won't be back. Definately call the police and report this. I think it's instinct to not turn their backs on something that can harm them and to keep eyes on at all times.

 

[SummerRiot]

Such and awesome story to treasure!

I love the "guardian" breeds

 

[Doberooney]

Wow!

I can't even imagine walking in a room and finding a stranger standing there.

I often wonder if my girls would do the same.. I'll pass on ever needing to find out, though.

 

[misticaleclipse]

I asked him what he was doing in my living room, and he said something like, "Are you Ashley? Is this Ashley's apartment?"

To which I responded, "NO, this is *not* Ashley's apartment and I'm not Ashley - if you don't know who the person you're looking for is, why the hell did you just walk into what you thought her apartment was?"

The guy apologized and asked me to call off my dogs. I called them, and they BACKED away from him and stood at my side, still tense and staring the stupid guy down. Where the heck did my dogs learn to BACK away from someone instead of turning their backs on him???

The guy advanced into the apartment a few steps and ROnin IMMEDIATELY snarled and stepped forward at him.
THEN he quickly backed out of my apartment and apologized again... it was really odd.

Thinking back on it... I wonder if he was looking for a girl named Ashley, or if he was looking to snatch stuff. We *do* currently have a theif in the complex who has been stealing packages left at doors, and I *did* have my new camera and my laptop in partial view from the sliding glass patio doors... my fault, I know. I also have quite a large TV and an extensive DVD collection.

Maybe I watch to many true crime stories, I dunno but this sounds very familiar. I believe other thieves who have been caught have made up similar lies.

When you think about it, unless you are a delivery man, if you where visiting someone you did not know why would you walk into there apartment unannounced? It does not make sense. He was a thief.

I am so glad you have such wonderful dogs. He might have been second guessing trying to steal when he came back into the apartment but decided against it?

I am glad you notified the police so its on there record.
By the way, how did he get in? the door was open? I am pretty paranoid, my doors are almost always locked except in the summer when its really hot.

 

[atldoglover]

Kudos to your babies!!!:hail: