Why do most people assume that Doberman Pinschers are vicious when they are really just big lovable babys?

Answer 1

I'm sorry Faris A but your a moron, that bs story is one of the reasons dobermans get bad raps, that never happened, it was an excuse for idiots who made their dogs mean to get out of responsibility when those dogs did damage. Dobermans were bred by Herr Louis Dobermann in Apolda Germany, he was a tax collector and ran the towns kennels (pound) . Since he was a tax collector he had to be careful of thieves and well.... angry people, and being the kennel keeper he had access to many different breeds so he decided to create the ultimate personal protection dog. Dobermans were a very hard and sharp breed to begin with until the 50's when breeders decided to try and tone down the agression. Since then dobermans with excellent temperaments have been bred making them an amazing family dog. Dobermans today are extremely protective but loving family members. In the late 70's into the 80's they became the "tough guy" fad dog. After ChowChows and German Shepards, then Rottweilers and Pitt Bulls. They were overbred and mistreated, used as guard dogs which was not their origional purpose and basically many were made to be horrible examples of the breed. Since then breeders have made serious efforts to undo what was done in the 80s. Todays doberman is an exceptional family dog and protector. I've seen my dogs react differently to different people in different situations. One of my roommates "friends" came over a few times, a few weeks later he tried to break in our other roommates window. She came out of her room screaming and my dogs went NUTS as soon as I opened my bedroom door they ran straight for the front door and have never looked so scary. My guy roommate was yelling through the front door at his "friend" and my girl almost got him, before she realized who it was, then she pushed him out of the way and stood in between him and the door. The other guy ran off when I opened the door to let my dogs out, they didnt even leave the front poorch, they turned around and came back and stood in front of us barking.... That's the difference between a guard dog and a protection dog. A protection dog doesnt care about property, they care about their PEOPLE! I still dont understand peoples reactions to my dogs, I have a fawn girl who is the same color as a wiem and gets mistaken for one quite often (even with her ears cropped!!! grrr), people can be loving on her for 10 minutes and see how goofy she is but as soon as they ask if she's a wiem mix they jump back like she's bitten them... then I usually get the "dont you know their brains grow too big for their sculls and they turn on you" line.... gah I wish people werent so ignorant.


Another big problem I've seen in dobermans is albinos or "white" dobermans. They were all inbred from the same dog that was born in '74. Inbreeding in almost any animal will screw them up. Almost every albino I've met, which is a lot since we get a bunch in rescue, has something wrong with their temperament. Not to mention their conformation ... YUCK! people think their pretty... who cares if they get skin cancer or bite because they cant see you in the sun, or in dim light for that matter because their retinas are malformed.... Or that their just plain crazy... The only dobermans I've ever know to suddenly turn on their owners were albinos. All had been raised by their owners, who have more years than i've been alive experience, since puppyhood and then suddenly turned on them... My friends dog actually ripped her husbands nose off... It's poor breeding that makes poor dogs and those dogs usually end up with scumbags as owners... That's the reason dobermans get a bad rep.

I've actually had to move out of an apartment building because the new management instituted a "vicious breed policy" the manager actually came and told me in person even though I'd lived there for 5 years w/ my mom and as she was telling me she was petting my girl... go figure.


Kitan13... dobermans were brought into being BEFORE WWI and were again MISUSED by German soldiers... They were not BRED to be human killers, ever, although the original doberman was a very agressive dog. People forget that they were used by AMERICAN soldiers in WWII as War Dogs, they were the original Marine Devil Dogs.

http://community-2.webtv.net/Hahn-50thAP-K9/K9History4/



and as usual Nancy M is right, a doberman, especially a poorly bred unstable doberman in the wrong hands, be it abusive or over indulgent is a dangerous dog, I dont reccommend them to anybody that doesnt know how to handle a powerful, willful, intelligent dog. If anyone ever asks I always say be ready to do some serious obedience and to learn to be a boss in your house or you are up for some serious trouble.

Oh I would never say responsible breeders overbred, I was referring to the sudden bang of the doberman and the vast majority of stupid bybs that bred and bred and bred. I wouldnt be surprised if crap breeders outnumbered good breeders 10 to 1 in those days.... it has taken the dedication of people like yourself and other concientious breeders to keep the good lines going!

Answer 2

Movies!!! Dobermans where the original bad guy in movies from the eighties, although they were bred to protect, they weren't bred to attack. There is a difference between the two. In fact, employing a doberman to work on a movie set actually says how good and smart the breed is to be involved in that situation.
I have had a doberman mix for 13yrs nearly, the only person she has attempted to bite was me! When she was sick, even then it was a reaction only, and didn't even make contact with my skin (i accidently hurt her). She is very vocal, especially at night time, but all her life she has been a big baby and constantly puts her nose under peoples hands for pats.
I don't believe any breed has been made to have a 'blood thirst', and there is usually a human reason for a dog that goes 'bad'.

Answer 3

Because people love propaganda and hype. It is the same reason that there are so many pople ou there that HATE Pit Bulls when most of them wouldn't be able to tell a Pit from a Lab mix in a line up.
And just like those people... I am sure that most of the people that detest Dobermans have never been around one. They just "know" that it is a bad breed... a monster because of something that they heard once somewhere sometime...
Discrimination and bias. Not just for humans anymore.
~Tyed~

Answer 4

I completely agree. I read in a Doberman book that most of the bad press which was undeserved was because a movie in the 70's called The Omen. Dobermans are being more accepted now mostly because of the pit bull, which is responsible for the most attacks by any other breed. I have a 4 month dobe and he is very affectionate and loveable!

Answer 5

in the 40's 50's some professional breeders were manipulating with genetics of the Dobermans they comes up with a very powerful types of Dobermans with a big head but a small skull.

unfortunately the discovered after five years that the Doberman comes insane because of that the brain grows larger than the skull which causes 24/7 headache for the dog .

the bad news is this breed spread all over the world but the good news is that the last Doberman with the above characteristics was killed in 1997 i remember i read it some were.

Answer 6

I am not certain what 'most people' are thinking but the Doberman can be quite vicious if they have an unstable temperament and are improperly trained/handled, just like ANY dog can be. They are not just 'big lovable babys' -- they are not babies at all but dogs and they are very much thinking animals as well and can easily outsmart or train their owners as well as take control of situations, just like most dogs. I have never owned a vicious, unstable Doberman Pinscher in over fifty years of owning/training them. I have known some though, just as I have known unstable/vicious representatives of almost any breed and certainly mixed breeds as well.
While my dogs can indeed be 'loveable' they are not humans and not babies. They have very specific canine characteristics and not necessarily the human ones that people often misappropriate to canines. Dobermans tend to bond very strongly with their people and require someone who knows they are the human boss -- they need mental stimulation as well as physical.

I don't know what people 'assume' but I do know that they can indeed be vicious and being as they are very athletic and 25-29 inches/ 60 - 90 pounds and can be very quick and agile, if you have one that is unstable and put in a situation where it is owned by someone that has little knowledge about canines, it can be disasterous - again, just like with any dog.

I think it is a falicy to consider them as you do and is likely one of the primary reasons that there are indeed bite incidents involving this and other breeds. Dogs are dogs, not little 'fur babies'. They communicate and relate as canines and don't have the same cognitive or emotional characteristics as humans do -- which is why humans tend to miscommunicate with them and then wonder why they do what they do...

ADD: OMG, that Faris is spreading the biggest myth of all! It is something that only someone who knows nothing about the breed would say... No, Dobermans didn't 'go insane' from their brains being to big for their skulls and no their brains don't explode when the lights go out! hahaha Please people, do not believe these sorts of silly stories! This is FALSE... it is nonsense at its nonsensiest! Oh and Dobermans don't 'mimick' people -- those are not breed specific characteristics nor are they mimickry -- I have know dogs (mutts as well as other breeds) that do these things and had never been around people doing them and many Dobermans that don't do these things even though their people do... That is almost as much nonsense as the exploding brain theory.

add: Yes, the Doberman Pinscher was originated by a man that was a tax collector, to help him on his rounds as well as to be a personal protection dog -- he was also in charge of the local dog pound and utilized dogs he collected to make the breed. He really didn't advance the breed as we know it today but a couple of gentlemen later continued his work with producing an extreemly intelligent companion protector. Gruenig, one of the gentlemen, published a book regarding the breed and it is something that would benefit any Doberman owner to read as it deals with a lot of the history of the breed (none of which includes exploding brains :) BTW, I was around in those decades that the 'brains outgrew skulls' and guess what, that isn't so :)

Jordie: Agree with a lot you have to say but responsible breeders have ALWAYS bred for sound, stable, breed typical temperaments -- the eras of popularity (not 'overbred' or whatever) of all these breeds come and go but the responsible breeders don't fall into the fads and the breed has always had representatives with good, stable temperaments. They aren't primarily used as sport dogs in the US and with the litigation that occurs in this country we have had to insure that the breed has solid temperament that are not overly sharp and essentially uncontrollable by the general public. The initial importation of the Doberman brought with it fairly unstable dogs that would bite without provocation (a trait revered in Europe but a law suit waiting to happen here -- and maybe the reason the breed has laws against it in Europe now as well) and responsible breeders have sought to breed dogs with temperaments that retain the protective instincts, intelligence and bonding capability but without the 'bite first, ask questions later' demeanor of the early imports and even some of the recent ones.

And you are right about Kitan -- the breed originated in the late 1800s not as a 'man killer' but as a personal protection dog -- it was perpetuated as an intelligent personal protection dog (one of the criteria for maintaining a dog in the gene pool was that it be highly intelligent) - they have been utilized in warfare but that has never been their 'purpose' -- Airedales, Collies, Labs, etc., have been used in warfare as well but hardly 'man killers' by nature or intent. Isn't it odd how much misinformation/ rumor/ conjecture is spread about dogs??

Answer 7

Sadly, in the 80's and a little earlier, Dobermans were over-breed and a fad. People who were not experienced in handling larger dogs with more aggressive personalities purchased them. Left uncontrolled some became dangerous and these are the ones that made the headlines.

Answer 8

"Most" people don't.

Plus, the whole point of a doberman is to look tough. Thats why the breed was developed: So a tax collector could have tough intimidating dogs to make his job a little easier.

If they are left au natural (Uncropped ears, full tail) they just look like hounds.

Answer 9

From all the answers I guess this is a little known fact. I am not scared of Dobies pre say however I am very leary of them and its not my dog of choice.

Dobies were first bred during WW1 and the time leading up to it. Their only purpose at the time was to kill man. They are the only breed especially designed to activly kill a person. The are highly dominate and can cause major damage to a handler if not raised and trained right.

I am a big fan of pits and rotties but more so the rotties. I am not down on these types of breeds but think they are better suited as a professional guard dog verses a family pet.

Answer 10

the rotweiler, the pit, german shephard, and doberman are all pretty good guard dogs!

alot of people are affraid of the doberman, because of its looks, its deep bark, and just because it looks tough!dobermans were breed to be guard dogs!! to this day they will always have that instinct! i have a doberman, and everyone is so scared of him, but he is so sweet!! lol! it all depends on how people train them as well! if you dont socialize a doberman with people, then he could become very territorial, and even bite!! because they dont know the person entering into your house, so their instincts kick in! even if you train the dobie to be well socialized, he will always have the instict to "guard" and be the protecter!

i love the doberman!!


add: a doberman was not breed to look tough to make a tax collectors job easier. they were breed to be a protective guard dog!!

Answer 11

becuase what the were bred for and how the movies portray them. Mr dobermann made this breed in the early 1900s to protect him while he went door to door collecting taxes. I think they are amazing dogs and hope to have one some day