The Caucasian Shepherd is powerfully built and has a steady temperament, making it an excellent guard and working breed. But if it is kept as a household pet in an ordinary family, it also has many obvious disadvantages. Some people even summarize ten reasons not to keep one. Let us see whether these reasons are enough to discourage someone who is considering a Caucasian Shepherd.
1. Huge body size
The Caucasian Shepherd belongs to the giant-dog category. It can reach about 90 centimeters in height and 100 kilograms in weight. For owners with little dog-handling experience, controlling such a large dog is very difficult. Some people are afraid even to approach a dog of that size, let alone keep one.
2. Strict environmental requirements
Because of its very large size, the Caucasian Shepherd needs a lot of living space. The limited activity area of an ordinary apartment is often not enough. At the same time, it is also not suitable for keeping in crowded places, because its presence can easily trigger panic and unnecessary trouble.
3. Extremely high energy
The exercise needs of the Caucasian Shepherd are also remarkable. It loves moving freely in open areas and does not tolerate confinement well. The owner may need to provide several hours of outdoor activity every day in order to consume its abundant physical energy.
4. Heavy food intake
The Caucasian Shepherd is big and highly active, so its appetite is naturally large as well. It needs both dog food and regular meat and bones, and it may eat what would be two days’ worth of food for an ordinary dog in a single day. This means the daily cost of keeping a Caucasian Shepherd is not low and requires a relatively comfortable financial situation.
5. Thick coat and heavy grooming needs
The breed has a very dense coat, and daily grooming can almost consume all of the owner’s spare time. If the owner finds grooming too troublesome, taking the dog to a pet grooming shop is often not easy either, because the Caucasian Shepherd generally does not allow strangers to get too close.
6. Poor heat tolerance
Another reason people avoid the Caucasian Shepherd is that it does not tolerate heat well. In hot weather, its heavy coat makes it difficult for the body to cool itself, so if the owner is not careful, heatstroke can happen easily.
7. Enormous strength
The Caucasian Shepherd is physically very strong and can also be quite forceful in temperament. It is not recommended for owners who are physically weaker, because when walking outside, some people may not even be able to hold the dog if it decides to pull away.
8. Strong aggression
Owners must be very careful even when joking or roughhousing with friends. The Caucasian Shepherd has an extremely strong instinct to protect its owner. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage. Once it believes the owner is being harmed by someone else, it may launch an attack suddenly.
9. It requires serious training
A dog of this size and aggressiveness can have a very unstable temperament if it is not educated properly. When it loses control, it becomes very hard to manage. Therefore, if someone wants to keep a Caucasian Shepherd, strict socialization and training must begin early. If the owner does not understand dog training, it is better not to keep this breed at all.
10. High overall cost
The purchase price of a Caucasian Shepherd is not low either. Even a dog with only somewhat good appearance may cost at least 3000 yuan, and after adding normal feeding, care, and grooming expenses, the total cost of keeping one becomes very high.
All of the reasons above are real disadvantages when the Caucasian Shepherd is treated as a family or companion dog. Whether someone can accept them depends entirely on the individual. But one thing remains true: before raising a dog, you must prepare seriously, understand the future lifestyle change, and even think through the worst-case scenario. That is what responsible dog lovers do, rather than impulsively getting a dog and regretting it later.