Why is my Golden Retriever not protective?

If your Golden Retriever is not protective you might be wondering why and what you can do about it. This post will help you to figure out why it has not been being protective.

So, why is my Golden Retriever not protective? Possible reasons are that it has not been trained to be protective, it doesn’t feel the need to be, illness, diet or mistreatment.

There are actually many reasons why it might not be being protective but there are a number of things you can consider when trying to figure out the exact reason.

Why your Golden Retriever is not protective

The different reasons why your Golden Retriever is not protective will likely come with some clues.

Below are a number of possible causes and what would make them more likely.

It hasn’t been trained to be

Most dogs that are protective of their owners, especially if they are physically protective, are protective because they have been trained to be protective. Naturally, most dog breeds will not be protective physically unless they are trained to be protective and this is especially the case with Golden Retrievers which are by nature a very friendly breed.

It doesn’t feel the need to be

It could also be the case that it does not become protective because it does not feel the need to be protective. This would be more likely if you tend to meet other people with it on walks and it is not protective. This would be a good thing since you do not want it being protective when it does not need to be.

Illness

If it has suddenly stopped being protective and it has been behaving abnormally in other ways as well, it could be the case that it is because it has an illness. This would be more likely if it has also been showing signs of being ill such as being fatigued when awake. In this case, the best option would be to take it to a vet.

It got to socialize a lot as a puppy

If your Golden Retriever was around a lot of people and other dogs as a puppy and it is still regularly around other people and dogs then it might have learned that they are not a threat. This is a good thing since it means that it will be better behaved when around other people that are not a threat to you.

You have not been treating it well enough

It might also be the case that it does not want to be protective. It could be that you have not been walking it enough, feeding it right, giving it enough attention, mistreating it or not training it. This would be unlikely to be the reason especially if it is affectionate towards you but it would be more likely if it tends to avoid you.

Things to consider

Below are some things to consider when trying to figure out why it has not been being protective.

When it is not protective

It would help to consider if there is a certain time that it becomes less protective since the timing could have something to do with it.

For example, if it becomes more protective when there is someone it doesn’t know around the home but it doesn’t in other situations then it would be more likely that it doesn’t think you’re in danger when it doesn’t do it.

How old it is

It would also help to consider its age. If it is still a puppy then it might not have learned who to trust and who not to trust yet. If it is a puppy then it would be likely that it would become more protective in certain situations as it gets older.

With that being said, it would still be important to get it to socialize with other people and dogs as a puppy so that it is better behaved as an adult.

If it is an adult it would help to consider the situations in which it is not protective and if it has not always been protective. It would also be much more likely to be because it is naturally friendly and it has not been trained to be protective.

Not being protective is not necessarily a bad thing

It is also important to remember that it is a good thing that it does not become overly protective. The reason for this is that it means that you can have it around other people and dogs without having to worry about it becoming aggressive when you do not want it to.

If it stopped being protective suddenly

If your Golden Retriever stopped being protective suddenly, it could be the case that there was an event that caused it to stop doing it.

For example, if it usually would bark when there was someone at the front door, it might have stopped due to learning that it is not normally a threat.