Top 6 Dog Breeds I Refuse to Own (Even As A Pro)

I have trained literally thousands of dogs with my board and train program, with my seminars, every single temperament you can think of, every nightmare case that you can imagine. And after all that, guys, there are six breeds that I would never bring into my own home. Not because they're untrainable, but simply because my life with two young kids, it's just not the right environment for what these dogs genuinely need. And most people watching this shouldn't have these dogs and will probably end up not doing well with these dogs. But anyway, let's get right into the first one. Now, first up, guys, is the Tibetan Mastiff. And this dog makes my list of these dogs quite often, because here's the thing. These dogs are absolutely beautiful. They are stunning. Now, these dogs have one of the most oldest and most fascinating histories of any dog breed on the planet, because for thousands of years, they were bred in the Himalayan highlands of Tibet to guard monasteries. They were guarding these things. They were guarding villages. They were also guarding livestock, often against wolves and leopards. Guys, that's how beastly these dogs are. These aren't dogs that were selectively bred to follow commands and listen to you. They were bred to make autonomous decisions, literally without a human telling them what to do. They are nocturnal guardian dogs. They go out, they do their own thing, and that is baked into their DNA. A well-bred Tibetan Mastiff is alert, territorial, loves their family, but they're suspicious of everyone else. And that's the problem. That's where it goes wrong in most normal homes. Like my kids, they have friends over, right? The neighbor comes over, walks into the backyard. This is an issue. A Tibetan Mastiff doesn't see through a friendly face and somebody that has a treat. They see a threat. These dogs don't warm up quickly and they never really will. And their size means that even a defensive reaction can cause extreme serious harm. Like literal bad stuff can happen. Add nighttime barking and the dog could wake up the entire neighborhood to the mix, because there's a fluffy squirrel making noise outside your bedroom or outside your door. This dog genuinely needs an experienced owner with tons of acreage, land to roam, firm structure, and consistent socialization from day one. Now, a poorly bred Tibetan Mastiff, this is what worries me the most with any of these dogs on the list. A poorly bred Tibetan Mastiff can display unpredictable fear-based aggression. And we're not talking about a dog that growls as a warning. We're talking about 120 to 150 pound animal with a powerful bite force that doesn't telegraph its stress clearly, right? They have that big, big, big fur coat. You can't really see their eyes. That is a serious liability, especially around children. Now, here's one that probably will surprise you guys, the Border Collie. Now, let me explain. Now, these dogs are arguably the most intelligent breed on earth. They hit the number one almost every year. And there are Border Collies that can identify over a thousand different objects by name. Think about that. They're absolutely incredible. And that's precisely why they're on this list. Border Collies were developed along the Scottish and English borders, specifically to herd sheep and that rugged terrain, right? And all day, every day, they read subtle body language from you and the sheep. They respond to commands from hundreds of yards away, typically with a little whistle. They make split second decisions without handler input at all. They operate all day, every day. That working drive doesn't turn off when they come inside or when they see kids or when they see your elderly neighbors or anything like that. A Border Collie in a household that can't provide three, four, five hours of meaningful mental and physical stimulation daily will redirect that drive into something else. And that something else could be your kids. It could be nipping their heels. It could be nipping the neighbor kids. It could be circling them, making them cry, little bites on the wrist, going home, an absolute nightmare. These are behavioral problems with the breed. They are completely natural response to unmet needs to a dog that was literally supposed to be working all day long. Breeders chasing looks over working ability have produced dogs with the intensity and drive without the mental stability. And that's really, really dangerous because the result can be anxiety ridden, erotic dogs with obsessive behaviors and a hair triggered reactivity at any moment. And I've worked with a lot of these guys and they're not easy cases. They're a brilliant breed, but the wrong match for me in my home and likely for you too. Okay. Belgium Malinois. Now, if you've been following this channel for really any length of time, you already know that I have a lot to say about this breed. I own a Dutch Shepherd, which is basically a Malinois. And I love the breed. The Malinois was originally bred in Belgium as a versatile herding dog, right? They're pretty much just a farm dog. But in the 19th century, the Malinois was later developed into one of the most premier working dog breeds in the world. They have explosive drives. They have good bite work, relentless athleticism, and the absolute willingness to engage. They'll run through a wall, even if their life depends on it. And that's a dog you're getting when you own a Malinois. And if you have one, you know what I'm talking about. Here's where it goes wrong at home. Now, I see this constantly. Someone watches a viral video of a Mal on Instagram or on TikTok, catching a bad guy. They think, wow, that's the coolest dog I've ever seen. And then they go out and buy one because there's some person out there that wants a little bit of money and they're going to sell it to a young person. They're going to sell it to somebody who lives in a little apartment with no experience. And that dog will destroy your home within a week. And I'm not exaggerating. These dogs need a job. They need real structured work, not a 20 minute session of fetch before you clock into work for eight hours in the backyard. Because what'll happen is, that drive will turn into destruction, reactivity. And in most cases, it'll turn into aggression and anxiety. You're going to call somebody like me and go, hey, my dog's being a jerk. No, no, no, no. A busy family schedule is not compatible with a Malinois generally. So these dogs require so much more than the average person is willing to give. And the breed's popularity has absolutely exploded, which is why the shelters are filling up with Belgian Malinois and Malinois mixes. But what happens is, nobody's actually, when you're selling a dog, they don't care where you live or what experience you have. They just want to sell the dog. They look at a dog. They go, oh, this is popular. We're going to breed the crap out of them. Boom. It just makes me sad. Because the dog's getting a bad rap. The owner gets a dog they fall in love with. And now they have to get rid of the dog or even worse, they have to put the dog down. And I've worked with several of them. Like I said, I have a couple. And there's not a, there's not a problem with me and them. Like I know what they need. They're well-trained. They know their job. And we have one living at the facility. We have one living here. She's a Dutch shepherd. Her sister was a Malinois. Like I know what they need, but I'm a professional. And I, and I give the, you know, it's not easy guys. And so I just want to be really, really clear on that. If you guys love dogs, like I love dogs and you're interested in dog behavior and you're interested in training and you want to learn more, I have put together multiple courses that thousands of people have been using over the years, all over the world, that have been really, really helpful. We have the Kickstarter course. If you have a dog and you just don't know where to start, or if you have a dog and you really just want to reset the five basic principles that every dog should know, heal, sit, play, stay, et cetera, building a good relationship. We have a reactive to neutral course. If you have a reactive dog, we have a master the walk course. If you want to master the walk with any dog outside in real time, we have an off leash e-collar course and so on and so forth. And of course, all of my equipment, my leashes, my, my treats, my treat pouches, all that stuff is listed in the description below. If you guys want to support me and you want to learn more about dog training, let's get back into the video. Number four is the Presa Canario. And if you're not familiar with this breed, pay attention to this because this dog originates from the Canary islands off the coast of Spain. These dogs were bred as catch dogs used to control and manage livestock, including large cattle. And they also historically were used in dog fighting well before it was outlawed. So you got to think like this breed was built for confrontation and power. And the UKC breed standard itself describes them as weary of strangers and they're aggressive with other dogs. Like that's literally written and like golden retriever friendly, Presa not friendly. Presa Canarios are loyal and devoted dogs to their family. Of course, right? Like, like many of these guardian dogs that we've been talking about, they're genuinely affectionate with people that they know, but only the people they know, but they demand serious management around strangers, guests, and other animals, because the risk is huge. And they have an exceptionally, exceptionally strong bite and a low threshold for perceived threats, which means anybody coming into your house, friend or foe to you, not friend or foe to them. So these guys aren't going to be super great with kids. They're not going to be in a home with a revolving door with visitors. It's a liability that unlike other guardian breeds with centuries of controlled selection and good breeding, Presa went through periods of very inconsistent breeding, very poor breeding, including influences from fighting bloodlines. Like the dogs were literally being bred to fight. Poorly bred individuals or dogs that you don't know where the bloodlines are coming from can be very unpredictable. They could want to fight. They could want to kill other dogs, other animals, and even people. And you never want that to turn towards family members, but there have been many fatal attacks involving this breed in particular. And I don't say that to be like, oh, well, I'm scaring everybody. I'm just saying that because I want you to know the stakes that are at risk here with this potential breed, because these guys are serious dogs. Number five guys is the Alaskan Malamute. And I want to be very clear with this. I love this breed. I like seeing them. I don't see them often in my facility. They're stunning. They are beautiful. They are fun. They are personable, but man, this dog will test you. The Alaskan Malamute was bred way back in the day by the Malamute Inuit people of Alaska to haul heavy freight across enormous distances in the brutal Arctic conditions. Yep. You can think about it. The wind's going, the snow's coming. It's not fun. These dogs are endurance athletes built for the long haul. Literally, they were bred to run and to pull and to cover ground. And critically, they were bred to do that with a level of independence that allowed them to make smart decisions in the field without anybody around. And that independent nature means that a Malamute doesn't look for you. They don't care about what you say. If they want to do something, they're going to do it. If you want to do something with them and they don't want to do it, they're not going to do it. These guys are diggers. They howl. They have an intense prey drive like the Siberian Husky, and it makes them super dangerous around smaller other animals like cats and smaller dogs. Without significant daily outlet for that physical energy that they're supposed to be doing, they become very destructive in ways. We're talking they can demolish a fence. They can completely destroy your yard within a day. A dog that is needed at least three hours a day, if your schedule doesn't allow you for that, don't do it. And of course, like any dog on any list, poorly bred dogs can show heightened prey aggression, resource guarding, and a dog this size in power with resource grading that's getting baked into them. It becomes very, very, very much a liability for any house that has other dogs, other small dogs, animals, cats, kids, small kids, et cetera. Love them from a distance, watch them work. That's where I'm at with these dogs. So last, but certainly not least guys is the Akita. Now I've talked about the Akita on my list for quite some time, but these guys are genuinely majestic animals. I respect them enormously, but they are not for the faint of heart. The Akita is one of Japan's oldest and most revered breeds. Historically, they were used to hunt large, dangerous game, right? So think about pig, boar, deer, potentially brown bears way back in the day in the mountains of regions of typically Northern Japan. And they were also used as guard dogs for the Japanese, right? So way back in the day, and even in today in some novelty places, they still use them. You could probably know the story of Hachiko, the Akita who waited for his deceased owner at a train station for nearly 10 years. You guys have probably seen the movie, you've seen the statue. That kind of loyalty is real life with this breed for sure. It's also exclusive, and that's the challenge. Like these dogs are like, I like you, nobody else, right? But again, like every freaking breed on this list, it requires training, confidence, structure, discipline, boundaries. Now when I'm on the road or I'm doing seminars in Portugal or the Netherlands or in London or in Australia or whatever, I can't have a dog at home that requires a Navy SEAL to walk or something, right? So the Akita, again, not for me and my lifestyle. Like a lot of you guys out at home, you probably are busy just like me with kids and with schedules and with work, not the breed for you. And Akita's popularity outside of Japan led to the breeding programs that prioritize size and aesthetics over temperament, like all the dogs we've talked about this list. And a poorly bred Akita like any of the dogs can be unpredictable. They can be aggressive, not just reactive, but we're talking about resource guarding. They could be reactive and aggressive randomly like that, biting people in the face. They're extremely hard to read. Any of the dogs from Asia, Japan, China, these dogs are very difficult to read. Like they're very stoic, right? And that unpredictability in a powerful dog is something I take very seriously. So this is the list, six incredible breeds that I have the deepest, most respect for, but zero interest in owning myself. Now you may say, well, Tom, you said that you have a Belgian Malinois and it's like, yep, well, I have Lakota. And the Dutchies and the Malinois are a little bit different temperament wise, but I probably wouldn't get another one because the amount of work that she needed. And I got her, she's about 10 now. And I got her when I was younger and I didn't have kids and I wasn't as busy. And now of course she's fully trained. She's older, but she's still at 10 years old. Go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go all the time. She requires these things because she's really, really trained. It makes it easier. But again, most of you guys aren't a professional dog trainer at home. Most of you guys are. That's why I'm able to have some of these big, powerful breeds and, and, um, strong willed breeds. But even then it's very, very difficult to manage. So anyway, guys, I hope that this was helpful. I hope that you found some sort of humor or even education in this, like any other breed we talked about in this list or any other breed on any other list. It's really important that you do your research on the breeder and the genetics and what the puppies have looked like in the past or in the future and have a good relationship with your breeders. So things go as planned. Thank you guys so much for watching. I will talk to you on the next one. Peace.