Are Chesapeake Bay Retrievers Affectionate?

Everyone wants an affectionate dog unless they are specifically looking for a security dog that they want to be rough all the time. 

Chesapeake Bay Retrievers are large dogs, so you might be wondering if they are more prone to being loving or if they are more likely to be independent watching dogs. 

Are Chessies affectionate?

Chesapeake Bay Retrievers are affectionate dogs with their families and loved ones. They are also loving towards people they see often such as the dog groomers or the neighbors if you spend a lot of time with them. They are not very affectionate with strangers. Each dog will also express their affection in any different ways. 

Chessies are a great dog to have in the home if you are looking for a breed that is affectionate and loving.

They are good family dogs so they will also be affectionate towards your children and other people who live in the home. 

Will My Chesapeake Bay Retriever Be Affectionate? 

Your Chessie will be affectionate and loving towards everyone they see often.

 When there are new people in the home though, they might not be affectionate. 

They are not aggressive though, they will just ignore the strangers and might stay in their bed or closer to you. 

Chessies are affectionate because they have a strong connection and loyalty with their family. 

They will want to sit with you on the couch or be close to you when you are home. 

They also like to cuddle sometimes. 

Along with being affectionate, they are also cheerful.

 Sometimes their cheerful attitude can be shown in over-enthusiasm though. 

They are likely to jump on you when they are feeling affectionate.

If you don’t want them to jump or if you have small kids in the house, you should make sure they are trained not to jump or they could injure someone in the house. 

Although they are affectionate, they can also be stubborn and strong-willed. 

They like to be the boss and they will show bossy behavior unless you train them to do otherwise. 

They like to do what they want when they want. 

Obedience training should help a lot, but remember that being bossy is part of their behavior. 

When you are training, keep this behavior trait in mind. You need to make sure you are showing them that you are the boss. 

Chessies do not respond well to negative training though, so make sure you are being firm but still positive. 

If they are not responding well to training, consider taking a break and doing training sessions in short bursts rather than hours and hours of training.

If you cannot train the dog successfully, consider bringing in professional help. 

What If I Don’t Want My Chessie to Be Affectionate? 

Are Chesapeake Bay Retrievers Affectionate Are Chesapeake Bay Retrievers Affectionate?

If you do not want your dog to be overly affectionate and you would prefer them to be more of a guard dog, you can try not showing them physical displays of affection. 

Chessies will respond to their environment, so they will be less affectionate if you do not show over displays of affection. 

Chessies might also be less affectionate if you rescued them from an abusive or neglectful home. 

If you rescued them, but you want them to be affectionate, you need to make sure you are showing affection and encouraging them to cuddle and be with you. 

Start this process slowly. They might be nervous to be in their home and they will take a while to warm up to you. 

Don’t be discouraged if they don’t show affection to you right away. Just take your time and allow them to be affectionate with you on their own time. 

Chessies respond to their behavior and the environment that is around them. 

Make your home affectionate and loving, so that they will respond accordingly. 

How Will My Chessie Show Affection? 

There are many different ways your Chessie will show affection towards you and the people in your home. 

Remember though that they are big dogs and some forms of affection might not be appropriate. 

If there are only adults in your home and you don’t mind jumping and having a big dog on your lap, then encourage this behavior and welcome the love from your big dog. 

If you don’t want to jump though, you need to make sure you are training them to not jump. 

You can also encourage them to sit next to you on the couch rather than sitting on top of you. 

This might be better if you have small children, as you don’t want the dog to climb and sit on the kids. 

Chessies often know when there is a kid around though and they will naturally be gentler and more caring when they are around small children. 

Other forms of affection might include leaning on you, resting their paws on you, or pushing their bodies against you when you are sitting down. 

You will also see their tails wagging when they are excited and want to be pet. 

They will also wiggle and run around in circles. If you allow them to, they will also want to kiss you and lick you to show love. 

Can My Chessie Be Affectionate and a Good Watch Dog? 

Some people worry that if they allow their dog to be more affectionate and loving, they will not be a good watchdog that protects the home.

However, Chesapeake Bay Retrievers can be both with the right amount of training. 

Even if they are affectionate towards you, they will still bark when there are intruders or strangers in their homes. 

They are good at alerting you when there is something unusual.

Chessies are not naturally aggressive though unless you poorly train them though or they come from a hostile home in the past. 

So, they will be good watchdogs, but they are not the best dogs for guarding as they will probably not chase after someone or bite them unless the other person is directly hurting you. 

They will always bark though and tell you when there is someone unwelcome on the property. 

This can help you get to safety or call the police if you need to. 

Will My Chessie Always Show Affection? 

There are times when your Chessie will not show as much affection as others. 

You also want to make sure your dog is not overly affectionate when you are busy at work or when you are trying to do chores around the house. 

Some Chessies will also be affectionate in the morning when you don’t want to be kissed and licked right when you wake up. 

With the proper training though, you can teach your dog when to be affectionate and when to settle down and be calm.

If you don’t want them licking you and pouncing on you in the morning, make sure you train them not to come onto the bed and show them that they are expected to stay in their bed until you wake up and are ready to greet them. 

This will only work if you are not sleeping for long periods of time though.

If you oversleep and your dog needs to use the bathroom or is very hungry, they will still jump on you or cry to let you know they are ready to be up and moving. 

There is no right or wrong when it comes to teaching your dog when to be affectionate and when to leave you alone. 

It’s all a personal preference.

You don’t have to follow the rules of other households and you don’t have to listen to the advice of others. Do what feels right for you. 

Will My Chessie Be Affectionate Towards My House and Belongings?

Your Chessies affection usually stops with you and the other people in the home. 

Chessies might chew your things, especially if you leave them alone for too long or if you don’t train them not to chew things. 

They will chew more during their puppy stage, but most continue to chew even when they are adults. 

When they are puppies, you need to keep shoes and other items far out of reach so that the puppy won’t be tempted to chew them or destroy them.

As they grow older, you can train them not to chew your things.

If they stay in their youthful stage though and want to keep chewing things, make sure the doors in your home are closed and keep an eye on them when they are in the same room as you. 

Final Thoughts 

Chesapeake Bay Retrievers love to show affection to their loved ones and the people that live in their homes.

Anyone that they know will eagerly receive kisses and love when they come into the house. 

Strangers in the home will be greeted with suspicion though rather than affection. 

You can train your Chessie to be affectionate in some ways and not others. 

For example, you can train them not to jump if you don’t want them on top of you. 

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