They are described as bright, eager to please, lively, and fun loving—in short, an enjoyable and generally obedient companion. True to this dog’s spitz heritage, the Eskie is independent and tenacious and loves to run, especially in cold weather. They are among the most biddable of spitz breeds, and are calm and well-mannered inside. Because of their watchdog origins, Eskies can be wary of strangers, and may not be the best choice for homes with small children, other dogs, or pets unless well supervised.
I've had this breed of dog exclusively since 1982. My first was a female we got as a puppy and we had her for 17 years. The second was a female we got as a puppy and we had her for 14 years. My third and current Eskimo is a female we got as a puppy and so far we've had her for 7 years. They've all been very smart, very protective, playful dogs, but their personalities have been very different from each other. My 2nd one was "top dog" and I miss her every day because the current one just can't hold a candle to her.
The current Juneau loves to have her head, neck, and ears stroked and rubbed.... but don't rub her hips or shoulders. She'll let you know in a hurry that she doesn't like that. When we enter the house from the garage after running errands, she barks at us like we're intruders and I think it's her way of fussing at us because we didn't take her with us. She doesn't do the tail wagging, jump on us and lick us to death because she's happy to see us thing... ever. She has NEVER done that. She barks at us for about 10 minutes. We have to crate her at night because she WANTS to be crated. We've tried leaving her out at night (which is what we used to do with Juneau #2) so she can roam around the house and she doesn't like it. She'd rather be incarcerated. The current dog is stubborn as all get out and NOTHING scares her or intimidates her. If someone comes to the door, I can't open it if she's not crated. She turns into a Tazmanian devil and I can't even open the door to get a package, greet a repairman, etc. I've tried keeping her at bay with a fly swatter and that's just a joke. It's frustrating and annoying.
Both current dog, Juneau Finish and last dog, Miss Juneau, "assigned" RAMbeau to be their dog walker. When they need to go out, they go to him. However, they both considered ME to be the Alpha. I was the trainer, playmate, companion, masseuse, and food supplier. Every night when RAMbeau and I kissed goodnight, they'd growl and bark as if to say, "HEY.. she's MY girl! Get away from her!!". Very possessive and protective of ME, but not so much of other household members.