Unless you get a specially trained protection dog, all decent sized dogs are going to be roughly equal as far as providing protection. 9 out of 10 home invaders are just going to see any/all large dogs as equal and go try another place. The 1 out of 10 will just bring a gun and shoot the dog, or throw a poison filled hotdog in your yard a few days ahead of time.

Looking at your lists of desires, pretty much any decent size dog is going to be able to be your jogging companion and any dog that loves to swim will be great paddle-boarding. The one requirement that is breed specific is going to be the duck hunting. For that you are going to need either a retriever breed or a 'versatile' breed. (Versatile means they are bred to point, track,and retrieve)

Because duck hunting is generally done in the fall, in cold water, most of the duck hunting breeds are going to be fine in cold weather. I'm from Minnesota, so we know cold weather, and in rural areas you see a lot of people with black labs that live outside year round including in December. Thing is, to really be cold tolerant, a lot of breeds can do it but the key is for the dog to actually live in the cold. If they live in your warm house, they don't develop as thick of an undercoat during the winter. But for the average dog living in the house is great and if they have a decent coat that's plenty for going out for a walk or play time in winter.

Breeds to look at

Labrador Retriever. If the classic black lab is 'too common' for you, check out the yellow lab or chocolate lab, same dog different color. If yellow or chocolate aren't 'unique enough' check out 'fox red'...this is actually a sub-set of yellow, but is a very striking color.

Chesapeake Bay Retriever should be great for you too

Want something a little smaller? Check out the American Water Spaniel....it's a mix of spaniels, poodles, and retrievers. It was developed in Wisconsin as a smaller alternative for duck hunters who were in small boats.

 

Please adopt and do not buy.

 

I thought husky when I read your post, but they aren't a beginner breed by any means so it depends on your experience and how much you're willing to put into training.

I'm also not sure if huskies can be trusted off leash, I've met many husky owners who would never let their dogs off leash.

 

I'm not sure how good of a retriever a husky is. Sure they have a great work ethic but when I think hunting dog I don't think Husky. I have heard of GSDs making good hunting dogs though.

Personally, if I wanted a hunting dog, I'd go with a pointer, a setter, or a retriever of any kind. I can vouch personally for labradors. Even though they're smooth coated, they are extremely weather tolerant - they were bred to jump in icy oceans after all. I know plenty of hunters that go out in -25 temps with their retrievers for long days hunting.

I can also vouch that retrievers can definitely be protective. Not all of them love strangers...mine for example. I doubt she'd ever hurt any one, because she's a mush, but she has a deep enough bark to keep our house safe - we live in a rough area of my city and is pretty good at looking intimidating. I'm also pretty sure if she had to she'd lay her life on the line to protect me and my family because she's that bonded to us.

 

I'd look among the Retriever breeds.

 

I would also recommend a Chesapeake Bay Retriever, my mom had one growing up, and she still to this day talks about how amazing Peter was. Their coats are beautiful and wavy and they're not as crazy-about-strangers as Labrador Retrievers are. Plus, they tend to be a bit reserved with strangers, which might give you the "guarding" trait you're looking for.

 

Labbies can look very intimidating.
they can be pretty big and muscular and pretty broad heads- ^^"

 

I would definitely go for a retriever breed or possibly a german short hair pointer.

Also check out some local rescues near you and look at adopting. You could also always foster before adopting to try out dogs or puppies before committing.

 

My last dog Kryesor(RIP) loved to chase the stick and retrieve it, but you had to have two different sticks so he'd dropped the other stick and go for the other one. He was an alaskan husky of who knows what mixed with him. (Mom was also an alaskan husky of who knows what mixed in.) I would think he probably had some labrador since that was the majority of dogs running around and maybe even some kind of terrier also. (His fur was somewhat harsh feeling.) His siblings were all black or black with tan legs. he was the only one who had the tan point markings on his face. But since his litter was unplanned, it's mostly likely all pups had different fathers.

But I got lucky I guess. I've recently gotten into flat coated retriever mainly because I wanted to joke with people that it was a black colored golden retriever. (Not that I would just buy one for that, the breed over all doesn't match my needs.) But stunning dogs to look at. I don't know if they would be good in the cold though. they are part of the retrieveing breed.... Oh, weren't poodles used for hunting at one point in their development? Maybe a poodle?

 

As a Marylander, everyone around here has Chessies, I am not the biggest fan as everyone I have encounter has been super aggressive. IMO you can teach so many dogs to retrieve (any dog that will play fetch), my best friend has 2 Goldens that he uses for Duck hunting and they do really well (smell horrible afterward).