Cross Breeds

Can you tell me anything on german shepherd puppies?

So my home was broken into and Im getting a german shepherd puppie which is 8 weeks old next week. I just want to know how protective and loyal they can be. Do they usually pick one person in the family that there more protective or not?

Public Comments

1. Awwww lucky you! I have a german shepard thats about five months, from the start she was loyal to mostly me(cus i looked after her the most) but in time she was very loyal and protective of everyone :) make sure u start poddy training her asap, good luck
2. I'm speaking from experience. Back when I lived at home, we had owned 2 german shephards at different times. I'm here to tell ya, you are making an excellent choice of a dog. German shephards are highly intelligent animals. I don't know how many people you have in your house. But both shephards that we had, listened to all of us & was equally protective over everybody in the house. But let me give ya a piece of advice, as far as training them....don't let just anybody pet it. Only allow family & such to pet him. Also, whenever anybody comes to your door, other than family or friends, put the dog away. Do this each & every time. You don't want your dog, knowing everybody that comes to your door. Stick to this rule & you'll see first hand, just how protective the dog will be.
3. A single dog is not going to stop someone from breaking into your home. While you & the dog are at the front door talking to a friend of mine I could come in the back door. Or the dog could be thrown a chunk of meat & you can just walk past. A dog can be shot or poisoned. If you dished out the money to get the dog trained as a guard dog or a personal protection dog , that would be a huge liability. Your home insurance will go up, you would have to dog proof your yard & put up signs. Then if the dog bites someone out in the yard you could face charges of assult with a deadly weapon. A good dog will cost you about the same as putting in an alarm system. Go for the alarm system.
4. Your dog will only be a deterrent in that it's a GSD..They don't come trained in protection.That you pay for when you take the dog for training..GSD are prone to be a 1 person dog but loves everyone in the family..They are very loyal dogs and very easily trained but it's up to you to work this breed as boredom creates havoc..Get a book and start obedience training with a good school and start right away with basic training..Then get involved in Schutzhund..you'll both love it..If this is your first GSD do your homework as it;s usually not for a 1st time owber so get involved.I have owned them for 44 yrs..and I adore this breed but I was brought up with every family member owning them and then I went into training them myself..
5. First of all it's PUPPY not "puppie". Unfortunately, your dog will be anything but protective. Especially if you are getting him at that age. If you wanted a REAL guard dog, it would have been bred and trained explicitly for that job. You can count on that dog being more likely to lead the theives to the money that deter them. Sometimes the visual deterrent is enough but don't count on this dog being your home security system.
6. The German Shepherd is well loved for its loyalty and attached to its owner and family. It is one of the most popular breeds in America. They are very protective of those they love. German Shepherds are good with children, especially when properly socialized. This is a brave and cheerful dog that enjoys being around its human family. The German Shepherd is sometimes considered to be an aggressive dog. However, it should be emphasized that any large dog that is untrained and unsupervised can be characterized as such. This is a very active dog that wants to work, German Shepherds need something to do. Training for this dog should begin, in a positive manner, as soon as the puppy is brought home. About German Shepherd - http://www.dog-pound.net/german-shepherd/german-shepherd-dog-breed-profile.php
7. It's sad that so many people claiming to be expert enough to tell you about my breed are so ignorant about it that they don't even know what the breed's name is! I can tell you heaps about (not "on") GSDs - but you haven't asked any of the important questions.... First: The breed's real name translates as German Shepherd Dog - 3 words in the proper noun, so 3 capital letters needed, with GSD for short. Think about Rambo or Batman or any other hero: Would he have tried (let alone be ABLE!) to protect you when he was just a toddler? - or a pre-teen? Next, you need to get some reality into your thinking. SchutzHund clubs (which is where most GSD owners do their protection training) won't allow a pooch to START SchutzHund training until it has gained BH - usually done at 15 months old. Obtaining a pup in order to end up with a family protection dog is a long-term project - and, just as not all thoroughbred horses win races, not all dressage horses win gymkhanas, not all boxers win bouts, so not all pups become protection dogs. You failed to ask how to choose WHO/WHERE (the breeder & the litter's parents & grandparents) to seek a pup from; HOW to choose a pup from the litter or decide whether the one pup shown you is suitable for your future needs. You failed to ask about how to rear & train a pup. • Pick the wrong pup (most pet-is-all or show-is-all pups are unsuitable for protection purposes, but can be fine as alarm dogs), or rear it wrong, and it will NOT suit what you say you need. • Fail to train it properly and you will have a menace to family & friends, not a protector. Do you even know enough about dogs to realise that "socialisation" has NOTHING to do with your pet playing with strange dogs/people? It really means "familiarisation & confidence-building experiences". • Yes, they CAN be protective & loyal - but it doesn't mean that the one you are buying "just because it is available right now" WILL be either. Indeed, the odds are that it has crap "breeding" and a "breeder" whose Guarantee is non-existent or worthless. Would you buy your first car, house or wedding gown in such a rush? Personally, I consider that you are over-reacting. A GSD is a LIVING thing with its own needs & personality, not a switch-on-&-off machine. And a well-bred well-looked-after GSD is a commitment for the next 12-15 years - but for only about 9 of those years will it have the strength & power to actually protect you. If you want a GSD, get one because you WANT a GSD. Learn how to raise it right, learn how to build its confidence and its affection for & trust in you, learn how to have it instantly obedient on the occasions when you require it to be instantly obedient (a protection dog MUST be instantly controllable) and only THEN start finding out how to add guarding abilities. A human mercenary will usually try to protect you just because he/she wants the pay. But why should a dog bother trying to protect you if it doesn't actually like you? ◙ Add http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/The_GSD_Source to your browser's Bookmarks or Favorites so that you can easily look up such as rescue groups, feeding, vaccinations, worming, clubs, weights, teething, neutering, disorders, genetics.