What does training mean to your German Shepherd? The short answer is that training offers the opportunity for the dog to do what he was bred for.

Shepherds were bred to work.

German Shepherds are, first and foremost, working dogs. They were initially bred to serve three different functions. Herd livestock, protect home and livestock, and as tracking dogs.

While most dogs now serve as pets, the qualities bred into them can’t be ignored. This means that this active, intelligent breed needs to have its energy channeled into positive activities.

So the question then becomes, what does dog training mean to the German Shepherd owner?

It means being willing to spend time daily to exercise and train your dog. Owners who don’t make this commitment are likely to end up with a large, hard to manage dog.

What are good things to include in your dog training?

The most obvious is to have your German Shepherd come to you when you call it. Start off with short distances. The trick here is to be patient. When the dog comes to you give it lots of praise. You want to tell them that they’re a good boy (or girl).

Give them treats as well when they come. The thing with treats is that you only want to give them sometimes. If you give them every time that the dog obeys, they’ll become bored with them. It’s better to give them every few times the dog performs correctly. This keeps their anticipation level high.

Losing your temper if the dog doesn’t respond to your satisfaction is not productive. It is a bad idea for your Shepherd to become fearful of you. It can lead to aggression and other problems.

When your dog has learned to come when you call it, it’s time to learn Sit/Stay.

Shepherds are typically intelligent dogs. Intelligent dogs need to be mentally stimulated. If you turn teaching a trick like Sit/Stay into a game, the dog will learn a useful command and will be able to use their mental abilities in a beneficial way.

Another essential thing to teach your dog is how to walk on a leash. Walking your dog serves several important functions. First, it’s important that your Shepherd gets adequate exercise. Dogs that don’t get enough exercise tend to develop health and psychological problems.

Secondly, walking on a leash creates a unique bond between dog and owner. It creates a situation in which the dog focuses on the owners wishes. If the dog is distracted by a squirrel crossing its path, the leash helps to re-focus his attention.

There’s another important function that learning to walk on a leash serves. It allows the dog to have new experiences that build its confidence. Dogs are a lot like people. The more situations that they successfully deal with, the more self confident they are.

A leash lets you take your Shepherd to the park, flea market or any other gathering.

Proper dog training for your German Shepherd will make a huge difference in both of your lives.

German shepherds are members of a relatively young breed, and the origin is well known. In 1899 Captain Max von Stephanitz decided to breed an all-around working dog from his sheepherding dog. He bred various shepherds and farming dogs, holding trials to choose the best workers with the highest intelligence. He formed a club for owners of German Shepherds and promoted them to the police and military.

The breed served in World Wars I and II, first in the German army and later for the British and Americans. Corporal Lee Duncan, of the American army found German shepherd puppy abandoned by the Germans during World War I and named him Rin Tin Tin, after a kind of French doll. When he brought Rin Tin Tin home to his native Los Angeles and trained him, the dog starred in 26 movies during the 1930’s. In the 1950’s a popular television series, Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, starred a German shepherd in the part of a dog who worked for the U.S. Army during the 19th century.

In 1908 the American Kennel Club recognized the German shepherd as a herding breed. The breed is among the top ten in popularity in the United States. It is also a popular pet in Europe and Britain, where it is called an Alsatian.

German Shepherds were the first breed to be trained as guide dogs for the blind, and Helen Keller owned a pair of them. They are good in this role due to their intelligence, sense of responsibility, and loyalty to their humans.

They have proven their usefulness many times as search and rescue dogs and in police and military work. Their keen sense of smell, tirelessness, willingness to work, and obedience make them excellent for tracking lost people and criminals, finding and holding suspects, detecting bombs and narcotics, and patrolling. In the military, German shepherds are often used for scout duty, and to warn soldiers of enemies or explosives. They have even been trained to parachute from airplanes. German shepherds eagerly searched through the rubble of the World Trade Center after 9/11.

On farms German shepherds are used for herding, protecting livestock from predators and keeping animals from wandering into fields of crops.

As family dogs they will often look after children and patrol the home at night, checking that each member of the family is safely in bed. With responsible breeding and early socialization and training, the German shepherd is hard to beat as a wonderful canine family member.

Have you ever considered having your German Shepherd “fixed”? This term is often used to loosely describe the procedure of neutering or spaying one’s dog. This ultimately compromises a dog’s ability to breed. It does seem like a radical procedure, and many dog owners consider it a very debatable subject. Just like any other procedure, neutering or spaying one’s dog has its pros and cons. Let this article help you learn some facts to help you decide what is best for your German Shepherd.

It is a proven fact that spaying your German Shepherd prevents future health problems. For female German Shepherds, the procedure can prevent potentially lethal uterine infections. It can also decrease the chances of your German Shepherd from contracting breast cancer. All in all, it protects your dog from all the risks that come with pregnancy.

Most dog owners also opt to have their dogs spayed out of convenience. Heat periods can turn out to be a very messy and inconvenient experience for the dog and its owner. Just like humans, dogs in time of heat will secrete a bloody discharge. Often times, this requires the owner to confine the dog in a space to prevent it from making a mess in the house.

For male German Shepherds, the procedure can help protect them from testicular tumors. It also decreases the dog’s desire to mark its territory. In most cases, the procedure helps keep sexual arousal in check, which at times can be a very unpleasant experience for dog owners. Most importantly, it helps male German Shepherds control their aggression and overt desire to be overly dominant.

That being said, the procedure of neutering or spaying one’s dog also has its disadvantages. In a way, the procedure can affect the dogs’ hormones. In effect, there have been instances of dogs developing obesity after the procedure. In addition to this, the procedure itself can become very costly. And since the procedure requires general anesthesia, a whole different set of risks are brought to the table.

However, the issue here is not so much about “if” it should be done; so much as it is about “when” it should be done. Some argue that spaying a dog during its formative years can cause other health problems. In this case, the safest bet is to have the procedure done once the dog turns at least a year old.

Whatever the case, spaying or neutering German Shepherds, as with all dog breeds certainly has its risks. However, granted that the procedure is done as an informed decision with the help of trained professionals, this risk may prove to be the greatest investment for your German Shepherd’s health. Invest in your dog’s future, know the facts, and do what needs to be done.

Puppies are like human babies in many ways. One of those ways is in teething.

As German Shepherd puppies teeth grow in, their gums become sore and swollen. You might also find that their gums are bleeding. This discomfort can cause them to chew on things in an attempt to get some relief.

Puppies also chew on things as a way of exploring the world around them and out of boredom. When you combine that tendency with the discomfort of teething, there’s a real potential for trouble. But, with the correct puppy training, you can make the puppy more comfortable and obedient.

One way to counter the boredom is to make sure that the puppy gets adequate exercise. The old saying that a tired puppy is a happy puppy is true!

How do you deal with the chewing that’s associated with teething? For starters, make sure that there are plenty of puppy approved chew toys available. You can find a wide range of chew toys at pet stores. Another place to look for toys is at the big box retailers that have pet departments.

It’s important to choose toys that don’t resemble things that you don’t want the puppy to chew. For example, a chew toy that looks like the T.V. remote would be a bad idea.

It’s also a good idea to avoid small chew toys for your German Shepherd puppy. You don’t want to choose a toy that might be accidentally swallowed. Responsible pet owners have enough vet bills without the puppy swallowing a rubber bone!

There are some good alternatives for puppies who are teething. One good, but messy, treat is to make ice cubes out of broth. This will be a tasty treat for the puppy and the cold will help deal with the discomfort of teething.

Another idea along the same lines uses a rope chew toy. Take a knotted rope chew toy and soak it in water and put it in the freezer. After it’s frozen, give it to your German Shepherd puppy. Like the broth ice cubes, the cold will sooth the puppy’s irritated gums.

You can also give the puppy frozen fruit and vegetables. Strawberries, pieces of watermelon and carrots are all good choices.

It’s important to correct the puppy if it begins chewing on something that it shouldn’t. You can minimize this problem by not leaving “forbidden” items where the puppy can chew on them.

Here’s how to deal with the wrong item being chewed. As you remove the forbidden item from the puppy’s mouth, tell her “No” in a calm but forceful manner. Have an acceptable toy ready to give her. When she takes it in her mouth, praise her.

It’s important to remember that a puppy is a kid in a dog suit. It won’t know right or wrong unless it’s correctly trained. It’s not chewing up your new $200 pair of shoes to make you mad. In fact, one of a dog’s strongest desires is to please its owner.

When you praise it for taking the appropriate toy you are teaching it right from wrong.

Learning to deal with puppy issues like teething will help you have a happy, healthy adult German Shepherd.