GSDs - soft or scary? Discussions

Hi Moobli, this is a great thread. I love GSDs and as you may know, I can't wait til next year to have my own
I've always loved them, my auntie had one when I was a child and when I slept at her house, I would wake up in the middle of the night and be unable to move as he was on the bed, asleep on my legs and I loved it! However, he was very dog aggressive, and nearly killed the dog that lived across the road. I now realise that his dog aggression was not his fault, he had been abused as a puppy and my uncle actually took him off somebody who was beating him and took him home and there he stayed! So he did have his problems, but his aggression was never worked on and I was never allowed to walk him as only my uncle could control him outside - as a family dog though, inside the house, he was brill and I adored him!

When I told my partner I wanted a GSD he was very against the idea, he's not really a doggy person anyway and the care of the two dogs we already have is very much down to me. He has this idea of GSDs as being aggressive, dangerous to people - and that our childrens lives would possibly be in danger and this has come from them being used as police dogs and guard dogs and he admits he has no bad experience with them in the past.

He has now come round to the idea, (and lets be honest, he didnt really have a choice) as I have bored him with tales of great family GSDs and showed him videos on Youtube of babies and children with the family GSD, not being eaten and I've won him over ;-)

xx

I've always loved GSD's and when we got our first Akita, it was very close between the two breeds when we started looking around rescues - however, Zeke stole our hearts very quickly, before we'd even managed to see many other dogs!

I would say I'm as cautious of them as of any other large guarding type breed? I.e I would always want to meet one but would have to quickly suss out just how friendly it was first. Not wary, but just a bit careful?

As already mentioned, It just depends on their background and owner how soft or scary they are! We have 5 GSD's in this village and all so VERY different!

1.) Friendly, always offlead, beautifully trained but keeps himself to himself, presumed he's been taught by his owners this way.

2.) Our neighbour's hardly ever gets walked, dogs aggressive and I feel so sorry for him. Doesn't like neighbours approaching, always barks. Howls a lot when left alone too :-(.

3.) A Pretty female GSD we always meet out on walks, seems to hate our two! Barks a lot at them, not helped by the fact our female seems to hate her too and barks back a lot! Always close to the owner on a lead so I have never really gotten close.

4.) A pair who live on the livery yard. One is in love with Zeke and always comes to say hello with the other one in tow who isn't really bothered about meeting and greeting, however, they both make Keisha really wary and a bit scared, (they're always charging behind the quad bike or running around the yard) so she has in the past, got a bit defensive, so they tend to leave her alone now!

5.) One tied up to a chain near the livery yard, barks, growls and charges at our 2. I pray each time the chain doesn't snap. Apparently "he's friendly offlead "


The kennels we occasionally board ours breed GSD's, they have loads of them, always beautifully behaved and this gives me great confidence that they are good handlers, and I trust them with our two.

There is nothing better to see than a very well trained and well behaved GSD. Another question I am pondering is why we see so many out of control, nervous aggressive, windy, untrained GSDs?

Aww your neighbour's dogs sounded lovely. My two look very fierce when in my garden and behind a fence (to strangers) but are fine with people when I say it is ok. To me, that is how they should be really. They do, after all, have strong guarding instincts, but should always take their lead from their owner.

I wonder why their owners thought it was okay for their dogs to be aggressive Do you think it is a case of owners just not understanding the breed at all?

Have you found a good breeder yet? Very exciting The reason your partner gave for not wanting a shepherd, is kind of the view I expect from non-dog lovers who happen to be scared of GSDs for no real reason. I remember a lady (non dog person) being horrified when she knew I had two shepherds in the house with my young son There is just no reasoning with some people.

I am glad your partner has come around to the idea

I think you are very sensible to be careful around any large guarding breed. I adore GSDs but am the same. If I have to go to assess one for rescue I do wonder on the way to meet it, whether it will be friendly or not

You have hit the nail on the head there, that each are individuals, and bad breeding and ignorant or lazy owners can exacerbate the bad reputation.

It seems they are a breed that suit an outdoor life? and thrive off plenty of socialisation with people and animals and fresh air! From my list the friendliest ones around here are the ones who's owners love walking and so they get plenty of exercise, live on a livery yard or at the boarding kennels with plenty going on..

But I guess that might be similar to a lot of other breeds too..

I think because GSDs are a sensitive but guarding breed - which means a lot of bluster is involved.
In the past, if you wanted to make a GSD nasty, you tied it up. A dog who knows it needs to guard but can`t get away from whatever it is confronting gets aggressive because it has no other option. This is why there used to be so many attacks from GSDs - because they were the weapon dogs of the time.
When they brought in the law forbidding the use of unaccompanied security dogs, they were bred for a better temperament, but in many cases this meant timid rather than biddable.
However, apart from extreme cases, a dogs` temperament can be moulded with good training & handling - nervous dogs can gain confidence, impulsive dogs can learn control. But we don`t have the trainers and handlers who can do this. The average pet owner doesn`t want to train their dog past the basics. GSDs need more than that .
You can get away with just house training your shtzu and hauling it round on a flexi at weekends. A GSD you can`t.

That's interesting, it makes sense, I never thought of it like that before you said it!;-)

When walking my shepherd. I understand a lot of people are scared of them. I will normally walk the opposite way to where they are walking their dog, and if not on a field we walk pass someone with or without a dog, I will give them plenty of room to go by and sit Kaiser down. Kaiser will never run over to their dog, the only interest he has, is what I'm doing.

The only time Kaiser will ever put a dog in their place is when a dog runs over to us, they're owner running after screaming at it to come back, or just standing there doing nothing. THEN us having the bigger dog and especially a GSD, we get hurled abused that our dog is a nasty dog and typical GSD, etc etc etc.

He never fights, but he will definitely let the other dog know that we're with him and to back off.

I remember one time that happening, and after Kaiser had done his bit, sat by my feet did not move whilst the other lady was still trying to get her dog on a lead and shouting abuse at me and Kaiser!!

I have the very same thing here, any dog that charges over to us HAS to be told that's not the done thing, and if it answers back, then they get put in their place and too right too! When my young gsd meets other dogs who don't barge up to her, then she's fine, she says hello and walks past or plays if they're friendly and want a quick game, that's fine by me, otherwise, we like to keep ourselves to ourselves, it's a lot safer for us usually that way!

I've never had a gsd that isn't like that quite honestly, they don't like other dogs just barging up to them, probably because I've always taught them not to do it to other dogs.

Bless,

I remember one time when walking him, he was about 4 months old and this lady quickly walked the other way after looking at him as if he was just about to kill someone! Very sad!

I definitely fall into the GSD Fan Club!

However, when I was growing up in the 70s, the world seemed to be full of people saying things like:

'You can never fully trust an Alsation'
'If you over-train them, they will turn'
'They all turn'
'Don't stroke the Alsation'

and so forth! (it was the 70s after all!)

However, there was a very handsome one in the newsagent's shop and as a toddler, the highlight of the week was going in and saying hello to him. He always struck me as a wise old thing, who used to look really earnestly at me, wag his tail and just push his head, ever so gently, into my tummy. I absolutely loved him!!! I always felt he demanded great respect, so I just used to say polite things, in a really soft voice and only stroked him when his head was 'in position'. Strangely, I found out later a lot of people were really scared of him.

From then, I went on to help out at a GSD kennel as a teenager / early 20s.

What really strikes me is the sheer variation in type and temperament. I would only be wary where I got the impression the owner was not in control, but that goes for all dogs. I also worry sometimes that there seem to be quite a few very nervy ones around, whose owners (as has been said before) seem to think it's okay. I was invited to a show a few years back and one GSD lunged and grabbed the sleeve of my coat for absolutely no reason (I made no eye contact, nor was I moving especially quickly, or oddly) His lead was being held by a young boy and his parents just shrugged and scowled at me!

That's exactly MY feelings even with my own gsd's, they deserve respect and they get it!

I remember my brother taking his big, male gsd over to my mum's when she had a villa in Menorca, and we were with 2 friends there on holiday and although we'd met this dog initially with my brother and my mum, we didn't actually KNOW him. Anyhoo, one afternoon, we went over to visit them at the villa, and my brother had tied up his big, gsd on a big chain in the front yard, so that they could have all the doors open, so in we strolled, not even thinking that this dog could have been viscious coz of the way he had been the previous day with us and plus, because we had 2 of our own here at home. We went straight over to him making a big fuss of him, NONE of us was scared, and then my brother came out, ranting and raving at us, that this dog was a guard dog he had already bitten somebody down on the beach as they walked past him to go into the cafe where my brother was sitting, and much to his disapproval, he actually didn't like the fact that his dog had his tail wagging and was loving all the attention from us! It just goes to show, that when you show no fear, you have respect for the dog, the dog does you no harm - maybe, but don't quote me on that lol!

Gsd'a are one of the commonest breeds I work with and yes mostly it is aggression or similar. However for every aggressive clients dog I meet I've met loads more gsds (in normal settings) that are very social/friendly.
My feelings are they need more exercise and stimulation than most owners offer, really some of them are almost like collies in terms of drive and energy.
I also think they are very prone to barrier frustration (on lead, behind a fence, tied up ect) and that alot of their aggression comes from this.
I also don't think they are always the most confident dog around, the aggression is a fallout of that.
I have found that with the right training approach and the right lifestyle they improve very rapidly and become extremely nice dogs. They are hugely handler orientated which can be a bit of a pain tbh. Mainly if they decied that I'm their best option not the owner lol.
I would consider having one but the health issues puts me off.

Adam

I love GSDs and my next big dog will be a long coated, straight backed, dog. I know that they need lots of socialisation as pups to make them good with people and other dogs and stop them being aggressive or too guardy. And they need firm, kind, consistent boundaries. No probs!

I need to stop reading this thread.

I WAN ONE!! Heehee

Adam,

From what you say here I'm led to believe you know very little about the GSD breed specifically. You may know about dogs in general, but you've made some sweeping comments that could apply to any breed.

My GSDs get more exercise and mental stimulation than most and are very happy. As they live in a residential district of Birmingham, they are kept in the house with access to a very large garden area. They get 2 long walks each day (morning and evening) with 2/3 hours in the park where we do training and they get to run off lead. They have run out of energy (both physical and mental) by the end of the day.
They also come out with meint he car when I go out (unless I really can't take them) so they get exposed to all sorts of different stimuli.

With the right training approach and lifestyle I think you'll find most dogs will respond positively to their handler. The fact that they focus so intensely on their handler is something I, and other GSD owners here have used to our advantage so we end up with happy, well adjusted, well behaved dogs with manners and respect for other dogs and people alike.

I know for a fact my dogs would NEVER choose you above me for ANYTHING. Even if you had a pocket full of sausage, my dogs know that I'm their owner/handler, that I provide walks, food, playtime, toys etc and I know they wouldn't give that up in favour of focusing on you.

Finally you mention that you'd have one if it weren't for the health issues. Can you be more specific? I have 3, very healthy GSDs. They all have straight backs (which may be seen as undesirable by some but I prefer it). They are all very fit and healthy with no problems at all. I have grown up with GSDs and the youngest I've ever lost one was my last GSD, Jaikei, who died at approx 8/9 years old. All the others lived to 12-16 years old.
Additionally, I'm pleased you don't have one TBH. If you use an e-collar on a GSD, you will destroy him/her. They are too sensitive for those sorts of methods.

GSDs don't demand respect, they command it. There is a great difference that not many people realise. The GSD is a very noble breed and handled or treated correctly, will do anything in it's power to please it's owner.

With regard to the original question..................

I don't give a toss one way or the other what peopel think of me or my dogs now. I walk my dogs, exercise them in the park, train them etc and if people don't like the idea of walking next to a GSD, then THEY can move out of hte way. I have, in the past, walked inteh opposite direction or crossed the road when I've seen someone I know dones't like my dogs purely because of their breed but I don't do that any more. My dogs haven't done anythign to deserve it. But as I said before, once people do ask if htey can say hello and realise what big softy lumps they all are, particularly Zane (who is the biggest of the lot), they calm down a lot.

I remember one incident in Sutton Park when an elderly man and his wife (I'm assuming it was his wife) were walking their small dog over the little bridge by the stream where we used to stop for the dogs to have a play and a drink etc. He picked his dog up, givin me a dirty look as they walked past. I made sure that everyone around me could hear (although there weren't that many people about)and I thanked him for picking up his dog to walk past mine as I didn't want my dogs attacked or harmed by his dog. I pointed out that he was a very responsible owner for recognising that his dog was aggressive and keeping it away from my dogs.

You should have seen the look I got. Most other people were falling about. But it just goes to show that those prejudices are still there.

I currently use Zane to conduct dog safety talks. I take him into primary schools to show primary school age children how to behave and stay safe around dogs. This is even more important at this time of year when children play in parks and there are dogs running free sometimes everywhere you look. I'd like to think that I've helped a generation of children grow up respecting and understanding a little bit about dogs, and at the same time growing up to NOT be afraid of large dogs, particularly GSDs.

Laura xx

When I chose my GSD it was because of two reasons.

1)He was the biggest one there, and boy is he big.
2)When all the puppies were running around, he just come and sat on my lap and went to sleep.

When taking him to puppy class, he had no real interest in playing, he just wanted to lay by my feet watching. He's been like that ever since.

He's a happy adjusted GSD, he doesn't need lots and lots of exercise. He has one walk in the evening or morning, depending on my schedule for about an hour. The rest of the time, he'll lay happily by my feet all day, as I work from home or out riding in the Jeep with me.

He's a happy confident dog and where ever I am, he's happy to be right by side.