Basic Training Equipment Needed:
There are lots of training tools for more advanced commands but to begin teaching your German Shepherd, you can start out with the basics.
What Age Are German Shepherds Fully Grown
about 18 months oldLike many large breeds, a German Shepherd dog is not considered fully grown until they are about 18 months old. Female German Shepherds continue to fill out until they are around two years old, while the male German Shepherd growth rate continues until they reach two and a half years of age.
What kind of commands can I give my German Shepherd?
There are two basic types of German Shepherd training commands you can use with your dog. First is the hand signals. The second is the verbal commands. Hands signals allow you to teach your German Shepherd obedience through gestures.
Teaching Your Gsd To Stay
Are you facing a behavioral problem with your GSD pup?
Say for example you bring your food to the table and your pup starts to jump in excitement, and sometimes it barks. So, what do you do to avoid this behavior?
Dogs love food, and if you havent trained your dog to behave, it will bark, cry, and jump at you whenever you bring food in front of it. This behavior is very disappointing, especially when you have guests over. The thing that helps most in this scenario is to make your GSD learn to stay. Stay is another verbal command that tells your dog to be calm and behave. It works whenever your dog is hyper or doing something you dont want it to. You can also associate the stay command with sit. If you want your dog to keep sitting for a while, you can use stay. Read on to the technique of making your GSD learn to stay.
- Have a treat in your hand.
- Sit in front of your dog and bring your treat hand close to your GSDs nose.
- Let your dog sniff the treat.
- Take your treat hand a little upwards.
- When your dog tries to get up to get hold of the treat, push it down from the nose with your treat hand and say stay.
- If your dog doesnt stay, repeat the activity and if it stays, give it the treat.
- Repeat this activity for 5-10 minutes or until your dog learns the stay command.
- Make sure you have enough treats with you so that your dog makes a connection between treat and stay.
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Fun Training And Tricks Commands To Teach Your German Shepherd
Even though the majority of the training commands your GSD needs to learn right away have a definite safety and socialization purpose, once these basics have been mastered you can start to have some fun with dog training.
If your dog is going to be a professional working K-9 or a canine athlete, some of these commands can serve double duty in these roles as well.
But German Shepherds that are going to enjoy the life of a companion canine can also benefit from training to learn new skills and tricks. This is enriching for your dogs mind and body and can help you to develop a closer bond.
Train Them To Attack A Person
The hardest part of the training is to transition your dog from attacking a doll to attacking a person. The most important part of this step is teaching them the command stop. This command will ensure you have control, and the dog will stop attacking when you say so.
Youll need two people for this step one person to utter the command and the other to sub in for the doll. It may be daunting to ask a friend to volunteer for this, and you can always acquire assistance from a dog trainer. They will understand how to react if anything goes wrong during the training.
Either way, ensure the other person is wearing protective gear to protect them from the attack. When choosing a protective suit, make sure it is good quality, with durable materials, and that it has excellent reviews.
We would recommend going for one like the Dean and Tyler Full Protection Bite Suit. Its French Linen composition is proven to protect against all bites and cover each part of the body for enhanced safety.
It includes Velcro straps on the waist and leather hand protectors as well. The suit does tend to limit movement, so your subject likely wont have much agility while in it. They are an investment, so make sure youre sure about the purchase and your commitment to the training.
Once your guinea pig is fully protected, you can begin commanding your German Shepherd to attack the subject, using the phrase and pointing. Now the key is the implementation of the command stop.
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Positive Training Methods To Teach Your Gsd Cues
The critical point is that we can’t expect our dogs to know what we want if we haven’t taught them this is the essence of any dog education.
As positive trainers, we focus on what we do want our dogs to do and reward them handsomely with food, toys, play, or even life rewards for a job well done!
And there are three ways to teach your dog any new behavior.
Teaching Your Gsd To Sit
During the initial days of your pup at your home, you will need to train it the basic commands.
Sit is one of the most basic dog commands that allow you to have control over your dog. When you teach your dog to sit, you are actually making it calmer. For example you have visitors home, and your GSD starts jumping over them.
If you have trained your dog to follow your sit command, you will be able to calm it down and avoid misbehavior. How will your GSD learn to sit? Follow the actions below to make your dog learn to sit.
- Get a dog treat in your hand.
- Make your dog sit in front of you.
- Bring your hand above your dogs nose and let it have a taste of it.
- Once your dog is excited to get the treat and tries to take it from your hand, pull your hand backward.
- Your dog will try to snatch the treat from you.
- Move your hand with the treat just above your dogs nose.
- Your dog will move from left to right.
- Tell your dog to sit and keep repeating the command so that it learns what it means.
- Your dog will sit to get hold of the treat.
- The moment your dog sits, offer it the treat with your hands.
- Repeat this activity until your dog learns to sit and associate the treat with sitting.
- Make sure you use the command sit.
- Do not forget to appreciate your pup when it follows your command as it will prove to be helpful.
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From 9 Months To 24 Months
Dogs of different breeds and sizes mature at different ages, and while one year of age is commonly considered the end of puppyhood in general, a German Shepherd Dog may not reach an adult level of maturity before the age of two or three . So continuing to work on impulse control, improve obedience skills, and advance to training in more focused activities like tracking, scent work, protection work, agility, and herdingall of which are capabilities of this breedmust continue throughout this period and then be reinforced as your GSD reaches adulthood. This is also a good time to transition from puppy food to a large breed dog food.
Keep in mind that this is a breed that thrives on constant and consistent work and training, and loves to have a jobor many jobs!to do. If you can provide your GSD with outlets for their intelligence and versatility, both you and your dog will reap the rewards.
Yasmine S. Ali, MD, is a cardiologist and writer based in Tennessee, where she lives with three Canine Good Citizens, including an AKC-registered German Shepherd Dog.
Start Here: The Five Most Common Training Commands Your Gsd Needs To Learn
If you are lucky, your German Shepherd breeder started training your GSD puppy before you even brought them home.
If this applies to you, then you want to continue using the same training commands the breeder used.
Otherwise, you can use these basic training commands to get your puppy or rescue dog up and running with basic training.
Make sure your GSD has completely mastered these basic training commands before you move on to add new commands. Keep training sessions short, lively, and positive to hold your dogs interest.
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Command Number : Stand
Purpose of the command: this trick can help you when your dog needs to stand during brushing the dog or examined by the veterinarian.
Start learning your German shepherd this trick by giving him the command sit. With a treat in your hand, move it towards your German shepherds nose forward then down.
Following the direction of your hand holding the treat, move your hand forward until your German shepherd assumes a standing position. Then say the stay command and reward your furry friend with praise or a treat.
Command Number : Down Or Lie Down
Purpose of the command: to calm down your German shepherd and address some dogs behavioral issues.
There are many ways to teach your dog, but you can start with a collar and leash. Say sit command . After your dog sat down, easily put your leg on a leash to pull your dog to the grown and say sit. Every time when your German shepherd lies down, reward him with a treat and praise.
At first, it will seem impossible to teach your German shepherd new tricks, but everything requires a lot of attention, patience, and practice. These are not the only tricks to learn your German shepherd these commands, but they are simple and do not require any additional equipment.
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Command Number : Wait
Purpose of the command: teach your dog to wait for you in a certain place.
This trick from our experience is easiest to teach your dog when your dog is in front of your car or closed door. Execute this task by giving him the well-known “sit” command. Open the palm of your hand and then say the wait command.
Repeat this activity until your German shepherd learns it properly. At first, he will surely be excited and probably won’t sit for long, but have to stay calm 🙂
Verbal Cues In Gsd Training
Although dogs are masters of visual cues, your voice is a powerful tool in training your German Shepherd.
And if you consider this study published in the Journal of Comparative Psychology
Dogs don’t just perceive a cue as a physical sound. But can recognize a relationship between certain sounds.
You can see the powerful tool you have in your voice.
Many people who don’t understand behavior science say you should use a firm or stern tone. And back when I was a novice trainer, I believed this too.
But remember the quote I shared earlier from Susan Garrett?
Your dog’s decision to respond to your Cue has nothing to do with how stern or firm your voice is.
It’s based on the education you have given them and the environment they are in.
Recently I worked with a client who is a new GSD guardian, her German Shepherd puppy’s name is Callie, and she was roughly ten weeks old when we began working together.
The client tried to deliver her cues more kindly, and Callie immediately dropped all the stress signals she had previously displayed.
I’m sure you wouldn’t like to hear commands barked at you, so why would your dog be any different?
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Types Of German Shepherd Training Commands
You may just need the basics to begin your training, and youll find that list below.
Or, you might aspire to teach your GSD a few advanced dog commands.
Either way, you need to know what words to say and how to say them for the best training.
You definitely want your German Shepherd to master the basic commands. These commands allow you to control your dogs movements and help make them more reliable to your training.
If you want to impress your friends or make the most out of owning one of the worlds smartest dogs, then the more advanced dog commands might appeal to you.
You can even make a hobby teaching your German Shepherd new commands or tricks!
There are two basic types of German Shepherd training commands you can use with your dog.
First is the hand signals.
The second is the verbal commands.
The Good German Shepherd
German Shepherd Training Commands are an essential part of training your pup. These commands can help you with basic obedience, provide a way to communicate with your dog, and teach them what they should be doing in different situations.
This article covers German Shepherd training commands that every owner needs to know!
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Best Language To Train A German Shepherd
Some owners might wonder what language they should use to train their German Shepherds. The breed is so intelligent they can learn more than one language if you train them.
But, at the end of the day the best language to teach your German Shepherd their commands in is the one that youre the most comfortable using daily. Whats more essential is the frequency and consistency you train your dog so that shes able to build her training vocabulary.
What Is The Best Age To Train German Shepherd
German Shepherd puppies are ready for simple training as young as 7 weeks old. Your puppy is capable and ready to learn at 6 to 7 weeks old many simple obedience commands. But you shouldnt pressure a puppy this young with perfect obedience. A 1 minutes session is long enough for a young puppy.
What are the basic puppy commands?
According to Ray, the basic commands that every dog should learn are: heel, sit, stay, and come. Heel With the dog at knee level on your left side and the leash in your hand, start walking with your left foot first as you give the Heel command, using the dogs name.
What are the basic dog training commands?
21 Essential Dog Commands to Teach Your Dog
- Sit. The quintessential demand, sit, will come in handy on a daily basis.
- Watch Me. A less-known yet important command is watch me. This direction will come in handy should you bring your dog to a busy area.
Why do German shepherds bite their owners?
One common cause of dogs biting or acting aggressively towards their owners is resource guarding, which means the dog growls or bites if someone comes near or tries to take the dogs food or toys, or tries to remove the dog from a resting place.
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Teach Them The Command
Once your German Shepherd is comfortable with basic commands, its time to try the attack command. The best process is to put on your gloves and tap on the face and nose of your dog. This action will cause annoyance, and eventually, they will respond by biting the gloves. When this happens, state the command attack.
How To Direct A Good Performance
Issuing your commands is essential to successful obedience training.
Dont just expect your dog to know what you want from them. Instead, you must first show them and then tell them exactly what you want.
Make your command clear, concise, and consistent.
There are four parts to command good performance.
- Saying your dogs name. At the beginning of your command, you must say your dogs name to get their attention. This alerts them that the words you say following their name are for them, unlike the hundreds of millions of other words you say in a day talking to others.
- A lure to perform the behavior. When youre teaching sit or another command, use a tasty treat to lure your dog into position.
- Naming the command you want. After multiple times of luring your GSD into position correctly, give the action a name. Show them the action you want with your lure, then name the action AS THEY ARE PERFORMING IT.
- The reward for performing the behavior. When your dog performs the behavior correctly, praise them and offer them their tasty reward for a job well done.
Now you need to know if your dog understands the command you give.
You want to make sure they really know whats expected of them and how to perform the command correctly.
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German Shepherd Command Tips:
A Cue Without A Positive Consequence
This is when you repeatedly say your Cue and don’t offer your dog a positive consequence or reward for responding.
Think of this as the Cue becoming like white noise to your dog.
As a professional animal trainer, I often find that a dog’s name becomes a poisoned cue because humans say it repeatedly without reinforcing their dog for responding with their attention.
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