What Age Should You Start Protection Training
The best age to start protection training is at two or three years old. At this age, a German Shepherd will have matured into an adult and developed protective instincts.
These instincts will provide a protection drive for your German Shepherd, making it easier to teach him protection skills.
Nonetheless, even from early puppyhood, around 12 weeks, your puppy will need to be socialized and learn basic obedience.
This will then provide a foundation for him when training for protection.
It will also incline him to respect you as a leader, and enable you to have control over his actions.
At What Age Do German Shepherds Become Protective
It is a natural instinct with most GSDs. The pups until age of 6 months are playful bundle of fur. However, just like a human toddler, soon they develop a strong feeling about their identity and territory, and a deep association with home, family and the household pets of whom they become fiercely protective.
The 5 Steps Of Training Your German Shepherd Puppy
Its important to indicate from the onset that there is no one size fits all rule when it comes to training your German Shepherd puppy. Every dog is unique, and youll have to adapt to your dogs individuality.
Nonetheless, some training basics are universal, as shown in the following five steps of German Shepherd puppy training.
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Socializing Your German Shepherd
Socialize your dog by taking him to places where you regularly visit parks and let them get to know their environment and interact with it, play with them, teach them some basic commands, and do stuffs that creates a strong bond between each other.
After this, its time to up the training a little bit take your German shepherd to unfamiliar territories where hes never been and let him interact with it too. An unsocialized dog in an unfamiliar place can become fearful. A dog with fear will look on to bite anything that gets in the way.
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German Shepherd Dogs Are Known For Their Versatility
If you need any job done, just ask your dog. GSD owners understand their dogs were developed as working dogs. In fact, the ideal German Shepherd has a body and gait suited to the hard work that is considered its primary purpose. This means your dog can excel at almost anything. From dog sports like rally, agility, scent work, therapy work, to service dog work, German Shepherds can do it all. The only thing holding your dog back is the time and energy you can commit to training. Its no wonder people always think your dog is a service or police dog.
Training Goal #: Impulse Control
Learning to control their impulses is important for all puppies, and for the GSD, it can be one of the most important ways to curb problem behaviors to which this breed is prone if allowed to become bored: behaviors such as excessive barking, digging, aggressive chewing, and inappropriate chasing .
The key to impulse control is getting your dog to focus on you. This will have beneficial effects for all the rest of your training efforts, especially in AKC dog sports like Obedience and Rally.
Require that your puppy sit before getting food, playing with an exciting toy, going outside to play, or any other favorite activity. As your GSD puppy advances in obedience training and knows more commands, you can require more advanced commands or tricks in order to receive treats or play.
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End On A Positive Note
Always end every training session on a positive note, even if your German Shepherd puppy did not succeed in learning the command for the day. That might mean a few minutes of play or a quick walk in the neighborhood.
These five steps can be applied to all the basic and advanced commands listed earlier. Lets concretize the five steps using the examples of the come! and let go! commands.
Teaching your German Shepherd puppy the command come!
Youll use the command come! to call your dog to you when you want to feed him, go for a walk, redirect him towards you in a park, among other situations. Follow these steps to teach your German Shepherd puppy the come! command:
Should You Get Qualified Help
This depends on your choice. If you need the best guard dog possible and want to understand more about a dogs protection drive, seeking some international canine training clubs like Schutzhund club is the only way they can help you get the best out of your dog.
Not only the Schutzhund club, any other clubs with experienced trainers and helpers can also help you to get your german shepherd trained.
However, before taking a decision, make sure to have some knowledge and think twice before getting engaged in these kinds of training.
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Are Male Or Female German Shepherds More Protective
Male German Shepherds are usually more protective than females. They tend to be more aggressive, possessive, and dominant individuals.
Females are gentler and do better with strangers, while males are more reserved and wary.
Males stand out at the role of protecting their property, whereas females are known to be great family protectors.
They are strongly attached to their family and caring of children, so they will additionally guard them.
Male German Shepherds are very territorial and are best suited for outdoor patrol.
They seem to be more aware of their surroundings and quick to alert their owner concerning an intruder.
How Do German Shepherds Show Affection
Most dogs youve formed a bond with will show excitement when seeing you after a while of being apart. German Shepherds are especially known for this. They may jump up at you, lick your face, and run around aimlessly at your presence. They may even whine from their inability to contain their excitement.
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Are German Shepherds Protective Breed History
To fully understand and appreciate why German Shepherds are so protective and behave the way they do, its important to know their history, where they came from, and what they were bred to do. Their past holds the key to their present, and the more you know about a Shepherd, the easier itll be for you to relate to your dog and to be able to predict and know when, where and how hell react to any given situation.
The German Shepherd is, contrary to what you might have been led to believe, a relatively recent addition to the canine kingdom. While the first recognized German Shepherd, Horand Von Grafrath was registered by the founder of the Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde , Max Emil Freidrich von Stephanitz in 1899, its unlikely that he was the very first German Shepherd.
Even though Horand is acknowledged as being the genetic model that all modern Shepherds are derived from, he was the product of a selective breeding program designed to create a better herding dog that began somewhere around 1859.
Originally bred to be herding dogs, the German Shepherds instinct to protect his family can be traced back to the formative years of the breed, when they were purposely created to be better at handling, commanding, and protecting large flocks of sheep.
The Guard Dog Training
One of the most versatile dog breeds, German Shepherds, is commonly used to guide the blind, police work, and search and rescue dogs.
Theyre a great addition to any family, but their amazing skills dont just appear overnight. If you are thinking about getting a German Shepherd puppy and training it to be a guard dog, you will need to start early.
German Shepherd pups are typically ready to start training at the age of eight to ten weeks old. The training should be done in small increments to help the puppy retain the knowledge.
It is important to remember that German Shepherd puppies will need lots of toys to entertain them while growing into adults. This is one of the best ways to help them develop their thinking skills.
With this in mind, here are the following ways on how to train your puppy to become a guard dog:
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My German Shepherd Doesnt Guard
Not all German Shepherds will learn to guard, especially if youre not actively nurturing this behavior. Some GSDs feel safe enough in their homes and alongside their owners, so theres no need to bark at strangers or the doorbell. Other Shepherds might have a more lax personality and prefer playtime and cuddling over keeping watch at the window.
Training Goal #: Socialization
Puppies of all breeds have a critical socialization window that closes at 12 to 16 weeks of life, and your GSD puppy is no exception. In fact, for GSDs, who by nature are protective guardians, socialization is extra important so that your puppy learns which strangers are friendly and not a threat.
GSDs are very observant, and your puppy will pick up on your cues and reactions around new people and new situations. During this critical period, having exposure to many different kinds of people in non-threatening situations will help your puppy be confident among friendly strangers rather than fearful or aggressive. And even during times of social and physical distancing, you can still socialize your puppy safely.
Proper socialization cannot be overemphasized for this breed as Adams notes, The foundation for most training is confidence. It is critical that the GSD puppy is well socialized from an early age onward. Safely exposing the puppy to new sights, sounds, and smells is absolutely critical for development. Good socialization translates to confidence.
Certified dog trainer and CGC evaluator Jacqui Foster, CPDT-KA, echoes this sentiment: I tend to lean more towards developing self-confidence in the puppy. For this I recommend short, fun, three-minute games that engage the puppy with the owner as well as in noises, weird and uneven surfaces, family members, etc., throughout the day. A confident puppy is a happy puppy.
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Why Do You Need To Start Training Him At A Young Age
The German Shepherd is a very intelligent dog, and he can be trained to do just about anything. However, if you want him to be a good guard dog, then you need to start training him at a young age. The main reason is that the older the dog becomes, the harder it is to break him of bad habits.
German Shepherds are generally considered good-natured with their loyal and friendly personalities and are often trained to assist people with disabilities.
However, these dogs can be trained to have strong protective instincts as well. With their strong sense of loyalty, they will act as your protector against intruders and will obey your commands to protect your home and property.
Quick reminder: until youre ready to start training your puppy, its important to keep him or her busy. To keep your German Shepherd occupied, you may have to invest in a few toys and household items that will keep them engaged.
Keep in mind that German Shepherds are highly intelligent, so you will need to keep the fun of the game and the training sessions short.
How To Train My German Shepherd For Personal Protection
GSDs are natural born guard dogs and have been bred over the years to maintain traits deemed desirable for all practical purposes. This logic should narrow down your priorities when training your GSD at home. However, the challenging part comes with maintaining the progress your GSD has accomplished through training.
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Understand How Your German Shepherd Communicates
As much as well like to talk to our dogs, sometimes asking them the same types of questions that we would ask our human friends, it is important that you learn to speak your GSDs language.
Your German Shepherd is very intuitive. While he will understand singular words, and even full sentences, these are simply interpreted as cues by your dog. What your German Shepherd is really reading and understanding when you talk with him is the inflection of your voice and your body language.
Its not so much what you say to your GSD, its how you say what you say to your GSD. I have seen a German Shepherd stare blankly into the eyes of his owner and do nothing as his owner repeatedly yelled SIT! at him. I took that same dog moments later and calmly asked him to sit, which he then very compliantly did upon my first gentle and calm request.
Think of how you would respond in that situation had you been the dog. Would you be more inclined to listen to someone screaming something at you, or would you be more likely listen to that same request asked of you in a calm and respectful manner?
How To Teach Your German Shepherd To Stay
You can watch the video below to see, clearly, how it is done.
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Your Dog Has One Basic Need Understand This And Training Will Be A Breeze
See that cute puppy snuggled up on your sofa? See that old dog that needs to learn new tricks?
They look to you for guidance
And Heres the trick:
The most valuable thing you can do for your dog is to show him that you are a good leader.
If you’re thinking good leadership is establishing yourself as an alpha’ you’re wrong.
Your dog knows you’re not a dog and so will never see you as a dog or an alpha.
Being a good leader means your GSD can and will always look to you for guidance.
Think about it
If your pooch is looking to you for guidance they feel comfortable and safe and that creates an environment of trust.
Being a good leader is about using brains over brawn to teach your German Shepherd.
Tips For Great German Shepherd Puppy Recall Training:
- Begin calling your puppy in as many locations inside as you can.
- Give them a tasty reward or play a game with their favorite toy when they come.
- Work your way up to a perfect recall by having others try to distract your puppy while indoors.
- Next, move to your back or front yard and do the same.
- If they dont come when called they might be too distracted. You can disciple them by showing them your tasty treat and walking backwards a few steps to encourage them to move toward you.
Dont delay training the recall or youll miss out on a crucial learning period. Train the come command in all situations, including the home and outdoors, from the time your puppy is 6 to 8 weeks old to avoid discipline problems later on.
You must train your German Shepherd puppy to come in all situations and reinforce your bond with them daily. Recall means they get to enjoy something with you!
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