How Much Exercise Does A German Shepherd Need
German Shepherds are no couch potatoes quite the opposite, in fact. As well as a daily walk, these highly active dogs need lots of stimulation both physically and mentally throughout the day, otherwise they will seek alternative ways of ridding themselves of their excess energy and boredom often by chewing on your furniture and barking. Simple games involving a frisbee a ball or a selection of the best dog toys will engage both their athletic bodies and intelligent minds. If you have a fenced yard, it would be a good idea to let a German Shepherd roam free. Given their insatiable demand for exercise, however, its also necessary to try and keep them on the go inside the house, with regular instructions to fetch and carry alongside ongoing obedience training. The only times owners can relax a little is when the dogs are puppies or heading into old age.
Suitable for: Energetic people living in large homes who want a loyal companion.Not suitable for: Anyone with a busy job who likes to maintain a hair-free home.Temperament: Active, self-assured, protective, intelligent, aloof.Shedding: Heavy
How Long Does It Take To Train A Sniffer Dog
A dog which has to undergo the sniffer training must have cleared the basic obedience training and post that he could get into the sniffer dog training. The hard fact is that, dogs must get habituated to learn new things and should take pleasure out of that and that is the reason, we often treat them for every good behavior.
So it would take 2 to 3 months to completely training a dog to be a perfect sniffer dog.
What Are The Roles Of A Police Dog
Those traits are important for police dogs because of the various roles that they are needed for. The roles of police dogs are always growing and evolving, and this is another reason that GSDs are the perfect dogs for the job, as they are adaptable and easily trainable.
With that in mind, there are four main roles of police dogs:
- Search and rescue. In this capacity, police dogs are used to search for criminal suspects or missing persons. They are also used in rescue situations, where they are used for their amazing sense of smell, helping locate victims of earthquakes, lost or missing persons, and victims of fallen buildings.
- Detection dogs are used for their powerful olfactory abilities to sniff out drugs, firearms, or explosives carried by suspects, as well as other illegal objects, like exotic animals or accelerants used in arson.
- Cadaver dogs. These dogs can detect the odor of dead bodies. GSDs have such a powerful sense of smell that they can sniff bodies under piles of rubble or even underwater.
- These dogs are used for the general protection of the public to track down and apprehend criminals, rescue hostages, and locate crime suspects. Police dogs are trained to bite down on suspects and hold them hostage while officers arrest them.
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What Makes A Good Police Dog
There is no doubt that without police dogs, some branches of the police would be unable to function as well as they do today.
All year-round, throughout the US, numerous puppies and young dogs embark on a long journey, together with their respective police handlers or owners, to become qualified police dogs.
However, to most of the general public, the ins and outs of this lengthy and sometimes grueling process remain a mystery. Although many answers can be found online, it is sometimes difficult to separate facts from fiction when it involves police dog training.
Although you might have concluded that with rigorous training, any dog can become a police dog, this is not the case. Certain breeds such as German Shepherds make better police dogs than others.
Despite many of us being able to recognize a canine who is well trained, police dogs must have a much higher level of discipline and certain characteristics are needed for them to be considered for the role.
Similar to humans, dogs can have a variety of different temperaments and personalities, and dogs with lazy, nervous, or extremely friendly traits are often not chosen to become police dogs I know it can come as a disappointing blow when we find out our jovial and chubby English Bulldog or Labrador is not cut out to join the police force, but this is probably for the best.
Handy Hint: In this guide I explain how police dogs know to attack the right person .
The Job Of A Police Dog
Police officers have a difficult and dangerous job that provides different scenarios every day, and they are sometimes faced with life or death situations.
These types of situations will usually involve people that are intent on causing harm to them or another person.
Even though police officers are armed with a variety of defensive tools for these situations, like a gun, taser, or baton, this isnt always going to be enough for every situation.
They may be faced with multiple aggressors, or there may simply come a time when the officer is taken by surprise and ends up in a tricky situation.
In different circumstances, a police officer may have to conduct a search in an area that is too narrow, or that is difficult to access.
As well as this, there will be certain situations where the thing that is being searched for cannot be detected by human senses.
These are just some of the situations where the police dog will come in to save the day, and this is especially common with German Shepherd dogs.
As well as many other things, they are one of the most effective and efficient tools that a police officer can utilize when needed, and they just love to help out and do a good job.
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Advanced Activities German Shepherds Excel At
German shepherds excel at all sorts of advanced activities, including :
- Police Dogs: German shepherds are famous for being ideal police dogs for good reason: theyre loyal, brave and have a reliable nose. As police dogs, German shepherds provide protection, find crime scene evidence and even search for explosives.
Truly, German shepherds are the ideal all-around working dog!
How We Build This Programme: Push Drop Stick
Heres a good resource for you to have the Push Drop Stick game. I like to use this game to see whether puppies are ready to move on in their training, or if they need to spend more practice runs.
Did we need to remind you how intelligent German Shepherds are? Make sure to keep them stimulated by progressively making their exercises more challenging. They really do need to be given a job to do rather than allowing them to be self-employedwho knows how that can end up.
What is Push, Drop, Stick?
Push, Drop, Stick, is a way of systematically raising the difficulty of an exercise or behaviour.
If exercises are always kept too easy, then dogs will keep doing them correctly because they are being rewarded . However, progress will be slower as theyll get stuck at this level.
If lessons are too hard, then its likely that theyll give up since treats wont be coming as easy. Looks like theyd be quite good businessmen as humans.
Push Drop Stick can help avoid both scenarios by maintaining enough momentum: It will keep your puppy winning enough times to keep them interested and not quit, but not so much that they arent thinking about how to be rewarded by trying harder.
How does it work?
Push Go to the next level of difficulty
Drop Back to the previous level of difficulty
Stick Stay at the current level of difficulty
| 3 or 4 out of 5 | Do another set of 5 at this difficulty | He doesnt need you to drop, but he isnt quite ready to be pushed yet. |
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German Shepherd Dog: Breed Profile
German Shepherds are intelligent medium-to-large sized working dogs. As well as being popular pets, they have found a strong place in the hearts of many professionals. Their ability to learn quickly and respond well to training is coupled with strength and loyalty. But since they love to play and are highly energetic and active, they do need care and attention: these are dogs that really dont like to be left alone.
Once known as Alsatians, the dogs were originally used in Germany to herd and guard sheep. They were also bred for use in the German military, and they served in the trenches during the First World War, where they were able to assist wounded soldiers, carry supplies, and detect enemy movements. Returning soldiers were full of praise for the dog, and they became popular across Europe. Rin Tin Tin was rescued from the battlefield, and became a Hollywood star.
Quick stats
Life expectancy: 9 to 13 yearsAverage weight: 65-90lbs/30-40kg Female: 50-70lbs/20-30kgAbout the same as: a nine-year-old childExercise level: High
What Do German Shepherds Do In The Police Force
German Shepherd dogs can be used by the police for a variety of different purposes, and each of these will usually require specific training for the dog.
The length of this training will depend on the specific intended application, but it can vary from anywhere between 3 and 12 weeks.
German Shepherd dogs have been known to learn much more quickly than their handlers, and a lot of the training will be spent teaching the handler.
Some of the different applications that police dogs can be trained in are attack, search and rescue, and detection and explosives.
Read Also: When Do Gsd Puppies Stop Biting
How Long Does It Take To Train A German Shepherd
It takes anywhere from 8 to 12 weeks to train a German Shepherd to learn basic obedience commands.
Usually, most 20 week old German Shepherd puppies are house trained, crate trained, and understand a few basic commands if youve trained them correctly.
Crate training will take about a week to introduce slowly and have your dog or puppy go into the crate on their own to relax. But if your dog has had a bad experience with the crate it could take months.
Keep in mind that if you have an adult Shepherd who has already lived with another owner then you may have to undo improper training or behavior problems. This means that you have many months ahead of you of training.
Some GSDs are aggressive or reactive and it may take years before they learn to relax around other dogs in a calm manner.
While other German Shepherds have excellent dog social experiences from the start and can mix in with other dogs on a whim and quickly pick up their training basics.
Week 4 Training Your German Shepherd Puppy
| Socialisation exercises to do this week | Training to do this week | Husbandry Tasks to do this week |
| Meet another dog |
Here, the goal is to have your puppy lie down and relax, but they might as well move around or stand up. But what this exercise will teach them eventually, is that sometimes theyll just have to settle next to you.
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Go To The Pub You Deserve It
Ah, the highlight of the week.
Going for a walk on a Sunday with a special stop at the pub for lunch is definitely one of the favourite things dog owners like to practice during these first weeks with their new puppy. Wonder why.
We know you might be a little worried for how things are going to work out, but theres no need to. Heres how were going to make sure these visits are relaxing for everyone involved:
How to do it
TIPS
Your settle mat is your puppys safe space so let them relax and be undisturbed. Might be difficult with all the cooing pub visitors, so try to sit in a quiet area and aim to go at a non-peak hour for now. Either way, dont be afraid to ask people to let him be! As long as youre nice about it, you wont get dirty looks.
Stuff You Should Know About Sleep Training Your German Shepherd
- Your puppy will wake up several times in the night and will need the toilet at least once! Be prepared for not-so-deep sleeps and tired mornings just for the first few weeks.
- Having them sleep next to you is only temporary.
- Consistency is key! The more you stick to the routine, the better theyll get at holding it in. As for you, full nights of sleep will start getting closer and closer.
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How To Train Your Dog Like A Cia Officer
Lab in training
Not every dog is cut out for life as a CIA agent, but that doesnt mean every dog cant learn from their example! For those of us with more humble aspirations for our dogs, the CIAs training program offers tips to help train any dog, whether theyre in the field sniffing out explosives or on the couch sniffing out potato chips.
The CIAs 10 most important tips for training your dog:
How Long Does Police Dog Training Take
The amount of training police dogs require may vary depending on their job and jurisdiction, but typically the minimum that police dog training requires is eight months. In general, a dog is considered ready to be an active part of the police force after a minimum of eight months of training. However, specialty fieldwork can extend their training longer than a year.
In hindsight, training a German Shepherd to be a K-9 police unit does not take long. However, complex roles like explosives sniffing or cadaver sniffing may increase the time it takes to train.
Learning time varies for each task, dog, and trainer. Police often choose German Shepherds because they have no difficulty picking up on things the first time around, no matter their temperament.
Because K-9 pairs are already required to meet monthly training quotas, it can be beneficial to complete specialized training during this time. Officers can select which training is most beneficial to them, or their department may assign them a specialty based on necessity.
In many cases, narcotics and explosives detection are highly recommended additions. Not all dogs get additional certifications. However, it does make them more useful in the field. Certifications like explosives or narcotics detection make an officer and their unit more valuable.
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Training Helps To Establish You As Alpha
If your dog doesnt respect you, she isnt going to listen to you. This can quickly spiral into an out-of-control problem, especially for larger dogs like German Shepherds.
Its important to establish your position as pack leader within your household. Social order is an intrinsic part of life as a dog. As a dog owner, you need to be able to simulate this order in your home.
One component of establishing your role as alpha is the bond between you and your dog, but its equally important to assert your dominance. The relationship between the alpha and the rest of the pack isnt a mean or controlling one its a relationship based on mutual respect and survival. Your dog will recognize that youre in charge, and youll make sure she stays out of harms way.
If your pup feels that she needs your approval as the top dog in the group, shell naturally want to behave in a way that gains it. The result will be a well-trained dog that has no problem following your commands.