Why Does My German Shepherd Destroy Everything

Why Does Your German Shepherd Lick You

The most obvious reason your GSD will lick you is to show affection and joy. When youve been away and your German Shepherd has been all alone, your arrival is a cause for jubilation, and your dog will want to tell you how much they love you and show their immense joy at your homecoming.

Your German Shepherd will also lick you to investigate you and give information. Since your dog cannot ask you with words how you are or what youve had for lunch, they will lick your face to detect the smell of what youve eaten. They will also lick you after their lunch to tell you they are grateful, kind of, lunch was good Mom, thanks!

If your visual expression tells your dog that something is amiss, your German Shepherd will lick you to calm and soothe. They will come to the couch where you are lying down and lick you to say they are sad youre unwell and want you to be up again.

But dogs will also lick you to seek attention. If you have ignored them or not given them a treat all morning because you are busy, your dog will lick your face to draw your attention.

But your German Shepherd does not just lick you. They will also lick themselves.

What Are Your Dogs Favorite Indestructible Dog Toys

Does your dog destroy toys? Do you have any favorite brands? Which indestructible dog toys would you recommend?

Do you have a dog toy graveyard of your own? If you do I suggest going over to them and tying them altogether, then watch the delight and enthusiasm on yourd dogs face as they receive their very first mega toy.

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Give Them Plenty Of Exercise

One of the main ways to combat a GSD who is destroying everything is to tire them out. A tired dog will likely sleep instead of hunting for something to get into.

If you know you are going to be busy, give your dog exercise before you get started so they will be tired while you are busy. A long walk, fetch, biking, rollerblading, flyball, agility, and Schutzhund are all good ways to give your dog exercise.

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Confine Only When Necessary

It feels like a bad thing to leave your dog with separation anxiety at home. But its your best choice if there are no other alternatives.

Since your dog is destructive when youre not around, confine them in a room. The kitchen or laundry room, perhaps.

Before you do that, dog-proof the room. Make sure there is nothing valuable of yours they can destroy. Or anything that poses a choking hazard. And that they can be safe while being unsupervised.

Before you leave the house, give your dog chew toys to keep them entertained while youre gone.

Also, use a baby gate to keep them in the designated room.

Redirect Your Gsds Destructive Chewing To Chew Toys

As indicated earlier, chewing is a natural need in dogs and should not be eliminated. Instead, destructive chewing should be prevented or corrected through training.

Experts in canine care suggest that redirecting your dogs tendency to chew valuables to chewing toys offers healthy alternative stimulation and enhances your dogs welfare. Also, these toys should be rotated often to avoid habituation, which would lead them back to chewing what they are not supposed to.

According to Preventive Vet, you should evaluate your GSDs chewing behavior to understand your dogs type of chewer. This helps to decide the best chew toys for your dog.

Dogs can belong to one of the three types of chewers, and each has some recommended types of toys, as shown below. The recommended toys are from Amazon and are ones that I personally like.

Remember that your German Shepherd should not be chewing toys the entire day, as this can become another behavior problem. Instead, give chew toys when your dog shows signs of putting his mouth on what he should not.

Your German Shepherds other time of the day should be occupied with exercise, play, sleep, as well as time to connect with you.

Other chewing considerations:

Edible chews are a good alternative to mix things up a bit for your GSD. However, these dont last very long, but I like to give them to my German Shepherd to reward good behavior.

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When Should You Worry About Your German Shepherd Chewing And Licking Their Paws

For the most part, you shouldnt worry about them licking their paws. In fact, there are times when licking their paws is perfectly normal. Such as when their paws are dirty. However, if you think that the licking is occurring a little too frequently, or you can see any symptoms of a problem, then you should take them to a vet.

Just remember its unlikely anything overly serious will come from your german shepherd licking their paws.

Why Is My German Shepherd Suddenly Aggressive

If it becomes overly possessive German Shepherds are extremely overly protective when it comes to their family and owners. Thats why a GSD becomes aggressive, starts barking and charging at the person. This is a common behavior problem of a GSD as it is a loyal dog and cannot see its family in danger.

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Inadequate Exercise And Enrichment

Another reason why your dog destroys your shoe, internet cable, or something else is due to a lack of exercise and stimulation.

Youll know this is the case when your dog has soaring energy. This is more likely if your dog is a puppy or a juvenile. But also adult dogs can have their Redbull moments.

The bad thing about it?

It leads to many destructive behaviors.

This study wanted to find out whether physical activity affects behavior. The authors conducted a survey and collected 234 questionnaires from dog parents.

Based on the questionnaires, the authors created two groups:

• Active dogs .

The AD group had 94 dogs that performed the following activities:

• Agility .

Out of 43 unwanted behaviors, 4 stood out. These are:

• Mounting.
• Staring an object.
• Attempting to bite other dogs.

The findings showed that the AD group practicing agility exhibited Staring an object. But the group exhibited less of the other three behaviors.

This shows that a lack of exercise can lead to destructive behavior. The same is true for a lack of mental stimulation.

So next time you think about tiring your dog out, use the E.A.M.S. method. Exercise And Mental Stimulation .

Why Do Dogs Pull On Leash

âDogs may pull on a leash due to hypersensitivity to all that is going on around them as well as a lack of proper leash training as a puppy,â explained Lillian Baker, veterinarian and owner of Bakerâs Mobile Veterinary Services in Houston, Texas. No dog is born innately understanding how to walk on a leash. They pull because they naturally walk faster than we do and because they want to get to the park or greet another dog or sniff something interesting. Typically they continue to pull because theyâve discovered that, when they do, they get to move forward.

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Youtube Star Deji’s Dog To Be Destroyed After Biting Elderly Woman

A German shepherd belonging to a YouTube star and his mother is set to be destroyed after it seriously injured an elderly woman.

Deji Olatunji, who has nearly 10 million subscribers, tried to restrain the dog after it bit the woman when his mother let it out on 23 July 2018.

A court heard a later assessment found the animal, named Tank, “didn’t come across as a friendly, sociable dog”.

Olatunji was fined and his mother was ordered to pay the victim compensation.

His mother, Olayinka Olatunji, 53, of Holme, near Peterborough, previously admitted being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control that injured a person.

Olatunji, 23, also of Holme, pleaded guilty to being in charge of a dog dangerously out of control.

The younger brother of fellow YouTuber KSI, Olatunji posts videos of pranks and gaming and has 2.5 million followers on Instagram.

Prosecutor Charles Falk told Cambridge Crown Court that Ms Olatunji had “caused the dog to be let out” of the house.

The dog, which was then 13 months old, bit an elderly woman twice, causing what Judge David Farrell QC described as “very nasty injuries”.

Mr Falk told the court after this initial bite, Olatunji came out of the house to try to get Tank under control.

But it then bit another person, causing no injury, before it was finally restrained, Mr Falk said.

After Tank was seized by police it was assessed by Candy D’Sa, who told the court she did not feel able to take the dog off a lead.

Understand Why Your Dog Is Chewing When Left Alone

While chewing is a natural instinct and activity for your dog to exercise their jaw and stimulate their mind, destructive chewing is usually indicative of a larger problem at play. Understanding the why of your problem will make it a lot easier to fix.

Puppy Chewing

If you are reading this article, and your dog is between 0-6 months of age, their chewing could be fueled by teething and exploration. Just like human babies explore the world with their mouths and look for teething relief via chewing, so do canines!

The good news is that you dont have any bad habits to break. Now is the perfect time to set your puppy up for success by teaching them whats okay to chew. They should be given lots of opportunity to chew, and you can take control of what that will be. What do you need? My other article, How to Survive the Puppy Chewing Phase.

Boredom Chewing

If you have an older puppy, young adult dog, or older dog that is suddenly destructive chewing out of nowhere, its often caused by boredom. When you decided to bring your furry love home you made a commitment to meeting their mental and physical exercise needs.

If your dogs need for exercise and mental stimulation arent being met, they are going to take matters into their own hands. Destructive chewing is often a dogs way of keeping themselves occupied.

• Excessive barking, howling, or whining when you leave
• Escaping, or signs of attempted escape
• Bathroom accidents in the house

Hunger or Malnourishment

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How Your German Shepherd Sees Training

Guess what? German Shepherds love training! Theyve been bred to be very good at following cues. Formal training programs tap into their deepest instincts and set them up for success. Weve worked hard to make our training programs successful, engaging, and fun for both of you.

This breeds intelligence means they should progress through the program with ease. Many German Shepherds can learn training very quickly.

Our training methodology sets you up for success, too. You learn how to work with your unique dog, their atavistic instincts, and breed. You learn how to change your environment, modulate your voice, stance, body language, and approach to work with the dogs behavior, instead of against it.

The result? Youre a very happy pet parent, and your dog becomes confident, socialized, easy-going, secure, and a well-behaved dog.

Is There Such A Thing As A Chew

There is no such thing as a chew-proof harness. A chewed-up harness is not a manufacturer defect or the result of poor design or materials. It takes less than 30 seconds for a determined dog or teething puppy to destroy a brand-new harness, so take it the harness off them when unsupervised. Be sure to also remove harnesses to prevent injury when dogs roughhouse, as teeth and limbs can get entangled.

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Your German Shepherd Sticks Their Tongue Out

Whilst there is a condition called hanging tongue which can result from neurological and structural defects, a little tongue poking out can signal happiness.

You might notice it when your German Shepherd is asleep. The tongue poking out means that are completely relaxed and in a happy state.

The next time your German Shepherds tongue stick out, it could be a sign they are totally relaxed, content and happy with life.

What Should I Do If My German Shepherd Runs Away

Many German Shepherd has the tendency to escape and chasing cars. The best solution to this problem is keeping your Shepherd Outside safely fenced. Dont Let Your Dog go out. If you take your Dog out, then make sure you take him on a leash. This will prevent any accident which can occur with your dog while he is chasing cars or running on the road.

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Reasons Dogs Suddenly Destroy Things

Remember, dogs cant speak our language. They cant tell you whats going on through words, but a dog that is destroying things is leaving a clear message. You just have to figure out what that message is and then you can respond appropriately. In most cases, its about more than just getting your attention. Here are some of the main reasons a dog causes destruction when youre not around.

Other Solutions And Considerations

Whileyou might think of your dog following you as simply flattering, he could betrying to tell you something. If he doesnt typically follow you around, itspossible hes sick, so keep an eye out for other symptoms, such as whining orstomach issues like not eating or drinking or eating or drinking too much. Whenin doubt, call the vet, who can diagnose and treat your dog. Yourdog might also follow you around if he thinks youre going to drop him some scrapsof yummy table food. If youre constantly feeding your dog snacks when hes atyour side, hes going to stay at your side. Reduce the number of table scraps and treats you issue or designate them fortricks or other rewarded behaviors.

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Invest In Items That Are Safe And Okay For Your Dog To Chew

Alright, so remember in the very beginning when I said that chewing and dogs just go together? Well they do! And its okay for your dog to chew, as long its something you are okay with them chewing.

• Toys that are made from natural rubber, like Monster K9 Dog Toys, because of their extreme durability against chewing and safety for dogs
• Toys with soft edges that cant splinter. In the event that these are ingested, they will be much less harmful when they are passed
• Antlers are the go-to in our family. Deer and elk antlers are extremely hard, dont splinter and take FOREVER to wear down. While a little pricey, antlers last and last for our large breed dogs while other bones and rawhides seem to disappear in a few days
• Rubber toys that you can fill with peanut butter, treats, or kibble add an extra element of stimulation

Avoid giving your dog toys that resemble objects that you dont want them chewing. You cant expect your dog to understand why its okay to chew this slipper but not that one.

For us, its especially important not to give our dogs toys that look like stuffed animals because we dont want them taking and chewing our daughters toys .

Benebone Heavy Duty Chew Toy

Weve been using Benebones for over a year now and theyre great. Theyre tough, they keep my dog busy, and theyre inexpensive compared to other chew toys. After a couple of hours of chewing theres some slight damage on the ends, but its nothing compared to what she does to similar toys.

Benebones are manufactured in the USA, made with real bacon flavor, and their curved shape makes it easy for dogs to hold onto. These bones will get some wear and tear after repeated use, but theyre much more durable than other bones weve tried.

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Your German Shepherd Follows You Like A Shadow

When you have earned the trust of your German Shepherd, you will soon notice that they follow everywhere, from room to room, and even if you shift on the couch.

As I mentioned earlier, German Shepherds can suffer with separation anxiety, so keeping close and following you around makes them feel secure. German Shepherds love to follow their owners its one way for a German Shepherd to show it loves you.

New German Shepherds soon become very attached to their owners and will fall in love with you quickly providing you give them security they need.

What Kind Of Commands Do German Shepherds Understand

In time, your dog will understand certain commands such as sit, stay and come, drop etc. But, dogs only understand single direct commands. Use language your dog will understand. Calm, simple commands and body language will make your message crystal clear. For dogs, everything is black and white they dont understand compromise.

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They Want You To Pet Them

Its true that dogs hate tight hugs. But it doesnt mean they hate other forms of physical affection.

Being petted is an example of that. They would get any chance for their owners to give them belly rubs. They also love getting ear scratches.

Sometimes they would let you know they want to be petted. They do that by putting their paws on your arm or legs.

In addition to that, some German Shepherds love snuggles. There are German Shepherds that appreciate loose hugs.

Note: Give your pooch gentle pets. Dont put them in situations where they feel they are smothered or cant escape.