Poor Leash Training Can Put You Into The Emergency Room
In fact, most dog owners dont realize that up to 88 percent of falls that land people in the urgent care happen because the persons pet trips them!
You definitely dont want this to happen to you or anyone else in your family who takes your dog for walks.
Sometimes your German Shepherd may do this because they simply havent learned how to walk properly with you yet, as VetStreet explains.
German Shepherds are an incredibly smart dog breed that can master new commands in five tries or less, on average.
But puppies may have more trouble minding you and remembering commands they have learned. So you will need to have some patience and continue re-training your GSD puppy.
Once your dog is an adult, you should absolutely expect your GSD to mind you and remember what they have learned, including common walk commands like heel, sit, stay, leave it, come or any other words you use to tell your dog what to do.
Teach Them Obedience Training
Your German Shepherd puppy is an intelligent dog. That will get them through obedience training.
Obedience training should be taken early in a puppys life. That way, it can prevent behavioral problems later on.
This was exactly what this research found out. It studied 142 dogs divided into 4 groups: puppy class, puppy party, adult class and no class.
The puppy and adult classes underwent an hour of training each week for 6 weeks. The other 2 groups did not undergo formal training.
The findings showed that the groups that attended training responded well to commands. The puppy class group also showed positive responses to strangers.
The study concluded that this could prevent behavioral problems such as disobedience or fear of strangers.
In training, its important to consider the short attention spans of puppies. That being said, spend at least 30 minutes each day for their training.
Train them young starting with basic commands. These are useful commands that you can use at home or when outside.
Also, get them busy with leash and off-leash training. This is particularly useful for when you are taking walks or running.
Since obedience training uses focus, its a perfect way to tire them out mentally.
Tire Them Out Physically
What better way to drain that pent up energy than to exercise?
German Shepherds are basically tireless furballs. Lack of or insufficient exercise is one reason why they are hyper.
Take them walking early in the morning and late at night. Or take short walks throughout the day as long as the weather is good .
The dog park can provide your dog a wide space to run to their hearts content. They can also socialize and play with other dogs.
If you have a lawn, take your puppy out for some games. Play fetch or tug of war. Skys the limit when it comes to what games to play.
No yard? No problem. There are games you can do inside the house. You just have to be creative and make sure your dog doesnt break things.
Swimming is also a fantastic exercise for your puppy. Let them swim in your pool or somewhere that allows dog swimming.
Aside from swimming, running will tire them out. However, there are important guidelines when doing this activity.
First, make sure your German Shepherd is 15 months old or older. By this time, their bones and muscles are fully developed.
Second, ensure that they are trained well. Basic commands such as sit, stay and stop go a long way for their safety.
Third, get them a clean bill of health by checking with the vet.
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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.
He Feels Physical Discomfort
How easy life can be if only dogs could talk. And then humans can easily know how they feel.
But dogs can only use whatever means they know to communicate with humans.
Like wrapping their paws around you. They could be telling you theyre feeling physical discomfort.
It could be theyre feeling too hot or too cold. Or they have a hard time sleeping.
Finding out exactly whats bothering them is equally challenging.
So look into their body language and behavior for additional cues.
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How To Get Your German Shepherd To Stop Walking Behind You
Train it not to with positive reinforcement training
Do this by rewarding it when it walks alongside you and avoiding giving it things that it wants when it goes behind you.
You can also train it to learn the come command so that you are able to get it to come back to you whenever it starts lagging behind. I have written about how you can train your German Shepherd to come here.
Avoid punishing it
It might be tempting to punish your German Shepherd for walking behind you but you should avoid doing so. If you do it will not know what you are punishing it for and it could cause it to develop negative feelings towards you.
Avoid encouraging the behavior
While it is important not to punish it for walking behind you it is also important to avoid rewarding it for walking behind you. If you do then it will learn that walking behind you gets it things that it wants.
Instead, it would help to train it to walk beside you by rewarding it when it walks the way that you want it to and training it to come to you when it starts lagging behind.
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Why Does My German Shepherd Walk In Front Of Me
If your German Shepherd keeps walking in front of you then youre probably wondering why and what you can do about it.
This post will show you why it might be doing it and how to stop it.
So, why does my German Shepherd walk in front of me? If it does it on the leash then it likely wants to go faster, wants to interact with something or has excess energy. If it does it off the leash it likely wants attention, does it naturally or it is being protective.
There are a number of things that you can consider when trying to figure out why your German Shepherd sits in front of you. Depending on why it does it, there are also a number of things that you can do about it.
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They Raise Their Eyebrows At You
According to a study led by researchers from Japans Azabu University Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology, dogs raise their eyebrows when theyre happy to see you. It is most common for them to raise one eyebrow, especially the left one.
Additionally, the researchers found that the happier they are to see you, the higher the eyebrow is raised. So, when you see your GSD raising an eyebrow at you, theyre not questioning you but showing affection.
With Demand For Puppies Remaining High Post
If youve been thinking about getting a new dog then youre not alone Kennel Club figures show that the number of people looking for puppies surged by around eight per cent over lockdown.
But with 221 different breeds of pedigree dog to choose from, theres plenty of thinking to do before you select your familys latest four-legged addition whether you want a large dog, family-friendly dog, or crossbreed.
Different breeds of dog also tend to have very different personalities with some dogs happy to get on with pretty much anybody.
Others form a particularly strong bond with their owner and family that is non-transferable and will last for life.
Here are 10 of the most loyal breeds of dog, according to the American Kennel Club.
More like this:
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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.
Why Do Dogs Pull On Leash
“Dogs 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,” explained Lillian Baker, veterinarian and owner of Baker’s 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 they’ve discovered that, when they do, they get to move forward.
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The Dog Is Seeking Your Attention
If you have been away for a long duration, your German shepherd may walk between your legs to grab your attention. Lets say the dog has been crated the whole day, and hes missed your presence the first place the dog will go when you are standing may be between your legs as he waits for you to pet him.
If so, make sure your dog gets enough of your presence every day by either playing fetch or walking for 10 minutes.
What Happens To German Shepherds As They Get Older
This is commonly due to arthritis or hip dysplasia. Hip dysplasia is more likely to occur the older your dog gets. Skin problems, such as cutaneous cysts are more likely as a German Shepherd ages. In addition to these issues, all previous health concerns also become more likely or are already present.
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Get Your German Shepherds Attention Before They Have A Chance To Bark At Strangers
Timing is everything, so have your treats readily available to offer your dog.
You are looking to get their attention away from the distraction.
If your dog is so focused on the stranger they cant pay attention to the super tasty treat right in front of their nose, then move away from the stranger because youve surpassed your dogs threshold.
Many times, I have my German Shepherd perform the sit when were coming upon strangers and I think shes about to bark. I take a few feet back from the sidewalk with her and this distracts her to perform another activity, walking away and the sit, while she eats the treats and the stranger walks past.
Check out the following for thebest German Shepherd training commands for the ultimate in behavior modification.
Remember that learning a new behavior takes time, especially a self-rewarding behavior like barking. This means your dog may take weeks and weeks of training to curb its desire to bark at strangers.
Keep rewarding them with pea-size pieces of soft treats when outdoors and when they look at you and sit , instead of barking.
Have patience and dont lose your temper.
Eventually, youll be able to have your dog closer and closer to strangers without them barking.
Eye Movements And Gestures
Some of the most subtle, and sometimes not so subtle ways that a German Shepherd will communicate to other people and animals are through their eyes.
Most cues that a German Shepherd will indicate though their eyes have to do with stress, anxiety, and precipitation to biting.
Its important that if you have a GSD, or even come across someone elses, that you are familiar with what their eyes are indicating.
Having this knowledge will give you the opportunity to remedy a stressful situation for the dog, or even prevent yourself or another from getting bitten.
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How To Get Your Dog To Stop Walking In Front Of You
There are a number of things that you can do about your dog walking ahead of you. The best option for your dog will largely depend on the cause of it doing it.
Below, I will mention a number of things that you can do about it.
Use positive reinforcement training to get it to stop walking ahead on the leash
Positive reinforcement training is where you reward the behaviors that you want to see from your dog.
To use positive reinforcement training to get your dog to stop walking ahead of you on the leash you would do as follows:
- Start walking it on the leash with some treats
- Stop when it is about to walk ahead of you and get it to pay attention to you
- Reward it for stopping and paying attention to you then carry on walking
- Repeat the above until it stops walking ahead of you
You can watch the video below to see how it is done
Use positive reinforcement training to stop it walking in front of you at home
To use positive reinforcement training to get your dog to stop walking in front of you at home you would:
- Avoid giving it attention when it walks in front of you
- Get it to pay attention to you when it is about to walk in front of you, reward it and then walk ahead of it
- Reward it when it does not walk ahead of you when it normally would
You can also give it lots of attention and exercise throughout the day.
Patience And Consistency Are Important
No dog owner is perfect.
One can easily give in to frustrations when training a puppy. But yelling and punishment will only make your puppy more hyper.
Also, be consistent. Stick to the rules you set for your hyper German Shepherd.
Anyway, your dogs hyperactivity did not happen overnight. So fixing it will not happen overnight either.
But committing to do the right thing will get your dog to the result you want.
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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.
Step : Avoid Shouting Or Yelling At Your German Shepherd
Shouting and yelling make the situation worse by adding to your dogs stress.
They may already have anxiety and fear, and yelling doesnt address those issues.
German Shepherds have one of the loudest barks and they may bark so loudly that they dont even hear you. You cannot out yell or scream your German Shepherd while theyre barking at strangers, plus this doesnt teach them anything except that you also have a strong reaction to the stranger.
Harsh punishmentsuch as hitting, kicking, or using shockincreases aggressiveness in some situations. So, dont resort to these methods as they wont help.
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What Is Obedience Training And Why Your Dog Needs It
The sole purpose of obedience training is to teach your German Shepherd how to act at home and in social settings.
Socializing, house training, and basic sit, stay, and recall commands will fall into this category.
Obedience training is essential to avoid the development of behavior problems early on. It’s also the only way to fix bad habits and behavior that have already developed.
He Wants To Comfort You
Dogs are smarter than people give them credit for.
Take, for example, when youre going through a difficult time.
Dogs seem to know that youre upset. Or lonely.
They get cues from your body language, scent and facial expressions. But a study has found out that dogs can also determine human emotions using their ears.
The study made use of 6 human emotional vocalizations:
- Anger .
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