Dog Owners Guide : German Shepherd Aggression by
Mark Thomas
While German Shepherds may not inspire the ill placed fear of such breeds
as Rottweilers and Pit Bulls, they do land on many banned breed lists.
In fact, it is more of a reputation of being aggressive that German
Shepherds have acquired. Owners of these dogs will mostly deny that German
Shepherd aggression is a concern, but, unfortunately, the number of
incidents of these dogs attacking people and other dogs can t be ignored.
However, whilst genetics are a factor, the biggest problem is mis
training, or even no training, by their owners.
It would be wrong to think that this trait of inappropriate aggressive
behavior is displayed by all, or even most, German Shepherds. It is wholly
unfair to let the misdemeanours of the minority result in the entire breed
being labeled as dangerous or aggressive .That being said, it is vital for
owners to learn to recognize the signs of German Shepherd aggression, so
that they can immediately begin to work to bring them under control.
Aggression can take many forms. Some German Shepherds only act
aggressively towards other dogs. Some will display aggression only if they
are approached whilst they are chewing a bone or eating. Others are
aggressive toward strangers, and others even show aggression to some human
members of the household in which they live.
Don t discount even minor forms of aggression, say to a cat or the
postman, because these could easily escalate into something more serious.
If you do notice signs of aggression in your dog, proper training and
handling can turn the behavior around and, potentially, save your dog s
life.
Some owners make the mistake of yelling at or hitting their German
Shepherd when he displays aggressive behavior. For the most part, this
makes the overall situation worse, as the dog becomes less trusting of
humans. By doing so, you are also placing yourself and those around you at
immediate risk it is quite possible that your dog will fight back on being
hit and will starting biting and leaping at those nearest to it.
Obedience training is a much better solution for dealing with German
shepherd aggression. The best results are seen with younger dogs, but don
t let the age of your dog put you off from trying it at any time. Even old
dogs can learn to be obedient, it just takes a little more time.
You can learn a lot about obedience training through online resources.
They will tell you how to read the signals that dogs give off and how to
get them to obey your voice commands. You will be able to find general
information on the topic, and also specifics for each breed. It s also
increasing common to be able to find videos on obedience dog training too,
which can really help your understanding of it.
So, online information and videos are the best place to start, and these
might be enough in themselves; however, there is also the option of taking
your dog to professional dog obedience classes. This are fairly
widespread, so you should be able to find one near to you.
