Introduction To The German Shepherd

The German Shepherd is a large, strong, substantial-looking dog which is probably one of the most versatile dogs in the world.

Generally speaking, the average German Shepherd will be a very confident animal, a hard-working dog that was originally used for herding in its native Germany. The German Shepherd is exceptionally trainable and works well as a police, guide, or search and rescue dog - they have even been trained to act as hospital visitors before now!

However, in many people's mind, a German Shepherd is inexorably seen as a "Police Dog", with the resultant expectation that they are a naturally "fierce" animal.

And, given that the average height of a male German Shepherd is around sixty to sixty-six centimeters from the wicher, whilst the females are around five centimeters less, it is perhaps not that difficult to see why people should imagine that such a large dog will have a tendency to have a somewhat aggressive nature.

In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. A well bred and equally well trained German Shepherd is a true joy, a social animal that needs to be part of a family. It also merits mention that the German Shepherd is very fond of children once he gets to know them as well.

However, the importance of a good firm training for such a strong and supremely intelligent dog cannot be over-emphasized. They need obedience training as early in life as possible, particularly for any animal that is boisterous, strong minded or dominating. Training a German Shepherd dog should be based on the use of praise and other associative learning methods because coercive or angry training methods simply do not succeed well with these dogs.

They also need plenty of care and attention, with a daily brush of their coat and the occasional bath being the recommended regimen of cleanliness and hygiene.

Without a doubt, a properly trained and cared for German Shepherd will be one of the best dogs that any family can ever hope to own, a true joy for everyone. Simply make sure that they are trained to be the way that you want them to be as soon as you can, and you can be assured of the best results for you, your family and your German Shepherd.