black german shepherd

German shepherds are undoubtedly one of the more popular dogs among families and god enthusiasts. Unfortunately, they can be susceptible to certain health problems that you need to watch out for.

German Shepherds and Hip Problems

Make no mistake about it, we love our dogs. They have quirky personalities and soon become a part of the family. Heck, I often treated my pup better than I did myself. You will note I use the pass tense. My pup recently passed away from health problems. While young, he was vibrant and playful. As he got older, however, he started having health problems until it reached a point where I had to carry him up the stairs in the house. The humane thing was to finally put him down and end the pain. It didn’t feel very humane to me and I doubt I will ever forget that moment. It does raise the issue, however, of health problems and your pup.

German shepherds are tremendously popular. They are loyal, smart, beautiful and noble dogs. Unfortunately, they are also at risk for certain health problems – particularly hip problems. If you are considering one for your family dog or already have one, you need to know the risks and what to watch out for in regard to symptoms.

The biggest issue German Shepherds face is often dysplasia. Canine hip dysplasia is sadly a fairly common problem in bigger dogs. It is caused both by genetic disposition and environmental factors. In practical terms, hip dysplasia acts like arthritis. The bones interacting in the hip joint do not fit correctly, which causes wear and tear. The body also attempts to generate cartilage to repair the problem, but it fails and actually further impedes the range of motion and exacerbates the problem. This will ultimately cause soreness and pain upon movement and will also restrict the range of motion in the legs. It can occur in the front legs, but most often presents in the hind legs.

Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot that can be done. Anti-inflammatory and pain medication is most often prescribed. Hip replacement surgery is possible, but results show the pup has a significantly reduced quality of life.

Canine hip dysplasia will not present in your pup as you might anticipate. Simply put, German Shepherds are stoic dogs. They will not yelp or bark from pain unless it is significant or sudden. There are only really two practical ways to realize your dog has the problem. The first is a limited range of motion. If the pup is dragging a leg or having problems getting up, you should see a vet. The second symptom you will see is dramatic. If your pup just refuses to walk or suddenly sits down while walking, it means they are in a great deal of pain. Again, they will rarely bark or yelp when this occurs, so it is important you recognize what is going on.

Ultimately, hip dysplasia is one of those things many German Shepherds are simply going to face. You can care for your pup by making sure you recognize the symptoms, see a vet and get pain medication.

Here is a german shepherd guide for more info.

Discover the Reasons of Your German Shepherd Biting Dilemma and How To Manage This

German Shepherds are a great pet to have but do become very demanding at times and can even start to bite. Dealing with your German Shepherd biting is an important skill to have whether or not your dog actually bites.

A good idea would be to train your dog not to bite while he is still a puppy. Puppies are likely to be very playful and do not take small nips and bites as they play around. Train them from day one that biting or nipping is a manner that is totally not tolerable and in no way to be accepted.

The way to do this is to tap his chin upwards and say ‘no biting!Then, provide part of the body you know he nips at playfully once in a while. When he starts to nip at it, tap beneath his chin once again and say ‘no biting!’

Do this until he gets the idea. In spite of the degree of German Shepherd biting, your dog has, German Shepherds are highly trainable and this is the basis why they often used as police dogs or Seeing Eye dogs.

You may wonder what the causes are for German Shepherd biting. You may be concerned about this especially if your dog never had a biting problem before.

If your pet has begun to bite everything including your sleepers, shoes, tree barks, legs of your furniture or even yourself, you need to pay consideration to this unexpected change of behavior which can show either boredom or anxiety.

German Shepherd biting may also be caused by his being protective of you in the presence of strangers. Your pet might snap and snarl at unfamiliar persons to show that he is protecting you and is afraid that if he does not do this, you could possibly be hurt.

German Shepherds are a breed of dog which has a lot of energy. If this energy is not used up or utilized in any way, and you leave your dog for hours with nothing to do in your apartment, your dog may express his extreme boredom by biting.

Aside from biting, symptoms of an unhappy shepherd include whining, anxiety and significant chewing of your belongings, especially those which have your strong scent on them. How do you deal with this? What you need to do is make time in your schedule and take your pet on a run for an hour daily. This will make your pet to get the enough exercise he needs in order to be in good shape, physically and mentally.

You will see the difference and behavioral improvement of your pet if he continuously take him out for exercise every day. Not only will your pet most likely discontinue biting, he will also stop most of the other unwanted behavior he has been exhibiting.

Many times, the problems many dog owners face are eradicated once they begin to take their dog for a walk.

This may be the solution you have been looking for which will put an end once and for all to your German Shepherd biting.

Dog barking is an issue for many people. If you’ve decided it’s time to stop your German Shepherd dog from barking in your home, you will likely already know that there are only so many things you can do about the problem. After all, dogs are born to bark. Regardless of breeding and refinement over the last several millennia, they still have that urgent desire to vocalize their feelings and needs. In fact, there is only one breed of dog – the Basenji – that does not bark at all.

So, before you can stop your German Shepherd dog from barking, you need to understand why they bark and what forms of barking you can control.

Training German Shepherd Dogs – the Causes of Dog Barking

German Shepherd dogs bark for any number of reasons. They bark when they are angry. They bark when they are excited. They even bark when they are scared. Here is a rundown of when you might expect your dog to start barking:

Territorial Barking
Alarm Barking
Attention Seeking Barking
Greeting Barking
Frustration Barking
Compulsive Barking
Injury or Illness Related Barking

As you can see, barking is a major part of who your dog is. It’s impossible to stop dog barking completely. They’re going to want to express themselves at times, regardless of what you do to inhibit their behaviours.

Training German Shepherd Dogs - How to stop Dog Barking

When your dog refuses to stop barking, first determine if the behaviour is warranted. Nine times out of ten, it’s excessive and can be controlled. If you decide that your dog’s barking can and should be controlled, ask yourself these questions.

When does my dog bark?
What is my dog barking at?
Does my dog have a specific trigger?

If you determine that dog barking in your dog is because it wants to protect its territory or is simply alarmed by something, you cannot simply yell at your dog to stop. In fact, negative reinforcement for territorial barking can often lead to biting or aggression in other forms. Your German Shepherd dog doesn’t understand what you’re trying to tell them. They stop the barking, but the territorial issues are still there.

Instead, you need to create a situation in which your dog will not feel that territorial urge to defend itself. This starts by taking control of your household. Be the alpha leader of the pack and show your dog that you are the one in charge of protecting that space. Doggy Dan, a successful dog trainer, says in his training program that if your dog doesn’t feel the pressure of protecting the territory against danger because he knows that’s your job – or, he sees you confronting the threat and you turn your back from that threat, then he knows there was no threat at all. By the way, he also says to make sure when you do this that you don’t look at your dog at all. Just be calm and go on doing what you were doing. This gives your dog a signal that everything is fine.

Secondly, you can simply reduce your dog’s ability to see those incursive threats to its territory. Draw your blinds so he cannot see the mailman, get an opaque fence so they cannot see outside the yard, and make sure they don’t have open access to the windows at any time.

Stop Dog Barking on Dogs with Anxiety

If your German Shepherd dog has anxiety issues, the barking is likely a symptom of something much greater. They want to reach you and will continuously bark until you return. Most of the time, this is because you have rewarded them for this behavior in the past. When you return home and they are excited, you immediately give them attention. This only reinforces their anxiety. Rather than rewarding them in this instance, you should ignore your dog for as long as 10-15 minutes, or as long as it takes until your dog is completely relax, so they stop associating your return with attention. You still need to give them attention, but not until they are laying down or are very, very relax. At this time, it’s okay to call them to you. DO NOT GO TO THEM! Let them come to you. This is very important because this establishes who the Alpha dog is.

Finally, to stop dog barking, you should teach your German Shepherd dog how to speak and be quiet. By creating a command that allows you to control the behavior, your dog will learn to control the barking when it is not necessary. A benefit of this is that, if there is an intruder or something you want your dog to bark at, they will still alert you.

German Shepherd dog barking, which is very loud, does not have to be the bane of your community that it has become. Learn to control dog barking early and you’ll never need to worry about the neighbours banging down your door every day when you get home

If you want to learn more about training you german shepherd check out this guide

Excessive barking is a problem to dog owners and in order train your German shepherd to stop barking, this you need first to understand why it barks.

German shepherd dogs are known to bark quite excessively. This is due to their nature as herding dogs and barking is one of the ways they use to round up cattle. Since these dogs are also loyal, they might as well see you as a herd of cattle and thus the need to protect you.

They also bark excessively when they are lonely. You may not realize it but German shepherd are people dogs and they bark a lot when left alone. If this is the case with your dog, then you need to find out a way to keep him less lonely while teaching him that barking is not going to you to spend time with him. Regular daily exercise and stimulating games like “fetch” should remedy the problem.

Separation anxiety also causes your dog to bark constantly. A good way to avoid this is by making your leaving and returning as uneventful as possible. You should prepare the dog to know that you are leaving by carrying out your duties normally without talking to him or making eye contact with him. This is to minimize the amount of contact with him before you leave. When leaving, you should leave calmly without even saying goodbye.

The same routine should be applied when returning. Do not make any contact with the dog for a while. Do your chores quietly for about several minutes then settle down, gently call your dog over, and pet him gently and quietly. This creates a situation where leaving and returning is not a big deal and the German shepherd’s barking should dissipate naturally.

Some dog bark excessively to stimuli such as the telephone or doorbell. If this is the case, then you need to train your dog when to bark and to stop. Attach your dog to a lead and find a helper with the doorbell. When the bell rings, and it starts to bark, give him the command “speak” and after a short while the command “quiet”.

If is continues to bark, then tug on the lead. The tug is not meant as punishment but rather it breaks the fixation of the dog on his barking. Should he respond, praise him and give him a treat. Practice this until when it can bark and stop at your command.

Dogs are territorial animals and can bark if their territory is invaded. The best way is to remove him from these situations. If he barks when strangers approach the house, then put him in an area where he cannot easily see or hear them. If he runs towards the fence barking at people in the streets, then remove him from the front lawn altogether. If he finds no other reason to bark, then it will subside with time.

Health reason can also make the dog bark. The areas of concern include arthritis, teeth and ears especially when the dog is getting older. Regular health checkups by a vet will eliminate these causes.