If you own a German Shepherd puppy or are considering getting one, you have undoubtedly heard a lot of advice from almost everyone who has ever owned a dog. Life happens, and things get out of hand. When this happens, it’s simple to forget to do anything or to forget every piece of advice other dog owners have given us. However, small things may have a significant influence on your German Shepherd.
Set your puppy up for success to help you and your dog get started on the right foot. You will need a realistic strategy and to be ready for your new puppy to join your family and integrate into your lifestyle to accomplish this.
Having a german shepherd puppy is not child’s play you need to train them properly and they require undivided attention. And in this process, many not-so-experienced puppy owners make mistakes.
Following are some common avoidable mistakes that owners make while raising a german shepherd puppy:
Bringing Home Your Puppy Too Soon:
This one is massive. During the initial eight weeks of a puppy’s life, she gains vital social skills from her littermates and receives invaluable care from her mother. Regrettably, some breeders and shelters allow puppies to leave the litter too soon, which disrupts the social imprinting process and can result in long-term difficulties.
Puppies who leave too soon like before the age of eight weeks frequently struggle to develop adequate bite inhibition and do not learn to socialize normally with other dogs or people. They can grow wary of strangers and scared of other canines. Choose a puppy who has been living with its mother and littermates for at least eight weeks preferably 12 weeks to avoid lifetime difficulties.
Comforting:
Dogs are incapable of comprehending human ideas such as empathy or comfort. Instead, they comprehend basic motion and reaction. If your puppy is startled by a large white dog, she may continue to link white dogs with danger. Consolation following a frightening event can have the same negative reinforcing effect on a puppy; if it gets terrified and you pick it up and calm it, it might learn that being fearful or apprehensive earns you emotional and physical reward. Later in life, this might result in a frightened but manipulative dog. Instead, after ensuring your dog’s immediate safety, refocus its worry by giving it a sit command and rewarding it with praise or a treat.
Redirecting it away from fearful thinking rather than soothing it will teach confidence and reduce the likelihood of the anxious behavior becoming ingrained.
Failure to Form a Routine:
Dogs enjoy routine. Knowing when they will eat, play, stroll, and sleep instills trust in them, reducing stress and fostering healthy anticipation. Establishing a consistent schedule for eating, walking, eliminating, and playing is especially crucial for pups. If this regularity is disrupted, the puppy becomes confused, and the resulting “accidents” and behavioral errors can be stressful for everyone. Commit to a consistent routine for your puppy, especially during the first six months, that provides predictable opportunities to eliminate, eat, snooze, play, and train. Following your program can instill confidence in your dog and ease her move into maturity.
Pushing a Puppy’s Face into Its Mess:
A ten-week-old puppy has no notion what you are teaching it when you press its snout into the stool, other than the fact that you tend to become angry anytime that stuff occurs. This will just educate your dog to be afraid of the mess, forcing it to eliminate it in concealed places like a closet. Instead, properly crate train it to prevent the problem.
Choosing The Wrong Pup Breed:
Let’s face it: there’s nothing more stunning than seeing a high-octane working dog at work. These working German Shepherd dogs are exceptional, whether they are tracking down criminals, sniffing out narcotics, searching for the missing, or defending our soldiers by smelling out explosives.
The ordinary dog owner, on the other hand, does not require a working-line German Shepherd. Unless you want to participate in dog sports or train and work your dog daily, you generally don’t need a dog with extreme energy and prey drive. Trying to transfer the energy of a real working line dog into a typical pet household is unjust to the dog and frequently leads to destructive behavior. Many disappointed owners have ended up trying to rehome a dog with behavioral issues or, worse, abandoning them at a shelter. Before purchasing a puppy, consult with breeders, rescues, and other professionals to identify the best fit for your family.
Not Beginning Basic Training Straight Away:
When an eight-week-old puppy whether produced by German shepherd top sires or not, enters your house, it is fully capable of understanding basic obedience commands. Surprisingly, many individuals fail to realize this, believing that the only training that should take place is housebreaking. That is not correct! You’ll give it a heads up and establish a sense of concentration and passion for a well-mannered pet by starting with easy obedience skills like sit, down, stay, and come. Begin training as soon as possible!
Excessive Independence:
Puppies have an insatiable interest in their surroundings. However, if you let yours roam about your house unaccompanied, it will get into puppy mischief. Improper elimination, ruined clothing, shoes, chewed wire, or even escape all spoil your day and perhaps harm the dog. Every “accident” in the house caused by a lack of supervision jeopardizes your housetraining attempts. Prevent this by keeping your new puppy with you, in its box, or in a gated enclosure. Try anchoring it to your belt loop with a light, six-foot leash when indoors; it will follow you about the house but never be more than six feet away.
Only when it has mastered housetraining should you begin to gradually expand its indoor independence.
Command Repetition:
When a puppy understands a command, don’t keep repeating it. You are teaching it to sit-sit-sit-sit-sit rather than sit. It will wait for you to repeat it five times rather than once. Say it once, then pause for a second or two. If it does not sit, you have either not taught it the behavior sufficiently or it is simply ignoring you. Gently tell it “No” move it to another location, and ask it again, this time with an upward hand gesture and a reward in your pointing fingers. Hand it over when the puppy sits for the first time!
Inadequate Proper Socialization:
German Shepherds, being a Tending breed, are predisposed to be protectors. They will become reactive and even hostile to other animals and humans if they are not properly socialized. If you want a sociable GSD that can be around other dogs and people, make sure you socialize it appropriately, regardless of its age. They are extremely social dogs that get along with families and if you can’t provide that then don’t buy a German shepherd.
Avoiding these common mistakes and being a kind, dependable mentor to your new puppy can help you get through that difficult first year and substantially boost the chances of producing a calm, confident, and happy adult dog. Meanwhile, remember to have fun with your pet and get a puppy from certified breeders since they have a show-line or work-line dams and sires!
