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German Shepherds are extraordinary animals, and it’s easy to see why the AKC identified them as the second most popular breed.
Most German Shepherds love dogs, are quickly loved by family members or trainers, and begin to develop strong bonds within a short period of time. Before you know it, they have become part of your family.
most German Shepherds are cute and well-behaved dogs. However, like any other breed, they should always have basic obedience training.
Dog training is especially important for dogs reaching the German Shepherd size.
Occasionally weighing around 100 pounds and measuring up to 26 inches at the shoulder, these large canines can easily—often accidentally—injure people or other dogs.
Below, we will describe the basic concepts German Shepherd Training And covers some important things you need to keep in mind throughout the process.
German Shepherd’s Personality and Abilities
Before you start training your German Shepherd, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the breed’s common character traits and abilities.
Some of the most common terms used to describe German Shepherds include:
- confident
- clever
- Decide
- brave
- credible
- stable
- drive
- Full of energy
- Love
- loyalty
Generally speaking, German Shepherds exhibit the character traits that most owners want.
They loved their family deeply and quickly became loyal companions. They are very protective of their families and gentle with children, but they are always willing to make new friends or fight on the floor with their owners.
In fact, GSDs have such impressive personalities and strengths that they are often used as working dogs. Most shepherds love to have work to do, and their work ethic is matched only by a few other breeds.
German Shepherd Often employed by police departments and military establishments, they are also well suited for search and rescue operations.
They are also patient and loving enough to make a great therapy or service dog. Some herders and ranchers even use the dogs to raise livestock or guard against predators.
The Shepherd is also good at things like show work and agility trials.
How to Train a German Shepherd
The Challenge of Training a German Shepherd
While most German Shepherds are excellent candidates for training programs, and they have the intelligence and flexibility to adapt to any task, they do present some challenges for owners and trainers.
For example, one of their greatest strengths—their intelligence—also presents major challenges.
When presented in the right way, smart dogs are usually quick to take commands, but they can also develop bad habits when trained with inappropriate techniques. This intelligence also allows them to manipulate their owners, effectively changing their training sessions.
German Shepherds are also fairly high-energy dogs, and they need a lot of stimulation and exercise. This is especially true for those who are household pets and lack proper employment.
It’s hard to get an unstimulated, overactive shepherd to focus on a dog training session, so it’s important to get your pet into a lot of exercise and interaction every day.
In fact, many owners will find it helpful to schedule these meetings after a walk or play in the park.
The Basics of Training a German Shepherd
Trainers and owners employ many different methods of dog training, each with different advantages and disadvantages.
As long as you use a training regimen that relies on positive reinforcement, you should feel free to adopt the specific style or method that works best for you and your dog.
However, harsh dog training methods that use pain or intimidation to inculcate lessons should always be avoided. Such techniques are rarely effective, they can undermine a dog’s emotional health, and often burden a dog with lifelong fear and anxiety.
Most training methods that rely on positive reinforcement work in the same basic way:
You instruct your dog to do something and then reward him when he does it.This reward may take the form of warm petting and praise, or giving your dog a favorite toybut most trainers use hospitality As a reward (although compliments are often offered along with hospitality).
Then, you repeat the process a few times to bring the lessons home. After a few repetitions, you end the workout and start over the next day.
The hardest part of the process is communicating your wishes to your dog.
At times, it may be necessary to manually position your dog in the desired position, or encourage him to do so through body language. Just make sure you do this gently and with a positive attitude so you don’t scare your dog and disrupt the training process.
It is important to start training your German Shepherd at a relatively young age because as they grow, they become increasingly difficult to control their bodies.
Plus, by starting your training early, you’ll enjoy spending more time with your pet.Most German Shepherds can start training at about 8 weeks old.
Example of a German Shepherd Training Course
The following step-by-step list provides a simplified example of the basic German Shepherd training process.
In this specific example, we’ll discuss how to teach your dog the “Sit down!” command.
- Get a treat and hold it in your hands.
- Catch your dog’s eyes to get his attention.
- Let him come to you.
- Let your dog smell the treat in your hand to get his attention.
- Give the “Sit!” command and wait for your dog to obey. It may take a few minutes for your dog to sit voluntarily, but be patient. It is often helpful to stand or lean over your dog when giving the command, as this will cause his head to rise. This, in turn, usually causes him to lower his hips and start sitting down.
- Once your dog is seated, praise him and treat him immediately.
- Repeat the process a few times to consolidate the lesson.
You will use the same basic procedure to teach your dog any other basic commands, such as lying down, walking on the heels, or going to bed.
German Shepherd Training Tips
Try the training tips below for an easier and more efficient training session with your dog. You may not find every one of these suitable or helpful to your specific situation, but most should help you get better results.
- Make training your dog fun (and try to enjoy the process yourself). German Shepherds love to learn and please their owners, so if you keep it light and fun, they will learn lessons faster. Try to make your daily training session the climax of your dog day.
- Keep training time short – especially at the beginning. Limit training to 5 or 10 minutes for puppies and no more than 15 minutes for adults when they first start training. After your dog has been trained for a few weeks, you can increase the duration of the training, just be sure to wrap things up when your dog’s attention starts to wear off.
- Learn some commands are harder for some dogs than others. All dogs are individuals, with individual strengths and weaknesses. So don’t be discouraged if your dog is having trouble learning a specific command or skill. Try to focus on the ones your dog is good at, but continue to challenge him with the ones that are causing him problems – be patient and positive while doing so.
- Always end training sessions with a positive attitude. By doing this, you will help avoid frustration and negativity, which will help ensure that your dog enjoys the training activity. Plus, your dog will be proud and happy, and he’ll probably be excited to attend his next training session.
- Use clickers to provide positive reinforcement through multiple sensory pathways. Audible clickers are small handheld devices that make a clicking sound when activated. Usually, they ring while you’re giving your dog a treat. Over time, your dog will begin to interpret the sound itself as a reward, which will allow you to train without the use of treats.
- Try to issue the command in the same tone every timeRemember, your dog does not understand language – it can only be trained to associate a given signal with a specific behavior. Therefore, you will find that by issuing commands in a consistent manner, your dog will learn them faster.
- Consider combining gesture signals with your voice commandsJust like a clicker gives you multiple ways to provide positive feedback to your dog, the combination of hand signals allows you to convey commands through multiple sensory pathways. By using a combination of verbal commands and gestures, your dog may learn his lessons faster.
seek professional help
Sometimes, owners have problems trying to train their German Shepherds.
Some owners may not be able to teach their dogs personal training orderwhile others may have a hard time keeping their pets focused or instilling anything like discipline.
But there’s no reason you have to train your German Shepherd yourself – if you get stuck, you can always seek the help of a professional trainer.
You can do this in a number of different ways, including enrolling your pet in classroom-style obedience classes or hiring a personal trainer to come to your home.
While classroom-style group settings are certainly helpful for many dogs, and they also provide some level of socialization, it’s usually best to hire your own personal trainer if possible.
You’ll usually pay more to hire a trainer for one-on-one sessions, but you’ll also benefit from the trainer’s undivided attention.
Some German Shepherds may also respond better and learn faster in the more intimate setting of a private training session than sitting next to several other dogs and owners.
It doesn’t matter who trains your shepherd, as long as he gets the training he needs and deserves. Just be sure to double-check any potential trainers before seeking their help, and if possible, try to find one that has experience training German Shepherds.
add up
We would love to hear about the experiences of German Shepherd owners. How do you train your German Shepherd?
Have you found any particular method or training style to work? Did you encounter any problems along the way? How long did it take you to fully train your dog?
Let us know about your German Shepherd obedience training experience in the comments below.
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