Most people will agree that German Shepherd Dogs(GSD's) are just different to all other dogs. At Dog Sports Rotorua, you will find lots of breeds and crosses working away together from little to big, but at the end of the day the GSD's have their own class once a week on Saturday at 3p.m and there are quite a few of them.
The passion of those rehoming, rescuing and keeping the faith of GSD's is to be admired. In New Zealand there is a bit of a crises in the breed when it comes to hips and inbreeding, which is very worrying, but even those purchasing and inheriting dogs with quite chronic hereditary faults are working their hearts out to give the dogs the quality of life they deserve.
Shepherds have such a presence, they are 'beings' rather than 'dogs'. My admiration as a Dog Trainer for both the Breed and those who devote their lives to their Dogs is beyond words.
I want to talk about a couple of the Shepherds who come to the Club. It all started with One and Seven, yes those are their names. One is a large male Shepherd aged approaching 3 years along with his sister Seven. I would not repeat the information that their owner gave to me but it appears that the breeder was very keen to bring the puppies to her over a long distance and of course when they arrived at her home she just fell in love with them and paid the money. This new Shepherd owner had no idea her two new family members had the displaysia and hip and back hereditary problems that they now have. If you go to my yourtube you will see these two dogs doing their work on equipment which we have now been doing for over a year. Their owner has been to the best vets, the best physiotherapy and all of the medications and care things are in place for these two amazing dogs.
The reason we do the walk through agility equipment stuff with them is that the Physiotherapist suggested low hurdles as a walk through as the best way to maximise the mobility of these dogs. So we have been doing that, along with temperament and tolerance training and we are now attempting a bit of tracking just to keep their mental juices active. From the time these dogs started training with me and people started noticing that we were working Shepherds, then other Shepherd owners started to pitch up, so that we have a little family of Shepherds working every week. We now have six Shepherds working fairly consistently and the socialisation and bonhomie of the group is growing.
I had a visit today from a woman who wanted to know if I knew of any young German Shepherds who needed a home as her friend in her 70s has just lost her Shepherd to old age and would like to replace it with another or two. As I know the woman concerned and I know she has always had Shepherds and has the support of her family on her little farm, I would have no hesitation in rehoming young dogs to her. Unfortunately, or Fortunately, however you like, the Internet sites with dogs for sale or free to good homes, are littered with Shepherds who have fallen on hard times and need to be in a new family. I am concerned that these very big dogs who need very good handling are just being passed from hand to hand and by the time they get to me their confusion is palpable.
Getting a free dog is one thing, being able to fit it in and cope with the baggage it comes with, when you have no idea of its background, is quite another. Always give a re-homed dog a good two months without too much happening, so it can settle. Don't ask for too much, don't necessarily walk it far. Treat it gently and hand feed it. After you have had it about three months, join some kind of dog training group. Shepherds respond really well to Obedience lessons and may have, in their past lives been involved in Obedience so it is a good place to start. Join a dog walking group and make sure you can afford the best diet for your Shepherd.
If you really want your family to experience Dog Ownership at the top end, and you have the time and the budget, a GSD is probably a wonderful place to start. If you buy a top puppy at top prices, do expect some guarantees of their health status, do make very good friends with your vet right from the start. Do the NZKC puppy shows, be proud of your pedigree GSD and do all the Obedience Classes you can get to. Integrate your GSD into your community and take the opportunity to make your dog into the paragon of dogs in your neighbourhood.
Some say to me they do not want their GSD making friends - it is a Guard Breed. Yep but only when I say so. What is scarier, a nutto dog barking at a gate that nobody can stop barking and growling, except when it is fed a tender morsel. Or a dog that can be sent to the gate and dropped into a down at the gate. Will bark on command, will return on command, will escort visitors on command. The work of a well trained Shepherd is awe inspiring and powerful. That is the nature of the GSD and long may it reign. I continue to work to make sure the people who own them can live up to the needs and have the aspiration that owning these beautiful animals commands.
I am very happy to help with the training it certainly inspires me..
Raewyn Saville 29 September 2012
This meant putting One on medication and taking him to see Kirsten Gollan, an animal physiotherapist in Cambridge. She gave me some simple exercises for him to do to help strengthen his rear leg muscles. I relayed this information to Raewyn and next thing I knew Raewyn was incorporating these exercises in with our weekly visits to her.
