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398 Posts
Yes, I have another oh-so-philosophical question.
This one came about after spending 2 hours on IM this morning helping a friend in Germany who has just acquired a GSD. "Thor" is about 14 months old, red sable, and comes from Poland! She emailed me and sent me a picture of him asking for help b/c he's "always getting in trouble."
Her description of this boy: goes after everything that moves, loves to play on playground equipment (ladders, slides, even swings), always has a ball in his mouth. Apparently he was purchased, IN POLAND, by a couple who are both in the military. They kept him crated 10+ hours a day adn said he was a menace (and were witnessed hitting and screaming at the dog). The first offered to sell him to the lady who now has him but she said no...then 2 months later they showed up at her door and begged her to take him. They can't find most of his papers, so I have no clue on his lines other than the breeder told them he's "police lines." He has had no OB, is obviously crate trained, and works well with her kids.
So I gave her tons of links to help her get this boy under control, suggested ob training and either SchH or agility, and that she switch his food (poor thing's on Purina One YUCK). And I told her that if she ever decides she doesn't want him, SEND HIM MY WAY lolol!
Now that I've written a book: just made me wonder if the "average" pet owner ought to have a shepherd (and I don't mean just a pet home, I mean the average Purina-feeding-no-obedience-training-want-a-pooch-who-will-sleep-all-day owners). It just seems to me that 80% of people are clueless when it comes to raising a GSD...and it's the dogs who are paying for that.
This one came about after spending 2 hours on IM this morning helping a friend in Germany who has just acquired a GSD. "Thor" is about 14 months old, red sable, and comes from Poland! She emailed me and sent me a picture of him asking for help b/c he's "always getting in trouble."
Her description of this boy: goes after everything that moves, loves to play on playground equipment (ladders, slides, even swings), always has a ball in his mouth. Apparently he was purchased, IN POLAND, by a couple who are both in the military. They kept him crated 10+ hours a day adn said he was a menace (and were witnessed hitting and screaming at the dog). The first offered to sell him to the lady who now has him but she said no...then 2 months later they showed up at her door and begged her to take him. They can't find most of his papers, so I have no clue on his lines other than the breeder told them he's "police lines." He has had no OB, is obviously crate trained, and works well with her kids.
So I gave her tons of links to help her get this boy under control, suggested ob training and either SchH or agility, and that she switch his food (poor thing's on Purina One YUCK). And I told her that if she ever decides she doesn't want him, SEND HIM MY WAY lolol!
Now that I've written a book: just made me wonder if the "average" pet owner ought to have a shepherd (and I don't mean just a pet home, I mean the average Purina-feeding-no-obedience-training-want-a-pooch-who-will-sleep-all-day owners). It just seems to me that 80% of people are clueless when it comes to raising a GSD...and it's the dogs who are paying for that.