German Shepherds are the third most popular breed in the US because they are loyal, courageous, and extremely intelligent. They are phenomenal family companions and working dogs, known to excel at agility, tracking, and even intensive police work. If you’re welcoming a German Shepherd into your home, you’ll want to give them the best start in life, which starts with proper training.
Understanding German Shepherd Characteristics
Sharing your life with a German Shepherd Dog means you’ll have a highly intelligent and devoted best friend. German Shepherd Dogs have been the candidate of choice for all manner of work including herding, guarding, service dog work, and police work. To provide your dog with their best life, it’s important to consider what the breed was developed for, the general traits of a GSD, and developmental milestones to consider when setting a plan for training and socialization. While each dog has a unique temperament and personality, if they adhere to the breed standard they’ll be active, athletic, alert, protective, biddable with family members, and highly intelligent. These traits served them well for their original purpose, herding and protecting flocks of sheep.
The Best Training Approach
The most effective training approach is positive reinforcement, also known as reward-based training. Positive reinforcement encourages your dog to repeat the desired behavior by rewarding them with something they highly value, like treats or toys.
You should always avoid using punishment-based measures. These measures do not truly tackle the bad behavior – they only suppress it, and they typically just leave your dog confused about what is being asked of them. Studies have shown that dogs trained with correction and the use of aversives are more likely to develop aggressive and destructive tendencies.
Essential Commands to Teach Your German Shepherd
Sit: The “sit” command is easy to teach, convenient, and paves the way for learning other commands like “lie down” and “stay”.
- When your German Shepherd is standing, hold a treat in front of their nose.
- Slowly move the treat over their head; they will move their head to keep their eyes on the treat.
- As they do this, their body will naturally end up in a sitting position.
- Once your shepherd is in the sitting position, reward them with the treat.
- Repeat this process until they catch on and begin to sit for longer durations.
- Incorporate the cue word “sit” and your desired hand gesture.
Lie Down: To teach your German Shepherd the “lie down” command, they’ll need to know “sit”.
- Ask your shepherd to sit while holding a treat.
- Hold the treat in front of their nose.
- Using the treat, gradually lure their nose down to their front paws. This motion should encourage your shepherd to lie down.
- As soon as they lie down, give them the treat and praise them. Initially, you can also give them the treat if they exhibit behavior close to lying down.
- If your pup stands up during this process, start from the beginning.
- Repeat the steps above until your German Shepherd is lying down consistently.
- Bring in the verbal cue “down” and your gesture of choice.
Leash Training: To ensure your German Shepherd has the best “walkies” possible, make sure they’re comfortable with the leash and have good leash manners. Getting your German Shepherd accustomed to the leash is fairly simple; introduce it to them gradually while rewarding them with treats. Once your shepherd is comfortable with the leash, you can start training them to become a well-mannered leash walker. This process involves teaching them loose leash walking and heel training.
Recall (Come):
- Present your flat palm about 3-6” from your dog.
- They are likely to touch it with their nose out of curiosity. Say your marker word the moment they do and then give a tiny treat.
- Repeat about 10-20 times in a session.
- Gradually increase the distance you are away from you dog when you present your hand, and then mark and reward when they come to you and touch it with their nose.
- Once you are confident your dog will touch your palm when presented, you can start adding the cue/command word of your chose. For example, say “here!” right before you present your palm, and then mark and reward when they come to you and touch it.
- Sprinkle in loads of hand targeting practice sessions throughout each day so your dog has lots of opportunities to build a strong learning muscle in various environments, at varying distances, and around various distractions.
Leash Manners: Help your German Shepherd to have excellent leash manners by practicing the follow me game with them indoors to start. Have a handful of very tiny, high value treats and use them to guide your dog to your side and to step forward with you as you say “let’s go.”. Let them know how great they are when they step off with you, give a reward, and then lure your dog to sit at your side by holding a treat at their mouth and lifting slightly up and back. Use your marker word and then give a reward. Repeat these steps in three to five minute sessions throughout the day. Gradually increase the number of steps.
Key Elements of Effective Training
- Consistency: Training your GSD once or twice a week and then not at all the next week will simply not work. Training needs to be consistent, as dogs learn best from repetition. You should have at least one short training session every day, if possible, as this is the best and fastest way for them to learn. Remember that there are training opportunities all the time, during feeding, walks, and play, and these can all be used to better your GSD’s training.
- Positive Reinforcement: Positive reinforcement based training is a sure fire way to motivate your GSD to want to play the training game with you and to be eager to learn.
- Clear Boundaries: Setting clear and consistent boundaries and rules, using management tools (like a crate and on leash supervision) in combination with teaching and rewarding desired behaviors will result in a mannerly, handleable, and appropriately social adult dog.
With the right approach, you can unlock your German Shepherd’s full potential, creating a well-behaved, happy, and loyal companion for years to come.