# Has your dog ever protected you?



## susan.msp

Hello all, I have always wondered wether or not my dog(s) would protect me if I needed them, I'm sure many of us have. Recently one of my dogs showed me that he may very well protect me and I am sharing and hope others will too.

Finn is one of my male GSD's, the one closest to me as a matter of fact. He was born here 2 weeks premature. When he wasn't in my shirt he was in a homemade incubator in my bathroom closet. Raised the way he was, we are very close. He is now a year old.

We live on a farm and have been self employed for 24 years. Last summer we hired a young man but he was incredibly stupid ( that is being nice ) and only lasted a few weeks. Thank goodness he found another job and quit us so we didn't have to fire him. The other job didn't last through his orientation and every few months he would show up here asking my husband for a job. This "kid" gave me the creeps, I don't know why, it wasn't anything I could put my finger on but he made me very very uncomfortable. I was glad to see him go.

A few weeks ago I was home alone and outside, Finn was the only one with me. This kid pulled up but I didn't recognize the car. When I saw who it was I was immediately freaked out, I certainly wasn't going to invite him in so I sat on one of the chairs on the porch. He walks up and sits down in another and immediately asks for a job. I told him we weren't hiring etc. During this exchange of words, Finn came and sat in front of me on my feet, very alert and just stared at this kid. He asked me what his name was and then all but begged Finn to come to him. Finn wouldn't move, and that is very unlike him, he is usually very friendly. He didn't bark, or growl but stayed right there in front of me extremely alert. Since he was sitting on me i could also feel that he was very tense, I just knew that if this kid stood up to fast, or came any closer it would be ugly. Shortly after he left and hasn't been back. yet.

Now I really dont' know if Finn picked up that something was off about this kid, or if he picked up that I was uncomfortable but he sure made me feel safer and I was so very impressed with his judgement and behavior. 

On a different note, he (Finn) has started a new behavior that I can do without. My daughter came to see me a few days ago and we sat and visited. When she left she hugged me and Finn ran over, jumped up and body slammed her!! We were both so shocked we didn't react, we were just like "what is that??!" She came over again today and when she hugged her Dad goodbye he did it again! She said oh I forgot I'm not allowed to hug anyone anymore. So I got up and hugged my son and he got bodyslammed. This dog literally hurls himself at huggers!! My husband and I have begun to correct this but Finn isn't liking it 

Anyone else have any similar stories?


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## shepherdmom

Yes, more than once and different dogs. One time a burgler came over the back fence, the dogs took him to the ground and stood on him. One of the same dogs later protected me from a person who was trying to push his way in my screen door. After that we moved out to the country. Where different dogs protected my children and I from a rattle snake. None of these dogs were trained to protect. They did it naturally. Good dogs!


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## doggiedad

this is my 4th GSD. 1 was protective 2 were love all, lick all
like my current dog.


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## Jag

My first GSD became VERY protective of me. My ex turned violent, and my dog was having none of it. He backed him away from me. He later bit. It was totally warranted. Unfortunately, my ex took my dog to a pound, lied about him biting a child and had him put down. If they'd checked for his chip, they'd have known he wasn't the dog's owner. He gave his life in the end to protect mine. He even slept directly on top of me for many months. He had no formal training, he was just doing what was in his genes.. protect his handler at all costs. I expect my new pup will be the same. He follows me everywhere and checks in with me often if he goes out of my sight. One of the many reasons I love shepherds!


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## Meeka

My pup is only 9 weeks old so she's still in the play with everyone mode. I just wanted to say that these are all amazing stories! I'm so touch by them! I too do wonder if she will ever by instinct protect me if ever needed. I'm working on her to be an all around friendly dog that will lick and love everyone. But even if she is raised to be nice, will she be that nice if someone attacks me or my family? 


Sent from my iPhone using PG Free


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## Syaoransbear

I don't know if this guy would have actually done anything, but one time me, my husband, and Chrono were alone at a skate park and there was this guy standing behind some bushes pretty far away. It looked like he was talking on his cell phone. Over the course of about half an hour he kept getting closer to us. He would walk forward a bit, then stand there on his cell phone some more, usually sort of hidden by some object. As he started getting closer Chrono would growl every time he moved. Eventually he approached us but he didn't seem right. He kept asking us what street this was, and we didn't know what it was called so we kept telling him we didn't know. 

Chrono was at the end of his leash, growling and barking at the guy with his hackles up. He was ferocious. Chrono loves absolutely everyone, so this was extremely unusual. Actually our biggest behavioral problem at the time was him getting really excited whenever he would see a stranger, dragging us around trying to greet people, and attempting to solicit attention from strangers we walked past on walks. 

The guy kept getting closer to us and seemed to be completely unaware of Chrono. I had to keep bringing Chrono in closer to us, who was on a retractable leash, because I was worried the guy was going to get bit. Eventually he stopped at about 8 feet, Chrono went from having 16 feet of leash to 4 feet, and then finally the guy went away. We kept telling him that if he just walked up the street and looked at a street sign then he would know what street he was on, but he kept asking us, then pausing to talk on his cell phone, then asking us again. Unfortunately we were the only people there so we couldn't even ask someone else if they knew what street we were on. It was weird. If we didn't know what street we were on the first time he asked, why would we suddenly know a few seconds later? Plus in the time it took him to talk to us, he could have walked and looked at the street sign multiple times. 

It was also weird how he was completely ignoring Chrono and approaching us, forcing me to bring Chrono in. I think most people would either ask me a question about Chrono or just acknowledge him, or address Chrono directly with something like 'hi doggy'. At the very least I was expecting a, 'Can you shut your dog up?', but I don't think he even _looked_ at Chrono at all.

That's pretty much Chrono's only story of ever being protective or reactive or whatever you want to call it, but I guess I haven't been in any other situations where I felt threatened. Most people stay away from us because despite him being the friendliest dog I know, he's huge and scary looking. One time I was creeping around the house in the middle of the night trying to find something to eat without waking anyone up and he was standing at the top of the stairs, slightly illuminated from below by a night light, like those people who shine a flashlight under their faces when they tell ghost stories. He didn't recognize me and just stood there staring at me, mouth closed, totally focused and alert. He wasn't even responding to the sound of my voice or his name. I almost peed myself, he is one scary looking dog. The fact that the guy kept getting closer to Chrono means he didn't find Chrono to be any sort of deterrent, which is just nuts.

Maybe the creepy guy recognized me from this forum and read the threads about me complaining about Chrono's over-the-top friendliness.


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## RileyMay

Banjo my Standard Dachshund is very protective of me. He has shown me this many times. He even saved my little brother from getting bit by a yellow belly water snake (non venomous). The snake story went like this:

My brother ran outside with no shirt on, only pants. So my mom called him to come back inside to get a shirt. Nathan started running for the house, and when he was about to step on the snake, Banjo jumped between the two!! The snake struck at Banjo, but missed by an inch maybe! We are still very thankful for him doing that, because if Banjo didn't step between the two it would of been a catastrophe. 


Riley May, she has shown this once for me. I don't remember much because it was a long time ago. All I remember was this guy was walking towards me and she didn't like it. She stood right in front of me and starred at this guy. This was so weird as she wasn't doing her usual wag her tail and break my arm off to go say hello. When the guy was out of sight she was fine.


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## Castlemaid

Hi Susan - 

Why don't you start a new thread for advice about Finn's behaviour in the Behaviour forum? That is worth a thread of its own, and don't want to detract from the main topic of this thread. Thanks!


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## GSDolch

Yes, she has, she was probably some where between 9 months to a year old. (shes 10yrs old now) We were at the park, (non dog park) and we were walking the trail when it was time to go home. It was dusk and getting dark really quick, to get back to my car we had to walk under a bridge. Leading up to the bridge were bushes and trees, and like I said, it was dark. Bailey is an all black GSD and she was all the way out on her leash (6ft leash) in front of me sniffing around. We get almost to the bridge and I feel someone behind me and see two hands on either side of me, next thing I know Bailey starts snarling and going all crazy and grabs the guy by the leg, she got him good cause he ran away limping.

I ran to my car and called my cousin who was with the Sheriffs dept. He told me that there had been some women who had been assaulted in that area and I was lucky I had my dog with me.

Oddly enough, at the time I was a member of this board and I was told by some members (no longer here) that my dog could now not be trusted, that I didn't have control over my dog and I would have problems with her, oh, and that the guy could sue me for her biting him. I called my cousin back and he told me not to worry about it, there were no witnesses and whats he gonna say "er, uh, yes, I tried to rape this woman and her dog bit me" lol.

Oh, and she is 10yrs old and I haven't had any trouble out of her, in fact we went on to do some protection training and she excelled at it (we stopped years ago, money and her hips weren't liking it) all while dealing with two little kids at her heels (or her at theirs!) all the time.


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## GSDGunner

I don't know if this is true, but I think a dog who is in tune with their owner knows when something is wrong.

Gunner was 9 months old when I went to Sam's Club in a "not so great' city here in NJ. It's on a major road and I felt it was the safer part of the city.
It was a beautiful June (early June) morning. It was cool and a bit windy.
I brought Gunner with me, knowing I was only running in for one thing and I wouldn't be long. I parked way out in the parking lot where no other cars were present. This way I could open the windows for Gunner and he would be very cool (I never brought him in hot weather, so no lectures lol).

I was not in there more than 10 minutes. Walked to my car, unlocked all the doors so I could put my item in the trunk.
Got in the car, started it, then reached over to my purse to put my membership card back in my wallet.
Just as I did that, I saw a guy in a hoodie (it was up) walking towards my car. Gunner was laying down in the back seat. I thought it was strange that he was headed straight for me. There wasn't another car in sight and I instantly got a bad feeling. Bear in mind, this is all happening in a split second. Before I could even reach for the door locks, the guy came into view at the window, his arm outstretched (like he was reaching for the door) and into Gunner's view. All heck broke loose. Gunner shot up, barking, growling and stood on the center console, as if to block me. 

The guy, likely needing a new pair of shorts, took off like a bat out of....well, you get the picture.
I threw the car into gear and high tailed it out of there. My heart was pounding, I was shaking and Gunner was calm. He undoubtedly saved me from being car jacked, or worse.
Now, why didn't I call the police? I know, I feel bad that I didn't. But I wasn't thinking. In all honesty I couldn't have given a description of the guy. He had the hoodie up, and I only got a glimpse of him since it happened so fast. He was very dark skinned and with a black hoodie, I couldn't see his face. And once Gunner got involved I couldn't see the guy since Gunner was blocking me.

9 months old and I know he felt my nervousness at the situation. I had never had a problem with people approaching the car (not just my car, but just being in a parking lot situation with people walking around). We had been many places and he went everywhere with me in the winter/spring. It's like he knew this was different and that's because I became scared.


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## GSDolch

> I don't know if this is true, but I think a dog who is in tune with their owner knows when something is wrong.


Oh I believe it for sure, and then some. I strongly believe they have a sixth sense and know things before we do. Its the only way I can explain Bailey being there for me right at the same time I seen the guys hands on either side of me. I very much believe she knew before I even did that something was wrong, otherwise her reaction would have been _after_ the guy got a hold of me.

I think they def. know!


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## Bubbles

My cat protected me from my brothers navy recruiters. They wanted me to join to so that could have a brother and sister thing. I said no but they were pushy. my cat came over and bit one on the hand . lol... or when I scream my cat will run to see if I'm okay .

my puppy is to young to protect me besides she loves everyone she meets. lol


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## susan.msp

Finn definitely knew something was wrong, and I also believe that they do have that sixth sense. By the grace of god , they have never been put to the test until that day and he didn't even threaten me, he just made me very uncomfortable. There is just a ....darkness about him...I don't know any other way to describe the feelings. Just bad.

The other dogs were inside, I wonder how they would have reacted.


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## GSDGunner

Shortly after the Sam's Club incident, we were in a small park that has a small lake where all the ducks call home. It's only about a mile in diameter and people walk their dogs along the path that circles the park and lake. The police station is on the end and there's one part of the trail where you pass the windows of the station. It was a very chill June so far, so a light jacket was required.

We were taking a stroll around the park and Gunner was interested in the ducks. It was dusk and a tad chilly for an early summer evening. 
As we came around to the front of the park, there were a bunch of teenagers on one of the benches. One guy had a hoodie up and was standing next to the bench, where his other friends were seated.
As we started to pass he decided to taunt Gunner. I guess showing off in front of his friends was going to make him look good. 
He lunged at Gunner, who was just a few feet away. I wasn't expecting that and became startled (let out a gasp from being startled) because when he lunged, his food slammed on the ground (which is what startled me). He had his hoodie up and all I could see was his eyes glaring at Gunner. It's like he was trying to get a reaction out of him. And a reaction he got! 
Gunner let out a low deep bark and lunged. I had good control of the leash, he wasn't going anywhere. And proceeded with our walk.
The kids all laughed and thought it was funny. At 9 months old, Gunner was a big dog and I can't see how anyone in their right mind would taunt him.
We got a few feet away and about a minute later Gunner suddenly turned and LAUNCHED! Barking, growling, snarling, you name it. This guy had run up behind us. And he's dam lucky I had a good grip on that leash.
I got Gunner under control and asked "do you have a death wish?".
They all laughed. I said "it's all funny until I drop the leash, would you like to show your friends how much of a man you are?". I held up the hand with the leash (Gunner was in a down) and said "go ahead, lunge at him again".
They walked away! And NO, I wouldn't have dropped the leash, trust me. 

With the police station at the end of the park, in fact it was about 200ft from us, so I know they weren't going to try anything. It was one guy trying to act all superior to his friends.
I was worried that Gunner was going to start being reactive to people wearing hoodies. This was twice that there was a "perceived" threat from a man in a hoodie in a few weeks time.

So the following evening we returned. We walked the path a few times around, passed other people, dogs and people sitting on benches. No reaction. Whew! Then I saw a few kids (teen boys), wearing hoodies but didn't have them up on their heads. I stopped and asked if they would mind if I experimented and assured them I would have complete control. I told them what happened the previous evening and they obliged. I walked ahead, they put up their hoodies, and then I turned and walked past them. I had Gunner on the outer side, just in case. He couldn't have cared less and I was happy. It wasn't the hoodie, it was the actions that got him riled up.
The kids dropped their hoodies and greeted Gunner. I had them give him some treats and all was well.
He's never lunged at anyone since then. I think he reacted more to me being startled (and expressing it vocally) and then reacting to it.


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## Scarlettsmom

I was told that the dog will pick up on our level of anxiety or fear.

Scarlett was protective of me from day one. In our last neighborhood, while on a mid-day walk right after we adopted her, a guy on a bike was following us. He turned into a culdesac and I figured he was a worker at one of the houses. We came back around the block and he pulled right up behind us. Scarlett stopped, turned around and just stared at him. She didn't bark, growl or make any more...just stared at him. 

He got on his bike and rode around in front of us and stopped about 50 yards away...THEN Scarlett began to bark at him...a deep, big dog bark. He decided that she meant business and left the area. 

We turned in our notice to vacate after that and we moved several months later. It was a scary neighborhood, but I KNEW after than encounter that Scarlett will likely protect us if we give off vibes that we are anxious or fearful of a situation.


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## DKHarris

Last week before the vet incident I took Xena and my 6 year old to the dog park. We were there for probably 5 minutes when a dog came running up. Xena quickly took action getting in between my son and the approaching dog growling and acting all aggressive. making the dog submit almost immediatly. I was shocked to see this because she is only 8 months old and historicly she shys away from dogs that approach quickly. I like to think her and my son have a special relationship and she felt it was her duty. They are always playing and he feeds her as well. (one of his chores). It kinda scared me but also made me happy to see.


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## jae

GSDGunner said:


> We were taking a stroll around the park and Gunner was interested in the ducks. It was dusk and a tad chilly for an early summer evening.
> As we came around to the front of the park, there were a bunch of teenagers on one of the benches. One guy had a hoodie up and was standing next to the bench, where his other friends were seated.
> As we started to pass he decided to taunt Gunner. I guess showing off in front of his friends was going to make him look good.
> He lunged at Gunner, who was just a few feet away. I wasn't expecting that and became startled (let out a gasp from being startled) because when he lunged, his food slammed on the ground (which is what startled me). He had his hoodie up and all I could see was his eyes glaring at Gunner. It's like he was trying to get a reaction out of him. And a reaction he got!
> Gunner let out a low deep bark and lunged. I had good control of the leash, he wasn't going anywhere. And proceeded with our walk.
> The kids all laughed and thought it was funny. At 9 months old, Gunner was a big dog and I can't see how anyone in their right mind would taunt him.
> We got a few feet away and about a minute later Gunner suddenly turned and LAUNCHED! Barking, growling, snarling, you name it. This guy had run up behind us. And he's dam lucky I had a good grip on that leash.
> I got Gunner under control and asked "do you have a death wish?".
> They all laughed. I said "it's all funny until I drop the leash, would you like to show your friends how much of a man you are?". I held up the hand with the leash (Gunner was in a down) and said "go ahead, lunge at him again".
> They walked away! And NO, I wouldn't have dropped the leash, trust me.


If there ever was a time to use the word "idiot", this certainly would be it. Idiot.

Funny story, I know a GSD Gunner up here in N NJ who acts just like yours, big and goofy.


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## APBTLove

In Jaeger's mind, he has.. but I was not in real danger when he had the chance to prove himself, I can say I KNOW he will go beyond barking if it comes to it.

His presence is protection enough so far. Some creep I knew showed up drunk at my house at 3am banging on my window and wouldn't leave, and J nearly went through the window. I think he got the message. 

Just having J has kept me from having countless encounters I'm sure. I cannot walk around my neighborhood alone without someone coming up to me and either being threatening or disgusting. The worst comment I get with J is to keep him away, and people never get within tooths'-reach. Which I appreciate beyond belief.

My pom/shih is very protective in general, possessive more like. 

The absolute best 'protection' dogs I've had were the friendly, stable ones who knew a threat from an idiot. My old male GSD saved my little niece once, when a man tried to steal her out of the yard.


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## Emoore

I'm the one with the pre-frontal cortex, the opposable thumbs, and the impressive firearm collection. He's the one who thinks cardboard is a snack and spends the better part of his day licking himself. Who's supposed to protect whom again?


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## Kwolf94

I've never been in a situation where I felt threatened and Schatzi got protective (though there's not a doubt in my mind that she'd step up to the plate if such a situation occured). However, she DOES NOT like it when someone walks into my room at night when I'm sleeping. When someone does she lets out those deep warning barks and growls. She stops when she recognizes the person (I.E. my dad said once "It's me you dork") or when I tell her to hush after waking up. I've also been keeping my window open at night because it feels good, and my neighbors feel the need to make noise at 2 in the morning, which makes Schatzi bark and growl. This behavior never happens when I'm awake or during the day.


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## doggiedad

the dog an i were in the driveway during a blizzard. my dog
turns away from me and gives a feeble growl. i turn and i see
this figure with goggles on, heavy coat with the hood up, a scarf
wrapped around the mouth, gloves on and a shovel. i hear a muffled
voice saying "it's me". it was my neighbor. he was bent down behind
his car. when he stood up Loki barked/growled at him. he realized
Loki didn't recognize him. once my neighbor said something Loki
started jumping side to side. my neighbor threw a shovel of snow
on him and ran away kind of. there was a lot of snow so you can imagine
what running was like. Loki took off after my neighbor. my neighbor falls,
him and Loki are all over each other in the snow. :laugh:


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## TrickyShepherd

Yep, Duke did.... recently. 

About two months or so ago, we were out on a walk after working a night shift. I had Storm and Duke and my SO had Zira. My SO's shoe came untied so he stopped to fix them. At this time, Storm was still a bit nutty and there was NO way I could stop with her and Duke without chaos. So I continued walking to keep her legs and mind moving.

I saw a shadow down the block. It was really dark out (midnight, and the street lights were out over there), and it just didn't feel right. Our neighborhood is very nice and in a great area, but it's not gated... anyone can walk in. We got closer and Duke felt my nerves getting rattled. I told him to watch him. He did, and had his eyes on him following this mans every movement. As I get across from him, Duke starts to growl very low and quiet. The man turns towards me, throws his arms up and yells "HEY!". I immediately nearly jump out of my skin. Duke jumps in front of me and starts barking and snarling. Way more intense then I see from him in bite work. He lunged forward toward the man.

At this point, my SO starts running up wondering what's going on. The man turns back around and says "Oh... Sorry... Sorry man..." and continues to walk the other way. After I get my legs (and heart) back... we continue on our walk. Duke watched this man until he was completely out of sight. He was definitely on something. The cops were called... not sure if he was ever found or what happened to him.

That dog is ALWAYS aware of his surroundings and I know he will do everything in his power to protect us. That night, if that man came closer with the same aggressive tone in his voice, energy, and stance... I KNOW Duke would have bitten him. I definitely trust this dog with my life. He goes everywhere with me. Love this dog. :wub:


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## GoSailGo

I don't remember a whole lot when I was this young but I sure remember this! When I was around 5 or 6 we had a big pack of stray dogs that would run around the neighborhood and hunt deer. Once I came face to face with half a dozen of these wild looking dogs and my old dog Suffy (we think he was a lab/gsd cross) put himself in front of me, started growling and went after them. My mom grabbed me and put me in her van while he chased them off and made sure they were gone. I was his little person and he wasn't going to let anything happen to me. I miss him.


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## KentuckyGSDLover

Buddy would bark when he was younger, but in a real threat would probably hide behind me to protect him. lol He's just not a fighter. Rey is reactive, but I have little doubt she'd protect me. She just may protect when I don't want her to; she seems to be a "shoot first, ask questions later" kind of gal. Now my first GSD, Bear, he was an example of what a GSD is supposed to be. He could differentiate what was danger and what wasn't (most of the time), and he took cues from me, my family and the environment around him. I have no doubt that dog would have knowingly taken a bullet for me if he had to. People couldn't get out of their cars in my driveway until one of us came out to greet them, but once we did or gave the "okay" command he completely ignored them. And he remembered, too. Same with the front door, unless it was a friend or even an extended family member - he remembered them. But a stranger entering or opening the house door without us greeting them would be pinned down or bitten, or both. Two of Bear's littermates ended up police K9 dogs.


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## KentuckyGSDLover

Emoore said:


> I'm the one with the pre-frontal cortex, the opposable thumbs, and the impressive firearm collection. He's the one who thinks cardboard is a snack and spends the better part of his day licking himself. Who's supposed to protect whom again?


Oh Lordy that made me laugh!


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## fuzzybunny

Jag said:


> My first GSD became VERY protective of me. My ex turned violent, and my dog was having none of it. He backed him away from me. He later bit. It was totally warranted. Unfortunately, my ex took my dog to a pound, lied about him biting a child and had him put down. If they'd checked for his chip, they'd have known he wasn't the dog's owner. He gave his life in the end to protect mine. He even slept directly on top of me for many months. He had no formal training, he was just doing what was in his genes.. protect his handler at all costs. I expect my new pup will be the same. He follows me everywhere and checks in with me often if he goes out of my sight. One of the many reasons I love shepherds!


That's so awful. I'm sorry you had to go through that


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## Jaders

Awh I love reading these stories!! Thanks for sharing everyone!

I have never experienced something like this with Gunner, but when my boyfriend and I play around (picking me up and throwing me on the bed, tickling, giggles etc), Gunner is always close by; sometimes weaving in between us and always looking at my BF. Making sure I am okay.

I did have a horse save me from another when I was about 8yrs old. I was in the pasture with our 2 yr old named Mojo, who was a pain in the butt. He was our first baby so everyone spoiled him, big mistake. He didn't know personal space and the only way to get him off of you is to bash him with buckets. Well he was running in the pasture and headed straight towards me at full speed, ears back. Woodtick, our 16.2hh palomino Saddlebred, aka the Leader of the herd (also my buddy), stepped right in front of me, pinned his ears at Mojo. Of course no one messed with the leader, so Mojo quickly changed directions. If it wasn't for Woody, it would have been bad.


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## Nikitta

I guess the only thing i have to compare is when i had my female GSD outside on a leash we had this drunk girl who lived to the south of me tried to come over when she was totaly crocked and Zena wasn't happy about it. She kept lunging at her. I kept saying ," Do you want to get bit?" Gads It took 3 warnings before the drunk broad backed off.


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## drosado

R.D. is the protective one. He always gets between me and strangers on walks. He doesn't bark or growl, but he won't take his eyes off the stranger until he is well away from us. The other day my husband and I were play around and R.D. did not like that he was holding my arms and pushing me. He firmly grabbed my husband by the arm and pulled him away from me. He did not break skin or cause harm, but he knew R.D. meant business. Immediately afterwards, he put his ears down down and got all submissive looking and gave husband kisses as if to say "We OK? I love you, but I can't let you do that to Mom."


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## DKHarris

Emoore said:


> I'm the one with the pre-frontal cortex, the opposable thumbs, and the impressive firearm collection. He's the one who thinks cardboard is a snack and spends the better part of his day licking himself. Who's supposed to protect whom again?


Whats wrong with licking yourself?:wild:


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## Sp00ks

My first shepherd was the best judge of character that I have ever seen in a dog. If she didn't like you, I knew something was up. She proved herself time and time again. I'm still sort of in awe and that was over 20 years ago. 

Our most recent shepherd was always very non confrontational. My wife joked that she would have to protect the dog if it came down to it. 

She is disabled and as a Scottish Redhead, I still wouldn't cross her however, this day the UPS man came. Mia hated the truck but always like the normal UPS guy. This was not the normal UPS man. It was someone different. Mia didn't great him at the door but stood down the hallway, silent and just watched. The UPS man asked if he could bring the package in for her, she told him to leave it on the porch and I would get it when I got home. He insisted and started to push past her and through the door. She started getting really nervous and about that time here comes Mia down the hall at about 100 mph. The UPS man stepped out and shut the storm door. Mia hit that door so hard, I can't believe it didn't come off the hinges. In a single bound the UPS guy jumped off the porch and was in the truck. 

I've always told her she would protect her if it came down to it. My wife was amazed, she never believed me. She was thankful that day that Mia was there, she just knew he had ill intent. This is probably the main reason we keep getting Shepherds.


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## marbury

My first shepherd was an awesome housemate for our bustling household in the middle of one of the many 'bad parts' of Savannah, GA. My roommates had folks in and out constantly, we left the front door unlocked most of the time because between the four of us it would be pointless to have to go unlock it every ten minutes. We lived on the second floor of an old house, and our front door literally opened onto a set of stairs at the top of which was a curtain. Through that was our living room. Miah had never given any of our guests any trouble. She'd pop up when she heard the door open and greet them when they came through the curtain with a wagging tail and a happy smile before leaving them be unless she knew them well (then it's happy-dance o'clock). One night we were all in the living room watching TV and the door opens, which is totally normal for us. Clearly she knew something we didn't because Miah shot up, hackles raised, and crouched at the top of the stairs behind the curtain. Not a split second later she launches herself through the curtain snarling, barking, and pounding down the stairs. There was a yell, a squabble, and a slamming door with yelling and squealing tires out front on the street. She barked at that door for a minute or so as we all run out to the front porch to see if we can catch the license plate. They were long gone, but we called the cops and they dusted the door and handle.

Chances are it was just a kid trying to do something tough and testing doors. You couldn't see if anyone was home from the front of the house unless they were in one of the front bedrooms, so I doubt they bargained on opening a door with a ready-wound GSD waiting on the other side! So for at least one of my dogs, yes. She would protect me!


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## Vagus

GSDGunner said:


> I don't know if this is true, but I think a dog who is in tune with their owner knows when something is wrong.


Baron is a ridiculously friendly dog. We often joke about how he's a lab in a GSD's body. He has to meet and greet everyone, and becomes the biggest mushball if he actually gets to say 'hi'. 

When he was around 8 months old I took him out for an off leash romp near our house (dogs are allowed off leash at this particular spot, before I get slammed for this). We were the only ones there and as we turned a corner, a man appeared to be standing/hiding under bushy tree with his camera pointed at me. When I saw him, I immediately stopped and tensed up (I was alone, with no way of protecting myself. I instantly felt super nervous and uncomfortable). Baron was slightly ahead of me and heard my feet scrape on the gravel as I stopped. He looked at me, then looked ahead to where I was staring. He went nuts, barking like I had never seen him bark before. I kept trying to call him back, but he wouldn't let it go. The guy stepped out from the tree tried to advance towards us along the path, but every time he did Baron lunged and barked even harder. He wouldn't let him move a step. I managed to leash him up, and apologised to the guy saying I've never seen him do that before. He smiled, said its alright and kept walking. Once Baron had seen us talking, he stopped acting all tough and started wagging his tail, wanting to meet the guy as if nothing had happened.

I was so worried after that episode, thinking about how badly it all could have gone. I thought my dog was suddenly fear aggressive, and would no longer be trusted in public or around strangers. He's now 14 months and has not behaved in such a way since. He still loves strangers, acts like a lab and bounces around like a crazy puppy. We're part of a training club, and all of the instructors tell me he's a great dog with a fantastic temperament. One of them mentioned however that Baron is very handler sensitive, and since then I've always made sure to keep my emotions in check while we're out. I suspect that even though the man wasn't a 'real' threat, Baron realised I was scared, followed my cue and bluffed. We also do all our walks on leash now ..


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## SoCal Rebell

I've already told the story of Cutter sneaking out an open gate when I went to confront a confrontational neighbor who took a swing at me, Cutter came out with a classic forearm take down.

Before Cutter we had another GSD named Rebell, my g/f didn't tell me this story until years later fearing my reprisal. Shortly after she moved in with me I had a business trip, I guest the jealous ex saw my car gone for a couple of days and in a drunken rage he come up to my door and punched out the center pane of my leaded glass door, reached his arm in to unlock the door and Rebell tore up his arm pretty good. I guess he never reported it because I did not get a "visit" 




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## katro

Ralpie's done similar things; he hasn't actually had to protect me, but I'm 99.9% sure if it came down to it, he would. He picks up on my feelings freakishly well, and if we're out walking at night and I see someone that I think looks a little shady (even though we are in a pretty nice/safe neighborhood), Ralphie will get really close to me and walk slowly while staring down the person. I don't even have to tense up on the leash and he knows I feel uneasy. If I'm anxious or excited, he acts the same way, too, so going taking him with me for a walk to cool off when I'm mad isn't always the best of ideas!  

He's very aloof with other people, even our friends the knows and sees often, and he's still pretty weary of men in general, so I don't have to worry about him licking anyone to death!


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## Lilie

My first GSD did, twice. 

Hondo, our current GSD was in the back yard while hubby and I were working in the pasture. We were trimming trees along the fence lines. Hubby was on the tractor and went up to the equipment shed to get a implement that attaches to the front of the tractor. The shed is next to the back yard. 

I was on the Gator in the pasture gathering branches and taking them to the burn pile. I heard Hondo barking, screaming then barking again. I got into the Gator and drove towards the house and saw my husband laying on the ground. Apparently he decided the best way to secure said implement was to shake it while it was suspended above his head. It fell off and hit him on the head. Blood was everywhere. 

I was able to get him up and to the hospital. He got a bunch of staples in his head and everything turned out fine. Hondo may not have actually saved hubby's life that day, but it could have turned out much differently had Hondo not reacted to his buddy laying on the ground. And it still amazes me how Hondo could have known that something was wrong.


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## Sp00ks

We had invited some people over for a Tyson fight back in the day. We pooled together to purchase the pay preview. This cable company had to stop by the house to set it up. I don't remember the details. Well the cable guy in a rush doesn't knock and just opens the front door and steps in. I was laying in a papasan chair, obviously I wasn't getting out of that thing very fast. Here she comes from behind me after the cable guy. I grabbed her collar as she passed my chair and she drug me all the way to the door. 

Man you should have seen that guy scramble to get out of the door before she got to him. He had the nerve cop an attitude about it. I think he was just scared. I told him he was darn lucky I got her before she got him. I bet he didn't just walk into someones house again.


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## misslesleedavis1

My fiance and i took our dogs out for a walk, at the time we had Dexter our Border Collie, Shiggies our giant mix of some sort, and our foster dog Rocky, he was a pretty interesting mix, the lady who kept him before we agreed to foster explained he was low low content wolf, well he certainly could smell anything out and as we were walking i saw him zip by and close behind him was one angry coyote, it was not afraid of us or the dogs, and decided to charge my fiance and our border collie dexter took charge of the whole situation and kept the coyote at a distance. While shiggies ran away with me, and rocky was busy rolling around in poo he found.


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## LaRen616

I live in a bad neighborhood and years ago I took Sinister for a walk and we were in my driveway about to go inside when my neighbor called me over to talk. So I am standing there talking to my neighbor and these 2 crackheads come walking down the alley and got really close to us, I could tell that something was off and I felt uncomfortable and one of them asked if they could pet the dog as they approached us but before I could even answer him (I was about to say no he is not friendly, I dont need random strangers knowing he is friendly in my neighborhood, especially crackheads), Sin starts growling, then he starts barking, spit starts coming out of his mouth and his hair is up, he's showing his teeth, he is trying to pull me and is lunging at them.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing! Sinister had never met a stranger he didn't like before, he loved everyone. I was so surprised and relieved by his behavior. :wub:


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