# Single or multiple-person loyalty?



## yuricamp

Do shepherds form stronger bonds with only one member of a family or does it really just vary by dog? We've had a new GSD pup for a week now and my wife was talking to him about him "only loving his daddy" (that would be me). he comes when I call and whines if I leave the room with him in the care of my wife. I tried to reason with her it's because I'm the one who feeds him etc etc.


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## vat

They do seem to bond stronger with those that feed, train, etc. Both mine follow me everywhere when I am here. But when it is just my husband of course they follow him. While they are more bonded to me they do love their daddy.

Have your wife do more with the pup, maybe you can feed one meal and she feeds the other. Have her do some training as well.


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## fuzzybunny

vat said:


> They do seem to bond stronger with those that feed, train, etc. Both mine follow me everywhere when I am here. But when it is just my husband of course they follow him. While they are more bonded to me they do love their daddy.


This is exactly our situation as well.


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## BR870

As mentioned, they bond most strongly with whoever "feeds and leads" them. That said, Abbie is still bonded to my wife and son, just not quite as much as me...


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## Cassidy's Mom

Our dogs have not bonded more strongly to whoever feeds and trains them. (That would be me!) Our females (we are on #4) have always been Daddy's girls, and Keefer, my first male, is very much my boy.


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## zyppi

I do think they bond more closely with one person but that shouldn't mean they are not close to others in the family too.


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## Texas_Eva

Eva is more bonded to myself than my girlfriend. My girlfriend has begun training her and taking more of a leadership role with Eva but even now Eva looks at me when my gf gives a command as if she is checking with me for approval.


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## kr16

My wife fed my last girl and she followed my wife around everywhere. But when my wife and I would play fight the dog would go after my wife everytime, was way to funny. So she followed her everywhere but protected me and my youngest son.


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## lrodptl

I think they will bond more with the person who trains/plays/walks them than those that feed them. My past GSDs always preferred me but now that my wife participates in the exercise of my present GSD he has bonded with us both and has shown some protective tendencies of her.


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## MicheleMarie

my shepherd mix female is good with both of us for everything. however if she is scared i think she tends to find more comfort in my boyfriend-i think this is because one time we were trapped on a mountain in a lightening storm and she crawled in a boulder hole and he had to climb down there and carry her out. 
my puppy is pretty much my dog. i feed, train, walk and go places with him. he will listen to simple commands from my boyfriend though.


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## spidermilk

I do most of the daily walks, outings, and all of the feeding. Still, if my boyfriend puts him in his crate and leaves or leave the house Dax is much more whiny than if I do it. I tell myself it is because of the calm way that I leave and don't give into the whining, but he probably just loves his daddy and isn't used to him going to work every day. (he travels so he is home for a few days in a row and then leaves for several days...)

He listens to both of us the same.


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## doggiedad

you and your wife should be equally involved
with everything concerning the pup.


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## KAE

Rocky is bonded to me more, he listens to me, but sometimes ignores what my gf asks for. I've done all training and feeding, she does the grooming. 

But whenever we go on walks, if I have the leash and my gf gets ahead of me, Rocky pulls to get right next to her again, but if she has the leash, and I go ahead, he doesn't seem to care, he'll stay by her side. Kinda weird actually.


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## yuricamp

My wife is at home with the pup during the day and so does get to spend some time with hime playing and taking him outside to use the facilities. However i am the one who feeds him morning and evening and spends good quality time down on the floor with him. Sometimes we even pass out of the living room carpet together for a quick power nap. The problem is my wife thinks his feedings are really gross because I choose to feed him raw, and at least one of the meals are hand fed daily. She is not willing to do the raw thing yet.


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## JakodaCD OA

all my dogs present and past, view my husband as a 'play toy', he plays ALOT with them, so when he's around it's PLAY TIME.

Given the choice, they will always pick me, (kinda bugs the hubby , I have always been very blessed to have/had dogs that are just really into 'me'. It's rather flattering to be the center of ones universe. I also am the one to feed, train, do activities with them.


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## Cassidy's Mom

What's really cool is that although Halo, like all our previous females, is definitely Daddy's girl, she will work for me very well. Tom came to flyball class for the first time yesterday, and I had no idea if she would be distracted by him being there, like Dena was in agility class. I actually had to ask Tom to stop coming to Dena's classes - it was great to have him there to take pictures, but she'd keep blowing me off and running over to see him, and if he moved around to get a better angle for pictures she'd look where she last saw him and if he wasn't there she would scan the field, looking for him. 

When we walked over to Tom's chair so I could get a drink of water Halo did go to him, but the rest of the time she was totally focused on what we were doing and couldn't care less if he was there or no. :thumbup:


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## Sherush

Jesse loves hubby and I equally it seems, I do all the feeding and 99 percent of the walking and hiking and swimming with him, but seems to love and listen to both of us equally.


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## Witz

My last GSD was attached to both my wife and I in different ways. He knew me for the training and harder play which he loved. He watched my wife like a hawk and actually stepped in front of her on two occaisions when a strange male started to raise their voices at her. 

We have a new pup that I initially fed exclusively and began his training. It created the same bond I had with my previous male. He definitely listens better to me, but he loves his mommy. This is exactly what I want and has worked well in terms of my ability to teach and reward thru food or play. My wife has just started to take him for long walks and reinforce the training I start, but on the most basic of terms. My wife has been great this time around listening to how she should work with him and more importantly understanding why.


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## stacey_eight

Zeke is super-bonded to me, and very closely bonded with my toddler. But I train & feed him, plus my youngest daughter and I are home all day. He likes my husband and teens, just not as much. When we get a second dog in a year or two, hubby will take off work for at least the first week and be home to do all her puppy training classes. We're hoping she'll bond with him more.


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## LaRen616

Sinister was raised by both my ex and I for the first year of his life, we split right after he turned 1 year old. He is my dog but he still sees his daddy a couple of times a week but it has always been very clear that he favors me and listens to me over his daddy. 

He's a Mama's boy.


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