# Hi!! Tiny ears?



## Kevinzavaleta (Nov 27, 2017)

I need help you guys I have a question about my puppy’s small ears? I went to see her not too long ago for a down payment... and I noticed that her ears were a bit smaller than the rest of the pups .. I’m not saying I will love her less because of that .. I’m just a bit concerned that is all.. she’s gunna be my first GS pup and I’m very excited!


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## NerdicEclipse (Feb 20, 2017)

Hello and welcome! I wouldn't worry about her ears just yet. They change so much at such a young age. They'll be small while others are oversized and floppy. They'll be standing up then they'll fall down. They'll stand "pinched" together at the top of their head and they'll spread out. She's gorgeous! Going to be a beautiful dog! Minka's ears changed quite a bit over the first several weeks. At one point they were a little small but after a little more time she looked like a rabbit and then finally grew into them. Hers always stood, but at a few points they sort of pinched together over the top of her head, which was adorable too.


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## Kevinzavaleta (Nov 27, 2017)

NerdicEclipse said:


> Hello and welcome! I wouldn't worry about her ears just yet. They change so much at such a young age. They'll be small while others are oversized and floppy. They'll be standing up then they'll fall down. They'll stand "pinched" together at the top of their head and they'll spread out. She's gorgeous! Going to be a beautiful dog! Minka's ears changed quite a bit over the first several weeks. At one point they were a little small but after a little more time she looked like a rabbit and then finally grew into them. Hers always stood, but at a few points they sort of pinched together over the top of her head, which was adorable too.


Thank you very much! That leaves me at ease thank you very much! I’m so excited I can’t wait for that date to go get her! .. I think I’m more excited than kids haha.. I know I made a very good choice because I’ve heard that GSD are very good with kids so I love that!


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

Kevinzavaleta said:


> I know I made a very good choice because I’ve heard that GSD are very good with kids so I love that!


True....if you socialize, train and manage her well. Same goes for the kids actually. Nice looking puppy. Be prepared for the land shark stage, a temporary (if you handle it well) stage in which you may rethink the entire plan and think she morphed into a set of teeth. Stick around and read up on the forum regarding the puppy stage and what you can expect. Choose a trainer you like (visit several before you have the pup) and sign her up for a class before the classes fill up. Good luck and enjoy the anticipation.


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## NerdicEclipse (Feb 20, 2017)

wolfy dog said:


> True....if you socialize, train and manage her well. Same goes for the kids actually. Nice looking puppy. Be prepared for the land shark stage, a temporary (if you handle it well) stage in which you may rethink the entire plan and think she morphed into a set of teeth. Stick around and read up on the forum regarding the puppy stage and what you can expect. Choose a trainer you like (visit several before you have the pup) and sign her up for a class before the classes fill up. Good luck and enjoy the anticipation.


This. The puppy needs socialized but also be sure the kids learn too. I actually had to get onto my kids more than I did the puppy because kids depending on their age just don't know when to quit. Also advocate for the puppy. Until you get further along in socialization and obedience and having her under control, don't take her into environments where she'll have a risk of kids running up. Getting used to adults in public is one thing but kids tend to run up screaming "PUPPY PUPPY PUPPY with their arms stretched out running at full steam. Scares the **** out of some dogs and they'll react very badly. Just takes one mistake and you can end up in a world of crap even though the parents are to blame. With Minka we got her to where she was really good with our kids and then practiced some of that with them before we took her anywhere she might encounter kids in public. Never had an issue after that even when those types of kids came around.

Also like Wolfy said, that land shark phase is hard. Be careful with the kids then too. Our Malinois pretty much skipped the nippy phase and they're famous for it too, but Minka hit that land shark phase hard and it was definitely a test. Have a *lot* of scars from that phase. Some people end up really wondering if they made a mistake but there's so much good advice on here as Wolfy also stated. Follow it and you can cut that phase down to a much shorter period. That phase is how many of us found the site to begin with, haha! Make it to the other side though and you've got the best dog anyone could ever wish for, it's an amazing breed.


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