# Incident with a small dog yesterday.



## jessandboone (Mar 17, 2019)

Hi all, really hoping to get some insight from some other Shepherd owners in this. Background info - Boone is a 13 month old male, altered (about two months ago), GSD. Boone has done both a basic and intermediate class, plus a private class to focus on his leash reactivity. His leash reactivity has improved and he can walk past dogs who are not reactive, but when we walk past reactive dogs he looses his crap. We're working on that, but honestly I really think I'm going to need something besides his prong and my air can that I use (it's like a pet corrector, it just blows out air and makes a loud 'whoosh' noise...not like an air horn or anything). 

Yesterday, my husband had Boone out in the front yard off leash. Boone's recall is actually very solid, but our neighbors love to let their dogs run loose. Their dogs very rarely ever come down our private road, so I honestly forget about them unless I happen to leave and pass the neighbor's house and see the dogs out. We live on the same road, but their road branches off to my private drive way. 

Anyway, apparently the neighbor's smaller dog came into our yard and Boone saw it, his hair went straight up and he went to approach it, and the small dog ran. This all happened in like, two seconds, before I could even think. Boone immediately bolted and grabbed the small dog, shook it and the poor dog was just screaming. I called Boone and he dropped the dog and ran to me, and my husband took Boone while I went to the small dog. it was screaming and I had the worst feeling in the entire world that I just watched my dog kill another dog. Thank God I went to pick up the small dog and he was fine, just a lot of slobber on him and obviously scared. No puncture wounds or blood. The most annoying part was how the neighbors and their friends all saw the entire thing happen (they were standing at the top of my drive way) and watched me go pick their dog up and carry it to them and then they were all laughing and asked "is he alright?" I handed him over and showed that there wasn't any wounds and offered to drive him to the vet and they just sort of laughed and were like "he likes to go explore sometimes" or something along those lines. 

But now I'm just so freaked out about my own dog. Boone has always played rough, even as a small puppy he had a very domineering personality. That's why we socialized him extensively with many different dogs, and did obedience classes. It's just really frustrating because I've never put so much work into any dog like I have Boone, and he still acts like this. What am i doing wrong? Where did this aggression stem from? he's from a top notch breeder, I made sure of that because I didn't want to risk getting a dog from poor breeding. He's been socialized and as soon as he started the leash aggression we went to our trainer again for guidance. But the dog is just an bleep hole when he sees other dogs off leash or on leash that he doesn't know. I foster dogs as well and he does really great with them when I introduce them. I have two foster puppies now that he does great with (always supervised of course). But I cannot get the image of him shaking that little dog out of my head. 

This is more of a venting post, but any tips/your experiences/guidance would be appreciated. I just cannot believe my always so sweet at home boy can be such a night mare when meeting dogs outside.


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## Jchrest (Jun 5, 2019)

The first thing you need to understand is that shepherds are notoriously territorial, and I’m not surprised at all at his reaction to a loose dog coming in to his territory. Second, prey drive is a real thing, and again, GSD’s are notorious for this as well. 

Your dog protected his territory, and his family, from a perceived threat. Not only that, but he listened to you when you gave a release command. That’s awesome. I would be concerned if he wasn’t able to be called off the other dog. 

I’ve mentioned in another post recently that my GSD was on a lead in my front yard, while I was doing some gardening. Three small dogs came running into our front yard yapping their little yappers off. A black pug charged my GSD, and my GSD grabbed the pug by the haunches, and began the death shake. I gave her the “drop it” command, followed quickly by the “leave it” command, and that’s exactly what she did. The three dogs then ran off, the pug crying and screaming. I didn’t look for the owner of the dogs, I didn’t care. That may sound harsh and make me seem like a crap person, but I manage my dogs. If my dogs got out and got injured, that’s on me, not the person that owned the other dog. 

Your dog wasn’t in the wrong, and the people’s reaction to watching the whole thing and not caring one bit just proves it’s likely to happen again and again. They think it’s no big deal, they have little dog syndrome, and let them run loose because they don’t care! 

I wouldn’t look at your GSD in a negative light, he did his job, and did it well. He’s not going to turn into some hungry beast and start going after kids and other pets in the home. 

As for the reactivity on walks, that is an issue that I would address, but I wouldn’t worry about him protecting his own yard and family. 

I’m sure you’ll get a lot of different advice here, and I may be in the minority on this one, but that is what is so great about this forum, you’ll get a lot of varying advice, and you can learn which fits your style and what’s best for your specific situation. 

Lots of luck, and keep working with a trainer on the leash issues.


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## GSDchoice (Jul 26, 2016)

I would be shaken too.
That sequence - the chase, the grab, and the shake - is very familiar to me because it's what my dog does with his toys if I make them run around on a string. I think it's what he would like to do (but is not allowed to) to the bunnies and cats that we pass when out walking, and maybe even the smaller deer. So you are definitely seeing the prey drive at work.

However I think he should be able to tell the difference between prey and another dog?

Was it aggression? I don't know. If it was aggression, they can easily puncture/kill a smaller dog, but the dog was unharmed.

I also think it's great that your dog desisted on command. All those classes paid off!

Anyway I think your neighbors' reactions were so strange! They should have been concerned that their dog actually ran into another person's yard and that they found him being shaken in the jaws of a large GSD...?! My experience with small dog owners is that they are always very yelling and anxious if their dog runs across the street towards mine. (For some reason, more small dog owners leave them loose in the front yard...we don't encounter loose labs and pitbulls and retrievers, but we DO encounter a lot of these loose front yard chihuahuas, terriers, etc)

I really hope it doesn't happen again. I might have a talk with them and tell them you're worried that your dog may actually hurt theirs if it runs into your property again.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

I agree. Your dog really did nothing wrong. I keep my dog in a fenced yard normally. She is a born hunter. She grabbed a cat one day that had gotten over my 6 foot fence. She let go and left it be when I asked but I didn't bother going to check if it was ok, or go look for it's owners. It wasn't my problem. If my dog had sustained any injuries I would have gone looking for them.
If your dog killed a squirrel would you care? Invaders to the property sometimes meet with aggression, it's what dogs do. Your neighbors are responsible for keeping their pets safe. As long as your dog is on your property I would not worry.
Don't get me wrong, I neither encourage nor condone pet dogs attacking other animals. I do however understand that they are dogs and dogs dislike invasions on their turf. It's an instinct that many domestic dogs have retained. Packs have territories and they defend them.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Fences aren't just to keep your dog in  

We had a dog run thru the horse pasture. I had the "pleasure" of watching in terror as my 15h quarter horse tried to run the dog down to stomp it. The response was "he'll stay out when he gets stepped on". Okay...yeah. I guess he will stay out after he's stomped to death.


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## sebrench (Dec 2, 2014)

Can you fence part of your property so that you can let your dog out and not worry about the neighbor's loose dogs running on your property? I love our fence. It's some of the best money I've ever spent! 

It's a good thing your dog had a strong recall, and that he had enough bite inhibition not to hurt the other dog.The neighbors were certainly in the wrong, but I'm sure it was still very upsetting for you and them to witness. 

I have had a dog-reactive GSD in the past, and with the help of a trainer, it did get much better, but it was still something that had to be managed. When I took him out, I tended to avoid places where I suspected there would be unleashed dogs or large numbers of dogs, I didn't let him off leash around other dogs, and he stayed in our fence. I wouldn't panic about what happened, but now that you know what he's capable of, I'd just be more careful in the future.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Jax08 said:


> Fences aren't just to keep your dog in
> 
> We had a dog run thru the horse pasture. I had the "pleasure" of watching in terror as my 15h quarter horse tried to run the dog down to stomp it. The response was "he'll stay out when he gets stepped on". Okay...yeah. I guess he will stay out after he's stomped to death.



I love that response. I get a similar one when I list the reasons Shadow stays leashed.


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## jessandboone (Mar 17, 2019)

Thanks for the replies. Our back yard is actually fenced in, but husband was doing some yard work in the front yard, so was letting Boone hang out with us in the front. 
_However I think he should be able to tell the difference between prey and another dog?_

THAT is what I was so shaken about, thank you for giving me a sentence to put it in. When I wrote this, I was still pretty emotional. I guess that my fear is because how reactive he is with dogs on leash (he's improved, but still reactive) that this behavior is a product of that. That he deems the greenways we walk as "his" territory and that's why he gets so reactive with other dogs, so now he's thinking, it's okay to attack another dog if it's on something I deem "mine."
I'm concerned that it wasn't just protecting his yard so much as "There's a dog I don't know, it's small, and I'm going for it!" I don't know how his reaction would have been had it been a larger dog. But he is not the kind of dog to back down from any challenge from a dog. 

I am relieved that he didn't puncture the dog. It did have a harness on, I forgot to add that in my original post. So maybe he just had a hold of the harness and that's what saved the small dog from being hurt, I'm not sure. But it would be nice to know if he had the sense not to really bite that hard...


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## crittersitter (Mar 31, 2011)

I hate irresponsible neighbors. We live in the country and still have pin heads that let their dogs roam too and we have horses and 3 GSDs that are off leash with us sometimes. Tell them to keep their dog off your property - I wouldn't have been as nice as you. Depending on where you live you can dispatch a dog that's chasing your livestock (not that I'd want to). Your dog did nothing wrong. He was on his property protecting his property. I hope the little dog has learned a lesson to stay away.


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## Jchrest (Jun 5, 2019)

I just reread what I posted. Just wanted to clarify a little. I don’t agree with dog on dog aggression either. Which is why I stopped using headphones while walking my GSD, because she would do the same thing is a dog ran up behind us, and I wasn’t prepared. I now walk her headphone free so I can give her the “behind me” command and handle the loose dog myself. 

After my GSD did the death shake and drop, I didn’t reward or praise her except one good girl when she dropped the dog. I then proceeded to garden, so I didn’t make it a big deal to my GSD. If I had, it would have cemented as a big deal in her head, and that’s something I DON’T want her to have in her head. Same on the walks. Gave her the drop it command, leave it command, said good girl when she dropped the dog, and then we continued our walk like nothing ever happened.

Both my GSD and Husky/GSD have killed an uncountable amount of birds in our fenced in back yard. They have also killed a stray cat that made its way into our yard. And a skunk and possum that made its way to our chicken coup.

They don’t touch the chickens, they don’t touch our kids, they don’t touch any fosters we have come in. They are clear on what’s off limits, and what’s on limits, which would be anything coming into their territory. 

Jax, I would love to fence our front yard, but we have regulations, and front fences are not allowed. It’s a treat for Lyka to come out front with me on her lead line, and I feel no guilt if a dog charges mine and gets put in their place. If a dog walks up, she does nothing. If they bark and charge her, she’s going to protect her territory and family.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Jchrest said:


> Jax, I would love to fence our front yard, but we have regulations, and front fences are not allowed. It’s a treat for Lyka to come out front with me on her lead line, and I feel no guilt if a dog charges mine and gets put in their place. If a dog walks up, she does nothing. If they bark and charge her, she’s going to protect her territory and family.


Where did I suggest you put up a fence? Or anything about your dog?


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## jessandboone (Mar 17, 2019)

I don't know if my previous reply went through...I can't find it now :| so I'll type it up again! If it does indeed pop up, sorry for the double post.

To clarify, we actually do have our back yard fenced in. We like to let him out the front with us if we are doing yard work in the front or working on training exercises. 

_However I think he should be able to tell the difference between prey and another dog?_

THAT is what I am concerned about, thank you for putting that in a sentence for me. I was still pretty emotional when I wrote this up, but that is my concern. I don't want Boone to think that the appropriate thing to do is attack if an animal is on something he deems 'his.' Because he is so leash reactive (he's improved drastically, but still reactive) I'm worried that yesterdays incident is a product of his leash reactivity. If he deems that all the greenways we walk are his, the yard is his, etc. etc., I don't want him to think it's his job to protect and defend these places. 

I am relieved he did not puncture the small dog. I did forget to mention the dog had a harness on. Maybe that's what Boone latched onto and what saved the small dog from being really bit? I'm not sure. It's nice to think that Boonie just knew not to bite that hard, but after seeing him rattling and shaking that little dog, I'm not sure I can confidently say he didn't try to really hurt it. But you are all right, I AM proud that he dropped the dog and came to me. I didn't even punish or reprimand him or anything, because honestly I didn't know what to reprimand him for. He did come when I called him. 
*******

As I was typing this - another incident just happened. I was in the living room, and the puppies were sleeping at my feet. Boone was in the kitchen. One of the puppies had its head under the couch and I'm guessing she opened her mouth and tried to roll over and some how snagged a tooth on the under part of the couch. She started screaming bloody murder because she couldn't get her tooth out of the couch, so I immediately crouched down and was trying to unhook it from the material. Boone ran into the living room and started nipping immediately at the puppy. Took me way off guard, and I swatted him with my free hand as I'm trying to get the puppy and its screaming, and when I finally unhooked her, she's still screaming, I lift her up, and Boone again tries to bite her and latched onto my finger. It's not deep, but enough to draw blood.

I've been crying for the past hour. I know sometimes when dogs hear other dogs crying out they will jump on them, but this was completely unacceptable. He is so gentle and easy with them, but something just triggered him when he heard her crying out in fear. I don't even know what to say. I'm calling his trainer tomorrow. My finger is tender, but I know he didn't purposefully try to get my finger. But that doesn't make it any better.


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## Jchrest (Jun 5, 2019)

I wasn’t saying it in a negative way, I wish we could fence our front yard! It’s when you said fences aren’t just to keep your dog in. I didn’t take it as directed at me, or anyway as a behavior remark. I was just saying we can’t fence our yard. It would certainly help a ton if we could!


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

I once told a woman who had a lovely little fluff walking down the side walk with her. It stayed with her and it may or may not have been on leash. I gave a whistle to let her know I was coming with my shepherd. She gathered up her little guy. I stayed on the other side of the street and yelled to her, "HI, just want to let you know that from a distance your little guy looks like a rabbit...and my guys are rough on rabbits" My dogs were calm and cool and could probably smell it was a dog, but better safe than sorry.


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## Jchrest (Jun 5, 2019)

“Negative remark.” My phone hates me.


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## Dutchy (Jul 8, 2018)

Your dog acted naturally in a situation he's never faced before and responded to your commands and hopefully learned from it.


I think there's not much you can do or expect to learn from this. Sounds like both you and the dog did right. Your neighbor sure got a lesson I'm sure!


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## JonRob (Nov 5, 2017)

jessandboone said:


> One of the puppies had its head under the couch and I'm guessing she opened her mouth and tried to roll over and some how snagged a tooth on the under part of the couch. She started screaming bloody murder because she couldn't get her tooth out of the couch, so I immediately crouched down and was trying to unhook it from the material. Boone ran into the living room and started nipping immediately at the puppy. Took me way off guard, and I swatted him with my free hand as I'm trying to get the puppy and its screaming, and when I finally unhooked her, she's still screaming, I lift her up, and Boone again tries to bite her and latched onto my finger. It's not deep, but enough to draw blood.


I am sorry, but your dog was not "protecting" you from a tiny little dog that ran on to your property, any more than he was trying to "protect" you from the screaming puppy. He was trying to kill the little dog and he would have if the dog hadn't been wearing a harness. It only takes one quick shake and you have a dead little dog. If you hadn't gotten him off the puppy, he most likely would have killed the puppy. One quick shake = dead puppy.

This crap is genetic and I am sick to death of seeing it in GSDs. Thirty years ago it wasn't rampant like it is now. You have done right by training him but training will NEVER eliminate the danger.

I have known many GSDs who reacted with tolerant amusement toward yappy, even nippy, little dogs, but these GSDs are getting harder and harder to find. I have also known many GSDs, including intact males, who adored puppies and would never hurt them under any circumstances. And these GSDs are also getting harder and harder to find.

The problem is that breeders--and I mean many of the "highly recommended" breeders--breed dog-aggressive dogs, and guess what you get. Even nastier dog-aggressive dogs. I don't care how good the dog is with people, if the dog is dog aggressive he should not be bred. Because this is what you get. This and all the other miserable folks who post here asking what to do about their horribly dog-aggressive GSDs. Only to get told that this is "normal" for GSDs. Now it probably is for the most part and what a nightmare.

Add in the "obsessive prey drive" that "top-notch" breeders brag about, and many GSDs are disasters waiting to happen.



jessandboone said:


> We like to let him out the front with us if we are doing yard work in the front or working on training exercises.


You cannot do this with this type of dog. At home he needs to be in the house or in a fenced area at all times. In public where a small dog might run up to him, he needs to be muzzled at all times. 

You now know that he will kill a small dog or puppy if he can. That makes you 100% legally liable if he kills or maims another dog. What happens when a little girl comes toddling by with her adorable leashed Maltese and your leashed but unmuzzled GSD jerks his leash out of your hand and kills the Maltese with one quick shake, before you can even yell at him to stop? Worse, turns out the kid is autistic and the Maltese was her service dog.

Even worse, the kid starts screaming and your GSD starts mauling her. A screaming child sounds like a screaming rabbit to a GSD with the obsessive prey drive that so many "high-quality" breeders strive for.

Now you've got a dead dog and possibly a dead child, your GSD will be destroyed, and you will lose everything you own in the lawsuit that follows.

So you also need to keep your GSD away from puppies and little kids.

I know this is not what you wanted and it's a nightmare. But you are stuck with it, and it's what a person is all too likely to get when they buy a GSD from a "reputable" breeder these days.

For those folks looking to buy a GSD as a good companion or family dog, ask the breeder about dog aggression and prey drive in their lines. If they tell you that you can't possibly expect intact male GSDs to get along, or brag about their dogs' wonderful prey drive, run away as fast as you can.

Although I've never met one of their dogs, Patchwork Shepherds emphasizes that their GSDs are great with other dogs and kids.

Good luck, and I am sorry you have to deal with this.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

jessandboone said:


> To clarify, we actually do have our back yard fenced in. We like to let him out the front with us if we are doing yard work in the front or working on training exercises.
> 
> _However I think he should be able to tell the difference between prey and another dog?_
> 
> ...



First, you need to have your dog contained. 

Second, the prey WAS the small dog. That shake was a kill shot. That's HOW dogs kill their prey. Snatch and shake to break the spine.

Third, with the puppy incident, your dog should not be around small animals.

So, time to stop crying and time to starting being honest about what you have. IT doesn't make him a bad dog. It makes him a dog that needs training and management.


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## jessandboone (Mar 17, 2019)

How in the world did we go from my dog going after a dog in my yard to my dog mauling a random girl with autism and her Maltese? 

And Jax, funny how you wait until some one else goes into it being a bad thing (which I obviously already knew) before you throw your opinion then on how he needs to be contained. Guess it's tough going against the majority and you needed to wait for some one else to post it was an issue? And please don't start drama with people about fences on my post. Thanks.


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## Steve Strom (Oct 26, 2013)

In general jess, a dog that reacts the way yours did to the puppy screaming, is probably not going to differentiate between the puppy and a kid. Its situational, not specific to any one thing. He's shown you now, what types of things you need to be vigilant around. As a side note, Jax don't need back up. Lol.


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## Jchrest (Jun 5, 2019)

I think a lot of times, things get taken out of context, and though the forum is a wealth of information, it can also certainly make a mountain out of a mole hill. 

I don’t know how many times I’ve heard stories of people picking up their yappers after they see a big dog coming, and the yapper is still yapping it’s face off, and a nip or two comes from the big dog. 

Do some research outside this forum. Many many trainers train that it is a bad idea to pick up a small dog or puppy if the big dog has already taken notice of it. I know when the two small pups would wrestle together, and one started yipping, my girl would run over a nip them both. The same way bitches do with their litters. 

Our roomies daughter is a dramatic annoying teenager, and if any of my dogs starts making their way towards her pup, she gets all hysterical yelling at the big dogs and rushes over to save her pup (when he was never in any danger to begin with). As soon as she scoops him up, Lyka will nip him. 

She is not a dog that shows a breed standard, and her behavior is not always perfect, but she’s never done harm to any animal in our home. Nipping and mouthing, sure, to our husky and the pups, but it’s the equivalent of me giving a gentle swat on the butt when one of my daughters mouth off at me. 

I do have to manage my dog more than most, because of some issues she has that no trainer could work us through. But it’s not a huge issue. We lead our normal daily lives, and situations pop up that are outside the norm. (Like with my GSD and the pug). It’s not the end of the world, and I don’t think a huge thing has to be made of it. Of course my dog didn’t think the pug was a bunny or some small prey animal. She knew it was a dog. And she knew the dog tried to attack her first. So she retaliated. I’m not going to stop letting her out front on her lead line, it was a random occurrence, and didn’t give me any pause for concern. 

I took a few years off this forum because I seemed to always be honed into how bad the breed is, and how this dog bit that dog, or person, and the over the top responses that came after. It became overwhelming, and I found myself micromanaging and picking things out of Lyka’s behavior that I would have never questioned before I joined this forum. I worked one on one with a trainer, and stopped getting involved in the forum, and we had happy years together. 

Take everything you read with a grain of salt, and shift through the bad with the good.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

I still think that the initial incident was territorial. But a shrieking pup is prey for sure and I agree that this is not a dog I would have around small creatures or small children. 
The cheap shot, the second nip at the puppy would have gotten the correction from ****. Not acceptable, not appropriate and not happening ever again.
My current dog has crazy, over the top, unstoppable prey and hunt drive. She does not get to run loose, I will not bring small creatures to my home while she lives and although she seems to like them she is strictly controlled near small children. I keep her muzzled in public. 
It's just a responsibility thing.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

jessandboone said:


> And Jax, funny how you wait until some one else goes into it being a bad thing (which I obviously already knew) before you throw your opinion then on how he needs to be contained. Guess it's tough going against the majority and you needed to wait for some one else to post it was an issue? And please don't start drama with people about fences on my post. Thanks.


Well...if you want to be nasty, I can be too. I was responding to your post. Blunt? yes. Was it bad? No. Unless you want to be in denial. In fact, I SAID he wasn't a bad dog. It was even in English.

Had you posted the bit about the puppy, and your apparent complete lack of understanding on what constitutes a prey object, and your lack of understanding on why a dog shakes the prey object they catch, with the story of the dog in your yard I would have posted what I just posted. Funny thing about information - it often fills in the rest of the picture for people and that often changes the responses you get back. 

As far as the drama with other people? I asked JChrest to clarify her post because she started her sentence off addressed to me. And she did. I asked, she answered. no drama there. Except the drama you just started because you didn't like anything 'bad' said.

Let your dog run loose in the front yard. You do you.


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## dogma13 (Mar 8, 2014)

*********Keep your responses polite please************

If you are unable or unwilling then private message one another.


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## tim_s_adams (Aug 9, 2017)

Jax08 said:


> ... It makes him a dog that needs training and management.


Wow, is there a comment that could be less specific and more generally applicable than this? This applies to every dog out there...great insight!

Moving on, the whole premise that when a dog, any dog, grabs another dog and does the "shake" that it means to kill, could not be more off base. It's synonymous with saying that every dog that barks at a cat wants to kill them, and that's simply not true! Do dog's kill prey that way, yes. But they also do it to keep their opponent off balance so they can't accurately bite them back. It's instinctual, and you can't draw any specific conclusion from that alone!

And again, all dogs need training and management, so that's a non statement...means nothing. The OP's dog didn't do anything wrong or even surprising. To me what's surprising is that people have dogs and spend time with them and then somehow never learn about their nature...or ever train them really.

But, to get back SOLIDLY on topic, OP, I've said it a hundred times before and I'll say it again, most issues your has that you find undesirable are best resolved indirectly. In this case I personally would work on impulse control types of things and solid solid solid recall. He didn't do anything surprising or shocking, and certainly nothing you should be crying over, just work his recall and impulse and general obedience, and if family members can't be trusted to play by your rules always, by all means contain him securely when you're not home! All in all though, nothing at all is "wrong" with your dog or your methods...just might need to step up training a bit to get his behavior under better control.


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## CometDog (Aug 22, 2017)

The best advice you got here is that you have seen a few behaviors that could cause serious problems, so you need to manage. Lead when not contained with a good fence etc. and no tolerance of family members overriding what you know you need to do to handle your dog. 

Here are some perhaps helpful articles about prey drift, real reasons for head shakes etc. My dog use to lunge and was not in control of his defensive drive. Reading up on it and working with a trainer that was familiar with his lines saved our bacon, and I have no problem being honest saying it isn't fixed, I have to be diligent about managing it, and about learning his language. What he has is extremely desirable for what he was bred to do, but it needs to be trained channeled and managed for home life. Even if it involves wearing a t shirt that says " Don't act like you know this dog very well unless you do" lol He is under my control, but that took work and I still have to "manage it" A quick fuss command and giving him a way out when some doof stranger wants to squeal and ruffle his ears..

https://pethelpful.com/dogs/Dog-Behavior-Understanding-Predatory-Drift
https://pets.thenest.com/dogs-shake-toys-3507.html

Even the "cuteness" page has that part right:
https://www.cuteness.com/blog/content/why-do-dogs-shake-their-toys

Good luck OP, sounds like a good strong dog (I'm glad he dropped his quarry and recalled to you- that is good) and as long as you are willing to be real you will be able to train and manage him. I love my dog dearly, so I am willing to do all that to keep both my finances and his good reputation intact.


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## Jenny720 (Nov 21, 2014)

The puppy crying caused a animal instinctual prey reaction in your dog. The dog should of gotten a big correction right there now you know what can set him off and you need to enforce the rules.

Management and training has to be strengthened best advice. German shepherds are very protective of their property so control is very important. It is good your dog dropped the little dog instead of killing him right there where he so easily could of. It only takes one good shake and one strong bite to kill a small dog. Ecollar would be helpful and is best shown how to use by a trainer can help proof off leash recalls and obedience instructions with constant consistency can help prevent scenarios like this.


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## Jenny720 (Nov 21, 2014)

@CometDog - great t shirt idea.


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## CometDog (Aug 22, 2017)

Jenny720 said:


> @CometDog - great t shirt idea.


I was thinking putting on the back:


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## Jenny720 (Nov 21, 2014)

CometDog said:


> Jenny720 said:
> 
> 
> > @CometDog - great t shirt idea.
> ...


Lol you must!!!!


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## CactusWren (Nov 4, 2018)

IMO:
You now have proof that your GSD is capable of attacking small dogs and puppies. Your dog is also leash-reactive, despite training.

What you do with that data is up to you. It's your call.

If it were my dog, I would take physical steps to ensure it never happens again. I would not put my dog in an uncontrolled situation where he could get at a small dog or puppy. I would realize that it was up to me to watch him carefully, and that the results would be my complete responsibility. 

Personally, I train my dog extensively (Puppy Obedience, I, and II, signed up for III), but I have seen signs that he is, for sure, no Golden retriever. He stares during class, he has reacted to other dogs' barking, and he has occasionally gone overboard during dog play. Also, he is nippy and has even nipped two kids who ran by him. Unfortunately, no matter what training I have done or how dumb the kids are, ultimately it is my responsibility and if there is in incident, it is my fault. I will probably never be able to 100% trust him out of my physical control (leash, fence, house), at least not until he proves he is by resisting temptation over and over again. 

Best wishes, I hope you come to a good solution for you and your dog.


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