# NEED HELP and ADVICE! German Shepherd with high prey drive living with a little dog



## AndrewT1993 (Aug 6, 2012)

So I have a 9 year old male chihuahua and I'm looking to get a female german shepherd thats 1 year old. The breeder told me that she has high prey drive but should get along with my chihuahua.

Do you think the gsd will get along with my chihuahua?

I've gotten mixed answers all over the internet about this, some say that the gsd will kill my chihuahua and some say they can peacefully coexist.

Does anyone out there have small dogs living with their high drive german shepherd? If so please tell me about them and how you got them to live together.

Is there anyway I can prevent the gsd from annihilating my chihuahua?

Please help, i really need a good guard dog/large dog companion. Im desperate nd dont know what to do.


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## JakodaCD OA (May 14, 2000)

I dont' think anyone can say for certain that the gsd won't hurt your chi or not.

Have the two met? as in ON leash/neutral setting?

I'd do that first before you take her into your home. If you decide to get her, I would keep her on leash for quite sometime until you can really access how they will react to each other.

My sister has two papillons that are no more than 12lbs a piece, Masi loves them and is very good with them, in fact they beat her up and she just lays there, HOWEVER< she does like to instigate them, will charge right up to them, put the breaks on, and take off.. She could very well hurt one of them unintentionally..So that is always a possibility especially with a dog that may not be used to small ones.


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## huntergreen (Jun 28, 2012)

has the gsd been around small dogs?


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## Moxy (Aug 3, 2012)

I agree with Jakoda's advice.

We brought Mox home from the pound but didn't know how she would be around Crow and Mew since she was a stray. Crow weighs about 21 lbs. Mew is a 16 lb cat. We kept Mox on a leash at home for about 2 days. The only problem we had initially was that the cat wouldn't socialize with Mox and attacked her every chance he got. So, Mox couldn't sniff him and check him out. Of course, because the cat attacked her and tried to run from her, Mox tried to give chase. She wound up with a bloody nose on several occasions for about 2 days from the cat attacking her. We finally put the cat in a crate and used tuna to help Mox associate being nice to the cat with reward. We also taught her "Back off." So, after about a week of socialization, everyone has been able to live in harmony.

Mox and Crow play tug of war with toys, and they chase each other. Crow winds up with his head in Mox's mouth a lot, and she tackles him....but he thoroughly enjoys roughhousing with her. Although she is capable of hurting both animals, I can confidently say she would never intentionally hurt either one of them. 

Btw - Mox has a high prey-drive, too. 

So, yes, they can coexist with a LOT of patience and training.


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## Samba (Apr 23, 2001)

They might get along and might not. But, I don't ever leave the "bigs" here with the "smalls". No matter how good the relationship, your Chi will not stand a chance even in a mild sqirmish with a GSD! Even if they get along day to day, still a huge chance for disaster.

My friend's Yorkie and GSD were house buddies. One day, the GSD warned Yorkie off of his toy. Luckily the little guy survived it. What the GSD did would have been a minor thing to another big dog. 

I would never trust the idea "they get along" and take risks with my lil' guys and the GSDs. We manage the household accordingly.


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## SueDoNimm (Jul 3, 2012)

I have a Chihuahua mix who is 10 pounds and about 10 years old. I can't tell you for sure if my GSD has a high prey drive, but he will chase a ball for as long as you throw it and during walks I have spotted rabbits and deer and purposefully scared them so they would run to see what he will do and he wants to chase them every time. He also "kills" stuffed toys by shaking them.

For the most part, he ignores the little dog. I keep them separated when we are not home and they are always supervised together, but so far there have been no incidents, even when my little dog is being pushy - once she snuck in and pushed him out of his food bowl while I wasn't looking and he just stood aside and watched her eat until I turned around and noticed she was there. I keep her put up while he eats now so that won't happen again!

I like to think that he's smart enough to know that she's another dog and a member of his pack and not prey, but of course I always take precautions with them, since she wouldn't stand a chance against him if he decided to correct her.

I do leave my little dog alone with my mother's collie, but they have known each other since the collie was a puppy and there has never been any trouble between them. I don't know that I will ever feel comfortable enough to leave her alone with my GSD.


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## kiya (May 3, 2010)

Lakota has a pretty high prey drive, goes nuts for squirrel & deer, she adores cats. Plays non stop with my kitten, tries to play with my older cat but the cat couldn't be bothered. I brought her over my friends house for a visit. They inherited a little Yorkie, Buddy. I thought she would want to try to play with him, but she couldn't be bothered, he was more interested in her and followed her around the entire night.
Just be careful and never ever leave them alone unsupervised.


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## pets4life (Feb 22, 2011)

cats can handle dogs much better then small chi dogs though 

it can be really scary if the gsd is young and takes a strong interest I have seen it before, with gsds and small dogs. I would ask for a trial period and see how they get along.


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## wyoung2153 (Feb 28, 2010)

I agree with everyone that says to not leave them alone together. I wouldn't worry too much about it. IMO a dog generally knows the difference between a small canine vs "prey." Titan has INSANE prey drive, but absolutely adores small dogs. He likes them more than big dogs. Will just let them play all over him and bark at him.. he is just very intrigued by them. Now put a squirrel in the yard and it will cease to exist. Lol. I think it will truly depend on the temperament of the GSD as well.. not just the drive she has. Like others said, do the walk, introduce them and see how that act with eachother. You may have two peas in a pod


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## msvette2u (Mar 20, 2006)

> Please help, i really need a good guard dog/large dog companion. Im desperate nd dont know what to do.


A lot of prey drive may not mean anything with regards to smaller dogs. Dogs "know" other dogs by their scents. They may chase cats, for instance, but leave other dogs alone.
However, if she's actually dog aggressive (another matter) it may not work.

Why _this _particular dog? Often the 1st dog or most convenient dog to spring up isn't necessarily the dog you should take. 

Pet adoption: Want a dog or cat? Adopt a pet on Petfinder you can search for Shepherds in your area, and choose one who has been living successfully with small dogs.


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## gingerpepper (May 8, 2012)

dogs speak "dog" so they know not to run away like prey, but will turn sideways, or go submissive, the little dog might act tough and growl. just make sure to acquaint them properly so that your chi knows that the gsd will now be a member of the family.


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## Ayla (Oct 11, 2012)

I would say to foster her for a little bit to see how they get along. I have a chihuahua who is 9lbs, he is only 3.5 years and is a grumpy old fart with Keira but she doesn't care at all what he does... Though she doesn't seem to have a high prey drive, the best option is to see how they interact for a few days to a week. Others may have better advice...


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## JeanKBBMMMAAN (May 11, 2005)

Old thread. Go back and read the original poster's other posts. 

Outcome:

http://www.germanshepherds.com/foru...our-year-old-female-adoption.html#post2549579

Did not get this dog from this thread.


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