# 2 years old, act like 5 months old. totally immature



## neupane00 (Mar 7, 2010)

Hey, i have had german shepherds before.. Most of them were american show line. I got a working line dog as a puppy, about 2 years ago. He is now 2 years and few months and still act like 5 months old puppy. Is this normal? 

All he wants is play, inside the house, outside .. No protective instincts yet, doesn't lift his leg to pee, no smelling around when i take for walk, no marking his territory.... is this normal for 2 years old? He is intact.


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## Nigel (Jul 10, 2012)

Some are slower to mature than others. I've noticed a huge difference between our two show line females and our WL (Czech), at 15 months he still acts very much like a big puppy.


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## neupane00 (Mar 7, 2010)

Thanks nigel.. i knew it would be slower but didn't know this slow.. he is fun. i am not complaining that. I am just worried if anything is wrong with him , hormones wise that i need to be concerned about.
Anyone else experiencing this slow maturity?


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## PhoenixGuardian (Jul 10, 2013)

My boy is two years okd as well. Most of the time he's great, but other times he reverts to puppyism, where he doesn't want to listen. He seems to go in phases though, where for a week or two he is "feeling his oats" and is all macho and not always as obedient as usual. He's in one of those phases right now -_-...
They'll grow up


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## Angelina03 (Jan 9, 2012)

Acting like a puppy still seems fine. Not lifting his leg or sniffing after two years seems a little too slow to me. But I'm not an expert. You should ask your vet. 


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

What lines is your dog from? It is normal for some lines to be that slow to mature.


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## neupane00 (Mar 7, 2010)

here is the line:

sire: SG Esko vom Klammeck

dam: Kalli van Hildernisse


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## BoTaBe (May 2, 2013)

Same here! 
I don't actually remember when my GSD lifted his leg to pee for the first time but it was some time after we did our BH (we did the BH when he was about 17 months, so I guess he was about 19/20 months when he started). He also acted puppy-like although he was intact.
He did start to lift his leg sometime, but even with his six years now he still seems immature sometimes...


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## martemchik (Nov 23, 2010)

My boy is 3 years old and acts like he's 4 months old so yours sounds old by my standards. I love it though! Couldn't have asked for anything better. My boy does lift his leg to pee though...


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i don't think you have anything to worry about. your dog's
behaviour is normal for him.



neupane00 said:


> Hey, i have had german shepherds before.. Most of them were american show line. I got a working line dog as a puppy, about 2 years ago. He is now 2 years and few months and still act like 5 months old puppy. Is this normal?
> 
> >>>>> All he wants is play, inside the house, outside .. No protective instincts yet, doesn't lift his leg to pee, no smelling around when i take for walk, no marking his territory.... is this normal for 2 years old?<<<<<
> 
> He is intact.


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## llombardo (Dec 11, 2011)

Mine is kinda in the middle. He works when he is suppose to, but he would much rather play. He actually brings out the playfulness in all my other dogs. He has my 9 year old chasing him around the yard. I'm glad he is the way he is, no one in my house has a chance of feeling old


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## Courtney (Feb 12, 2010)

martemchik said:


> My boy is 3 years old and acts like he's 4 months old so yours sounds old by my standards. I love it though! Couldn't have asked for anything better. My boy does lift his leg to pee though...


I agree with this. Russ is 3 and still acts like a pup. I also love it. He listens, is easy to train, alert & watchful.

My dad always said when a dog no longer acts like a pup they become harder to live with. I never asked him exactly what he meant by that.


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## neupane00 (Mar 7, 2010)

I agree and enjoy that he is like a puppy. no complaints there. but i would at least wish he was curious to smell other dogs,act a little matured, distinguish between friends and a random maintenance guy... 
so i was worried if there is something hormonal stuff going on that he is not maturing.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

why do you want him to smell other dogs?

your friends and the maintenance guy don't pose a threat to him.



neupane00 said:


> I agree and enjoy that he is like a puppy. no complaints there. but
> 
> >>>>> i would at least wish he was curious to smell other dogs,<<<<<
> 
> ...


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## neupane00 (Mar 7, 2010)

i dont "want" him.. but since all my other dogs were like that. but seeing him out of the norm (the "norm" that i know of ) i am worried if anything wrong. thats all..


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## Sammycatwoman (Feb 7, 2014)

This sounds just like our boy! He is of czech lines and is almost 2 years old. He hets really excited (like a baby puppy) when my daughters come home (sometimes he pees), has a very low attention span and never lifts his leg. I'm planning on taking him to the vet on his 2nd birthday to just make sure there is no underlying medical issue. He is neutered and he is a great companion. I can see the wheels turning in his head, but he has trouble focusing on a task (like sit and stay), unless I remind him repeatedly what he's supposed to be doing. He's more than willing to do it, he just needs reminders. One of my daughters trained show dogs for many years and has only ever seen one other dog that behaves like he does and that was a Great Dane (again very sweet and willing, but a little slow). Any advice on how to get him to calm down and focus better would be greatly appreciated.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

Mine still has not matured in many ways. He always lifts his leg but does not usually mark trees unless he is covering up another dog's pee. 

When he is working he is very focus but the rest of the time is still behaving in puppy ways. He is half czech half west german working


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## LoveEcho (Mar 4, 2011)

My guy is three and is still very puppy-like in a lot of ways. As jocoyn said, he's focused during work (usually), but at other times has a hard time with impulse control, etc. 

He still squats to pee


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## Eiros (Jun 30, 2011)

My WL pup as a kid seemed to "mature" overnight at around 5 years old. 

I've heard WL dogs mature more slowly, and I definitely see this in my dog. Although only 9.5 months old, he LOOKS a lot more immature than the other German shepherds we know... many of them are only around 6 months and are bulkier than he is, with a more mature-looking face. The other WL puppy I know is around 6 months as well, and is much more immature looking than they are in every way. This might not be the experience of everyone, but it's been mine so far!


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## Jelpy (Nov 8, 2009)

Lycan isn't all that mature behaving. Partly, I think, because he's blind and can't 'see' how other dogs act and behave. Partly because he's just a big goof. Hey, not every GSD can be Rin Tin Tin. Lycan will probably act like a baby until his last moment and I'll enjoy every day of his big, klutzy, puppy like behavior. 

Jelpy


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## David Taggart (Nov 25, 2012)

> All he wants is play, inside the house, outside .. No protective instincts yet,


I think you have a very good sports dog!!! Does he chase a ball like mad? Playfulness is the best indicator that your dog has a high prey drive. Schutzhund dogs attack the decoy not because they are agressive, but because they are *passionate*. "Protection" is only a word in Schutzhund sport, in fact, the best of the dogs are only hunting a "big and dangerous bull" (decoy) and know that everyhing is a game, and seriously protective and agressive are disqualified. Don't hesitate and join the club, your dog needs to be busy. Otherwise... "Devil finds job for idle teeth" - we had it written in our Schutzhund club on the board. Though, it is too late to train for wining titles.
If your dog doesn't pee like an adult, it means that his hormonal flow is low. If you know, we are not exactly men or women, both types of hormons flow in our blood, somebody is more of a man/woman than the other. Similar situation is with the dogs, some of them are chasing females at 6 months already, and some highly valued young stud dogs have to be "helped" with mating. You must be happy with the fact that your dog is low, he might never run away from you. But, beware, he is a male, and he could be attacked as a male. If he doesn't exhibit enough of agressiveness, he could be badly bitten for nothing even by much smaller dog. You can help him by feeding him sometimes fresh raw beef testicles and raw beef bone marrow with pumpkin. Many seeds help to improve situation - crushed apple or pear seeds, for instance.


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## Harry and Lola (Oct 26, 2013)

From my experience males don't mature until around 4yo. At 2, he is still a boy at heart. My male is 3yo and still pees like a girl and doesn't mark, he was desexed quite early.


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## Billy Boy (Jul 23, 2020)

neupane00 said:


> Thanks nigel.. i knew it would be slower but didn't know this slow.. he is fun. i am not complaining that. I am just worried if anything is wrong with him , hormones wise that i need to be concerned about.
> Anyone else experiencing this slow maturity?


I have a GSD showline his 4 years old still barks like a puppy acts like a kid although he marks his territory extremely friendly and life is just one big game to him , he doesn't asses if the other dogs don't want to be played with he would run up to a generally aggressive dog without any concern .


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## dogma13 (Mar 8, 2014)

6 yr old thread


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