is there a certain age when a gsd starts being more protective?

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by ilovemypoodlefluffy on 20 December 2009 - 12:12

well my girl spunky aka zippy vom haus miller is a wonderful dog, smart, obedient, good with other pets, beautiful, and loyal. she will be 3 years old in february and is a joy in so many ways. she is i think, the mellowest gsd i have ever known. i mean i wanted a dog good with people but sometimes i wish she wasn't so good. nenz was 4 when i got him and he immediately guarded the house and yard. she barks a little bit when cars pull up sometimes if she is out on a chain (which is like 3 or 4 times in the summer with me sitting outside with her) but not much. the other night we were out walking and some guy came charging down the sidewalk towards us. i got freaked and moved to the side and turned so i was facing him. as he ran past, i looked at spunky, and she just stood there looking stupid while fluffy whirled around, growled, barked, and lunged after him. if i did not have her on leash, fluffy would have taken off after him. i was annoyed at spunky and i told her so. a few blocks later we saw a different person coming towards us on the street and fluffy noticed him way before spunky did. finally spunky looked at fluffy and then in that direction. spunky's head and tail went up, and when fluffy started barking then spunky did too, and kept looking at me like checking to see that i noticed.....anyway i am really puzzled as to why my standard poodle is on guard so much and my gsd isn't......are some gsds just not ever meant to be watchdogs or do you think she may change as she gets older? just wondering. my ex claims dogs change after they turn 4.

by GSDalways on 20 December 2009 - 13:12

My personal take on it from observing my dogs over the years is that protectiveness is something which a dog already has in their make up. However, it depends on the dog, it's temperament and what it perceives as a threat and it's status in the pack. Just because Spunky didn't bark doesn't mean that she wouldn't be protective if the situation arose. She obviously didn't perceive that the encounters you had were a threat.

I owned a fantastic GSD called Max.(He passed away a few years ago at nearly 13yrs old bless him) Max loved people and was very social and never barked at people. But that didn't mean he wasn't protective. The one evening when we were out walking, a man started following me. Max knew straight away that there was something amiss and kept looking back and trying to slow down. I slowed down hoping that this person would overtake me, however the man also slowed down and still kept following. At this point I knew that I was definitely being followed. I turned around to change direction and Max and I were facing this person directly and Max went absolutely ballistic, bouncing on the spot, teeth bared, hackles up looking quite formidable. I said to the person, you had best hurry past as he is really strong and I don't think I will be able to hold him much longer. (Obviously this wasn't the case) But it was enough to make this person think twice and to move on.

So in a nutshell, my views are any dog will protect if they have a good bond with their owner and they feel that something is a true threat, it's not something you need to train them to do, as it's inbuilt. Also, I don't really think age is a factor either.( Max was around 15 months old at the time). I hope this helps some. x

by mking on 20 December 2009 - 15:12

bump

by beetree on 20 December 2009 - 15:12

i think around age three is, something I am seeing now in my showline. He is still a lover of people, but if you are a stranger who does a strange thing, let's just say he has indeed discovered his "Big Boy Bark".

by ATARTHS on 20 December 2009 - 15:12

This is a good question,
the true answer behind it is a bit sad though. Strong guard and protection qualities in our breed is a big issue these days.
It's part of what we call correct temperament in a dog. This is what all breeders worldwide need to work on improving.
Protection drive in our dogs vary to a great extend. Working lines suffer less from week character, show lines more. In show lines there are exceptionally strong lines in protection BUT you need to find good breeding pairs that produce these kind of qualities. And believe me this is hard. Breeders tend to keep the best of their produce hence the real GSD lover, the owner of one or two dogs , always get somewhat lesser quality stock. Now back to your question, normally the guard instict kicks in as early as the age of 12 weeks onwards. This becomes stronger as they grow up , especially if they have the good example of a strong adult dog around. I had a litter of five once, from one of my strongest (in protection) females, where all five pups turned out to be super strong and fearless, and this showed from their 8th week!!!
Other litters you can spot which puppy will be strong and dominant and which is not. These five puppies observed their mother guarding her area fanatically, and in combination with their genetic make up their character was set from their litter box.
That is why we need to be careful with what we buy from breeders.
I would never expect a week dog to turn protective at some stage in their adult life. This is never going to happen. Puppies just like humans , bring their character qualities with them. Their up-bringing does influence them to a degree but if a puppy is submisive and week in character chances are it will never be strong as an adult.
My strongest dogs are never good to people, they are just indifferent to them when they are with us in the house. What I am trying to say is they dont bite people with no good reason nor do they mind being touched by our friends and other people coming here. They are only good and seek attention to our family ONLY. Not the same with our weeker dogs. They seek attention from everybody and they hardly care if someone is at the gate or not.
So I wish your poodle is big enough to be a good detterrent to unwanted guests!!!!

by Nans gsd on 20 December 2009 - 16:12

I feel if you have a specific job you want your dog to do for you that you need to get some type of specialty training; whether it may be personal protection, obedience, or just plain companion work, there is a right way to teach this and of course a wrong way. If left unattended to or untrained they can do things on their own that you may not want; or if you give the command to attack or bite someone they may not do it at this moment of need.

PS I have learned this the hard way; did not teach my boy a growl, bite, command and he now does what he wants, when he wants which is not necessarily what I want him to do. He did show protective qualities at 9 weeks and has continued his whold life (he is now 7 years old) but I recently tried to teach him to bark on command and he WILL NOT DO IT. So, I think and feel you are better off getting some formal training to be able to totally control the situation at all times. They need to either bark, bite warn or what ever when they are asked to do so.

by hodie on 20 December 2009 - 17:12

The OP, some time ago, posted about her then dog who was out of control and many of the old timers here posted repeatedly trying to help her. Unfortunately, most of what was suggested fell on deaf ears and was too late anyway. So my strong recommendation is that she socialize the present dog rather than wait. And I would also strongly suggest she get training assistance because she does not have the experience to do it alone. Most importantly, this dog should NOT be given protection training, whatever that means to the owner.

Nan gsd has it correct. If clear limits are not set and one does not do what one should when the dog is young, trouble brews. All too often that trouble turns into yet another dog bite scenario where the breed, as a whole, is blamed for incompetent or no training.

by Two Moons on 20 December 2009 - 18:12

Agreed.

As for the question,
There is no definitive answer.

Each dog in its own situation will develop differently.
Training, environment, sex, and bloodlines all play a role in how a given pup will mature, and what behavior's it will exhibit.

Moons.

by shepherdpal on 20 December 2009 - 18:12

I have never trained any of the four my GSD's I have owned to be protective. but all, except one, were to different degrees natually protective.. My first was very protective of me. I remember when I was 18 and with my boyfriend in the back yard. King thought the boy got too close and lunged a him. The boy jumped into the unheated pool in the dead of winter! Another GSD who was usually great with my husband, but one night my husband came in from the garage wearing thick gardening gloves and the dog immediately got between me and my husband, began growling at him. As soon as DH took the gloves off and talks to him all was well. My non protective GSD was a lover of people but fearful of loud nioses. He would look to me for protection when DH used the welder or is there was a loud thunder storm..

My current boy Benedict is only 8 months and very well socialized. He has begun running to the door barking when someone comes. He is good with most people but will hackle and occasionally growl if someone approached me strangely or he sees something he percieves as a threat.. Today he tried to protect us by taking out a paper bag blowing in the wind

A8 8 months I am not sure of he is trying to protect me or himself, I think a bit of both,
!

by Bhaugh on 20 December 2009 - 18:12

I have found over the years that in a pack of dogs and I have had up to ten together, alpha will bark and maybe one other but the others will not. And Ive seen dogs farther down in the pack be disciplined for barking out of turn. Maybe your gal is happy in her role in the pack and doesn't feel the need to bark. But dont underestimate that if you felt really threatened, she wouldn't respond. Ive worked with alot of so called "happy go lucky dogs" labs, goldens, etc and if they sense someone who is not quite right, they will respond. She will protect her pack. That is her nature even if she might be a bit wimpy.

I run at night and am always on the watch for weirdos. Someone came up from behind me the other night and Remus looked behind a couple of times before the guy went past us. I know that you would want the dog to react. But the truth is most people respond to just you having your dog because they have no idea if your dog will bite them or not. And remember its your demeanor that sets the tone. What your thinking and feeling is what is transferred down the leash. If you want more confidence from your dog then you can play games with her that will build her confidence. Make sure she always wins and do not include the poodle. Tug is one that will help to build confidence.

Be confiedent yourself and it will reflect to her.

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