I need Advice - Page 1

Hi. I have my first German Shepherd, a female named Addie.  She will be a year old at the end of March.



She's gone through basic obedience and she listens pretty well.  I really want to get involved with something with her, but I don't know what or how to do so.  I don't know if she would be good at schutzhund and I don't really know of anything else to do.  I really want to get her around other dogs more often also.

AND...
I've been thinking about her diet.  Right now I have her on Eukanuba, but I've been wondering about other brands or even a raw diet. 

Thanks.

as far as the food goes, if the dog is doing fine on his current food, no need to change and take unnecessary advice. Don;t get fashionable about the food. stick to what works for your dog


regards

First off, if you are interested in finding out if she's suitable for Schutzhund take a look at the USA or WDA websites to see if there are clubs in your area.  You can visit the club to see if 1) it's something you want to do and 2) if she's suitable for the work.  Schutzhund is great fun, but it does take a big committment on the handler's part.  You are talking about 3 different things to train in.  And if you haven't had any experience, some of which are hard to do on your own at first.  

There are soooo many other things you can do with her as well, that are quite enjoyable.  Agility, Obedience, Rally, Herding, Tracking, Flyball.....


If I had the time, I'd really like to get back into agility.  It's great fun, and usually pretty easy to find.   But being involved seriously with two things at the moment is enough.    Schutzhund and Herding.....

As far as the food goes.  You will get many many opinions on what food to feed.   I personally feed Taste of the Wild and my guys do well on it.  Prior to feed Taste of the Wild, I did feed Eukanuba Performance and they did well on that as well.   I also used to feed raw, and would like to get back to it at some point.  

Hope this helps....

Kathy

I don't know anything about your bitch's type/level of drive, so Schutzhund as we know it may be beyond her demeanor-can't say. But, certain Schutzhund-related exercises would be good for her, even if she is only achieves a BH certificate. That is still a good achievement for any dog to have.

Perhaps agility is something she may be suited for? Many GSD's do quite well in this sport in spite of their physical size. The problem with the training of any qualified dog is the time that the owner can give, plus the availability of such exercises for any given geographic area. The A.K.C. does offer obedience titles, and there is the Canine Good Citizen certification.

So, if she has some drive and a decent disposition and temperament, she will excel at anything she really enjoys. Remember, unless she is having fun doing whatever you ask her to do, she will not perform to your expectations. You really will not know until you give any of these things a try. And, you need to have fun doing this as well.

Best Regards (and good luck!)
Bob-O

Schutzhund is very challenging but may not be the best thing for a dog that is mainly a family pet due to the degree of discipline and changes one might need to make that often don't mesh well with it living a pet lifestyle. Agility, tracking, obedience - all or any of these three - would be great, depending on your dog's evergy level. Look into non-traditional activities (carting, etc) or things that might involve what you like to do (hiking, biking, swimming...) Look into local dog parks and play groups. Other dog owners might have some interesting feedback on what they do individually or in groups - formal or informal.

Along with some physical activity, some dogs are challeged by doing Pet Therapy. The Delta Society is a good resource. A local group brings Bernese Mountain Dogs to libraries for a session of "Reading to the Dogs" that encourages children to read books. Work like this may require the dog to at least have a CGC obedience title, or some certification.

Thanks for all of the input!