How to Train a German Shepherd to Listen to You

Hello Akinwale, Protection training requires a high level of obedience, socialization, off-leash reliability, trust and respect. Protection training - where the dog is trained to actually bite in a dangerous situation is something that I only recommend a professional with years of experience with such training do - if done wrong by someone less experience you can actually ruin a dog and create terrible aggression instead. Protection dogs are typically trained using drive training - which is like a form of positive reinforcement, where the dog is rewarded with tug of war type bite bag for biting an assistant in a padded body suit who is pretending to attack, not through fear or intimidation to get them to bite. Protection dogs are actually socialized extremely well around people prior to the training so that they are friendly and confident around people when not working, and not spooky or mean. This allows them to tell when someone is acting normal or suspicious - because they understand what normal human behavior looks like, and for the owner to bring the dog places with them safely to protect them instead of being a hazard in public due to aggression. Look for a trainer who understands these things and has a lot of success working with dogs such as Police Dogs and privately trained protection dogs - training protection work. As far as barking, a trainer can help you with this part too, but this is something that can be taught more easily on your own than bite work. To help with this area I would need to know a bit more about what you are wanting to teach. Are you wanting to teach pup to bark at all strangers, strangers who come onto your property, strangers who are acting "suspicious", or just strangers that approach you in general. There are a lot of specifics that you have to decide about when and how often you want pup to bark. The training is then practiced in those locations around people, who are doing those types of things, commanding the dog to "Speak" in those situations, then rewarding pup. After lots of practice you slowly phase the Speak command out and just practice that situation, waiting for pup to bark on their own, then rewarding, giving a Speak command hint if pup doesn't bark after a few seconds (you will need volunteers to help with this part most likely - such as someone to practice walking around your yard suspiciously while you command your dog to "Speak!" and reward him for barking). https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-german-shepherd-to-speak For the heeling, check out the article and video linked below: Heel article - The turns method: https://wagwalking.com/training/train-a-poodle-to-heel Heel Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTiKVc4ZZWo Most German Shepherds are also naturally protective and have a decent defense drive. Generally instinctual aggression like protectiveness will naturally exhibit itself between 1-2 years of age when a dog reaches maturity. Socialization to build confidence and so pup knows what's normal and isn't suspicious of the wrong things, and obedience should be focused on during the first year. You can encourage that defense drive as a puppy through play, with games like flirt pole chasing and tug, with a release command. You may be interested in joining a local Schlutzhund or IPO group once pup is older and has the necessary obedience and socialization training already. You don't want a dog who is unsocialized, fearful, overly suspicious, and a bite liability - those dogs are often euthanized, owners sued, and owner unable to take the dog with them places for protection. You want a highly trained, balanced, well socialized dog, who has been taught intentionally how to recognize danger, alert when someone new is around, and bite and hold on command if necessary, releasing and not biting when told also. That takes training, not avoiding socialization at this age. Best of luck training, Caitlin Crittenden

April 18, 2022