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What qualities would you look for in a friend? You would hope they would stick by your side through good times and bad. You pray that they will never betray your secrets. You wish that they would help you out when you needed help. You can find all of these qualities in a German Shepherd dog. And, as added benefit, they won’t sue you, either.

German Shepherd dogs do, indeed, live up to the fictional resume of Rin Tin Tin. They are noble, loyal, brave, friendly and eager to please. Yes, you read that right — they are incredibly friendly. However, because they are so eager to please their people that they will quickly learn to attack if that is what their people want. At one point a few decades ago, German Shepherds were as feared as Pit Bulls are today.

German Shepherds are indeed powerful dogs that can take quite a large chunk out of you - when they are given the command to. They will also attack if they think anyone in their family is being threatened. There are some German Shepherds that, in the presence of an intruder, will run and hide rather than attack, but they don’t get much press. They have to be trained to attack before they would ever attack another human being.

German Shepherds excel when given specific jobs to do. This is why they are often one of the first breeds of choice for police dogs, search and rescue dogs, assistance dogs and for working in entertainment. Throughout the centuries, they have also played the roles of sheepherders and draft animals as well as their more familiar roles as guard dogs and military dogs.

When reminded that she shouldn’t have let the son teach this trick to the dog, she wailed, “He’s 37!” Patient and persistent retraining are the only ways to get a German Shepherd to give up a bad habit.

German Shepherds will still want to be your friend even if you are having a bad day. German Shepherds will still want to be by your side even if you are homeless and spat upon by other people.

German Shepherds are prone to some health problems, more so than some other breeds, most notably hip dysplasia. These can be costly to cure - but they can be cured. When you take on a German Shepherd, you must be willing to care for vet expenses.

This is not often talked about in German Shepherd information available from the AKC. The price of a German Shepherd’s companionship should never be measured in terms of money. The German Shepherd dog, if the situation was reversed, would spend every last penny to make sure you were out of pain.

Tags: Dogs

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