German Shepherds + Kids

[OneSickPsycho]

My aunt and uncle have always had GS's... Max was old when my cousin was born and became very protective of her VERY quickly. He died and they got Saber right before my other cousin was born... That dog would kill anyone or anything that came within 100 yards of the house... but never fucked with the kids.

Much less the dog, more so the owner.

[Smittie61984]

Animal PLanet had a thing about German Shephards and mentioned dogs and kids in "Dogs 101". I can't recall what they said but you can probably go to Animal Planet to find out.

A good friend of mine was attached by her german shephard when she was 12 or so. I'm guessing the dog came first but I'm not too sure.

[RCM78]

We just got our first GSD Caesar. He's 6 months old now and is extremely energetic and nippy. He doesnt bite he just uses his mouth alot when he's excited. Which is all the time.

Our friends have small kids 8 & 5. The 5 year old is scared of caesar but the 8 year old loves him. They also have a three year old rotty that the kids are growing up with. They both love the rotty (so does Caesar). Caesar has never hurt the kids but we watch him carefully around them since he is just a big clumsy pup and anything can happen.

Caesar is first generation in the US. He's from a well bred european working bloodline. His parents were both imported from belgium. His pedigree is full of highly trained schutzhund dogs. His father is the 2006 2007 & 2008 northeastern Champion.

I'm not telling you this to brag. The reason Caesar behaves the way he does is directly related to his bloodline. He's a working dog. He's confident and strong, He's not afraid of anything that I can tell, He has alot of drive, and a strong prey drive. He's also BIG!!! and has alot of growing to do still.

With all that said, Caesar has responded very well to training. The 8 year old can walk him in the park (with lots of distractions like other people and dogs) with no issues. He's under complete control onleash. We'll start the offleash in a few month's.

When you seriously consider buying the dog decide whether you want a working line or a show line. The working line dogs are usually just as I've described Caesar. The show line dogs are less driven, more calm, and sometimes smaller.

I would probably recomend you get the dog first. Let it mature (GSD's take about 2 years to mature) and then have kids. The dog will calm down buy the time he's 3 and will be much less trouble around a baby.

We were lucky. There are a few very reputable breeders in our area. We bought Caesar from
http://www.jagermeistershepherds.com/
Carlos was great to deal with. We explained to him we wanted a family pet and he selected our dog for us. He had two other males at the time that he said were "high maintenance".

Caesar is a fantastic addition to our family. He's pretty well socialized. He gets along with other dogs great, He's not skiddish around motorcycles (He's been to the track three times). He loves us and we love him. He's my new excercise partner. He runs along side my bicycle everyday after work...

[NEW469]

Originally Posted by smileyman

For those with kids getting a new dog I suggest gradual introduction...First slather the children in some form of gravy (depends on the breed) or maybe just rub them down vigorously with bacon or ham, then turn them out into the yard with the new pet. Sometimes it helps to prep your animal by shocking it several times with a taser or maybe chase him with your lawn tractor.

Leave them alone for a few hours and give them time to bond.

After a few of these introductions your kids and your new pet will have fond feelings of each other and lifelong memories to cherish.

[dfowler]

Nee - I haven't been around much since the switch due to the death of a good friend, but I saw this thread and scanned the answers and had to throw my 2cents in.

I was raised with a GS - we were there first, and then got the dog as a puppy. He was the sweetest dog and a pretty big scaredy cat.

After he eventually died 14 years later and I grew up and moved out, I got another rescue GS - he didn't like men much (abused - thus the rescue) but he LOVED kids. Never had a problem.

My mom now has a GS, and she's had him for about 9 years (got him as a puppy). He's been her only "child" at home for the first 4 years. 5 years ago, mom started babysitting a couple days a week for a real good friend, so in this case the dog came first, then the kid. Mom started introducing her slowly to him, and she has never had a problem. He even lets Amiya who is now 5 dress him up - of course, he has that humiliated look on his face the whole time but he is so gentle with her and when they are outside, he stands guard over her like she belongs to him.

Like others have said, each dog is different, but I've never experienced a problem with GS and kids. Someone earlier talked about a puppy being mouthy and nippy, and mom's dog was that way as a puppy, but it was never malicious - it was puppy-hyper. With some training he got over that fairly quickly.

[JARVIS518]

had 2 German Shepherds growing up both great animals and additions to the family
one died of old age
the other loved me so much that she would come and greet me when i got off the bus every day, unfortunatly i was home sick one day and the bus didnt stop, hitting the dog she didnt survive. i was in the 1st grade and was heart broken they really are a great addition to the family and great to have grow up with kids IMO

[neebelung]

Thank you everyone for all the feedback (and the gravy advice )... we've definitely got a lot more homework to do, and a lot of thinking. I agree training a puppy AND a toddler at the same time might be a bit much (for EVERYONE involved ).... Hmmm...........

[RCM78]

If you have the time, pick up "German Shepherds for Dummies". We have several books on the breed and that one seems to cover everything a would be owner needs to know.

[neebelung]

Cool, I'll do that. (as I said, this is something we're probably looking at doing a year or so from now, so the more info I can get my hands on, the better).

[James]

I know you aren't going to adopt from this rescue here in Austin, but there is some really good info to help you determine if a GSD is a good match for you and your family on this page (and others on their site, obviously):


http://www.austingermanshepherdrescu...ion_before.htm