May 19, 2011
I have a puppy who seems to be a soft pup, can it do Schutzhund work?
Full Question:
Mr. Frawley,I have a raised and sold a litter of nine working German Shepherd puppies. I feel eight of the puppies had good temperaments. They were what I would call pretty HARD. They are not sensitive to correction and come back at you when you correct them or play rough with them.
One pup is very sensitive. She has the most INTENSE prey drive and also is VERY food driven. However, she is very sensitive and will respond to a sharp "NO" or a quick shake on the scruff (this is an intense correction for her).
She is not shaken at all by the gun test and like I said she loves to fetch and tug.
Given that she is so sensitive to correction, will she be able to compete in Schutzhund? Have you had experience with this type of temperament? I have not bred a puppy like this before, all my pups are normally "thicker skinned" and I want to know if she is "weak nerve" or simply "soft."
Carol
Cindy's Answer:
You are making the mistake of confusing a "soft temperament" with "weak nerve."
These are two totally different and unrelated issues. Many people make this mistake so don't feel bad.
It is 100% possible for a dog to have a soft temperament and still be environmentally sound and a good working dog. The softer dog is actually easier to train, as long as the handler is a good handler who has a feel for working with dogs. These dogs usually do require more praise.
I had a friend who had a soft temperament police dog that worked it's entire life in major cities, this dog had over 400 street bites by the end of his career.
These are two totally different and unrelated issues. Many people make this mistake so don't feel bad.
It is 100% possible for a dog to have a soft temperament and still be environmentally sound and a good working dog. The softer dog is actually easier to train, as long as the handler is a good handler who has a feel for working with dogs. These dogs usually do require more praise.
I had a friend who had a soft temperament police dog that worked it's entire life in major cities, this dog had over 400 street bites by the end of his career.
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