Be nice guys cause I am a cherry at this. My female 4 year old GSD seems to be a sharp dog. She is a trained PPD dog, so being a little sharp does not bother me. The question I have is that she sometimes hackles up if the doorbell rings, or someone walks by the house and she sees them.From what i have read on this site this is fear, but she does not act scared if someone comes to the door, she wants to be the first to greet them. Do all sharp dogs act this way, or is my dog just nuts?

This is a good question guys! What gives! I'm waiting for an answer as well! My dog does the same thing so I am wondering myself. He comes out strong and hackled waiting for the kill when that doorbell rings, he don't look scared to me at all. I tried a bite at the door and he hit that sleeve way harder then when we are doing prey as soon as my wife opened the door and sent him. So I know it's not a fear issue, is he just showing off his silky coat?

Eric,

Welcome aboard. Sharp dogs normally have weak nerves. Your description is not suprising. If the dog is truly a "sharp" dog he will be a good watchdog because he is an alarm barker and will put on quite a show but would likely not protect you in a real confrontation. Look under the training article section and you will find Ed's article on sharp, hard and soft dogs.

Thanks for the welcome. I have read here before that sharp dogs are a little weak and fearful. The thing is I have actually seen this dog get a real bite. I guess that I am a little confused about the whole sharp weak nerved thing. Would a weak nerved dog be anxious to confront someone. I mean I literally have to call this dog off of people. I would understand it if it only happened in my home, but if I am walking her and she sees someone walking toward us she starts what I call huffing, not really barking but just kind of woofing.She does not act scared when this happens, nor does she act like she is gonna eat them alive like I would think some weak nerved dogs would act, trying to put on a show of what a bad dog they are.She seems pretty calm about the whole thing, except that sometimes she hackles.

As best I can assess it from the printed word, the dog is putting on a display (a bluff, if you will) to warn others that she's a bad a** and keep clear. There's some sharpness there - the reading of a potential threat where there really isn't any threat yet. So she's in conflict - she has some anxiety about people approaching her or her territory, but she has enough aggression to allow her to come forward to meet the (imagined) threat. Dogs aren't black and white any more than people are; they can have many emotions at the same time. The hackles and woofing are nervousness; the willingness to come forward shows some confidence or aggression (depending on her behavior).

I think the reference to any degreee of sharpness as being fearful is a little extreme. Absolutley in concurence with the idea that sharpness is a result of less than rock solid nerves, however, there are many shades of gray here. Hackling is the physical manifestation of several different emotions; fear, insecurity and confusion / conflict being just a few. A dog that is ultra stable in nerve base is also very difficult to work because the defensive drive is hard to bring to the surface.

Trooper,

When you mention varying degrees of sharpness then yes I agree, to make a blanket statement would not be correct. Varying degrees of sharpness would equal varying degrees of weak nerves. I was speaking more generally. Good point.

Nerves Vs Sharpness. I am not touching this one with a 10 foot pole! LOL for all you old timers. The last time I tried to explain the relationship between the two Kevin's remark was and I quote:

"NONONONONONONONO!!!!!!!!!!"

He went on to say "Sharpness has nothing to do with nerves. Nerve strength is different than sharpness although many dogs with weak nerves appear sharp due to low thresholds to things like survival behaviors (fight or flight behaviors). Sharpness is not sharp-shy.
A dog with good nerves and high fight drive can be sharp. A dog that is highly protective of its handler can be sharp. Please.... do not confuse piss poor temperment as being sharp. Low thresholds to some behaviors does not mean weak nerves. Low thresholds to survival behaviors, environmental insecurities, and rank behaviors are undesireable characteristics to name a few. You can equate them with weak nerves. A low threshold to combat behaviors is not weak nerves. Do not confuse combat behaviors with survival behaviors and environmental insecurities."

One of the best posts ever writen on the board!

Oh yeah.....I remember that Vince!

Hey Vince buddy, ya think you can jump in a little quicker next time and stop me from sounding silly?!LOL <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

I think it all comes down to this....When you paint with a broad brush you end up on shakey ground. Can be a confusing subject I suppose.

Is this about the most confusing thing or what?I think that I have read every article I could get my hands on about this topic, and I am still in the dark. Thanks for all the help, I appreciate it.