Watchful Warriors (German Shepherd)

Member Name: Plumptious

Product:	German Shepherd
Date:	08/05/01 (5688 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Highly intelligent

Disadvantages: Too intelligent?

German Shepherds are from Alsa, hence their alternative name of Alsations. They were bred to help shepherds in their work.


They are a very intelligent breed and I would probably not recommend them for the first time dog owner. This is a dog that is continually thinking, and will do its level best to get its own way. If they ever get a dog to play chess, there is a very good chance that it will be an alsation.

Because of its intellectual capacity, it's a breed that's easily bored. I would advise against owning one unless you have the time to ensure that it's mentally stimulated.

Left to itself for long periods of time, the dog will get bored in the same way a human would. I know of a lady who tethered her dog on a long leash when she went out to work for the day. Before long, the dog had chewed through the concrete of the garage, down to the steel reinforcements.

This is not unusual. They appreciate being given doggy chews such as rawhide, and in the absence of one, and faced with nothing to do, the obvious solution to their doggy minds is to set to the next best chewable object around. Concrete is nice and solid.

It's a dog with a rather serious type of personality. Very businesslike. Its task is to protect its pack.


This protection involves constantly patrolling its territory and treating strangers with suspicion. They will instinctively bark at strangers. This is a very desirable trait in a guard dog.

On the other hand, it's also very noisy. I would recommend that a new alsation should not be berated for barking, but be taught to cease barking at your command. Extend praise when it is silent.
This way, you get a dog who is not cowed into not barking when unwelcome visitors arrive.


I would not describe them as the friendliest of breeds. Don't get me wrong, they are make wonderful companions and will extend enthusiastic welcomes when you
return from work. It's just that compared to some other breeds, they will seem more aloof, concentrating instead on constant surveillance.


For instance, my dog would nearly always be amongst the first on the scene of anything new happening. The incident would be observed, new objects sniffed. If there was nothing that could be identified as a threat, he would be off again, patrolling the house. Idle curiosity was a waste of time in his book.


As a puppy, I would let him accompany me into the kitchen. All objects would be gravely examined. There were floor level shelves holding various things such as packets of cat food, and he soon learnt that they were to be left alone. What was not out of bounds was a shelf full of empty boxes ready for recycling.
Sometimes, whilst working in the kitchen, I would be treated to the sight of him trotting in, looking over the various boxes, and then trotting out again, selected box in his mouth.


I remember laying out various materials, ready for a spot of painting. Buzz appeared and began the obligatory inspection. Before I knew it, he had the brush in his mouth and was strolling away, ready to examine it at his leisure on his cushion.
He was really disgusted when I called him back for the brush.


Pictures of Alsations at the turn of the 20th century show fairly thin dogs, possibly smaller than the dogs we see around today. Breeding programmes have produced a larger, more majestic looking dog.
The most popular type is the short haired black and tan stereotype. My dog was long haired, predominantly black with a touch of tan.
As a puppy, he was just a furry bundle who looked for all the world like a large fuzzy bumble bee. There was nothing for it. He was christened Buzz.

The most disconcerting thing about an alsation pup is his ears. They start off floppy.
Then one day, they begin to perk up. But not necessarily both ears at the same
time or even at the same rate.

Take lots of pictures of your pup at this point. The ear poses can very dramatically from day to day. And they are nearly all funny.
Sometimes, they make the pup look as though he has just had a singularly disastrous trip to the hairdresser's.

Don't worry about it. Except in very rare cases, the ears will eventually settle, and usually well before the pup is a year old.


The main congenital defect associated with alsations are heart problems. I believe that that is what eventually killed Buzz.

If you're buying a pure bred alsation, I would suggest that asking to see older siblings would be a very reasonable precaution. If you can meet up with these older dogs, check them for temperament.



The breed has had a bit of a bad press. My own experience with them is that they're very stubborn, but not vicious dogs.

My grandparents had two tan and black alsations who patrolled the land around their house. The only burglary took place when the dogs were locked up.
They barked the place down, but only managed to elicit increasingly annoyed exhortations to shut up from their owners. The burglars got away, and everyone was very embarrassed about their treatment of the dogs when the burglary was discovered the next day.


One of the litters produced from this was completely creamy white. They were not albinos, as their eyes weren't pink. One puppy was kept, and soon joined his parents in patrolling the grounds.

I was one of nine grandchildren, and we played happily around the dogs for many years. Most of us lived in different towns, and only saw the dogs for big family gatherings twice a year, so they weren't overly familiar with us. Added to that were the children of visitors and hired help, who lived in a couple of houses behind the main house.
There were never any problems with aggression from these dogs, altho
ugh there would have been lots of opportunities for them to be so.

I have read some really upsetting opinions on this site about alsations, but would like to point to my own experience, and say that they're not all bad.


~~~ Update 4.6.01 ~~~

I was once on the receiving end of an attack by an alsation. Fortunately, my two little mongrels saw it off.

I generally blame such behaviour on the owners. This is a breed which has been bred to be territorial and defensive of that territory. As such, care should be taken to show the dog what constitutes its territory and what is acceptable behaviour in public places.

The best way to do this is for the owner to establish themselves as "top dog". This way, the alsation will readily take its cue from the owner as to who is friend or foe.


There are exceptions to this, as breeders will, according to fashion, breed dogs for agression or as family pets. This results in some extremely agressive dogs whom you will find more difficult to dominate and train.

Even so, there is no excuse for an attack in a public space by such a dog. The owner should know of its tendencies well before it is of a size to do any damage, and tether it accordingly when walking it.

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