The best way to raise a healthy,well trained German Shepherd with good hips and health!
- As with any large breed,an oversized bred German Shepherd are fast growing puppies,they need "Free Will" movement. Exercise at will ! Muscle development is very important for bones and joints to properly develop good hips.. . This means to us a puppy NOT being in a crate as a daily or nightly routine. Prefer not in a crate at all. Save the crate for traveling purposes only. Crating a large breed puppy on a daily basis or nightly basis can effect the joints as "this is an unnatural routine". Sitting and laying in the same position over and over. They need a large area they can move around and play in.. Movement is all part of what a puppy needs and play is what all puppies crave. Walking a puppy in a park once or twice a day is not enough. "Continued free will" movement is.. A puppy with another dog to play with,or lots of toys and a large area to be in is sufficient. Young puppies with these pleasures will get enough exercise. .As they grow bigger, they will need even more exercise. If you work long hrs. A puppy is better off in a large kennel , fenced in yard outdoors than in a crate they can barely move around in. Yes, a crate is the fastest way to house break any dog, but don't set yourself up for problems, figure out another method of house breaking, We can help you with suggestions on this depending on your situation. They will need all the attention and love that you can give! Over exertion is not good for their joints, let them be a puppy, let them be a dog. They will exercise just the right amount. They need to play and be able to play when they want. This is nature`s way and it is important they can do this! German Shepherd puppies grow fast, they can not develop enough muscle tone or good hip joints if they are in a crate on a daily basis! I can not stress this enough! Please read the following link on why we can not rely only on breeders breeding OFA certified canines to prevent hip dysplasia in the offspring: Read mid way down this article passed the risks of X-rays. X-Ray Risks Shielded
OTHERS OPINIONS similar to mine,
Do not do any type of agility programs with your puppy until at least one yr. of age, and at this point it should only be an introduction for going into the second year, a German Shepherd puppy is still not fully mature. The repetition of agility is stressful on maturing joints "hips".( Its not a natural way of going). Their bones are not completely calcified until two yrs. of age.! Please keep this in mind. A one yr. old pup may look like a mature dog, but are very much still a pup. This includes daily or nightly crating a pup, is an over and over routine, not natural to a growing puppy ,being forced to sit and lay probably in the same position over and over , not only prevents good muscle tone, but is also an unnatural routine on the joints and hips. Their hips are molding and shaping at a young age. That is two strikes against the crate! Once your pup has fully matured at 3yrs. of age, he is ready to take on everything and agility will be at the up most performance!
We really like to encourage a lot of outdoors for your pup, They love it!! And did I mention it is good for joint development? "Sunshine", fresh air, grass and nature. Puppies find them selves intrigued and entertained! Take short walks, making a habit of playing a lot outdoors, this helps them mature into a sound mind and body. Importance of Sunshine! Take them on walks "off leash" when you can, a dog with lots of exercise is also easier to train, because they are not all bound up with energy that needs released. Give them "their" time off leash. German shepherds are high energy, working dogs, give them the outdoors and this will make a much calmer easier dog to manage indoors.Another good point to that is, they wont be tearing up your house! A toy breed gets enough exercise inside, but these guys , are large to giant size need much more room. Fence in your yard. This is all tips for puppy buyers to think on for a success on raising a happy,well developed,and easy to train German Shepherd Dog. Pay attention to your puppy and they will show you when they are ready to rest or ready to play. A good friend of mine told me, "if you need to trim your dog`s toe nails, they are not getting enough outdoor exercise" Good point to think about.
Please be aware the first weeks home with your German Shepherd puppy they are not aware of heights. This is something they will learn quickly in a short period of time, but for a while, you will need to protect them from falling off porches,beds, into swimming pools (drowning). The wrong type of fall can cause life long injury to a pup`s joints. Such as unilateral hip dysplasia. Not all hip dysplasia is genetic, many factors come into play. I believe the genetic part of hip dysplasia is they are a German Shepherd (large breed dog) We x-ray and OFA certify our breeding dogs of course ,but it is only part of preventions, exercise and nutrition all play a very important part in having a healthy strong pup mature to be sound in mind and body ,the awesome dog we all want!! Here is a list of some very good articles on hip dysplasia, unilateral hip dysplasia, and the importance of exercise. Exercise is all part of a puppy developing properly .A must read if raising a large breed puppy. Prevention starts with the Breeder and continues to the Owner!
- Training (basic obedience) and socializing a lot is very important for at least the first year of your puppy`s life . It will assure him to mentally mature to his fullest,and he will be a pleasure for everyone to be around. Socializing and training will also give your dog confidence and a meaning to his life. Please "Pause and Think" about weather you can provide all this for a German Shepherd puppy before deciding on bringing one into your family.
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A daily canine supplement we recommend is NuVet. A natural proprietary blend,it does provide Ester C and lots of other good stuff, too much to mention. Click on the logo to visit their information! Remember to use order code 46363
Now this is a Biggy, you will have to make the decision for yourself and your puppy, be it against your vets advice. "Does spay or neuturing effect your dogs health, we are being told is genetic?!
I think so! We have been breeding for too long not to see there is alot of truth in this. This could be one reason why all the dogs we have raised has good hips and good longlife health. Please watch the whole video made by a Vet.
Update on spaying and neuturing scroll down!
