Correct way to approach a GSD?

[codmaster]

BTW, if you ever want to see how NOT to approach a dog - go and see a GOOD Sch decoy at work! They can act very suspicious, enought o get a GSD all excited and protective looking.

Some people almost seem to mimic their actions when they approach a dog. no wonder the dog sometimes reacts.

But I really recommend seeing a good Sch decoy/helper at work. Very enlightening of what NOT to do when you are approaching a strange dog.

[mjbgsd]

Never bend over a dog that doesn't know you-common sense that some don't have...

And it seems a lot of people, especially the guys around here who always seem to approach like this... Akbar does not like it when people do that. For some reason, he is like a stranger magnet, it seems like everybody feels the need to pet him and then get all huffy puffy when I say no as he's not a stranger loving dog, they mean nothing to him. He's fine with most people giving him a pat on the back and then that's it. Anymore then that and he walks away. I kind of like the aloof nature but I still like Isa's joyness towards strangers. I've noticed though that if people are afraid of him or have no idea how to approach a dog, he wants nothing to with that person.

Isa on the other hand, you can do just about anything with her. Kids especially love her because she's like a "plushie" toy, so soft a lot of kids say, lol. The only thing she is a little uncomfortable with is major hugging by adults. Meaning if you "strangle" hug her by clinging to her neck and not letting go, if a kid does that though, she just sits there.

Cody just wants nothing to do with strangers completely. Unless he knows you, he'd rather not be pet up by a stranger.

There are a lot of people who approach my dogs wrong so I have to instuct them on the proper way or if the person looks sketchy I say no.

[Trina]

We always had the opposite problem with Klaus--he was the one always approaching people we didn't know, nosing them for attention. I would fuss at my husband about not allowing him to do that because not everyone likes dogs or they don't like being approached by a dog they don't know, or maybe they just don't want dog hair and slobber on the backside of the pants.

[MyboyTank]

So far, Id have to agree that approaching a GSD shouldnt be a stressful thing if they are properly socialized and do not show aggression. Even Tank who has come from a bad situation very recently is doing just fine with being approached by other people. I still have some training to do with him so that he wont jump up and try to lick in the face but he doesnt ever have a negitive reaction to being approached. I think that GSDs get a bad rep by passers-by because there are so many owners that dont care to teach the GSD the proper way to greet others and so strangers see GSDs as dangerous, which is too bad. Even I who have only had a little previous experience with GSDs before Tank, can say in all honesty that just because an untrained GSD is hyper and doesnt know how to greet others that doesnt mean that you should be overly cautious. I never let people greet my dogs unless (1) the dog is sitting down and (2) unless the person asks for my permission first so I can ready the dogs to greet and be greeted first so they wont scare someone by jumping or being too noisy. If you make too big a deal of people approaching you then people will automatically assume your dog is mean so just be prepared to stop someone from running at your GSD, and ask them to give you a second while you have your pooch sit down and that tell them that once the dog sits down you will let them come introduce themselves calmly and pat the dog.

[debbiebrown]

i don't think you can entirely blame this on improper socialization, some dogs even though they have been properly socialized, exposed, in training classes etc..........still have issues with being approached by people.......this i would blame purely on genetics................it is what it is................

[cassadee7]

Whenever I walk my dog (nonGSD) people are always just coming up and petting him, or worse, mine is on a leash and theirs is not and their dogs come racing up running around my dog and sniffing him and he does not like it.

How do you handle people like this? When someone is just coming right over to pet your dog and you KNOW your dog doesn't like it, what do you do/say? I have said to dog owners when their dog is approaching mine, "He bites" but they laugh because he is small and ignore me and allow their dogs to run up and torment my dog. How do you handle people?

[codmaster]

Originally Posted by debbiebrown

i don't think you can entirely blame this on improper socialization, some dogs even though they have been properly socialized, exposed, in training classes etc..........still have issues with being approached by people.......this i would blame purely on genetics................it is what it is................

If it is genetics that makes a GSD unapproachable, then that dog should never be bred!

I would suspect that for most dogs it is socialization and training but there are proabablya few who would be friendly no matter how they are raised (within reason) and a very few who would be aggresive/fearful no matter the socialization they had.

[codmaster]

Our dog, Baron (a 2 1/3 yo male GSD) generally likes people and will pull to go see them while out walking or visiting in a dog friendly store.

He is a little scary looking as he is mostly black and has a habit of just staring at people with his mouth closed - real solemn looking.

[Ocean]

As has been posted all dogs are different but if you don't know the dog the safest approach is to do it the conservative way - that is let the dog approach you, take a sideways stance, no look, no touch, relax but don't make any movements, don't extend a hand, let the dog sniff you. It can sometimes be difficult especially the relax aspect if it's an intimidating looking dog that's sniffing your private area.
Now, if it's your dog and the dog has some issues and people don't approach the right way, just cross the street or walk the opposite way or tell the person "My dog doesn't like people. Don't approach him." It may not be true, the dog may actually like people if approached the right way but it's the safe thing to say to stop the person right away.
One time I was a bit careless and I had my dog who is from Czech border patrol lines and who will bite suspicious acting people if not approached the right way off-leash. A couple of men drove up and got off a car in our space before I could leash him and I actually told them, "don't worry he is friendly." which is not totally true but I knew that if they tensed up or got nervous my dog might react badly. I could also read that they were not the type of people who would pat a strange dog. So a potentially bad situation was averted.

[Jessiewessie99]

I always ask the owner first.