Car shows and dogs

[AngelaA6]

So this last Sunday I went to a Volkswagen/Euro car cruise-in with my husband and everyone had these tiny little dogs...the biggest dog was an Australian Cattle Dog and it tried to bite mine.

Everyone was looking at us like we were crazy to bring a GSD to a car show...it's technically mostly German cars so we were like yay GSD and German cars wheee. And Gunther is very well behaved in public. No pulling, barking or whining. I don't know, all the parents were pulling their kids away from him and I was just sitting there like...he loves kid and he would love to play..he's just a puppy. They let their kids play with the Australian cattle dog and the Cavalier King Charles. The Cavalier even jumped on the kids...

The only people that let their dog near mine was a couple with the most gentle pitbull ever Either way, I always look to how the owner treats their dog to gauge how their dog is going to react to strangers or other dogs. (The Australian cattle dog was told to leave it when Gunther passed he dropped to floor and licked his owners shoe...made me a little sad for the poor pup) I have a soft spot for misunderstood dogs. Very polite dog though and great owners.

I don't know though I thought people were becoming more open towards GSDs. The people who put on the show had no issue with Gunther, just some of the people there...my dog has never bitten anyone! He just watches people and studies his surrounding and apparently that's scary.

Sorry for the rant, it was just frustrating to have my dog be unfairly judged due to his breed and size .

[Jaders]

Awh that is disappointing!!! Great idea though, German Cars and German Dogs!!!


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[AngelaA6]

Haha yeah my husbands coworkers give him a bad time because we only drive Volkswagens and have a GSD. They asked if we were going to train him in German...we said no but then I found some schutzhund clubs that we're looking into and I'm like hmmm...maybe >.>

[huntergreen]

everyone knows someone with a friend who knew someone that had a horrible experience with a gsd so many still tend to be afraid of gsds if they have no experience with them.

[MichaelE]

People are always afraid of what they don't understand.

[mehpenn]

Originally Posted by huntergreen

everyone knows someone with a friend who knew someone that had a horrible experience with a gsd so many still tend to be afraid of gsds if they have no experience with them.

Isn't that the truth.

For example: My brother's wife's oldest brother's ex-wife's mother was bitten by a German Shepherd when she was a little girl... my SIL, as a result, doesn't prefer the breed. Of course that's an opinon she's formed, admittedly, never having been around the breed.
(Seriously, that's what she told me when she found out we were on our way home with Zee. "Really? I don't really care for German Shepherds. Alex's ex-wife, Ann, her mother was bitten by a German Shepherd when she was little, like in '54 or something. *insert laugh* That sounded really stupid." Yeah, that did sound pretty stupid.)

[mehpenn]

And let me just say... personally I'm more likely to approach a GSD than a Chihuahua (holds up hand to show scar from VICIOUS Chihuahua attack. Okay, maybe it wasn't exactly VICIOUS, but that little booger did leave a nasty scar on my hand. I learned my lesson: Never reach for a growling Chihuahua even when it's owner swears it's all for show. Make THEM carry the nasty little dog.)

[AngelaA6]

Growing up I never heard of GSD's having this reputation, I was always told to be more wary of pitbulls (granted my best friend had a very very nice one and was trained responsibly so I loved the breed anyway) I never even thought about people being wary around my puppy until after I got him and my sister was like "HOLY CRAP HE'S HUGE!" and was afraid of him jumping on her and when she saw his mouth when he yawned...i just laughed because she wants a Bernese Mountain Dog...

[mehpenn]

(I'm that way about Pit Bulls.... since the neighbor's mauled my horse.)

[martemchik]

Sorry...I don't get these rants. Most of us get a GSD partially because of the reputation that it has. It's an amazing deterrent and I'm glad I have one. It's definitely different walking a GSD than any other dog. It's nice not having other dogs bother your dog because the owner is afraid your dog might do something, less stress for me and not having to worry about some owner walking up and claiming their vicious little chihuahua is friendly and this is the first time its ever tried to rip another dog's throat.

Our breed is known to bite...its a police/military dog for a reason. And on top of that IF it does bite, its going to do a lot more damage than a 50 lb dog, 30 lb dog, or 10 lb dog. Not everyone in this world is a dog person, and in my opinion, its a much safer bet to stay away from all GSDs than to assume one is friendly when it isn't.