You cannot say aggression is breed specific. In the past I have owned several GSDs. Apart from one that could show aggression if frightened (the most common reason for aggression in GSDs) they were all gentle dogs to the point that when my then young son lost his pet hamster the dog picked it up and brought it back to me totally unharmed. Occasionally whilst walking my present dogs, both Belgian Shepherds I meet a couple with a Japanese Akita and a small terrier type dog. The Akita walks calmly by the owners side totally ignoring anything other than the owner whereas the terrier lunges and barks at everything

So many people believe that growling & barking are signs of aggression(especially the general public) truly aggressive dogs do not snarl/growl/bark, they simply attack silently. When one of my dogs was attacked by a chocolate Labradors, the attack was silent. Until the lab got hold of my dog & only then did it make a noise. Other people's dogs it had attacked had the same experience & one attack was videoed by another dog walker, whose companion went to help the attacked dog

I can see many training programmes and trainers around my area Hampshire but which one is best to have regular sessions and which one are familiar with the breed GSD?

Any information kindly appreciated

As the GSD is one of the more popular breefs most trainers will be experienced with them, any you should attend an all breed class for socialisation.

There are also a number of GSD specific training classes run by or offshoots of GSD breed clubs.

I would.look at one run by an apdt trainer.
Have a chat with the trainer and visit so u know what they do .adpt trainers are  force free reward based trainers
If u look at gsd specific groups make sure they are using modern reward based methods .some were a little behind the times but hopefully have changed.

As the GSD is one of the more popular breeds most trainers will be experienced with them, and you should attend an all breed class for socialisation of a puppy.

There are also a number of GSD specific training classes run by or offshoots of GSD breed clubs.

http://www.gsdleague.co.uk/

One of the oldest GSD club that has branches all over UK & whose training methods are force free & reward based is the BAGSD they only train GSDs.

IPO stands for Internationale Prüfungs-Ordnung.which is originally a German GSD working trials that includes jumping, control(Obedience), tracking & protection. The training is very strictly controlled & dogs have pass very hard tests for temperament etc& handlers must have 100% control before any protection training starts, not some thing for a novice handler/owner should consider IMHO

> So many people believe that growling & barking are signs of aggression(especially the general public) truly aggressive dogs do not snarl/growl/bark, they simply attack silently.

Absolutely. All the growling and barking are basically the dog trying its hardest NOT to bite. It’s “please stop, I don’t want to have to hurt you but I will if you don’t listen”.

The dog that attacked my River didn’t make a sound either. Just ran across the road and grabbed him.

Thank you for answering

Want one who does not use any technology just me and dog and I m happy to brink whatever treats the trainer recommends

Was he ok silverleaf he is only tiny ?

Yep thats the way forward ,no technology.  those that have been recommended do just that just u ur dog and treats and maybe a clicker but that will be explained if needed
Treats have a look back on ballgames post for treat ideas .
Nice lead and collar or well fitted harness like perfect fit .there are others and no check chains btw

And don't forget your poo bags !

Sorry apdt means?

sorry I should have explained . Association of pet dog trainers

https://apdt.co.uk/

group sessions of mixed breeds of pups are best.  Your puppy will need to learn that dogs and people come in all shapes and sizes and being in a group is the very best way to do this.
I have kept dogs all of life and still took our latest pup to a group class as its marvelous for making a well rounded well behaved dog. its not the same as meeting dogs in a park as its structured and controlled so very good for young mind. 
The class my whippet pup attended had french bull dog, staffie, rottie, german shepherd, yorkshire terrier, little shaggy mongrel, labrador x shar-pei and a dachshund, humans there were old, young, white, black and asian plus a couple of children.  It was a real education for her.

Thank you Ann

Read I need to take tennis balls that are bigger than a normal tennis ball in order to avoid any swallowed complications being stuck in throat.

That is good advice. One of my GSDs got a broken toy stuck in her throat. Luckily it had a hole through it and she was able to breath until it was removed. I had a square tennis ball for my last GSD. Kong make rubber rings with a tennis ball covering

As tempting as they are sticks are a no no
There is rubber type one u can buy but no idea how successful they are .except some might like carrying them .
Mine used to like carry enormous branches though. Good ness knows why

Big no to tennis or any compressible ball for big dogs, my friend lost her GSD with an airway that was blocked by 2 compressed temmis balls & not even 2 paramedics who were on the scene, walking their dogs, could get them out.

Big solid natural rubber balls or kongs on strong chew resistant ropes are virtually Indestructible even by GSDs

I really hate seeing people using tennis balls with any dog as the abrasive surface damages the teeth as well as being a decompression risk.

The ball chucker is also a dangerous device, as it encourages dogs to chase too fast to get to the ball, I did some research for links between their use & serious spinal injuries in dogs, the results were quite frightening.

Omg you made my 100 tennis balls and ball machine redundant as I want not to kill the dog with tennis balls.

Would be extremely unpleasant to try scoping some from my dog so you recommend solid natural rubber and kongs.

Tennis balls don't  have a hole so... yep does make sense

> Was he ok silverleaf he is only tiny ?

He had some small punctures on one leg and a bigger wound in his armpit that needed two staples, so pretty big for a little one!

I honestly think he was very lucky. If the dog had got his throat he wouldn’t be here now. And goodness knows what would have happened if it was a bigger dog (it was a JRT cross and not much bigger than him, but it did that terrier ragging thing which I suspect caused the damage).

Physically he recovered very well, but his fear issues got much worse. He still adores dogs but he gets worried and scared about handling - I think he’s anticipating pain and feels like he has to defend himself. Of course I’ve never intentionally hurt him, but he got horrible mats behind his ears from the collar and I spent too long trying to brush them out before giving up and using the clippers. And the vets hurt him treating the wounds so they are the devil now.

We’re getting there though. I’m so glad he isn’t dog aggressive, because dogs are one of his favourite things in the world and I was so worried that we’d end up unable to show, or do agility, or anything else involving other dogs.

Poor little river . Yes he and u were very lucky it all can happen so quickly. 
Its very hard to undo the mental damage from those things too .
Look like he is doing very well considering everything

I use Kong tennis balls as they are supposed to be gentler on teeth. Plus they squeak! I agree with using bigger balls, my papillon actually prefers a standard size tennis ball and there’s no way in the world he could swallow it. He can only just carry it!

He absolutely adores fetch with a ball but we don’t play too often because it isn’t terribly good for joints and spine like Ann says. And short throws so he can’t get up much speed, because it’s the stopping or turning from a fast run that is the most dangerous.

Too many people seem to just take their dogs to a field, throw the ball for 15 minutes with no warmup or cool down and then back in the car to go home. We always warm up, and Riv gets plenty of time to sniff and potter around as well before we do a nice steady walk home.

> Poor little river .

He’s done very well to say he’s such a sensitive boy. He’s never going to be an easy dog and that experience really hasn’t helped him, but he works so hard for me and he’s a very sweet boy so much of the time. He just needs more confidence.

None of my dogs have been avid ball chasers. All the goldens have preferred to go off sniffing everywhere rather then chase anything (apart from small furries). Isla enjoys chasing a ball on the beach for a while, no interesting sniffs I guess, but if we are near the water she would rather swim.
Some dogs seem to be almost manic about ball chasing and don’t want to do anything else

> Some dogs seem to be almost manic about ball chasing and don’t want to do anything else

They're made that way by their owners, playing with a ball (or any toy) too much as a puppy can make them completely obsessed. All of my collies have loved a ball, but none were obsessed because I've always given them lots of time off on walks, with no interaction from me, time to just be dogs doing doggy things, sniffing, playing with each other etc. Ball throwers are fine if used sparingly, it's certainly an easy way to pick up a slavery ball and to carry it, but I only ever used mine for a few minutes in the middle of a walk, when the dog is well warmed up and has plenty of time to cool down too.

I see so many dogs, mainly collies, completely obsessed with their toys that they will nip anything else that gets close to their toy, it's not healthy for the dog or others. My silkens are keen racers, they go crazy for the lure (a scrap of fake fur), but even there they will not fight over it, they're taught from a young age playing with it with older dogs that it's really exciting but you can share it.

Dan those ball throwing machines are horrible, throw it away. Interact with your dog yourself, not using a machine

Mine have zero interest in balls, maybe when very young pups.

Tuggies a bit better,but as far as they are concerned if you can't be eat it what's the point

Oh River loves a tuggie as well, especially the ones with a long fabric handle so you can swing them around for him to chase first.

He’s got a cat toy that consists of a piece of fake fur attached to a stick by a bit of elastic, a bit like a fishing rod. That’s hugely popular with him, especially as it requires a human to operate it.

And I got a cheap horse lunge whip which I tied a toy to to make a flirt pole to use outside, which he also loves.

He’s more into chasing than tugging, but he’s got a decent amount of pull on him for a 5kg toy dog with dodgy knees!

> And I got a cheap horse lunge whip which I tied a toy to to make a flirt pole to use outside, which he also loves.

That's how we train our pups for racing. We have a papillon that races with us occasionally, she's fantastic, we also have a mini dachshund, a couple of chinese cresteds, a bullmastiff, a couple of cocker spaniels and a few other breeds you wouldn't expect that love racing

My Beardies would have loved that

> That's how we train our pups for racing.

Brilliant! Riv thinks chasing is great fun, I think he’d enjoy racing. He had a great time playing with a whippet/greyhound type dog a few days ago - of course it could run rings around him but Riv had a good go at chasing him. And to be fair he can corner a lot faster than a dog with longer legs, so he runs on the inside of the circle to catch up.

> He had a great time playing with a whippet/greyhound type dog a few days ago

Fantastic My old girl likes having little dogs to race against, she's just turned 12 and decides herself when she wants to run and how many runs she will have, I just leave my tailgate guard open and when Milly comes out all other racing stops and she gets a shot   She likes to win and I don't want her pushing herself too much so she'll race one of the cockers (show type) or the mini dachsy (who is actually awesome, but only has little legs).