I know my hound has polite body language.  She is regularly assessed by a very good trainer who works with Angela Stockdale and who specialises in doggy body language - In fact my dog is often used as a stooge in puppy socialisation classes and with other adults.  However!!  My hound has been lunged at, bitten and generally bullied and snarled at by one breed in particular...The German Shephard   I dont know what its all about?  This has happened about nine times now, in fact the other day a shepard walking towards us (who appeared calm and well behaved) just snapped at her as we walked past.  Inevitably I am becoming wary of GSD's on walks and I consider myself a reasonable and sensible dog owner but I cant help it!!  Does anyone know anyone in the south west area that has friendly GSD's.  Thankfully Lana is very laid back and doesn't seem too phased YET - has anyone else experienced similar?  Any advice is greatfully received.
Sarah
PS She is black and her hair sometimes covers her eyes - we do put her hair up though so that she can be more easily 'read'.

Can't help - but I can say that I am wary of them as well, for the same reason :( many of the GSDs round my way are dodgy the way you described, and I'm always careful when I see one heading my way.  I honestly think it's down to bad breeding - they were the "in" dog not so long ago, a dubious honour now owned by the staff, and bad breeding of them is now flourishing.  They aren't all bad - and a lot does depend on owner, I dare say - I know of 2 in my town that I trust, and both are guide dogs in training (well, one was but he's going blind, poor thing) and well bred.  I also trust my new boss's GSDs, adn one she looks after that she bred, all are from good stock and well raised.  Any general pet shepherd I've seen otherwise has been nervous at least, one outright aggressive.  I've noticed, although it could be my imagination, that the really popular ones - the very oversized, longcoated GSDs - seem to be the worst, presumably because they've been bred for size and looks first, though I can't say that for sure of course.  I used to work at a kennels about a half hour from me, and I can honestly say of all the GSDs that came in in the year I was there, I cannot think of one that I would trust.  It pains me to say it, as they should be one of the most trustworthy breeds going, but popularity has been their downfall I think.

I'm sure there are people on here who own lovely shepherds, that's just how it is near me - so you aren't alone in your concern over them.

Many GSDs' I meet are bullies.  I don't have a problem as my girls are always going to stand their ground and seem to give out the 'I won't be bullied' message very well, and they soon go back to their owners. 

Thankfully they are not intereseted in mixing it.  So often they end up having a game.

Without being accused of being a GSD hater I have found they dont get on with dalmatians either.  I dont know why in particular but my friends have got them and they seem to hate my spotties but not other breeds. 

We have two GSD's living next door but one and when my girl got attacked by a dally she would not tolerate any breed but these 2 GSD's which she has only ever had limited contact with.
Maybe because like brainless said they knew my girl wouldn't back down and she knew the same so they had mutual respect?
With the dally that attacked her it wouldn't keep still so i guess my girl couldn't read the body language and went on the defensive (she stood very still eyeballing) with that the dally attacked thinking he was being threatened and she retaliated so that was that!

Is your dog always on lead when it happens, Sarah?  Is it 9 different GSD's or the same GSD's that have done it a few times? 

A trainer and behaviourist I know uses a GSD as a stooge dog but he's in the North East I'm afraid. 

MY GSD male is very good with other dogs, just wants to play with them and absolutely adores the ladies but we are also in the North East.  

Thanks for your comments guy's :)  Hi Spender - She can be off or on lead to be honest and it is not the same dog - different every time!  She isn't overly submissive (only when she needs to be ;))  I saw an old lady recently with her old GSD, who always carries a kong.  This GSD went out of its way to make a bee line for Lana and jumped on her, the lady was very apologetic (their not always!!) and made an interesting comment that her dog has never done such a thing before.  The strange thing is that Lana didn't even notice this GSD until it ran over and jumped on her...So weird!

As people have said, sadly, IMHO, it's down to bad breeding :(

They are a the most wonderful, intelligent, gentle dog when bred and treated correctly.

I have had lots of GSD's over the years including 2 rescues, they came to me with many problems, but we managed to correct those problems.

My last bitch was a rescue, long haired and quite large,(haven't a clue where she was bred or came from) We used to call her the dog whisperer as she had a knack of calming aggresive dogs down. long story but one of my relatives has a very dog aggresive dog and no dog could go near him without coming off the worst, within 2 days, she had him playing Just one of many examples.

We were in a pub one day and 2 Goldies came in, she wanted to play and they growled and snapped at her
:( She looked at me, sighed and laid down sulking because they weren't up for a laugh.

All of my others were the same, the only time they showed the slightest hint of hostility was when they thought the family were being threatened.

They are actually very sensitive and can be cowards if not bred or treated correctly. Alas, they are at risk of all being tarred with the same brush.

I don't have any GSD's now, but in a few years time, will definitely be considering another ;)

We have two that walk in the same park as Abby, one is a complete cow she tries to attack Abby to the point if we spot her we leave the park, her owner has never even tried to call her back when she starts he justs walks away so he has been on the receiving even of nice colourfull language and the other well he couldnt be nicer, he owner always calls him back because he know Abby is frightened and has offered to let her approach his dog to help her get over her fear.
Mary

I have two GSD's that are good with other dogs (but one is only a puppy). The strange thing is that my first GSD was set upon by two GSD's when quite young, and then became dog intolerant herself. That was our fault, as we didn't take any action when she started to avoid other dogs - that was the first sign. My oldest GSD now (only two and a half) has now  been set on (not badly) in 3 separate GSD incidents!, but being an extremely confident dog it didn't do her any harm, and I made sure that I intervened VERY quickly (in one case hauling two dogs off her, one in each hand)

In the main, I  believe that the dogs exhibiting this behaviour are fearful of other dogs, and this leads them to drive other dogs out of their space, so that they can feel secure. Sure there are probably loads of other reasons too, but if the shepherd is fearful/nervous/under socialised, it is a recipe for trouble. Thank goodness for my two confident/outgoing ones (who are both longcoated, but not oversized!) As a shepherd owner I am very wary of other Shepherds when out, although most I have met have been OK.
Kat

I would tend to agree, because as soon as they find the dog they have targeted (my lot) are not for being driven away they run back to their owners pretending like mine don't exist.  It never gets to a figth as mine do not beleive in doing more than standing up to them.

Often it isn't just bad temperametn in teh breeding but poor socialisation.  It can be difficult to socialise large breed pups due to the fears of other owners and dogs, and some owners beleive that to socialise their GSD will make them to freindly and they want them to guard the family.  They fail to understand the best guardian is a well adjusted freindly dog who then knows the difference between normal day to day actiivities and behaviour and a real threat.

In the first instance I suggest to all large breed pup owners to get their pup on lead when they see other dogs and introcuce them to other people and dogs in a contro9lled manner,a nd once the owners and dogs are hapy allow a littel off lead interaction but to step in befor the large pup gets too rough.  Thsi teaches self control and also gies a good impression to the otehr dog owners who will then not avoid them when they get older.

Sarah, I can't help thinking this is very strange.   9 different GSD's in what timeframe?  Is every aggressive display from the GSD without provocation?  And do they differ in various ways?  Do you come across GSD's more than any other breed when you are out walking your dog?   Look for a pattern.  It'll give you a clue as to what is going on.

It would be very coincidental if all 9 GSD's were badly bred, under socialised, nervous aggressive, not under control and purely decided to pick on your dog just for the sake of it.  It just doesn't make sense.  Unless of course there is a back street breeder in your area that is producing badly bred dogs and you have been unlucky to come across 9 under socialised ones with some perhaps irresponsible owners?  They are a very sensitive breed and are prone to nervy/ fear aggression and in the wrong hands can be lethal.  There's no getting away from it.

It might be a good idea to socialise your dog with a friendly, well bred, socialised GSD because if this carries on, your dog could develop problems with the breed.

We have a few old GSD's in the local area who practically stay very close to the owner and never bother with other dogs.  Mine don't venture too far either and again never bother other dogs.  Spender used to be notorious for bouncing up to them in the playbow but on a few occasions he was met with a not so amused expression, usually from the owner who was wary of GSD's.  So we trained him not to do it.  He's recovering from disc surgery so he's not able to bounce around like he used to. My bitch on the other hand couldn't care less, very aloof with other dogs.  She was a rescue dog, very nervy and also badly bred. 

On the whole, over the years, I have met the odd badly mannered, under socialised and untrained GSD who was not under control of the owner.  That's not a good combination.  We've had a few nervy aggressive rescue GSD's that were rehab'd but we've never had one that acted in the way you describe and if we ever do, he or she will be straight into rehab.  I find that totally unacceptable and it reflects badly on the breed.

Hi Spender - Yes it is very strange.  The first time was when she was a pup actually sat in the boot of my car with the door open, we were at the stables, plenty of dogs running around when a GSD approached the car and without warning bit Lana on the nose causing it to bleed.  A little unfortunate I thought!  Then once at a training class she met a GSD both fine one minute then the next she bit Lana taking enough top not to make herself an Afghan wig   A white GSD in an open field ignored its owners calls when it approached us and this one displayed blatant nervous aggression before jumping on Lana as soon as we turned to walk away...At this point I'm starting to think Aaagghhhhhhh.  There have of course been others, including the old one recently.  My trainer has always said that other dogs will be wary of Lana because of the way she looks and ensures that I bring her along to puppy classes where she can meet all the young ones and that they get used to breed that it wont usually come across when out and about.

Hi Sarah - A very valid point and one that I will discuss with my trainer when she is back from her hols ;)  BTW - One of Lana's best pals is a Wheaten called poppy :D

Sarah :)

It sounds as though they feel threatened by your dog's presence in some way.  Sarah has a very good point.  It could be that after the first time with such a negative experience, your dog is giving off vibes towards a GSD that's prompting a negative reaction. Of course as this happens time and time again, you also will become wary (which is perfectly understandable) but it will increase the tension in the situation.

Anyhow best of luck with discussing it with your trainer and I hope it gets resolved. :-)

You say her body language is good but is it good when she meets a GSD? Her body language might have been good to beginning with but when she was first attached by the GSD her body language might have changed for then on to all GDS. And now when she meets one she is ready for the dog to attack her. Maybe if you talked to your training and asked her opinion.

Sarah xxxx

Thank you all very much - this has certainly prompted some more thought on my part and I think the next step is to give Lana some more positive experiences with certain dogs/handlers.  I think we may have hit the nail on the head here?
Thanks again
Sarah :)

Best of luck and i would love to hear how she get on and weather you manage to sort the problem out ;)

sarah xxxxx