Need help socializing my german shepherd. I got him when he was 2 months old (14 now) and he's extremely weary of strangers and won't let anyone he hasn't met before go near him. When walking him and walking past people he's fine but if I tie him outside dunkin donuts to get a coffee I worry somebody's gonna try to pet him (especially a kid) and he's gonna bite them. What do?
Also need to buy new dog food soon what brand would u guys recommend
>>2017130
science diet is the best
>>2017134
before this shitposting cockweasel gets everyone on /an/ to respond, let me say this:
it depends on your dog. after battling with a bunch of parasites and illnesses immediately after I rescued him, the most high-quality foods were NOT agreeing with him, and I took my vet's (and my friend's, and my boss's, and my aunt and uncle's) advice and tried science diet. his poops were immediately normal where they had been terrible diarrhea.
I know science diet is not the best food, but it was what worked for my dog then, so I can't say it's the "hurr mcdonalds of dog food, Hills shills" etc. that /an/ shits out all day long.
that being said, now that he's been on science diet for a while, I'm trying to switch him back to a higher-quality food. we're trying out taste of the wild and, while it's been a hectic process, he appears to be doing well on it and I feel better knowing he's getting something better.
>not socializing the dog when you first get him
>especially a breed known to be stranger aggressive
>typing up outside a store unsupervised
it's like you're asking for something to happen. stop fucking doing that. look up guides on how to socialize an adult dog, it's not complicated, but it'll be hard undoing your lack of socializing him as a puppy
Is this a bait thread? It reads like one.
>>2017125
A muzzle.
>>2017125
shock collar and muzzle.
Tie him up in a high traffic location and go in a nearby store. When someone approaches him, and he becomes aggressive, give him a small zap.
Get him a harness or shirt that warns strangers to not approach him
>>2017462
>not sure if serious
Fear and pain are terrible techniques for training a dog.
>>2017464
yea but they work well
goddamn white german shepherds look amazing
>>2017465
No, they don't. You just end up with a neurotic dog.
>>2017462
That isn't going to work. Hes going to associate strangers with pain if you do that.
>>2017125
Orijen. Seriously, orijen.
>>2017855
What's wrong with Orijen?
It's got pretty good marks on that food rating website.
>>2017863
Nothing's wrong with Orijen. Some dogs can't tolerate it because of the really high protein content, but it's actually very decent food for a dog with a higher protein requirement, such as more primitive dogs with fewer replications of the AMY2B gene. It's got good listed meat sources, and a high kcal/cup ratio which is good for dogs that expend a lot of energy.
But, like I said, some dogs won't tolerate that high of a protein content in their diet and may develop hot spots on Orijen. In that case, they're better off on a lower protein diet.
Anyway, OP.
First off, get a decent muzzle. A wire cage one, maybe. (Dean and Tyler do very nice wire cage muzzles actually.) One that's fitted correctly and won't come off. People are frequently less likely to try and pet a dog in a scary-enough looking muzzle. This will also prevent potential bites, even if the dog does go for someone.
You're going to want to look into counter-conditioning. Look it up. I can't be fucked explaining it right now.
Get a trainer/behaviourist for more assistance, in person. Strangers over the internet are not always the best for this sort of thing.
>>2017863
That last comment wasn't me.
>>2017125
I'm not saying your dog being like that isn't a problem but-
Goddamn do I hate kids that don't understand proper behavior around dogs. Then there's the parents with the retarded shit grin acting like it's perfectly acceptable for their clothed goblin to bum rush a set of large teeth with their hands out.
This, OP: >>2017991
On the subject of muzzles, you'll also want to train your pup to tolerate (and even look forward to) the muzzle so it doesn't stress him out and he doesn't try and struggle to remove it.
You can do this by sticking a treat in the muzzle and having the dog reach in to eat it. Repetition, plus gradually increasing the lengh of time the dog's face is in the muzzle (with a wire muzzle you can continue feeding treats while his face is in there) and then finally fastening it. Once you can get him to stick his face in the muzzle to have it fastened on, you can start taking him for walks with the muzzle on so he associates muzzle = go for a walk.
This way you'll be able to reliably use the muzzle to not only prevent him from biting someone while you're out, but as the other anon said, it will deter others from approaching your dog as well.
>>2017125
That is a really fucking beautiful dog OP. Even if I knew that it would most likely bite me if I pet it, I would still take the risk
