KAZKIRI GERMAN SHEPHERD DOGS

health/grooming/exercise/training

^{Photo: Kazkiri Kimani - 'Scout'

Proudly owned by Linda & Kevin O'Halloran}

This page contains the following information:

Health
Vaccinations
Worming
Ears
Teething
House Training
Seasons
Health & Nutrition
Grooming
Bathing
Trimming Toenails
Exercise
Training
Show Training

If at any time you are in doubt about any health situation or EMERGENCY you find yourself and your pet in, CONTACT YOUR VET IMMEDIATELY!

health
You must:

feed your dog an appropriate balanced diet to maintain him/her in good condition. Either too little or too much food, or the wrong type of food can cause health problems for your dog.
supply clean cool water at all times, in a container that cannot be tipped over.
don't feed cooked bones to your dog, these can splinter and cause injury.
provide a comfortable dry sleeping area, along with shade during the day.
protect your dog's health. This includes regular vaccinations, worming (including heartworm), flea and tick control, and veterinary treatment for injuries or illness.
give your dog plenty of company and time with the family. Dogs are pack animals. They are unhappy if left alone for long periods of time. They need the company of people or other dogs.
exercise and socialise your dog regularly, this is necessary for your dog's physical and mental health.
ensure your dog is adequately cared for when you are on holidays.

vaccinations
If you have purchased your puppy from a registered breeder, you will have received a vaccination card in your puppy gift pack that says the puppy has been vaccinated at 6 weeks of age with his temporary vaccination. You will see that the next vaccination is due when the puppy is 12 weeks of age.Your puppy/dog will then be vaccinated a year later (at approx 15 months of age). After this vaccination at approximately 15 months, some veterinarians advocate vaccinating every 3 years. Be advised by your qualified veterinary surgeon as to what vaccinations your puppy/dog needs.

Click here for more information about vaccinations and more.
Click here for the article - Science of Vaccine Damage

^{Photo: Puppy's first vaccination}

worming
Intestinal parasites are common in all puppies. Roundworms are present in almost all puppies when they are born.

Puppies can become infected with parasites before they are born or later through the mother's milk. Your pup has been wormed every two weeks from the age of two weeks. From 8 weeks of age our puppies/dogs are wormed once a month with Sentinel Spectrum Tasty Chews for Heartworm, Roundworm, Hookworm, Whipworm & Tapeworm, & prevents & controls fleas and is due for the next dose at the age of 12 weeks. Thereafter we recommend that your puppy/dog is wormed every 3 months for the rest of the pup's life.
It is important that the medication is repeated since usually it is only the adult worms that are killed.

Tapeworms are the most common intestinal parasites of dogs. Puppies become infected with them when they swallow fleas; the eggs of the tapeworm live inside the flea. When the puppy chews or licks its skin as a flea bites, the flea may be swallowed. The flea is digested within the dog's intestine; the tapeworm hatches and then anchors itself to the intestinal lining. Therefore, exposure to fleas may result in a new infection; this can occur in as little as two weeks, so please keep your puppy flea free.

When you buy a GSD puppy from us , included on Kazkiri's sales receipt are the puppies worming dates & also once the puppy is home with his/her new owner, advice on when next to worm your puppy.

ears
Some puppies ears are erect as early as eight to ten weeks but generally the pup's ears are up by 4 or 5 months of age. If this is not the case with your puppy, become very interested in your German Shepherd Dog's ears.

Photobucket

It is not unusual for the German Shepherd Dog puppy ears not to be up until four to five months of age.
It is also quite common & completely normal for a puppy to have erratic ear carriage - up one day and down the next - especially when going through the teething process and for this cycle to repeat as the puppy's ears become erect.

The teething process generally takes valuable calcium from the puppy's developing ear structure to those developing teeth and that is one good explanation for the whole procedure of German Shepherd Dog puppy ears being up one day, and then down the next as the puppy matures.

Try stimulating your puppy to use his ear muscles so that the ears may become erect faster naturally. This can be done by making interesting noises, etc. to get his attention and make him use his maturing ears. Also give brisket bones to exercise the jaw muscles. Do not try and stimulate the muscles through touching as this may damage the cartilage in your pups ears, which can affect the ear carriage.

It is not time to panic. However, some puppies do need a little assistance in getting their ears to stand up. We recommend the puppy owner contact either their Breeder or their Veterinarian and perhaps they will recommend the taping of your puppy's ears.

^{Photo: Janti @ 12 weeks}

Ears

Ear Mites

^{Photo: Kazkiri Bam Bam - Diesel}

teething
The puppy will lose his milk teeth at about 3 - 6 months of age. His teething can affect the ears. The ears should be erect by the time the puppy reaches 6 or 7 months of age, but they can be as early as 3 months or as late as 8 months depending on the individual pup.

Occasionally the ears can be erect then go down - this is only due to teething & they should be all right again when all the teeth are through. Give the puppy plenty of bones to chew & tear at as this helps the ear muscles & teeth.

Eruption of permanent teeth

GROUP	TOOTH	ERUPTION TIME
Incisors	Central Medial Lateral	4 months 4-5 months 4-5 months
Canines		5-6months
*Premolars	First Second Third Fourth	4-5months 5-6months 5-6months 4-5months
Molars	First Second Third	5-6months 5-7months 6-7months

* occasionally an odd premolar may not erupt until 6-8 months

house training
House training can be relatively easy if you abide by the following:
- Always take the puppy outside immediately after feeding and wait until the puppy eliminates and once he has praise him.
- Always take the puppy outside immediately after he wakes up from a sleep. Wait until the puppy eliminates - preferably both sorts allow the puppy inside again. The difficulty of house training is being there in the first place.
Your puppy will prefer to keep his sleeping area clean.
A puppy cannot discriminate what is or isn't a suitable area to eliminate in. Most dogs are very clean & once house trained may hold on for some considerable time before urinating or defecating.
If a puppy has been raised on newspaper, a good idea is to put some newsparer down by the door, and gradually move the newspaper out & away from the house. If the puppy eliminates , other than the newspaper, pick the puppy up, shake him and say NO loudly, either take him to the newspare or take him outside quickly, praise the puppy once he has finished his business.
NEVER, EVER look for rolled up newspaper to hit the puppy with, you will only succeed in making the puppy afraid and lose the instant effect of chastisement of a foul deed done right in front of you.
House training is not instantaneous. Some puppies learn very quickly, especially if the owner is there to supervise puppy during the first week or so, and makes a point of being very alert about catching the puppy before the puppy makes a mess.

seasons
Bitches usually have their first season somewhere between the ages of 7 & 14 months, this usually being 11 months of age. She should then come into season every 6 months thereafter.

Bitches that are going to be spayed should have their first season completed & be past their heat period, which lasts for 3 weeks before spaying is performed. If done during their season it is more dangerous for the bitch, due to possible excessive bleeding, & sometimes Veterinary Surgeons charge more if the bitch is in season. (We recommend sterilisation of males can be performed any time after the age of twelve months.)

Spay & Neuter

health & nutrition
Dogs are hardy animals but require a few precautions to ensure they remain healthy.........

Health & nutrition

grooming
Regular brushing is necessary to keep the coat clean & shiny & to remove any loose hairs. Usually this is done once or twice per week, but during the moulting season, it will need to be combed with a fine toothed comb or stripping comb to remove the tufts of dead hair, then followed with a bristle brush & finished off by rubbing over with a chamois cloth. It is a good idea to use a flea powder or spray, particularly in summer, on both the dog & his bedding. If there is a severe problem the dog may need to be given "Program" or the combined worm & flea prevention of "Sentinel".
For that important event when your GSD needs to look his or her best (see grooming article below) we recommend products from the Plush Puppy range. We use Plush Puppy All Purpose Shampoo, Body Building Shampoo with Wheatgerm, Reviva Coat and Seabreeze Oil.
The ears need to be checked for any redness or soreness, or grass seeds - usually indicated by the dog carrying his head to one side & constant shaking of the head. If there is any infection of the ears caused by grass seeds this will need to be attended to by your Veterinary Surgeon. Normal cleaning of the ears should be done by mixing: 1 part warm water, 1 part baby oil & 1 part methylated spirits & dipping cotton wool into the mixture, squeezing out, then wiping thoroughly, to remove any dirt or wax.
For more information on how to groom your GSD download the article by Cheryl Lecourt, Plush Puppy Australia.

How to groom your German Shepherd Dog

Beyond Beauty - Grooming for good health

bathing
The German Shepherd Dog should not be bathed too often, as this will dry out the coat & skin & can cause irritation, leading to the dog scratching & biting all the time (often mistaken for fleas).

Dog shampoos should always be used when giving the dog a full bath, not human shampoos or wool-wash, because the dog's PH is totally different to humans. Humans have a high acid skin, whereas a dog's skin is neutral or alkaline so has a much higher PH, being around seven or more. Washing them in human shampoo can make them itchy because of altering the PH balance of the skin.

When bathed make sure all shampoo/soap is rinsed out thoroughly, then apply a flea rinse. As most flea treatments are very strong & toxic always follow instructions carefully. A flea spray could be used when the dog is dry. A flea rinse we use is: 2 cups brown vinegar, 1 teaspoon of lavender oil, 1 bucket of warm water. This works well & is non-toxic.

For in-between times, to clean the pup/dog, we fill a bucket with warm water, add 1 tablespoon of shampoo, 1 teaspoon of lavender oil & ½ cup brown vinegar, dip a cloth into this mixture & wipe the pup/dog all over till damp, then towel dry & brush. Spray with flea spray if necessary. This works well as it can be done as often as required without drying out the skin & coat.

^{Photo: Kazkiri Dana Scully - Dana loves her hydrobath}

trimming toenails
Sometimes the nails continue to grow if they are not worn down by exercise or the dog/pup is mainly on grass. When cutting the nail, only cut off the hook on the end of the nail. Use the pads as a baseline & cut at about a 45º angle. File the nails smooth if they are still a little sharp. Nails can be filed if you are worried about cutting the quick that runs down the length of the nail. Use an ordinary builder's file for filing; file from underneath, keeping in line with the pads.

Clipping Dog's Toenails

exercise
The puppy is only very young and will not require much exercise, just allowed to play and rest when he wants to. He is too young to go on walks for the first 4 months, as it places too much stress on growing bones and joints. After the puppy reaches 16 weeks of age, he can go on short walks of approximately 5 minutes duration, around the block or to the local shops, school or park.

Photobucket

^{Photo Kazkiri Keppler - Gryffyn}

After the age of 6 months, the puppy can generally be walked more often & slightly longer periods, but must be allowed to rest when tired.
In most cases, when the puppy is 12 months of age, he can walk and run as often as you like for longer distances, as he will have achieved his final skeletal growth, and will be starting to develop muscle. Prior to this the puppy has not had enough muscle to support the bones and joints, so walking and exercise should be moderate.
Swimming is a part of our dog's exercise regime.
All dogs swim by instinct. How much they enjoy this form of exercise depends on how confident the dog is in the water. With some dogs it takes some time to build up their confidence, but others take to swimming like a 'duck to water'.

^{Photo: Kazkiri Midnite Special - Max}

Swimming helps to improve stamina, muscle tone & fitness.
Swimming is an excellent form of exercise because most of the muscles normally used in movement are involved without the stresses caused by running on hard ground.
For a dog, a 5 minute swim is purported to be the cardio equivalent of a 8km walk! The natural buoyancy of the water and the fact that sudden twists, stops and falls are impossible makes hydrotherapy a safe and effective form of exercise for dogs.

Teaching your Puppy to swim

^{Photo Kazkiri Keppler - Gryffyn}

'The main point to remember when introducing a pup to the water is don't push or rush him. Give the pup a reason to want to swim, either to retrieve, to follow you, or to chase another dog, and then allow him to choose to swim.'

Careful exercise when young will give you a sound and healthy adult for life!

dog walks & travel

Walking, playing and recreating with your dog not only provides you with some vital exercise, it reduces your stress, increases your social interaction with others, and is good for your heart and general health.

^{Photo Kazkiri Ximon- Zen}

When taking your puppy/dog in the car with you, ensure that there is adequate ventilation and DO NOT leave the puppy/dog in the car if you are running errands. Many dogs have suffered heat stroke /brain damage when left in cars in warm weather.

training
When the puppy is very young up until 12 weeks, training is mostly in the form of games, but the pack instinct is at work, so that co-operation with, & dominance by, humans is learnt.

^{Photo: Kazkiri Keppler - Gryffyn}

Training is Communication

Training a Puppy
Basic obedience such as "sit" & "heel" can begin to be taught, & house training commenced.

^{The Chief Insrtuctor asks "Is everybody ready?"

"SIT"}

The acceptance of restraint is an important lesson, particularly with large males, & should be learnt by the age of 12 weeks. Restraining the puppy involves holding it firmly on its side, where it cannot get away. This is a short lesson that needs to be taught, on a few occasions only, until the puppy realises that you will not let it go until it stops struggling. Use this method when a puppy gets over-excited & starts to get nippy or when holding a puppy to cut its nails. All that is required is that you hold it firmly until it calms down. The puppy may scream & shriek, wriggle like a worm or try to bite, but if held firmly (NOT in a death grip !) next to your body, with one arm over its body & the other around its neck, slightly stretching the head forwards, the puppy cannot hurt himself or you, & will, after one or two minutes calm down. When it is calm, ease your grip, speak words of praise, & stroke & pat the puppy, then release him. This only takes 2 or 3 lessons & it is learnt for LIFE. Holding a puppy on its side until calm when it is under the age of 3 months is an extremely valuable lesson in restraint.

^{"DROP" "STAY"}

12-16 weeks is a critical stage of learning in a pup’s life. More formal obedience training should be commenced, as this is the ideal age for transition from playing to discipline training. Training lessons should be limited to 10-15 minutes maximum, as the attention span is still not very long. It is better to train twice per day for a short time than try to do too much at once. Some puppies particularly males, may try to see who is boss - NEVER lose on that point!

^"COME"

^{"I said staaaand" ....... ....."I can't, I'm too pooped!"}

It is a good idea to train at a recognised Obedience club. The German Shepherd Dog Club has several branches, they specialise in the breed & have information, magazines, etc. They start puppy socialisation classes as early as 8 weeks of age. ALL puppies/dogs attending are vaccinated. Until your pup reaches 6 months of age a light collar & lead should be used, after that a correction chain can be used. NEVER tie a dog up when wearing a correction chain.

Tyson 1

^{Photo: Injury caused by incorrect use of correction collar on young pup.}

dogs in space
We all like to take our dogs out into the community, but the sad fact is that some dogs (& dog owners) misbehave in open space. In this article Kaye Hargreaves discusses what we should expect of dogs & their owners in public open space, & how training can help.

Click here for article on dogs in space.

training your unruly dog
This scenario - an unruly young male dog with a female handler who is not very assertive - is one that most instructors have come across. How can we help the owner to assert herself and deal with her dog?

Click here for article on training your unruly Dog

The following paragraphs, dealing with Show Training, have been copied from the German Shepherd Puppy Booklet written by Dr. Karen Hedberg BVSc which is distributed by the GERMAN SHEPHERD DOG LEAGUE. Permission to copy the advice given was granted by Mr Graeme Stevenson, President of the GSDL. Graeme also said that anyone can purchase these booklets by contacting John Nolan, GSDL Marketing Officer.
Thank you Graeme

show training
For show training, obedience training is not particularly desired. In obedience the dog is trying to show you how well he/she can do something and is watching you all the time, waiting for the next command. In the show ring the dog is showing itself off to the judge and people around the ring. Showmanship is the art of you, the handler presenting your dog in the best possible way to exhibit the good points and hopefully minimise the bad. A good dog who has 'presence' will catch the judges eye time & again. Teaching your dog to stand, look alert and so on, can take years to learn to do well is as important as presenting your dog clean & well groomed.***For beautiful leather leads, collars and obedience & tracking training collars & leads contact the German Shepherd Dog League Merchandising Shop

basic lead training
Lead training can start as early as 5-6 weeks . This is a good area for the bribery and corruption brigade as a little bit of food in the hand while encouraging the puppy to follow you will start the puppy in the right direction. By the time they realise they have a lead on , they have generally got the idea that they should follow you as you are both attached. If the puppy pulls back allow a bit of slack, wait until the puppy calms down and resume operations. When they move forward even if only a few feet, give a very small tit-bit and lots of praise. Use a soft lead and collar - never a use a correction collar on a puppy - they have enough to contend with being attached to something they cannot rid themselves from without the discomfort of a correction collar. After several short sessions of 5-10minutes, the bribery aspect eases into the background as praise takes over.

Following you around is a natural habit the puppy acquired when very young trotting around after its mother; as the pups new parent and holding the food , they are fairly keen in the first place. The earlier you start, the easier and quicker the response.

teaching the dog to stand & stay in the show position
Teaching a dog to stand & stay in a show position is a matter of repetition & patience.The puppy is stood in the approximate position or 'stance' that is applicable to the breed, holding the lead/collar up slightly in the right hand, run your left hand along the side , slightly under the belly of the puppy saying 'staannndd, staannndd'. Running your hand slightly under the belly encourages the puppy to stand if he is sagging in the middle or sitting down on the job as you can raise the puppy with your hand as you go.. Even if the puppy holds the position for several seconds, praise the puppy, pat him on the side and allow him to relax. If the puppy is not performing the stand very well, which is quite common, give the puppy a slight tap on the side as both very mild discipline and recalling him to the matter at hand, then try again.

As the puppy learns to hold the position, the length of time increases, always give the puppy a congratulatory pat on the side of the head at the end , to signal the 'exercise' is finished.The puppy learns to associate the pat not only as praise for being good, but that he can now relax.

The stand for examination is extended somewhat for the ring situation, where the mouth & also testicles in the males are quickly examined whilst in the 'stand' position. Teach the puppy to allow his mouth to be examined by different people. If the puppy is teething (4 - 6 months, the gums are very sensitive and pups can become mouth shy if not handled without due consideration of this condition. Gently lift the lips up and look from side to side, as well as examining the bite, a quick glance, particularly with a baby puppy is quite sufficient for most judges.

^{Photo: Jannire Black Betty - Bebe}

teach the puppy to do straight out & back, triangle etc.
This is really an extension of lead training.
"Out & back" is taking the dog away from the judge for 6-9 metres to see the hind legs in action from the rear, turning & coming straight back into the judge showing how the front legs are during movement when viewed from the front.

Next the judge usually requests the exhibitor to move the dog out & around the ring in either a triangle or a lap of the ring. This gives the judge an opportunity to see how fluid the dog is in overall gaiting action, how all the parts (hopefully) flow together, particularly in side action. The reach (length of forequarter stride) & drive (the push or thrust developed by the hindquarter) are being assessed & the balnce of the two is all important.

ring etiquette
Basically, the "rules" are:

good manners between exhibitors
politeness to the judge &
most important of all, do not interfere with another exhibit

The last "rule" is the most commonly broken one, where a pushy exhibitor may overshadow or crowd your dog, thereby interfering with the clear view of the judge trying to examine the class. Tis usually happens in the gaiting section of the class, when all exhibits, or those considered for places, are moved together around the ring just prior to final placings. Crowding another exhibit upsets many dogs & often the blame belongs not to the dog who played up, but the dog behind( in reality the handler of that exhibit).

Always remember the four invisible rules of dog showing:

no judge is infallible;
the perfect dog has yet to be bred; your dog may not be the world beater that your (slightly) biased eyes see it is,
and finally the best rule of all - another day another dog show!

Rule number four means don't go out and get rid of your dog because of one judge's opinion, particularly with a puppy; they can change tremendously before they finally round out as adults.
Very few judges are good at picking a puppy that will be a world beater all of its show career, & many ugly, gawky puppies grow up into relative swans after the puppy horrors (6-12months stage in many breeds).
Every judge has their own ideal image of a particular breed, but a good dog will do consistently well under nearly all judges.

Click HERE for article on Play Biting

Click HERE for article on Reasons to train your Dog

Click HERE for article on Confining your Dog

Click HERE for Puppy Socialisation Chart

Click HERE for Training is Communication article

Click HERE for article on Crate Training

Click HERE for Training Tips Article

Click HERE for link to fabulous toys & training aids

If you are interested in a Kazkiri Puppy, please register this interest by completing & submitting the puppy inquiry form.

Thank you for choosing the German Shepherd Dog Breed

There is no such thing as a "pedigreed dog without papers",because the registration papers ARE the pedigree and proof of the pup's breeding heritage!

German Shepherd Dog Pedigrees

German Shepherd Dog Registration Papers

Contact Details

8 NOREEN SYMES
* PO BOX 75
ELPHINSTONE, Victoria 3448
( (03) 5473 3521

^{Photo: Kazkiri Xiva}