Rudi- my dangerous dog :(

[Daphne]

Hello! Since the last three introductions were in English, I will introduce myself in English too.

My name is Daphne Beutler, and I am co-owner (with my husband) of Rudi, a Deutscher Schäferhund or German Shepherd Dog. His papers say "Ykon vom Salztalblick". We live in Germany, NE of Frankfurt/Main in a small town in the Wetterau. I am American, originally from Florida and Michigan, and have lived in Germany for 28 years.

Rudi is 3 1/2 years old and comes from a Leistungszucht. Our prior GSD was a very easily trained, very sweet dog who loved children. Rudi is a totally different category of dog and should have gone to someone who is into Schutzhund, Agility, Obedience, etc. Even as a puppy, Rudi would sit and think about whether he wanted to follow an order. It was clear that he understood what was expected, since he did everything we asked IMMEDIATELY, if we had a treat in hand. We never gave him the work he needed, so he chose his job: protecting us.

We now are the not-so proud owners of a beautiful, loving, very over-protective dog who has just bitten a neighbor.

Rudi just failed the Wesenstest our community required him to take and has just been classified as a dangerous dog. I found this forum while searching the Internet for information about aggressive dogs. My husband and I know that we are clearly the reason for his aggression. Though I took Rudi to dog school as a puppy and young dog, it was a very frustrating time. The pup would do everything with a dog trainer but wouldn't really listen to me. We clearly never managed to gain Rudi's respect, though he is emotionally very bound to us. I am looking for a trainer who will help me become worthy of my dog's respect, so that he can pass the Wesenstest and we together can pass the Begleithundprüfung.

So here I am: a person who has always lived with and loved "normal" dogs but who has basically ruined a wonderful, strong animal who could be so much more than a pet. Being a family dog is clearly not enough for Rudi. Being aggressively protective of us is just his way of doing something more than sleeping and chasing the ball!

I am open and willing to learn. I hope I can find people here who can help me repair the damage we have caused!

Regards,
Daphne Beutler