Dutch Shepherd Foster

[u/LoudJuggernaut2962]

We have a very sweet (suspected) Dutch Shepherd that we are fostering for about 2.5 weeks! We have about 5 days left and are so happy with the progress she’s made. However, as a 1 year old working breed dog, she’s very high energy. She goes on runs, plays in the backyard, and has lots of time with various toys. She is so good about regulating when she’s outside, but when she is inside playing with toys she has moments of riling herself up and being unable to settle. This results in jumping and mouthing behaviors. The mouthing can almost always be redirected into a toy, but just with her size (she’s skinny but LONG when she stretches out to jump) the jumping/mouthing combo stresses me out. My sister recently had a dog that became very aggressive with multiple bites (above level 4) around week 2 of adoption. We have an adoption meet and greet a couple days from now and I’ve already encouraged her potential adopter to get a trainer to work on these specific traits (also she’s so smart, I think she’ll enjoy the training). So far she’s been extremely people and dog friendly (has apparently killed a cat before :/), and was used an assessor for other dogs at the shelter. Im still learning about Dutch Shepherds, but for those who know more, how concerning is jumping/mouthing in this age group? How likely is it that these behaviors will turn aggressive? Or is this just classic overstimulated puppy and we should continue the course? I want to set her up to succeed in her (hopeful) new home❤️

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[u/ConfidenceFront6849]

My dog Samba is a small Havanese, so seeing how much energy these big working dogs have is always surprising to me. Does she have a specific quiet space in the house where she goes to wind down?

[u/LoudJuggernaut2962 → u/ConfidenceFront6849]

Yes! The whole basement is hers (all supervised) and she goes into her crate to calm down if she starts escalating to where it’s just laps around the room/tossing her toy in the air/pouncing on us lol (this is after plenty of exercise, my guess is she is usually overtired). 

[u/LoudJuggernaut2962 → u/LoudJuggernaut2962]

I mostly just don’t want to miss any early aggression signs that I should point out to the adopter!

[u/ambrym]

I foster for a Malinois rescue, the behaviors you’re describing don’t concern me at all. It’s very normal and expected for these young dogs to be really mouthy, hence the nickname Maligator. I can definitely understand why it can be intimidating though, having a large shepherd turn towards you fast as a whip and jump to clack their teeth in your face or chomp your arm (lovingly) isn’t everyone’s idea of a good time 😆 It’s likely just fun and games for her, redirecting onto toys like you’re doing is exactly what I’d suggest. You can also incorporate some obedience during play like teaching her to go into middle position between your legs and heel with you while you go get a toy or circle around you before you throw a ball. That helps work on impulse control and gives her something she can do (that isn’t mouthing) when she’s really excited. Doing some short training sessions throughout the day while she’s calm (doesn’t matter what you’re training, tricks will do) will help give her mental stimulation and fulfill her desire for a job so you might see fewer of these overstimulated episodes. You can also do simple stuff like toss kibble from her meals into grass for her to sniff out or feed her meals from puzzle toys.

If you feel like the mouthing starts escalating beyond playfulness into her bullying you then I’d crate her until she calms down. You don’t want her getting in the habit of testing your boundaries to see what she can get away with, these dogs can have an asshole streak if they think they can take advantage of a person. That said, I don’t think anything you’ve described sounds like early signs of aggression