Life with a German Shepherd.
Those of you who haven’t met Cooper before – say hello. He’ll be two in September and although he’s definitely not a puppy anymore, he’s still a young, cheerful, silly, kind and an always excited boy in my eyes. And even though he was a birthday present for my daughter, he’s definitely MY boy. It was me that picked him for Sasha as he needed to be reserved a few weeks before we could take him home. I’ll always remember the day I saw the litter. I held 4 different puppies and Cooper was the only one who looked up at me and kissed me. He was the one.
I’ve always had pets growing up, so owning a big dog was no rocket science. At one point during my childhood we had a Great Dane, Siamese cat, 2 parrots and a guinea pig. All in a small 2 bedroom flat and it was the best time of my young years growing up in such a happy place. My mum called it “zoo” right enough, but it was me and my siblings who really had all the fun with our pets. I truly believe that pets enrich people’s lives and teach kids to be more responsible, kind and caring. When making a decision about getting Cooper for Sasha I always knew that any “big” dog would be a piece of cake to own / manage after our Great Dane Rambo. I was very excited that Sasha really wanted a German Shepherd. She’s done a LOT of research and kept showing me videos and facts about German Shepherd breed. I must admit I was really impressed with the breed and there’s even more information on Most Popular Dog Breeds if you too fancy learning about German Shepherds or other breeds. Great source for tons of facts about all kinds of pets and their insurance, because of course, our kids don’t ever think about Petplan Pet Insurance, do they?
Cooper was the smallest puppy from the litter and I adored his black (short!) coat as soon as I saw him and cuddle him. We never met the dad, but the breeders say he’s his dad’s double whereas the rest of the puppies had long lighter coats. After owning several dogs in my lifetime, I can honestly say Cooper’s the smartest. German Shepherds are very loyal, protective and always alert, which is why they’re often used by the Military and Police. We started training him pretty much as soon as we got him at 8 weeks and I couldn’t believe his smartness and obedience. I definitely think he has even more potential and trainability and for anyone thinking about getting a German Shepherd – train them everything you want them to learn early. They can become quite stubborn over time. Especially when they’re in a situation where they think they need to protect you. Like from a postman knocking the door, you know?
Cooper is always there for our family. Always happy to see us no matter how long we’re gone for. He’s under my desk when I work, under the table when we eat, next to the sofa where we sit and now being an extra super protective big brother to our baby Leon as well. Our dog is full love.
Do you have a pet? What’s your Pethood Story? x
This post is in conjunction with Petplan but all thoughts are my own