Is there any one personality type that chooses to own a German Shepherd Dog? Do we all have similar personality traits? Absolutely and totally no we do not! Are our personalities anything like the breed that we love? Are we a noble, proud and loyal bunch of people? Can we be trusted no matter what? Will we come to the defense of those that we care about? Are we intelligent and do we learn quickly? One shoe most definitely does not fit all when it comes to those people that own this breed. But there must be a reason why we chose the breed that we do. They must answer some type of need that we have when we decided that the German Shepherd Dog is the dog for us.
So who is it that owns this �King� of dogs? It�s the lawyer, the doctor, the secretary, the nurse, the homemaker and people just like you and me. It�s the outdoors type of person. It�s the couch potato. It�s the friendly, �wish he was your best friend� kind of person. And it�s also the �no good for nothing� kind of person as well. Yes this dog is universal in his appeal to the general public.
One person may include his German Shepherd Dog in all of his activities with his family. The dog may have sleeping rights to juniors bed at night or may be found curled up at the bottom of the bed lying next to his master�s side. He may be treated like one of the kids of the family. He swims in the pool, sails the ocean with his master, goes fishing down at the pond, and he even eats left over steak once in awhile. He competes for as many toy�s in his dog chest as little Johnny has in his toy chest. He�s made a fool of when it�s his birthday and gets gifts wrapped up in pretty wrapping paper and bows. We may even bake a cake for him. And then again we may even take pictures of him in a totally ridiculous looking hat we made just for him. Yup, we humans sometimes have a way of trying to humanize our dogs! Some of us readily admit it while others do these �cute� little things for them behind closed doors just in case the men in the white coats are on the prowl that day!
Then there are those owners that treat �Duke� like, �Yeah, so what, he�s just a dog!� He never gets to come into the house to receive the attention that he�s dying for. He doesn�t even know that his master has little Susie May and Dexter Lee as the children in the family. Heck he doesn�t even know what children look like. His �home� probably consists of some old broken down dog house held together by very rusty nails that soon will be giving way to old age and then Duke won�t have a dog house at all. He doesn�t even have the benefit of a fenced in yard to play in. Oh there�s lots of property here alright, but he never gets to explore it. In the ten acres or so his master owns he�s only been on 20 feet of it. His chain is too strong even for his powerful body to break free from. When supper time rolls around, he anxiously awaits his Wal-Mart�s brand of food that his master got on special this week. Steak, what�s that? It would probably me a shock for good old Duke�s system if a piece of it were kindly thrown his way. Toys, bones, swimming pool, boat, a warm bed...............not in this dog�s lifetime!
There are also those people who own this breed that kennel their dogs. The dogs are well fed, watered and vaccinated. They�re warm in the winter and cool in the summer in their climate controlled dog kennel. They exercise on cement or dirt flooring by chasing the dog next to their dog run. They�re fed a decent to high end quality food. They get fresh air and sometimes are even taken out to be played with. Some of them are trained to be show dogs or obedience dogs. Many of them are used for breeding purposes. Most of the time, they belong to caring owners. But sometimes they are owned by owners looking to make money by breeding their animals over and over again until they�re all worn out. The latter are what some would call puppy mills. These are not true lovers of the noble German Shepherd Dog.
Is it the strong type of personalities that own this breed or is it the more kindly, friendly type of person you�ll see walking proudly besides his dog down the street? Are these people sweet natured or mean spirited? Well actually you�ll see both types that own the German Shepherd Dog. And you know what because of the nature of this animal; they love their master no matter what. They adore the attention that they get from the warm, loving, nurturing master that owns them. There isn�t too much that they wouldn�t do for another belly rub. On the other hand those that are owned by the cold, �go away don�t bother me� type personality equally or even more so vies for the attention that his owner is giving to something else and not to him. The German Shepherd thrives on attention from his loved one even if that loved one is incapable of giving it to him. It is his mission in live to change his mind.
Then there are those types of people who have no love at all to give. To this type of personality, the German Shepherd is a money maker. He is after all the second most registered dog in the American Kennel Club. There�s no denying his popularity and in some peoples minds his money making capabilities. This dog was never bought to throw a ball to and to discover the true meaning of what it is to be �man�s best friend.� The dog is the owner�s property to do whatever it is he wants to do with him. Just as long as he�s making money from him, that�s all he cares about. It�s as if the dog is his tenant and he pays �rent� to stay in his kennel or make-shift dog run or mud hole by �spitting� out puppy after puppy. It�s like the dog and man have what used to be called the barter system. I want this from you so in order for you to get it, you have to give me something in return. There are no free rides here for this dog. This dog is paying (literally) for his time on this earth.
So there you have it. There are many wonderful people that own this beautiful breed of ours and know the true value of ownership of the German Shepherd Dog. They have developed and maintained the integrity and beauty of the breed. The others, although thankfully fewer in numbers have used and abused this dogs worthiness for their own financial gain. I don�t think, but I know that I like the first group of people a whole lot better than the second group of people! Oh yeah, if the German Shepherd could talk, I know he�d agree too!
From the book: "PLEASE UNDERSTAND ME: CHARACTER AND TEMPERAMENT TYPES"......Does your spouse's need to alphabetically organize books on the shelves puzzle you? Do your boss's tsunami-like moods leave you exasperated? Do your child's constant questions make you batty? If you've ever wanted to change your mate, your coworkers, or a family member, then "Put down your chisel," advise David Keirsey and Marilyn Bates in this book of personality types. We are different for a reason, and that reason is probably more good than bad. Keirsey and Bates believe that not only is it impossible to truly change others (which they call embarking on a "Pygmalion project"), it's much more important to understand and affirm differences. Sounds easier than it is, you might say. Well, this book is a guide for putting an end to the Pygmalion projects in your life and starting on the path to acceptance.
My rating: Accepting other peoples differences: (1 - 4)!
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