[nagdu] German shepherds and cats

[Tracy Carcione]

I respectfully disagree.  In the past, Fidelco has put out some shepherds 
with a high prey drive.
Also, my labrador Echo had some prey drive.  I had to work on her when I 
first got her to make her not get so excited about squirrels or cats.  I 
broke her of chasing squirrels, at least in harness, but she would still 
sometimes chase or bark at my parents' cat.  I don't think she wanted to eat 
it, but she did enjoy chasing it.
But, if Kathy mentions the cats to the school she chooses, it shouldn't be a 
problem.  I don't have cats, so I didn't say anything about them when I got 
Echo.
Also, TSE doesn't seem to have any problem giving anyone a shepherd, if they 
feel it's the best match, first-timer or not.
Tracy


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Shannon L. Dillon" <shannonldillon at gmail.com>
To: "'NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users'" 
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, July 13, 2013 1:04 AM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] German shepherds and cats


>I don't think a school is going to let a shepherd out that has a high pray
> drive. I think that would probably be something that would make it fail as 
> a
> guide dog. All the schools I'm aware of have kennel cats that are intended
> for dogs to get used to cats.  So once you bring the dog into your home,
> you'll need to allow time for the animals to adjust to each other. But I
> think that would be the case no matter what animal you brought into your
> house if there is already an animal living there. But I don't think any
> school is going to let a dog out that would hurt your cats. They can't 
> have
> a dog with a high pray drive that takes off after a cat or squirrel in the
> middle of guiding you. They have to be able to ignore distractions.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of melissa R green
> Sent: Friday, July 12, 2013 8:00 PM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] German shepherds and cats
>
> Have you informed the school that you are applying to about your cats.
> They can help to work this out.
> So you won't get a dog that thinks the cat is prey.
>
> Blessings,
> Melissa Green and PJ
> facebook Melissa R Green
> Linkedin www.linkedin.com/in/melissagreen5674
> skype: lissa5674
> Goodreads Melissa Green
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Kathy" <pigwidgin07 at gmail.com>
> To: <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, July 12, 2013 8:45 PM
> Subject: [nagdu] German shepherds and cats
>
>
> Hello everyone.  This is Kathy in Seattle and I am in the middle of
> applying for a guide dog.  I'm waiting for the home visits at this point.
> I agree that one should get the best dog (and breed) for your own unique
> situation but I admit to being quite partial to german shepherds, mostly
> because I grew up with and also owned collies and german shepherd mixes.
> For those of you who have or have had german shepherd guides, have any of
> you had cats in your household?  How did that work out?  With the prey
> drive that some shepherds are known for, I'm concerned about our kitties
> becoming a midnight snack. :)  They are large Ragdolls and incredibly
> sweet, and the last thing I'd want to do is to cause them loads of stress.
> I think in the long haul, they will love having a dog around because they
> sort of act like dogs themselves.  But only if it doesn't eye them with a
> culinary interest.
>
> Thanks for the advice!
>
> Kathy
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