Why doesn’t my German Shepherd like me?

If your German Shepherd doesn’t seem to like you this post will show you why and what you can do about it.

So, why doesn’t my German Shepherd like me? It could be the case that it does actually like you but it doesn’t show it the way that you would expect. However, it could also be that you haven’t exercised it enough, it’s bored, it’s ill, previous owners mistreated it, it’s depressed or it didn’t socialize enough as a puppy.

There are a number of things that you can consider when trying to figure out why your German Shepherd doesn’t like you. Depending on the cause there are also a number of things that you can do about it.

Why your German Shepherd does not like you

Each of the different reasons why your German Shepherd doesn’t like you will likely come with some clues.

Below, I will mention a number of reasons why it might be the case and the things that would make them more likely.

It does actually like you

It might be the case that it does not actually dislike you. Some dogs will show more affection while others will not. Some ways that your German Shepherd might show that it does like you could be that it stays at your pace when on walks, it wags its tail when you come home or it comes when you call it.

Related post: How to tell if your German Shepherd loves you

You haven’t given it exercise

German Shepherds are meant to get a lot of exercise on a daily basis. When they do not get a lot of exercise it can cause them to develop behavioral issues. Generally, it is recommended for them to get an hour of exercise per day. If yours is not getting that much exercise then it might be why it has been acting like it does not like you.

Related post: Ways to exercise your German Shepherd.

Illness or injury

It might be the case that it has gotten ill or injured. This would be more likely if it has started to act unusually suddenly and if it has been showing other signs of being ill or injured. If it does seem like it might be ill or injured then it would help to make sure to take it to a vet.

Previous owners

It might be the case that it doesn’t like to show affection because it was mistreated by previous owners. This would be more likely if it has always acted like it doesn’t like you and if you adopted it from a shelter.

In this case, it might show more affection over time but you can follow the tips mentioned below to get it to like you more.

Fear

The reason why it seems to not like you might be that something has caused it to become fearful.

There are many things that could cause a German Shepherd to be fearful but some examples could include:

• A certain person, that it does not like, being around
• Another dog, that it does not like, being around
• Fireworks, sirens or thunderstorms
• Being in a new location
• Having been mistreated by someone or something recently

If your German Shepherd did not previously seem to dislike you but it suddenly started to then it could be the case that it is frightened of something. It would help to consider what happened recently that might cause it to feel that way.

Lack of socialization as a puppy

It might be the case that it was not able to socialize much as a puppy and it has caused it to not want to interact with people so much as an adult.

When German Shepherds are puppies they develope many of their characteristics. If a German Shepherd puppy does not get many opportunities to interact with people then it will not have as many chances to learn to be interested in them.

This would be more likely to be the reason if you know that it didn’t get much socialization as a puppy or it is adopted.

Depression

German Shepherds can get depression like people do and it might be why it seems to not like you. This would be more likely to be the reason if it suddenly started acting differently after something might have caused it to become depressed such as someone moving away or another dog passing away.

How to get your German Shepherd to like you more

There are a number of things that you can do to get your German Shepherd to start liking you more that I will mention below.

Give it exercise

As mentioned above it is important to make sure that your German Shepherd is getting an hour of exercise on a daily basis. you can make sure to give it exercise by walking it, playing fetch with it or having a dog walker do it for you.

Make sure that you are feeding it correctly

It would also help to make sure that you are feeding it correctly. It might be the case that something in its diet is causing it to behave in a certain way. You can look here to see what you should and should not be feeding your German Shepherd.

If you are unsure of what food to get for your German Shepherd, consider getting dog food designed specifically for German Shepherds. You can get a GSD specific dog food on Amazon here and one for GSD puppies on Chewy here. 

Give it training

If your German Shepherd won’t listen to you then it would be very helpful to give it lots of training by starting with the basics such as to train it to sit or to stay.

By training your German Shepherd you will be able to get it to be more responsive to your command, it will behave in the way that you want it to and it will look at you more as the leader. This will help to reduce any bad behavior.

I have written more about how to train your German Shepherd here.

You can look at the book Training Your German Shepherd on Amazon to get more tips about how you can train your GSD.

Avoid encouraging it

It could be the case that you have been inadvertently reinforcing the behavior by giving it what it wants when it acts in a way that you do not like. Instead, of rewarding it when it misbehaves it would be more helpful to train it not to behave that way and to reward it when it is well behaved.

Get help

If it is aggressive or violent then it would help to get the help of a certified dog trainer or behaviorist. By doing so you will be able to get expert help tailored to your particular German Shepherd.

Things to consider

When it first started acting that way

When trying to understand why your German Shepherd does not seem to like you it would help to consider when it first started to act that way. It could be the case that there was an event that caused it to start acting like it.

For example, if you rewarded it one time when it showed signs of not liking you then it might have learned to carry on doing it.

If it seems to like you more at other times

It would also help to consider if it seems to like you more at certain times.

For example, if it seems to be more responsive to you when it has gotten exercise then it might be that it is not usually getting enough.