Latest news with #GermanShepherds
Time of India
18 hours ago
- General
- Time of India
7 most protective dog breeds to keep your home and family safe
Looking for a loyal companion that also doubles as a reliable guard? These seven most protective dog breeds are known for their loyalty, strength, and natural guarding instincts. Whether you want to enhance your home security or simply feel safer with your family, these dogs offer both love and protection. From powerful watchdogs to calm yet alert guardians, each breed on this list is trusted for its ability to protect your home and loved ones. If you're searching for the best guard dog breeds for families, this guide will help you choose the right four-legged defender. 7 most protective dogs that keep your home safe German Shepherd German Shepherds are among the most protective dog breeds, known for their intelligence, loyalty, and versatility. First used as herders and then police/military dogs, they excel at guarding home and family. With proper training and socialisation, they form deep bonds and act decisively against threats Rottweiler Rottweilers are confident, powerful, and fiercely loyal. Bred for herding and guarding livestock, they instinctively defend their family and property. Despite their imposing presence, they thrive in family environments when raised with early socialisation and clear guidance Doberman Pinscher Dobermans combine athletic build with razor-sharp alertness and unwavering loyalty. Originally bred as personal protection dogs, they naturally position themselves between their family and danger. Highly trainable and affectionate, they make excellent companions for active households Bullmastiff Bullmastiffs look imposing but have a calm, protective nature. Developed to guard estates against poachers, they silently deter intruders without unnecessary aggression. They're affectionate with family members and excel in homes where training reinforces their natural guardian instincts Belgian Malinois Belgian Malinois are intensely loyal and highly energetic. Frequently employed in police and military roles, they are quick learners with sharp alert instincts. When well-trained and stimulated, they serve as excellent protection dogs, always ready and vigilant Akita Akitas are dignified, reserved, and deeply loyal. Hailing from Japan's nobility, they're naturally suspicious of strangers and act decisively to protect loved ones. Though they're usually calm, they require consistent training and early socialisation to channel their protective instincts properly Tibetan Mastiff Tibetan Mastiffs were bred to guard flocks in the Himalayas. They're independent, powerful, and protective, raising the alarm at any hint of danger. Their territorial nature suits homes with space, but they need firm leadership and regular socialisation Choosing the right protective breed Trait Ideal Breeds Family-Friendly German Shepherd, Bullmastiff High-Energy & Agile Belgian Malinois, Doberman Quiet, Reserved Guard Akita, Tibetan Mastiff Loud, Confident Deterrent Rottweiler, Bullmastiff When selecting a protective dog breed, consider your home environment, training commitment, and family lifestyle. These breeds offer unmatched protection, paired with loyalty, intelligence, and heart. With proper training and socialisation, they become devoted guardians and loving companions for life. Also read| Dog hot spots: Causes, treatment, and how to help your pet heal
Leader Live
5 days ago
- Leader Live
Meet North Wales Police Dogs Unit's paw-some recruits
The vital unit provides general purpose, firearms support and specialist search dogs. These furry friends support officers' ranging policing activities – from tackling serious and organised crime to helping bring vulnerable people back to a place of safety. As of last month, two new German Shepherds have joined the team to help track down the region's criminals. Police Dogs Sven and Flo are the latest pups to be recruited to the unit. TOP STORIES TODAY Welcoming both to the team, a spokesperson for the North Wales Police Dogs Unit said: "PD Flo and her handler PC Walker completed their re-handle course at the end of June. They are already out working hard and achieving brilliant results together!" They added: "PD Sven is the newest PD to the team and licensed this week with his handler PC Evans - they didn't waste any time and were straight out the door to operational jobs! "Well done teams! We'll be sure to keep you up to date with their successes."
Newsweek
14-07-2025
- General
- Newsweek
Woman Finds Two 'Starving' German Shepherds in Road—She Knows What to Do
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A recent TikTok video has captivated viewers with the story of a woman who found two "starving" German Shepherds in the middle of the road. In her video, she documents her actions to prioritize their safety and well-being, offering a glimpse into the realities of animal rescue and the difficult choices involved. Since the clip was posted, it has received over 32,000 likes. The video opens with the creator, already having taken a dog to the vet, spotting two distraught German Shepherds. Two German Shepherds sit outside. Two German Shepherds sit outside. Simone O'Brien/Getty Images "Are you guys lost?" she asked them. "Oh, wait, that one's really skinny." Recognizing the urgency, she turned around. "Guys, I just took a dog to the vet and I found two dogs on my way over and now I'm going back to go find them and bring them food and water," she said in the video. While the state of the pups was largely emaciated and unkempt, they still displayed good manners—indicating that they might have been previously trained. "They know stuff," she said. "Look at them sitting. Hi, beautiful boy." The next crucial step was getting them to safety via an animal control officer who would take the dogs to a shelter—but as animal control arrived, the mixed emotions were palpable. "I'm kind of sad that you have to go to the shelter, but it's better than being homeless," the creator said. Her video caption summed up her philosophy: "Rescue isn't planned. It's just being in the right place and choosing to do the right thing. I'm glad I did." What Did the Comments Say? While her actions were largely praised, some commenters questioned her decision to take the dogs to a shelter. "I know you tried to do the right thing, but they would've loved to be with you instead, why don't you get them back?" one user asked. However, many quickly came to her defense: "People are so rude," one person wrote. "You did the right thing; I would've done the same thing. The dogs are gonna be better off and they'll find a good home." Another commenter pointed out the unfair criticism: "All the negative comments on about all the negative people step up and go adopt them! She did the best she could taking them to a no kill shelter. If you watch the video, she has several dogs already and maybe can't add more to her home!" One comment praised her approach to feeding the starving dogs: "Thank you so much for saving them! It is so refreshing to see someone who is knowledgeable on strays. I see so many people on TikTok who find dogs and immediately give them a ton of water and food. That's not what you're supposed to do. It can cause so much internal damage. Thank you, thank you thank you." While people's reactions were mixed, the creator's approach meant one thing for sure: the dogs would be fed and sheltered that night. Newsweek reached out to @mikailaev for comment via TikTok.
New Indian Express
13-07-2025
- New Indian Express
Kerala police plan to expand K9 squad with 38 additions
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state police will soon add more teeth to its canine unit, better known as the K9 squad, by drafting 38 dogs of various breeds, with nearly half of the new additions intended to be used for detecting explosives and narcotics. An expert committee will take a final call on the proposal that has been submitted by the State Dog Training School to the State Police Headquarters and the state police chief, sources said. The K9 squad currently has 142 active dogs and the proposal, if accepted in its entirety, will augment the strength to 180. Suman B S, veterinary surgeon of the K9 squad, said the primary focus will be on procuring German Shepherds and Belgian Malinois, which are known for their agility and intelligence. However, with the number of Labradors gradually declining, we are also prioritising them along with Golden Retrievers as second-preference breeds,' Suman said. The plan is to purchase 12 trackers, 17 explosive sniffers, six narcotic sniffers, two cadaver dogs and one alcohol sniffer. The procurement will be made from central government institutions, such as CRPF, SSB, and BSF. The police department used to purchase dogs from private kennels, but later did away with the practice to avoid buying mediocre pups. The decision to depend on central government institutions fared well as it ensured good-pedigree and proper working class dogs. Sources said that each dog is expected to cost Rs 35,000-50,000, depending upon pedigree and physical traits. The plan to purchase narcotic sniffer dogs holds significance as it conveys the intent of the department to use canines to detect contraband while it's trafficked via rail and road. The K9 squad already has 33 narcotic sniffers and the addition of six more dogs would beef up the wing. The chief minister's office had also shown interest in using police dogs to detect drugs. The most recent purchase made for the K9 squad was in 2023. The department then acquired eight German Shepherds from SSB's Alwar breeding centre.
Daily Mirror
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Katie Price's harrowing pet deaths in full after fresh fury over cat
Katie Price has been come under fire for the treatment of her pets over the years and a petition calling for her to be banned from keeping animals has gained thousands of signatures Glamour model Katie Price has come under fire numerous times over tragedies surrounding her pets – with the former glamour model a subject of a petition to stop her from owning more animals. Eight of the reality star's animals have sadly died in recent years, sparking more than 37,000 critics to sign a petition to ban her from adding more animals to her home. Meanwhile, animal welfare organisation PETA wrote to Katie with an open letter last year, offering her £5,000 if she agrees to a contract preventing her from getting another pet. PETA has even branded her a "serial killer" over the deaths of at least eight of her pets. However, the petition and open letter hasn't seemed to put Katie off of owning more pets – as she still has four Chihuahuas: Captain, Buddy, Colin and Batman and five Sphynx cats. The glamour model has recently come under fire for l etting one of the £2,000 pets get sunburnt in the recent heatwave. She shared a video of one of her cats named Kevin. In the clip, as she stokes the pet, she says: 'Oh Kevin you have been in the sun today, you have got sun burnt despite us putting sun cream on you… look at his little face.' The caption accompanying the video said: 'Trying to keep the cats out of the sun is hard work.' Here we take a look at all the pets who have faced tragedies under Katie's care... Katie's bad luck with German Shepherds In June 2023, her German Shepherd Blade was hit on the congested A24, near her East Sussex residence. "Words can't express the lost of my best friend my protector my absolutely everything who had sadly passed away today," the celebrity posted on Instagram. "I have no words to say how I'm feeling but numb and shocked rip Blade." Following her trauma, Katie revealed to followers that she suspects her guard dog was deliberately targeted in a 'sick' assault on her. Katie 's heartache over Blade's death came just six months after her Pomeranian Sharon was reportedly killed in a dreadful accident on the same road. The year before, Katie's German Shepherd Queenie, gifted by her ex Kieran Hayler, was allegedly struck by a pizza delivery driver. Taking to social media, the devastated star shared: "I'm absolutely devastated," and continued, "...she was killed by a heartless delivery driver who ran into our dog seeing her struggle and drove off without telling and left her to die." In 2020, another of Katie's dogs named Sparkle met a tragic end on the A24, and back in 2017, one of her horses also died on the same road after escaping from a field. Princess' puppy Rolo meets tragic end Tragedy struck again in July 2020 when Katie's French bulldog Rolo died in what she described as a 'freak accident', getting trapped under an electric armchair. The dog had been a birthday gift for her daughter Princess's 13th birthday, and Katie called the incident heartbreaking, especially since Princess wasn't home at the time. Despite Katie's desperate attempts to save Rolo, including performing CPR and dashing him to the vet, it was too late. She recounted on YouTube: "There was nothing they could do, but they did say he wouldn't have died in pain, it was quick," explaining that she had been packing for a holiday in another room while her daughter Bunny was playing with Rolo in the presence of other adults. Katie clarified the circumstances surrounding the accident, saying: "Basically I was in the other room because we're going on holiday, packing their suitcases," and added, "There was five people in the other room, so people saying the puppy was left, it wasn't left at all. And it just got stuck under one of the chairs." In her candid memoir This Is Me, Katie hints that Princess might have played a part in another heartbreaking incident. She penned: "The breeder we had bought the dog from had given us CBD oil to give this dog and I don't know if Princess had given it too much or what," adding, "...that day it had gone under the reclining chair to sleep and no-one had realised and it had been crushed." Giving away pets In other news from September 2021, Katie reportedly handed over her French Bulldog Precious to a crew member on her Channel 4 programme Mucky Mansion, less than a year after the pup joined the household. Precious was a present from Katie's former fiancé Carl Woods to mark their half-year milestone. It was Princess who picked out the name, with Katie affectionately dubbing the pup 'our new baby together' at the time. As of January this year, there were claims that Katie had also parted ways with her puppy Tank, opting instead for a Sphynx kitten. A mate disclosed to The Sun that the motive was Tank's diminished 'cute' factor on Instagram. Previously, in April 2019, Katie found a new home for her £1,000 German Shepherd puppy Bear because he kept breaking free. After multiple escapes, including one where a police officer found him near the A24 and brought him back, she decided to rehome him. Mystery over cats Katie also previously owned more Sphynx cats named Dobby and Hagrid, but in 2017 she announced plans to sell them for £1,300 each due to a clash with her dogs. Despite this, she continued sharing snaps of the felines on Instagram until 2021, leaving fans puzzled over whether she actually parted with them. In a more controversial incident, animal rights organisation PETA slammed Katie for allegedly 'slapping' her puppy Tank off-camera during a live TikTok session in 2023. Audiences reported hearing a smack sound while Katie told her pet, "Get off! You're sitting on my jumpers, my jumpers that I love". PETA's Founder Ingrid Newkirk condemned the action, stating: "There is almost nothing more Katie Price could do to cement the fact that she is an unfit dog guardian and an irresponsible person." The Mirror reached out to Katie's representatives for a statement at the time. Junior's chameleon dies Adding to her pet woes, Katie's son Junior's chameleon Marvin passed away in November 2018. The Sun reported that Katie attributed Marvin's death to heartbreak following Junior's move to his father Peter Andre's home during the summer, although she later admitted that her mansion's lack of adequate heating was likely the real cause for the reptile's demise. In another heartbreaking episode, Katie's pet cat Frog had to be euthanised at just five months old after succumbing to an untreatable neurological condition. She detailed the sad turn of events in her memoir, writing: "A few weeks after writing this chapter, we noticed that Frog stopped jumping on the side of the kitchen. Then he couldn't jump on the sofa. Then he couldn't jump up on the bed. There was something wrong with him so I took him to the vets. "He had a neurological disease. There was absolutely nothing I could do. Within days it had spread through his body right to the point that he couldn't even go to the toilet on his own. So I cuddled him in my arms and he had to be put to sleep. He was only five months old." Katie was reportedly left heartbroken following a petition demanding she be banned from keeping pets, which attracted thousands of signatures. Her representatives insisted at the time that claims she doesn't care for animals were "incorrect". "Katie is aware of this petition," her spokesperson told The Sun. "It comes as a devastating blow as it is wholly biased, based on hearsay not actual fact. Katie loves her animals and to say otherwise is incorrect, unjust and unkind. It couldn't be further from the truth."
