Raising German Shepherds Puppies

Congratulations on your new puppy. German Shepherds are smart, lively, and eager to please, so you will have a great time training and raising your pup, and he will be a great companion dog both as a young puppy and later as an older dog. Shepherds are great pets, and you will really enjoy your new friend.
If your puppy is not yet potty trained, and will live indoors, that will be your first training task. The most important rule is that you never punish the puppy, because they simply cannot understand. There are no bad dogs. They may do things you would rather they didn’t do, but the only way to stop those behaviors is to teach them how you want them to behave. Because German Shepherds are loyal and love to please their people, this should be a fairly easy task.
You will want to crate-train your dog for potty training. Give him a crate that gives him enough room to turn around and lied down, without extra room. Dogs will not use the bathroom where they sleep, so learning that this is his space will help him get the hang of things. Take him out to use the bathroom after meals, right after naps, and after drinking water, and praise him a lot when he goes. Make sure he knows this is good behavior.
For potty training and other training behaviors in the home, keep your pup with you at all times, preferably on a short leash. Take him out when he’s acting like he needs to go (turning in circles is a good sign), and when he does something you want him to do, praise him lavishly. If he chews on the wrong thing, take it away, give him a toy, and praise him. Help him learn what you do want him to do, and he’ll do that by choice.
Aside from training, it is important that your puppy have plenty of room to run around and play, or opportunities to go for walks and romps in the park. German Shepherd puppies are naturally very active, so giving him a chance to release all that energy will help keep him happy and healthy.
Get your pup a checkup at the vet as soon as he comes home for the first time, and take him in regularly for checkups and shots. Make sure he gets all the medications he needs, such as tick and flea treatments and heart worm preventatives.
You should also check with your vet to find out what kind of food your pup should eat, how much and how frequently. Puppies will eat if there’s food, even if they’re full, so make sure that you regulate how much he eats. He should be growing, but not getting fat.
Remember that puppies are like toddlers, and they will get into anything they can. Keep a close eye on your little friend, and make sure that you protect him from things he shouldn’t be eating or playing with. It’s like child-proofing your house, and it may take a few times around the house to catch everything a pup might get into.

Above all, enjoy your puppy’s puppy days, because soon he’ll be a more sedate, calmer grown dog. That’s great, but the puppy months are a lot of fun, so have a good time with him.