Silly Shepherds · About a 7-minute read
Two big things this week.
The book is here. Officially.
On Bol.com, the Dutch online retailer, since Tuesday. On our own website since Thursday.
And the first person to order through our site?
Garry’s owner, whom we see at the dog field every morning.
That feels good.
Then came Thursday evening.
Another dog.
And a story that took on a life of its own.
🐾 The Incident—Day 55
Thursday evening at the dog field.
Pitch-black.
Odin, Charlie, and another dog are running around. Odin and Charlie are playing tug with a stick, pulling hard as they do.
Then the other dog comes at Odin from behind.
I hadn’t seen anything leading up to it. No warning that I noticed.
I call Odin.
He comes immediately.
Right in the middle of the chaos, worked up and full of adrenaline—but he comes.
As he returns, the other dog comes at him from behind again.
This time, Odin reacts and pushes the dog away hard.
I take Odin by his collar. The encounter ends. The other owner takes hold of her dog.
We check them over.
It’s still pitch-black. Out comes the flashlight.
We don’t find any obvious injuries.
Two days later, I hear through someone else that Odin supposedly bit the other dog.
I’m angry.
From what I saw, Odin hadn’t started the confrontation, and I hadn’t seen him bite.
Then I receive a photo showing a small puncture on the side of the other dog’s chest.
My first thought is that the dog might have caught himself on the stick. Pain. Surprise. A reaction toward the nearest dog.
But that is a possibility, not something I can establish from a photograph.
One visible puncture does not rule out a bite. Small wounds can also be missed during a quick check, especially in the dark.
The owner later explains that she hadn’t described it the way the story had reached me. She described it as a scrape from a tooth rather than a bite.
The other dog is doing well.
That matters most.
Still, the experience leaves me frustrated by how quickly an uncertain account can turn into a definite story.
Especially when the dog in the middle of it is a large black German Shepherd.
🐾 What Odin Did—and Why I’m Proud
In the middle of that confusion—another dog coming at him from behind, excitement running high—Odin responded when I called.
Immediately.
That moment matters to me.
Eight weeks ago, getting through to him in an intense situation could feel impossible.
We still have plenty to work on.
But this time, he heard me.
And he came.
🐾 What Else Happened
The book — Officially available on Bol.com on Tuesday, September 22.
On Thursday, our own webshop reopened after its redesign.
The first order arrived straight away—from Garry’s owner.
I couldn’t have asked for a nicer beginning.
The printed books arrived on Friday. That meant we could start shipping our direct orders.
The badger — Still around on our late-evening walks.
Odin now spots it from a distance.
I keep him on the leash and give it space.
However fascinating Odin finds it, the badger needs to be left alone.
Day 57 — A woman brought her Dachshund to the dog field.
Ayla’s old friend.
Those two had been close.
Seeing him there without her takes a little getting used to.
But the encounter went well.
Day 58 — A busy day.
We installed fencing by the driveway, leaving less spare time between everything else.
On the final evening walk, Zara made her preference quite clear:
I’d rather be asleep.
That girl knows what she wants.
🐾 Eight Weeks In—Where We Stand
Eight weeks ago: a rope for a leash, no basic commands, and an explosive reaction to a Labrador.
Now: coming back when called during a confrontation.
Playing with Charlie.
Walking past the badger while safely on-leash.
And lying quietly beside me in the evening while I write.
There are difficult moments.
There are things I need to keep learning too.
But we’re moving forward.
📖 Our Book Is Here — The Language of the Shepherd
Nearly 30 years of life with this breed, honestly told.
From Schadow, our first rescue girl, to Zara, our long-haired agent of chaos.
And now Odin, whose story you follow here, week by week.
The Language of the Shepherd is available in English and Dutch.
A practical, personal guide to understanding your German Shepherd—with clear boundaries, useful exercises, and no dominance theory.
👉 Explore the English edition on Amazon
Follow us on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook for more from everyday life with our dogs.
🐕 No Wikipedia. Just Us.
This isn’t a training guide. It’s our honest diary of a dog who deserves a second chance—and an owner who won’t give up. Week by week. Step by step.
