I have German Shepherds and when I run water from the hose..those dogs go crazy...they absolutely love for me to soak them...as long as I spray water they will stand there and try to catch the water by snapping at the stream of water.Makes it hard to wash a car when they are standing there waiting for me to turn the hose on them.
I'm not sure if this behaviour is breed specific. Our two GSD's are not exactly enthusiastic about hoses and baths, but they are well trained and do tolerate them. They will run and play in a creek with abandon, however [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
When I was a teenager I was working in the backyard of a house in town. Being a typical mischievious kid, I pointed the water hose at the German Shepard in the yard next door. The dog loved it, jumping and snapping at the stream of water just as Walrus described it. Freaked me out because I did not get the reaction I expected!
Mine is Retriever and Shephard mixed. He loves to play in the hose, play in the rain, but hates a bath in the tub. Go figure.
Looks like Sparky is having a ball.
My German Shepard used to do that. The only problem with washing the car and spraying her was the sound of teeth hitting the concrete. [img]/forums/images/icons/blush.gif[/img]
I have 4 GSD's and 2 of them are crazy about the water hose and having you throw sticks/rocks for them to chase.They classify this as "ball drive" supposedly a good trait for training to do drug searches/finding missing people.I have never pursued the training because of being limited on my time,the 1 shepherd has a natural herding ability in him as well.
Nice dogs..of course I like all types of dogs,but I have fondess for the GSD's. [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img]
<font color="purple"> They classify this as "ball drive" supposedly a good trait for training to do drug searches/finding missing people. </font color>
Ball drive, or more generally play drive. This is quite right, it is a good indicator for any trainability, and something they especially look for in all working/service dogs.
Our working GSD, a police K-9, is seldom without a ball in his mouth (the ball is his reward while working); he brings them to the community food bowl and drops them while he eats; before long, there are half a dozen balls around the bowl. Our living room is a veritable obstacle course of tennis balls and other squeaky toys. K-9 Stryker is atypically cross-trained in several endeavors; he is certified in narcotics detection, cadaver detection, search and rescue, tracking, and novice trailing (usually only bloodhounds can do trailing), as well as evidence and building searches.
Yet, he shows no interest in playing with a hose [img]/forums/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img] For him, I think the hose/bath is associated with work, and just something he tolerates. He was this way even before working at the Pentagon crime scene, where he had to have six baths in every 8 hour shift (de-tox from jet fuel). I suspect if he were a civilian dog, and had been introduced to the hose in a playful manner, he would react more like what you describe.
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