David is amazing with dogs! He is calm and patient and really loves to be around them! I have a little one that’s pretty anxious and he was very soothing and wonderful with her. David has watched my dogs a few times and I can’t say enough great things about him! you won’t regret having him watch your pups!

First, a disclaimer. I am David’s mom and that makes me very, very biased. It also makes me a uniquely qualified source of information on his life-long relationship with dogs. Our German Shepherd, Tara, was four when David was born. She was a very difficult, high-strung dog and we were concerned about having her in the house with an infant. To our great surprise, Tara quickly became a devoted nanny. She never left David’s side. She inched along the floor when he crawled and he learned to walk holding on to her fur. I sometimes tell David that his love for German Shepherds comes from being raised by one. When David was five, we met Dax, a large, male German Shepherd that had been bred and trained to be a canine. Dax had passed all three of the rigorous Schutzhund Trials (tracking, obedience, protection) required for canine work. An injury had left one of his back legs weak and he no longer qualified as a “working dog” so he needed a new home. I could tell that he was more dog than I could handle but he and David made an immediate connection so I agreed to take Dax to a respected Schutzhund trainer, Vera, for an evaluation as a family dog. After an afternoon of working with Dax and David on the training field, Vera told me that David was a natural born dog handler. And David told me he wasn’t going home without Dax. The following week David started learning how to work with Dax (in German) at the Tyson Schuzhund Canine training field. They were both five years old, but David weighed 55 pounds and Dax weighed 95 pounds. People were sometimes frightened to see such a small boy working with such a big, powerful dog yet the harmony between them was a beautiful thing to watch. Schutzhund training is intense, but it is based on affection, play, rewards, boundaries, and respect. It taught David how to be the adored “alpha” with dogs. Our family has had two more German Shepherds and both are bonded to David. Even now when he visits home after being away for college and work, he is clearly the adored alpha. He is, as Vera said, a natural born dog handler. David doesn’t have a dog now. He is working full time, going to grad school, and living in a small apartment. I know that the first thing he will do when he has more time and adequate space is get a German Shepherd puppy from Tyson. Until then, Tara, Dax, Dargo, Dante, and I recommend him to you without reservation to care for your beloved dog.