They are a terrible thing for a dog, they are NOT exercise for a dog ( except an elderly dog ), and your puppy or dog will be miserable when tethered to one. Leashes were intended as a means for close, tight control of your dog in a situation that calls for such. Leashes were NOT intended to exercise dogs. You may use a leash if you take your dog to ” Home Depot, a Parade or any public place where they have to be on a leash, however your dog needs to be free to run and explore its surroundings. That’s why VZH does not place dogs in Condos or Apartments. It great to take your dogs for walks off of your property, but do so where your dog can be free. You may have a friend that has a large tract of land, or even public rural areas -State Parks etc. are typically void of people on weekday mornings and foul weather days.
So all of this that you hear about dogs that don’t walk well on a leash, and the so called corrective collars and ways to resolve such problems….. the problem isn’t the dog, the problem is the owner who shouldn’t have a dog !!
If you are using a leash on your GSD other than that mentioned above, then your dog should only be an elderly dog ( and there are many in need of rescue ) !!