Vicious Puppy Behavior

Question
I have a three month old pure breed german shepard puppy that is vicious towards other dogs. Last night she attakced an eighth month old golden with the intent to do harm, it was scary. She barks when I take her to stores and caused the vet to shy away from her by barking in the lobby nonstop. She is very loving towards my family and my older lab but this vicious behavior towards other dogs is very concerning. Is this normal for a shepard and how can I curve this behavior? Should I have her neutered right away even though I was told it's best to wait a year? Thank you Roxy

Answer
Spay is usually used with females.  Common practice now is 6 months with the trend toward earlier.  The year is way out of date.  Can't remember when I heard it last.  Of course, I can't remember all the bad advice I see.  There are many people including some books still passing on the best of the 50's.  

Spaying her alone will not fix the problem.  Part of the problem is that she feels she needs to deal with other dogs herself because you are not giving her proper leadership.  The key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts.  Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog.  Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones.  You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/

As you train her to accept you as top dog, it will be more effective to hold your hand in front of her mouth and say ''Ut, ut, ut, quiet!'' in a firm, quiet voice.  If on leash, give her a pop.  You should stay with a flat fabric or leather collar until your puppy is 5 months old.  Then you can go with the metal slip collar with the rings on each end.  Otherwise you could damage its windpipe.  Put it on like this for the usual dog on the left position.  Pull the chain through the one ring forming a"P".  Facing the dog, slip it over its head.  The free end comes over the neck allowing the other end to release pressure when the leash is slack.  A five month old's head will still grow some.  If you buy one that easily goes over the head, it still should come off leaving the ears when the dog finishes growing.  I start the puppy out with a metal leash and switch to a leather one after the worst of the chewing is over and I need more control.