My German Shepard is 10 week old and he is a little shy is that normal and how can I help him be more sociable?

I have a 10 week old German Shepard puppy and he came from a home where the little girl was a little rough, so he is a little shy and does not like to come to you. He is a very sweet puppy but is shyness common for puppies this age? How can I help him? What is a good way to train him?

all dogs nedd training, socialization, exercise, grooming and vet carealso need to live in house with familypatience and love

Shyness is a common GSD personality trait. Socialize him! And keep socializing him. Positive interactions where you can control the situation with lots and lots of other people, other dogs, and other animals is ideal. They seem to hit a stage around 4-6 months where they are afraid of everything, but the key is to get them through it with even more positive experiences. Bring lots of treats and his favorite toys so that people can interact with him. Asking strangers to pet a cute puppy is no big deal! Everyone loves puppies.... but go to a place where you know lots of dog lovers will be. Pet stores, parks, etc. (keep your pup up to date on vaccines, of course)Puppy classes are great, too!

Slowly introduce him to children,you could have some kids give him treats, he should begin to like them quickly, if you are able to associate them as good things, not scary little people, it could be solved.

Get him out! As much experience as possible, all of it wonderful. Take treats with you, and whenever anyone wants to say "Hi!" to your puppy, give them a treat to give to him. Allow your puppy to approach on his own... do NOT pull him up to strangers (ohhhh! scary!). Tell strangers that your pup is shy, and help them to meet him properly... they should squat down (not lean over him) with their sides to him, not look at him and extend hand slowly sideways toward him with treat. Let him have as much time as he needs. When he is more comfortable, the stranger can begin to face him and look at him. If he chooses to not interact, don't push it... just chat for a bit with the stranger and move on. Do NOT let people crowd your pup or approach him when he would rather they not. Be sensitive to his body language.Do NOT comfort or baby scared dogs! All the pup will hear is that he is right to be scared and that you like it when he acts scared. Support him and encourage him and help him to be brave... praise him for bravery!GSD, more than a lot of other breeds, seem to go through the occasional squirrely phase. Do not push him, and he will be fine and come along at his own pace. If he makes friends with someone and then is scared of that person a few weeks later, just start over at the beginning.Do not discipline anything that has to do with interactions with others right now. Do not correct for jumping up or mouthing or whatever. He should not connect strangers with getting in trouble.

It is my experience that GSDs tend to be a bit more anxious in strange situations than other breeds. However, this does sound unusually shy for this age of a puppy. I suggest you talk with your vet at his next puppy checkup and try to formulate a plan. In the meantime, try some deference training. This means you teach him to sit, and then you ask him to sit before anything you might give to him (including being let out, being petted, being fed, etc). The sitting doesn't have to be perfect - it just has to get him to pause and look to you for the next step.Deference training does two things. 1) It establishes the proper respect between owner and master (think of it as a way he can say "please") and 2) it helps nervous dogs know when they can expect interaction. Right now, he's probably thinking all the time, "Gosh! My master might jump out and grab me at any time! Oh no!" But with deference training, he can relax because he knows you won't encroach upon his space without a signal.Also, reward CALM social behaviors with a yummy treat. Don't use treats as a bribe when he's acting scared - then you are rewarding his cringing and hiding behaviors. When he's acting scared, give him some space. You may even want to crate-train him. Then the crate can be his special "I'm alone and no-one is bothering me" space.And as soon as you can, take him to puppy classes (not obedience school, but a puppy "preschool" designed for pups starting at 8-16 weeks). This will help socialize him and help him adjust more easily in strange situations.