Being a parent can be tough no matter what species you are.

A German shepherd named Minnie certainly had her paws full with 3 puppies.

Even though GSDs can sometimes have as many as 9 puppies at a time, 3 puppies are enough to keep Minnie quite busy.

German shepherds are a hard-working and easy-to-train breed. But even they can become worn out with parenting.

Minnie is a teacher.

Like many parents, Minnie also has a day job that keeps her busy. She works as a trainer and helps other dogs with behavioral issues. After a long day of work, it can be difficult to come home to 3 energetic puppies but Minnie is up for the challenge.

German shepherds have a strong sense of duty and that includes when it comes to parenthood.

Meet Riley, Bo, and Sawyer – Minnie’s 3 puppies.

When Minnie’s puppies are fully grown, they could reach up to 100lbs. Right now, however, they are tiny little puppies that need their mother’s love and care. Perhaps they will follow in their mother’s footsteps and become a teacher as well.

One thing the puppies will have to learn is getting used to human contact.

For Riley and Bo, this came naturally. After being picked up by a human handler, they seemed quite at ease. For Sawyer, however, he yelped and cried and let it be known he was not cool with what was happening. He would eventually grow far more comfortable with people.

At 4 weeks old, the puppies are ready for their first obedience lesson.

At just 4 weeks old, the pups are taught to come when they are called. This is done through positive reinforcement with treats. Bo and Riley caught on to this immediately but Sawyer was, once again, not as enthusiastic about the lesson.

At 9 weeks old, the puppies learn how to swim.

With life vests attached, the puppies would be taught how to swim at 9 weeks of age. For little puppies that have only been on the planet for two months, getting used to their swimwear could be a bit challenging.

Minnie demonstrated the doggy paddle for her little ones. Riley and Bo immediately took to swimming with few problems. Sawyer again was less than pleased with this lesson.

Sawyer was Mom’s toughest student.

As time went on, Sawyer grew close to his mother. At one year of age, he started joining Minnie as her teaching assistant. He might have needed more time to develop than Bo or Riley but he was turning into a very hard-working and loving little guy.

Sawyer is a bit of a hard-tempered trainer.

He doesn’t have much patience for when his students misbehave, perhaps forgetting his own experience as a young pup.

Sawyer helps train new service puppies.

Sawyer would later help develop future service dogs when a litter of German shepherd puppies was brought to his school. After helping the little ones, Sawyer received a promotion and is now a full-fledged teacher. Despite experiencing a few obstacles growing up, Sawyer has now fully followed in his mother Minnie’s footsteps.

Watch Minnie’s puppies grow in the video below.

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Source: Animal Planet/American Kennel Club