Advice on what to look for when selecting a German Shepherd

[AKDoug]

My son and his wife picked up an Australian Shepherd out of large parents. He will be a decent sized dog, easily on the largest size of standard. He is smart as a whip and has the most pleasant disposition of any puppy I've ever been around. He also has a decent protective streak already and will put himself between my daughter-in-law and any stranger (to him). He loves kids and is super gentle with them. He's pretty much like every Aussie I've been around. I'm not even a "dog guy" and I like Aussies and their temperament. We had a mini-Aussie (would not recommend them in any way) that we ended up with when my kids were little. She lived 15 years, but was the epitome of everything that happens when you breed for size not standards and brains. Her strong points were her gentleness with my kids and her outright fearlessness at anything that might harm them.

Bulletdog is right. My neighbor's neutered male Golden is an asshole... and stupid as a post. I also agree with his assessment about standard poodles. My buddy has one and it's a great dog. Damn smart, decent bird dog, and calm as can be inside the house and around people. He's impervious to the teasing about that poodle, and he gets plenty of teasing.

[Coal Dragger]

Yeah standard poodles are damn good dogs, you don’t have to give them idiotic haircuts, which helps.

In other dog related news tonight my 2 year old son used the 9 month old Rottweiler puppy’s cheeks/jowls as handles and pulled himself up on the couch using the poor dog’s face as a grab iron. The puppy seemed completely indifferent to this, as well as every other indignity a toddler inflicts upon a dog. He is amazingly good natured, the boy can lay on him, climb on him, hug him, etc and the a Rottweiler seems to actually enjoy it. Our female GSD will play along for awhile, but once she’s had enough she just gets up and goes to another area.

I was not too keen on the Rottweiler, it was my wife’s idea since she grew up around them, but I have to concede that aside from the normal puppy issues Jack is turning out to be a very good family dog. He is quite magnanimous and hopefully he stays that way.

[26 Inf]

Yeah standard poodles are damn good dogs, you don’t have to give them idiotic haircuts, which helps.

In other dog related news tonight my 2 year old son used the 9 month old Rottweiler puppy’s cheeks/jowls as handles and pulled himself up on the couch using the poor dog’s face as a grab iron. The puppy seemed completely indifferent to this, as well as every other indignity a toddler inflicts upon a dog. He is amazingly good natured, the boy can lay on him, climb on him, hug him, etc and the a Rottweiler seems to actually enjoy it. Our female GSD will play along for awhile, but once she’s had enough she just gets up and goes to another area.

I was not too keen on the Rottweiler, it was my wife’s idea since she grew up around them, but I have to concede that aside from the normal puppy issues Jack is turning out to be a very good family dog. He is quite magnanimous and hopefully he stays that way.

In 1974, I rescued a dog from the Hawthorne Nevada dog pound - statute of limitations is up now - I went over the fence and got it. Turned out to be, according to a couple of vets, a Staffordshire Terrier - not sure they called any dogs pit bulls back then. Best dog ever, my son was a toddler at that point, they were in-separable. One day my son was playing with a pound the peg Fischer-Price toy, I saw him look at the hammer, I knew what he was going to do, and sure enough 'whack' he hit Wrinkles right between the running lights. Wrinkles kind of looked at me as if to say 'how much of this do I have to put up with? He got up moved about three feet and resumed his overwatch of my son. He also penned several folks up against our house when they showed up while I was working on my desert bike and my son was outdoors. Best dog ever, had him for 13 years.

We have pretty much identical GSD's out of different bloodlines, the male is 105, the female is 65. Apparently I'm not much of a trainer, each of them will work/obey me when they are alone, when they are together, pretty much forget it. I just want them to sit, walk to heel, sit when I stop and lay if it is a long stop. The female still needs a short lead and pinch collar,, the male will behave on lead without the pinch collar and I'm pretty sure he'd stay on task without a lead, if she isn't around. Essentially they play with each other all day and tolerate my attempts.

Against my better judgement the wife mated them, so in about 14 weeks we will see what the puppies lock like. My intent is off to the vet with both of them as soon as the puppies are gone, but somehow I think I'm going to do just what the wife wants. First wife and I hobby bred boxers, it's not all that much fun..

[chuckman]

The German Shepherd I got I got for free from friends who bred them for search and rescue and law enforcement work. He was the runt of the litter, ironically he ended up being about 115 lb.

He was basically trained, but even with that I had to be on him all the time. But he was a goofball, all he wanted to do was bark and play. Not a malicious bone in his body, he was all dopey sweetheart.

[ramairthree]

The German Shepherd I got I got for free from friends who brought them for search and rescue in law enforcement work. He was the runt of the litter, ironically he ended up being about 115 lb.

He was basically trained, but even with that I had to be on him all the time. But he was a goofball, all he wanted to do was bark and play. Not a malicious bone in his body, he was all dopey sweetheart.

It’s funny how that works.

I picked up the last of a litter of GSD/Husky/Malamute mutts from a farmer for my little brother. He was the runt. Ended up 110 lbs. the others under a hundred when grown.

[Bulletdog]

We had a mini-Aussie (would not recommend them in any way) that we ended up with when my kids were little. She lived 15 years, but was the epitome of everything that happens when you breed for size not standards and brains. Her strong points were her gentleness with my kids and her outright fearlessness at anything that might harm them.

I agree 100% and have had the same experience that you describe with every mini Aussie I've come across.

In other dog related news tonight my 2 year old son used the 9 month old Rottweiler puppy’s cheeks/jowls as handles and pulled himself up on the couch using the poor dog’s face as a grab iron. The puppy seemed completely indifferent to this, as well as every other indignity a toddler inflicts upon a dog. He is amazingly good natured, the boy can lay on him, climb on him, hug him, etc and the a Rottweiler seems to actually enjoy it. Our female GSD will play along for awhile, but once she’s had enough she just gets up and goes to another area.

The first trainer that I apprenticed under had two rotties and we worked with a lot of them. They really run the spectrum. Some of them are gentle and great with people, and others are truly dangerous dogs. When you find a good one, there isn't anything better, but when you see enough of the bad ones, it makes you think twice. They tend to get very dominant as they reach maturity. So dominant that they aren't willing to accept dominance from the people who raised them or anyone else. They need an experienced owner who is willing to demonstrate a heavy hand when needed early on. Akitas are similar in this way. It is for this reason that I don't normally recommend them to people, even though I do love the breed and recognize how fantastic some of them can be. If someone decides on their own to get one, I'm happy to offer help and suggestions to make it go well. Sounds like you've got a good one, but keep an eye out when he reaches 18-24 months and those hormones really get going.

[sig1473]

This a great thread and I've learned a lot. I've had 6 GSDs over my span of 40yrs since I was a baby. Easily some of the best and smartest dogs I've ever been around. Second only to my little buddy who was a Norwich Terrier who I had to put down after he was only around for 9yrs.

[Grand58742]

My rescue GSD is currently napping on the loveseat (yeah, she has her own couch). She had been turned into us on base and the local animal shelter put her on the "no adopt" list since she was, in their opinion "too far gone to save or adopt." I took her right back out and to my vet where they gave her "maybe a week."

Seven years later, she's been the most loyal companion and integrated herself into my life without any hesitation. She was a purebred (though no papers, I got my analysis from a breeder) and on the younger side, already spayed and easily trained. She even learned to co-habitate with the cat I had at the time. A true friend for life.

Regardless, if I was to ever get another GSD, I'd go the rescue route again. Plenty of people that take in GSDs don't realize they have a high upkeep in the beginning and can't deal with them. You could do worse than finding a local GSD rescue in your area and giving one another lease on life. They realize who saved them and are loyal in return.

[Grand58742]

Regardless of the specific breed of GSD you go with, there are two items I'd tell you to buy up front:

https://www.rayallen.com/heavy-duty-dog-balls

For play time. Trust me, hours of enjoyment. I used to be able to put mine in the backyard with it and come back two hours after mowing the yard and she's still rolling it around.

https://www.rayallen.com/kong-classi...r-90-lbs-black

For training. Best tool ever made IMO. I've never seen a GSD that didn't take to a Kong right away. FYI, I have no financial ties to Ray Allen, just good folks I've done business with before.

Also, this stuff has been great for mine.

https://www.amazon.com/Phycox-Canine.../dp/B0014FTA74

It helps with the dysplasia in their later years.

[1_click_off]

Never considered the poodle, but more I read the more I think it is a viable option.

Any thoughts on an Airedale Terrier?

Edit: never mind on the Airedale. I read up on it some. I quickly decided we were not compatible.