Originally Posted by Dagga Boy
DB, just a great-looking animal! Thanks for posting that.
DB, just a great-looking animal! Thanks for posting that.
I am with Dagga Boy and Peally.
Unless you have very specific needs, there seems not much call to spend money for a pedigreed dog.
There are too many serviceable canines looking for homes.
The two best companion dogs I know were actual strays taken in and fed. Not German Shepherds, though.
Shedding? A factor with many breeds. I told a friend with one of the two strays that she was sweeping up enough Sheltie hair to knit a new dog.
I should clarify, while there's hair all over everything everywhere I don't really care. Vacuuming every few days isn't a reason not to get a dog IMHO.
Semper Gumby, Always Flexible
A GSD must have his/her own vacuum cleaner. Yes, a dedicated vacuum cleaner, for the dog(s). We keep a ShopVac in the room where the dogs sleep. It is not a small model Shop Vac. One pooch is a GSD, one is a GSD mixed with a bit of something like Husky, and one is a Collie mix.
I keep a Furminator brush outside. Each time I walk Bella, which is multiple times daily, we stop for her to drink from the faucet, and then the Furminator is used, as needed. Right now, she is shedding profusely. (Yes, Bella is an over-used name for dogs, but she had belonged to a family, with children, and already answered to Bella.)
If your prior experience is with poodles, or other low-shed breeds, you have no idea, and I mean NO idea, what you are in for, with a GSD. Some hairs are like spears, and will deeply penetrate any woven material. Other hairs are soft, and very fine, and create their own problems. Is the hair worth the trouble? If your GSD is a family member, yes, of course it is worth it.
The biggest pieces of advice: A GSD absolutely needs to be part of the family! A GSD absolutely needs long walks, not just for exercise, but to establish and maintain one of the strongest bonds known to man or beast. A GSD needs, and wants, to follow a strong leader. Be that leader! If buying from a breeder, research the backgrounds of the bloodlines for health. If rescuing a GSD, with an unknown background, bless you, and I really do mean it, but be ready for expensive health issues. (One of the most altruistic acts on this planet is to adopt a rescued/thrown-away GSD, with an unknown health history.)
A good GSD will be one of the best people you have ever known.
Last edited by Rex G; 10-20-2016 at 12:06 PM.
Yeah, I had a sheltie when I was a kid. You couldn't finish vacuuming the house without there being at least one clump of fur on the part you started with. Gorgeous animal.
The best dog I ever had was a shepherd-husky mix we got as a puppy from the animal shelter (in New Haven, actually). He was very, very smart and very good natured. He LOVED to run and had incredible amounts of energy. If you asked him if he wanted to go out, he would literally bounce with excitement. He'd leap straight up in the air a good 5 feet off the ground, over and over until the leash was on or the door was opened and when you first let him out the door, or off leash somewhere, he would zoom around in circles. He was very trainable, but also very willful. He listened very well and knew all of the usual commands (sit, stay, heel) and several complete sentences (Get in the kitchen, stay in the back yard) but if the mood took him and he saw a sliver of open door (or was given the opportunity to bounce open the unlocked back door - which he figured out he could do) he would be out like a flash to go run around the neighborhood. It really took about 6 or 7 years for him to calm down and being neutered didn't impact his energy levels at all. He was a very good watch dog and a good deterrent when out walking. He was never aggressive and seemed protective but I don't know what he would have done if there had ever been a real threat as that never materialized. He lived to be almost 16 and was in very good health and spirits basically until a few hours before he died. In his later years, he developed a little arthritis in the hips, which slowed down the jumping but not the running and at some point, he developed a non-symptomatic tumor along a major blood vessel that finally caused the vessel to rupture leading to a very quick and painless end.
All of this is not really helpful in terms of pure GSD information, but if you're not set on a pure breed, and you're prepared for a really high energy dog, I'd encourage you to look into a shepherd-husky mix. If I was in a position to care for a dog properly, I would take another one in a heartbeat.
ETA: Yes, he shed like crazy; especially in the spring when he would lose his thick undercoat. It would literally come out in clumps.
Last edited by Erik; 10-20-2016 at 04:05 PM.
+1000 on the furminator. Here is a link to their videos. It really is a great product. If I do my part it virtually eliminates hair in the house. I have the vacuum attachment but generally I just take her out in the yard and let the hair fall.
http://www.furminator.com/dog-cat-pe...ct-videos.aspx
I'll wager you a PF dollar™ 😎
The lunatics are running the asylum
Thanks for all the wonderful advice. I would love to rescue a shelter dog but my wife is very concerned about a dog of unknown origin. Friends recently had a bad experience with a rescued Pit. The dog bit a young girl on the face. Fortunately no permanent damage was done. The dog was put down. They had the Pit for 2 years with no previous signs of trouble. Then we have my son who is dead set on a German Shepard.
We think that we may have found what we are looking for. We found a breeder who is expecting a litter in three weeks. Five pups are already spoken for and an ultrasound is planned soon to count and sex the litter. If there are six or more pups we will be notified. The breeder came highly recommended from multiple sources. It looks like we may be taking a ride to Rhode Island this weekend to meet the breeder and the expectant parents.
And she is such a good girl!
As if you needed it, ditto on the hair. Pet vac's are your friend. I have one staged in the kitchen, one upstairs, one in the main living area. Chuck Haggard gave my dog the nickname "Big Hairy Monster". It was earned.
Mine is a rescue. A family was evicted, and they left him to starve to death in the back yard. I found him when he was down to 44 pounds. Both vets at the hospital really wanted to put him down.
A week of vacation time and several cases of IV's later, he was up and walking. Bubba now averages between 84-88 pounds. He is far and away the most loyal dog I have ever had, and I've owned Black Labs and Rottweilers. He is very rarely more than 5 feet from my side. Including now.
Regarding security for your young son: There was a young lad that once thought it would be a good idea to assault me. My dog disagreed. The last time I heard an animal make a noise like that, it was the scene in Jurassic Park where the T-Rex eats the lawyer. The responding officer lives down the street, knows Bubba, and had me take him home and put him in the house. And this LEO sees my dog all the time, and scratches his ears. But Bubba was not going to let anyone harm his alpha. He was never aggressive towards the officer in any way, he just wanted to eat the miscreant.
Loyalty, thy name is GSD
And he is gentle as a lamb with my 3-year-old granddaughter. You have seen the pics of LL's previous dog Nacho with his daughter? Same thing here.
I have two GSD. Both have different personalities that are very entertaining. Both come from breeders and our female is a year older than our male. She helped raise him as a puppy and they share a very close bond with one another. Shedding is a thing but they both love to get brushed and I enjoy the experience. I really realized I don't want another breed after my son was born. We brought him home and my dogs were hooked. They stand watch, literally, and never let him out of his sight. My female checks on his breathing and has even moved blankets off his face if he flips them onto it. Sorry long winded but I love my GSDs
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