Thinking Of Getting A Black German Shepherd

[LisaLQ]

Sassy is full blooded. Her mother and father were police dogs. She is very protective, loyal, and loving.( to us) I raised her to be that way. We let her have one litter before getting her fixed. The vet said that would be better. We bred her to a full blooded siberian husky.(my sister's) We kept one and gave away the rest. This proves you can get good dogs free. Always check out the situation first though. Not all freebies are good. The one we kept is Demon.

Beautiful dogs Icegirl. Very nice

But I dont get your logic on free dogs. What health tests did Sassy and the husky have? And I know they're beautiful dogs and obviously raised with love, but how does giving them away for free prove they're good dogs? I mean, I'm sure they are great dogs, but why does giving them away prove that?

But still - gorgeous dogs! Do they always live outside though?

Ps. Your vet was wrong about letting her have a litter - it's a myth - it actually increases her chances of getting mammary cancer.

 

[oddball_lover]

If it's just the look of a black German Shepherd you like, have you considered the Groenendael Belgian Shepherd? Slightly finer bone structure, but very beautiful dogs - lovely black coat.

I havn't had first hand experience so couldn't tell you much about them, but I knew someone with a Tervueren who was absolutely adorable, and incredibly well behaved!

 

[MadCatter]

If it's just the look of a black German Shepherd you like, have you considered the Groenendael Belgian Shepherd? Slightly finer bone structure, but very beautiful dogs - lovely black coat.

I havn't had first hand experience so couldn't tell you much about them, but I knew someone with a Tervueren who was absolutely adorable, and incredibly well behaved!

Belgian Tervueren, Belgian Malinois, and Belgien Sheepdogs all look very similar to the shepherd.. and I believe with similar personalities. All very beautiful

 

[ICEEGRL]

I didn't mean that being free made them good dogs. I meant that not all free dogs are bad. Mine are good.
Both dogs had full physical check ups. The vet knew us all well. They were very healthy and came from good bloodlines.
Sassy's parents were actually police dogs. I didn't have her trained. I trained her. As I said I was raised with this breed since I was born. I was taught from a very early age how to work these dogs. I was trained. Now I am teaching my children. They watch and sometimes help me when working on behaviors or new tasks with them.
They do live outside. They are too big, and need too much room to be kept inside. Also they get very thick coats during the winter. They would get too hot inside. They have a pen that is bigger than my house, and a shed that has their houses in it inside the pen. There is grass in there. They have killed it right where the pic was taken (by the gate), and it was raining. I will replant there when the weather get where it will live. Demon has a tendency to destroy grass. We are working on that, and he is getting better.
I wanted to just make the point that sometimes a dog may be free because the owner is more concerned with finding a good home for the animal than making money off of it. I don't mean anything bad by that!
The point is, as has been said many times, do the research. There are good dogs out there. Free and for sale. The price is not what makes one better than the other. It is the dog and how it was treated.
I have had good free ones and good expensive ones. All good(except 1) Be careful and know what you are getting into. Make sure you will have the time for it. They need lots of attention and are alot of work! They usually give back that love and loyalty 10 fold. They are the only kind for me.

 

[ICEEGRL]

Just a note from experience... Show up without warning atleast once where the dogs are kept. You need to see how they are treated when they think noone is watching. Sometimes it is very different than what they show you and tell you. It is very sad, but very true. (the bad 1)

edit: Cool fact-- They can smell certain types of cancer.

 

[mollymad]

I saw an all black german sheperd and KNEW I had to have one... I found a breeder that is selling show quality males near by and it is soooooo tempting to go buy one... I think my parents would kick me out of the house for sure...

Hey, I guess you wished you hadnt asked!! People are very passionate about their pets, we can all see that. I have worked in a breeding kennels for 11 years and have bred three litters of Shepherds myself totalling 28 pups. Try not to get upset or confused, no matter what you do with or about your proposed pup, someone out there will tell you that you are doing it wrong!!! If you decide to purchase one go with your gut, if you feel comfortable in the enviorment and you trust the person then thats the best thing you can do. As for the pup make sure that they have been vaccinated, wormed and frontlined against fleas. Also check out the parents and that the paperwork is present and correct and available to take when pup is ready. German Sheperds suffer from hip dyspasia and also heamophilia in the males, check with your vet and the internet about these conditions. But most of all if you feel your can commit to having a dependant/child for hopefully 15 years or so with the expense, endless walkies and possible breakage or gnawing of a couple of your favourite things, then good luck. Let us know how you get on!

 

[smurfyy_2k3]

Regardless of how you raise them, they can turn out nuts!

yeah nuts!

 

[MadCatter]

yeah nuts!

Holy crap! How much does that dog weigh? haha

 

[vic]

Yeah it's behaviour like that that ruins the chances of young families even being considered for getting a dog. Blanket bans on people with kids under *insert age here* are purely there because some owners dont know how to control their kids - it's not fair on the rest of us who do know how to.

My kids dont hang off the dog, pull on the dog, tease the dog, they dont feed the dog, they dont walk her, or go near her when sleeping/eating, they dont play (ie in the garden with a ball or toy) with the dog unless they ask and an adult is there joining in (and Sky wants to of course) - and even then that's only my older two (9 and 11). They are never left alone together, either. It might sound boring or overprotective to some people - but think of it this way - we wouldn't want kids climbing on us all the time even if we were tired or sore, we wouldn't want people taking our food/toys off us, we wouldn't want kids bouncing on our bed waking us up, or sitting on our backs and making us carry them round. We'd get fed up. Difference being - we can tell them to stop - a dog cant. Well, it can, but that would be by a quick snap - or worse.

Luckily for us, we found a rescue willing to let us have a dog with kids - but it was hard to find someone willing to even give us the time of day - purely because some people think it's ok for their kids to hang off dogs and harrass them. One day, even if they're tolerant to begin with, the dog will get sick of it - or when it gets old and arthritic/sore, it just takes one time - and a kid could be seriously hurt. And the dog too! That's why you must teach kids right from the start that these things aren't acceptable.

Sky wouldn't stand for it - no doubt in my mind if my kids did that to her, she'd snap (not connect - but certainly a warning). Any dog would. That's why I've never let them from day one. If I can teach my triplet toddlers to behave round dogs (and believe me, it's hard to teach them to behave round anything!), then anyone can. You hear too often "kids will be kids", and tbh it makes me mad - because if I can control 5 of the little sods (I mean that in a loving way of course lol) when I've got mobility issues, then it's just sheer laziness if someone cant do it with their one or two. And if for some reason they truly cant control them, they shouldn't be considering a dog (or cat, or other pet the kids could get hold of).

My eldest two were 2 and 4 when we adopted Sky - yet if we'd have gone to any other rescue, we'd have been turned away without even a chance. It's not fair, when there are some of us who know how to teach their kids not to cross the line.

Well said and what about "dogs will be dogs". Torment begats retaliation. That is the natural course. A lot of child rearing books etc. preach natural consequences. Well if you torment an animal the natural consequence is retaliation. If one doesn't accept this premise, then one should limit their pet husbandry to the faux fur stuffed kind.
Vic

 

[smurfyy_2k3]

yeah nuts!

Holy crap! How much does that dog weigh? haha

shes no fat it pure muscle

 

[LisaLQ]

I nominate her for pet of the month - might induce her to lose some weight for the extra limelight

 

[KathyM]

If it's just the look of a black German Shepherd you like, have you considered the Groenendael Belgian Shepherd? Slightly finer bone structure, but very beautiful dogs - lovely black coat.

I havn't had first hand experience so couldn't tell you much about them, but I knew someone with a Tervueren who was absolutely adorable, and incredibly well behaved!

Belgian Tervueren, Belgian Malinois, and Belgien Sheepdogs all look very similar to the shepherd.. and I believe with similar personalities. All very beautiful

Belgian Shepherds are slightly different than GSDs in temperament in that their drives are a fair bit stronger. They're best as working dogs rather than just pets, although some very experienced owners have made good pets of them with a lot of hard work. Not really a beginner's dog, I don't think I could handle one and I'm fairly experienced with training dogs. Lovely looking though! Our local trainer has a Groenendaal, and he is beautiful.

 

[Amy86]

We have a female black german shepherd and she is excellent. Provided you research, find a good breeder and attend training classes or train the dog yourself if you know how, then you will have a loyal and intelligent pet, just like mine. Shes a big softy (my cat beats her up!!) and is so loving and loyal. I have seen bad examples of this breed but its only generally when an owner is incompetant and doesnt train their dog and they subsequently gain the upper hand. Once the owner is scared of the dog you have serious problems !!