Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoughts?
 

We're thinking about buying a German Shepherd/Husky mix. We live in a large apartment with all tile, plenty of sunlight, and lots of room to run around outside on a leash. We have a 2.5 yr old daughter. The weather here runs 60-80 degrees Fahrenheit year round, so there wouldn't be a significant time when we couldn't walk the dog.

Input, anyone?

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

My favorite breed! Purebred Shepherd though. Huskies are pretty high strung, so personally, I'd shy away from them. The mix might be OK though. I've had a few shepherds. Smart, well behaved, good with children, great watch dogs. Just remember, big dog, big "pile." LOL

I love shepherds. I've also had a St. Bernard as well........slobbery!! Great to play with though!

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Thanks for the input. For what it's worth, the dog is 3/4 Shepherd and 1/4 Husky.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Unless your will to spend a LOT of TIME with the dog I wouldn't...they need much time and training....

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Hmmmmmm.....always wondered how they measure that! :D

I used to be a Lab Tech for OSU Lab Animal Dept. many years ago and worked with a number of different breeds. Huskies were more prone (maybe not a lot) to be unpredictable than shepherds. I really do think Huskies can be great family dogs and it may be more a matter of preference than anything. I've just always personally liked shepherds. I like a dog who can put his front paws on my shoulders and look me in the face! LOL Not hard for me since I'm short......but not Epley short!

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

I can speak to the Shepherd part. Personally, I think they are the best dog when it comes to the mixture of temperament and protective qualities. Is this a very little puppy or an older dog? That is something to consider, particularly with the age of your child.

And here are a few gratuitous shots of ours :)

http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/p...spc/puppy3.jpg


http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/p...ashafixed2.jpg

http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/p...ashafixed1.jpg

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Sadly ours got out one day and somebody picked her up...She was beautiful...a solid white German Shepherd....called a "Swiss" Shepherd...

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

That is terrible. Was she a puppy?

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

A year and half old... her name was Shelby...

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

But you'll have to convert that to Celsius, for a German Shepherd. :heeheehee

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Gorgeous! :thumbsup

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

It's a puppy right now, just a few weeks old.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Hey if you were near me,I have a dog that is a mix between an Australian Sheperd,and A Bulldog you could have.I have been trying to give this dog away to a good home.
If anybody needs a dog,come to Jackson,AL and you can have her free.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

That's perfect, then! :)

I love German Shepherds--they are beautiful dogs, and have such wonderful personalities, and they're SOOOOOO smart.

You do need to plan on lots of regular exercise--big dogs need lots of activity, and like someone else said--they also produce bigger piles of poop to pick up. :D

Don't skimp on the playtime/exercise. They not only need it just for their health, but if they are cooped up in a small space too much, they can become irritable and may behave badly. It's a great way to spend time together as a family, anyway. When the dog goes out to play or walk, so should the kids (and parents). :)

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Will he bark in German?

I think that is a wonderful idea. My mother always loved dogs...I used to have a CAO FILA, A BIG MEAN BRAZILIAN DOG...BUT THE DOG SURE LOVED ME...

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

I would think that that should be fine. Our dog was about a year and a half when we had our baby. They do fine together although we still do not leave her with unsupervised access to him.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Man, I'm surprised they had the gall to approach a dog that size and take her. I know that had to be tough.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Yes, they do need excercise and Shepherds do shed quite a bit so they need to be brushed regularly. The one good thing about a mixed breed is that I understand that they tend to have less medical issues than purebreeds.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

I have a relative who just bought a full blooded german shepherd puppy for his family. Looks just like the puppy at top! They grow fast and they get quite large as I can see. I'm glad to hear they are good dogs. I always associate them with the mean police dogs. I'm sure though, that they would protect a child from most anything or anyone.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Mainly, I'm looking for a dog that's smart and trains well. I can train the kid, it's the dog I'm worried about :)

How about barking? I've heard that getting a dog not to bark incessantly is more about training than breed, but what do you guys think?

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Hey Bro, when I was a kid, we had a female German Shepherd named Fritz.

She was beautiful, very protective and lived to be 21.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Golden Retreivers are great dogs for kids...

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Lacey, I think one of the reasons that police and law enforcement all over the world use them so extensively is that there temperament lends them to primarily be aggressive only when they need to be. From a liability standpoint they need a dog who is not a loose cannon and can accurately judge threats and non-threats...and they are very smart and trainable.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

wow tstew that is one beautiful dog.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Shepherds can be pretty vocal. From my experience anyway, they are a more vocal breed not just in barking but in "communicating" in general.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Thanks

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

I say go for it. They are a great breed.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

That REALLY is a pretty dog! Great markings! I'll probably get another one when I retire and the grandkids are too big. Like, when I get to be around 90! LOL

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

My wife is not a fan of dogs in general and shepherds in particular.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

large dogs don't do good cooped up inside all day waiting to be walked. I have a friend that has a yellow lab and they lived in an apartment. I would come over every now and then to walk him.

If someone can take the dog out during the day when you are at work, then Id say go for it.

I love shepherds and husky's and they tend to be good dogs to be around when they have been trained and treated right

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

I love golden retrievers...retrievers in general tend to make good dogs. Labs are great dogs too

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

I like basset hounds.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

The only good basset hound is a mute basset hound :ursofunny

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Yeah, well, the same could be said for a praxeas.:thumbsup

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

only by my enemies :smack

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

I love Golden Retrievers. They are rated as a top family dog and said to be high in intelligence. I believe they could understand something like 250 commands etc. I read up on them when I decided I wanted a dog.
For now I travel the world and live mostly in a van so when I am home I have
a three inch tall solid white parakeet named Pearl. I am hoping we settle soon and have that big yellow dog!!!!

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

We have a live-in maid who takes my daughter out to play a couple of times a day who could take the dog out at the same time.

(want a live-in maid? move to Guatemala! lol)

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

Well, we took the leap. We got a female german shepherd...she looks like a full german shepherd, doesn't show much of the husky. She took to my daughter well and they played for a while. We'll pick her up in a couple of weeks when she's six weeks old.

Thanks for all the tips...I may be asking for more as she chews the house up!

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

We have a shepherd/akita mix dog. We got Indie when he was just a tiny puppy (4 lbs when we brought him home. 45 lbs. now). He is the BEST dog. I do daycare in my home and was concerned that because he is a bigger dog, he might have problems with the kids. But that's never been the case. Indie is excellent with all the kids. He has never once touched any of their toys. He has his own and knows which they are. The kids can crawl right in his cage with him (it's in our family room) and he is fine with it.

Indie is 6 years old now. He has only ever even ACTED aggressive with one person. In that case, I had a little baby who was in a playpen. Someone came to my house to pick up a funeral video (my other job). This was someone Indie did not know. And the person walked straight to the baby's playpen. Indie immediately placed himself between the person and the baby and then growled up at the person. They backed off and Indie sat down right where he was and waited for them to leave.

Other than that, he's never anything except a teddy bear :)

Enjoy your puppy.

Re: Thinking about buying a German Shepherd..thoug
 

how about miniature collies? They are cute