[69gp400]

a good shepherd pup from a reputable breeder can go from 500.00 to 2000.00 easy.for 3500.00 you can get an import from germany.i agree with saving a dog from a pound,but with the shepherd breed you need to get them young.anyone who has had one will tell you they are a one person dog.google german shepherd in your area to take a look at whats being offered.remember they are like the parts we buy for our cars,you get what you pay for

[YVEYANT]

Originally Posted by Mr Twister

The rescue dog was adopted by another family. I am now looking for a puppy. How much do they normally cost? There is a kennel by me that starts @ 2000.00, thats kinda high $$$. Newspaper dogs are about 500.00. Seem right?

Look in Puppyfind.com
There are a ton of Shepherd pups, young adults and seniors for sale and adoption from local kennels there..

[Bjorn]

Originally Posted by 69gp400

a good shepherd pup from a reputable breeder can go from 500.00 to 2000.00 easy.for 3500.00 you can get an import from germany.i agree with saving a dog from a pound,but with the shepherd breed you need to get them young.anyone who has had one will tell you they are a one person dog.google german shepherd in your area to take a look at whats being offered.remember they are like the parts we buy for our cars,you get what you pay for

we`ve had 4 GS in our family , 2 were mine....1 of mine was pure bread , one was a mix...the other family dogs were 1 pure bread , one a mix....3 of these were several peoples dogs....worked out fine....even my pure bread dog whom I gave to good friends at at his ago of 9...when I emigrated to the US....he did really well with them....my step dads GS (pure bread) was given away when he married my mom , they were worried about her becoming jealous of babies, no problem...
the oldest GS I got was when my neighbor moved to London and they left thier 10 yr old GS mix with us here in Houston...no problem, she was great, great with our kids ,then 1 and 2.5 and all the neighbors kids...

the "one person" dog thing I think has more to do with how you raise them....

[KCTurbo]

I got a white male in 1994 when I was in the Army stationed at Hunter Army Airfield. Great dog! After my divorce I then got a black female, that we mated with the white male. Like has been said before don't let them do anything as a puppy that you wouldn't want it to do when full grown. A female is more likely to be a one person dog than a male, FWIW. I will take a female over a male any day.

Mother and son

[JC455]

FWIW. I will take a female over a male any day.

Amen. I own three- my old female (she's going on 10), my male (he's about 5), and their daughter (she's about 2 1/2).
The elder female will whip the male senseless if he steps out of line.
The younger female shows similar tendencies.
I enjoy the breed, I think you will too.

[Mr Twister]

I just got back from the county animal shelter, they had a adult male I wanted to meet. There was a lady visiting with him when I arrived, she adopted him. So... I will keep looking. It's nice to know that some of the homeless dogs get placed instead of euthanized.

[Me Notyou]

Very very good choice going with a GS. GREAT dog! I've had very good experiences with them over the years. You can also check on craigslist. Might find one that somebody can't keep and keep them from going to a shelter. I can look around locally for one in a shelter if you're interested.

[SRR]

I'm a sucker when it comes to animals being mistreated. "Dolly" was found tied to a pole on the side of the street and had been there for a couple of days. A co-worker of mine rescued her and up until someone told on him he was keeping her in his apartment with wife kids and two huskys. The apartment has a no pit bull policy. I offered to take her for a while until we can find a home for her. She is a sweetheart, very playful, loves people but is a little to hyper around other dogs. My Dobie is 9 and just doesn't want anything to do with her. She is fixed and is about a year old. She knows basic tricks and is very healthy so someone must have cared for her.

[*67firebird*]

I have a German Shepherd/Rottweiler mix, he used to be the guard dog at the lumber yard i work at, we had to get rid of him due to insurance reasons, so i adopted him.

HE is the best dog ever. biggest BABY ever, loyal, loving, and FULL of ENERGY, must be walked every day at least 30 minutes. I take him to the hills down the street, for 30-60 min, today he got very tired, i had to carry him on my shoulders down the hill. he didnt mind at all. 100lbs!!!! Definitely get one... you will love him/her.

[Rustie]

I had a German Shepherd for 10 years. We got him when he was 6. He was retired from the police force due to size (he got to be big at 120 pounds) and he was acused of killing a farmer's calf while on the hunt for a fugitive. The prevailing thought was the calf had the fugitive's smell and Nick (the GS) took down the calf and broke its neck.

My ex-husband was a a sucker for the larger breed dogs, so whenI told him about Nick and that he was going to be destroyed, we went and talked to the Police Department and they agreed to let us adopt him. He was THE best dog I have ever owned. Very laid back until he thought he needed to be otherwise. He would always walk beside us in the heel position (meaning his head would be even with the heel of our foot (showing obiedience to the Alpha) and he could open any unlocked door anywhere (with or without a handle). He knew commands in both English and German. He even pissed and **** on command (take a piss, Nick). If you said, "Up", he would jump onto anything up to six feet high (until he got over 12 and then the height had to be less than four). He could jump into the back of a truck with the tail gate up from the ground without touching the bumper or tailgate itself. He did get hip dysplacia as he got older, but they had medication to help with the arthirtis and pain and after starting the medication, he was back to his old self within days.

Biggest baby about fireworks or thunderstorms though. Killed multiple raccoons on our property when we lived on a farm. Never went off property if correctly shown laid out (Take him on a walk of the property line on a leash and if he starts to wonder off, we just give a tug to the leash). I could pull up in front of the house on the road and call to him and he would not leave our yard even when we lived on only 1 acre in a suburb.

He was so gentle with our kids that my two oldest still remember him and he died when they were 5 and 8, respectively. My 8 year odl still remembers being able to get on his back and ride him as if he was a horse. When she was very little (like 2 and 3), he woudl lay down next to her and let her get on his back. He would then slowly stand and walk. If she fell off, he would immediately check to make sure she wasn't hurt and then lay down next to her again so she could clmib back on. He would do that for literally hours if she wanted him to. Never nipped at any of our kids, or anybody else's. He was even great with my cat... except for the one time he stuck her head into her nest with her three newborn babies. She rose out of the middle with every hair on her back in the air and hit him on the nose with her claws. He yelped and then allowed her to chase him into the other room and pin him to the corner. To see a 120 pound dog cowering in front of a 10 pound cat was hysterical to the say the least. But he knew she was smaller than him and just protecting her young so he didn't hurt her.

Later, they made up and he was allowed to clean the kittens when they began walking around.

SUPER GREAT DOG. Of all of the dogs I have ever owned, I miss him the most. He even stepped between me and a pack of coyotes one night on our farm. And the coyotes backed down. He refused to move back to my side even though I called him. He wouldn't move until he saw them all move away. Very impressive dog. Super loyal.

Obviously, I can't say enough.

[Colin]

Best dogs I have ever had........

[Bjorn]

Carols story reminds me of a couple of my first GS, male....he got scared by my stepdads fireworks as a 3 mo old.....he ran in to the house up/down trying to hide under the couch....I laughed so hard it hurt ,he looked so funny...BUT after that he did not come to me ,even when called , for a week, he was mad at me for laughing at him when he was scared....
after that time he would take off ,run home if he heard a shot or a car bock fire...if he was in my car he`d try to get under the seat!...if we were 4 miles away in a forested park, and he heard a backfire , he would take off ( I never had him on a leash, he would always go "heel") run home ,and cross traffic etc...and when I got home with the car he`d sit at the doorway...

BUT he was THE best car guard...I had a convertible and I could leave him in an open car while in a store (never had a backfire while doing this so I dont know if he`d run home or try to get under the seat! lol)...but several times I`d park in a no parking zone "just being a few minutes"...downtown Stockholm, and 3 times when I came back I saw a parking police lady trying to give me a ticket....he would not let her close to the car (top down) and I just waited a few minutes , she would leave, I go pick the car up with a :"good dog!"

[Held for Ransom]

Well thanks to this thread, my daughter wants me to get another Shepherd.

Twenty-some years ago I tried getting a GS from the Humane Soc. Called every day for a week, and received the same response, "He'll be available on Friday". I took off that Friday, money in hand, and went down to the shelter.
"I'm sorry. He was given a good home, on Wednesday."
I will never do that gut-wrenching experience again.

My last one died two years ago, at the age of 12 (outside dog, never neutered). Haven't had the energy to think about it, until now. Maybe...

[mechanickeith]

SSR!!! That is a GREAT looking pitt! Here is a pic of mine waiting for dinner & also nap time on the couch!!!

[performerrpm]

love them gs's best dogs in my opinion though i likem all

[Wanna66GP]

Our lab/shepherd mix passed recently after 14 years. I really believe the reason she was so good with my kids growing up and so loyal and the best dog I have ever owned is because of the GS in her. I said I could never replace her, but this thread has convinced me to check our local shelter on Monday...

[carcrazy]

I have quite a bit of experience with GSDs. My current 3 year old is the most amazing dog I have ever owned (and I've owned more than 20) Quite simply, there is no better all-around dog than a well bred Shepherd--period! That being said, I would not take the purchase of one of these dogs lightly. A poorly bred dog can be a disaster. I would strongly recommend (if you can deal with the high exercise requirement) you purchase one from WORKING lines-not American lines or show lines. There is a HUGE difference. (but they are not for everyone) There are health problems (like any breed) but a purchase from a good established breeder that tracks the offspring will minimize those problems. Working line dogs has less hip problems as they are not bred for the severe angulation that the show people want. DO NOT purchase any dog whose parents don't have a satisfactory OFA or the German equivalent rating on their hips.
The working dogs also tend to be smaller and much more athletic. (females under 75 lbs and males under 95) Strongly recommend going to Leeburg.com for additional information. Oh yeah, they shed, shed, shed, shed!!!!!

[SergeF]

Do it. Mine is a 4 years old and I might get one more soon.

[lust4speed]

We raised GS in the 70's until we burned out dealing with buyers and trying to educate them. What carcrazy says is right on the money. I disagree only slightly with the statement about American show lines and problems. You are still better buying from a breeder that maintains champion line breeding stock than a backyard breeder that has pups because they thought it would be easy money. That being said, I fully agree that working dogs have the best chance of being athletic and problem free into their golden years.

Hip dysplasia is a genetic problem with no fool proof eradication, but breeding OFA certified stock sure helps. It takes the problem from 9 out of 10 GS pups having inferior hips to less than 1 out of 10. With good breeders the parents will have been x-rayed and evaluated prior to even being considered for breeding. Unless you want to buy a pup at least a year old, x-raying the puppy is a waste of time. hip dysplasia is a time related disease that slowly sneaks up. Also good stock will only show slight signs after 8 years old if they do have it, while puppy farm or backyard stock will show signs at less than 2 years old. Last comment on hip dysplasia is that since it comes on slowly over time, dogs usually compensate for it and still lead a normal life - they just won't be doing the 100 yard dash in record time or vaulting over any obstacles. Here is a good explanation of HD: http://www.peteducation.com/article....2+1569&aid=444

My main complaint with American show lines is that they were bred for conformation and not the mental soundness of the line. I can put up with a dog that has a very high prey drive, but I can't stand a high strung flighty shepherd, and that's what many of the U.S. show dogs exhibit. My dream shepherd would be from the East German lines - I love their blend of conformation and mental stability.

We lost our male last year and are now shopping for a replacement. I'm just starting to adjust to the sticker shock. One thing I have noticed is everyone is asking big money, and the few really great breeders are not really that much higher in price.

The pics of the blacks were in the early 70's. My daughters in the photo are now 46 and 44. We were also doing training back then for protection. The last pic is only a few years old and shows our female which we still have, and Bear that we recently lost. The female is 78 pounds and 25-1/2 at the withers. The male is a "little" bigger. At his prime he weighed 132 pounds.

[SRR]

Originally Posted by mechanickeith

SSR!!! That is a GREAT looking pitt! Here is a pic of mine waiting for dinner & also nap time on the couch!!!

This one is quite the clown, loves to play. She is a hand full. Walking her on a leash is like water skiing. I have to get rid of her though, wife is afraid of her and my 9 year old Doberman doesn't like her. Anyone want a free dog?