German Shepherd Dog Forums - View Single Post

RubyTuesday · 03-21-2010, 10:36 PM

Dainerra, I live in a bad neighborhood. Too often the nervous nellies who buy guns & shoot at shadows also acquire snarling, snappy unreliable curs. These so called PPD menace the many innocent people (including young children) that live here. In even the worst neighborhoods the vast majority of people are innocent & don't deserve to be at risk from the 'good guys' as well as the baddies. (Note, these ill bred, poorly trained dogs are not to be confused with legit PPD. Please don't think I'm confusing the two)

I want a tough minded, discerning, deep thinking, well reasoned dog. IF s/he's appropriately protective that's a plus but it's imperative the dog have a solid, stable disposition that doesn't spook easily or react without thinking. My dogs must be over all reliable with people, good with other animals & excellent with children.

The GS from my childhood were larger than the medium sized dogs promoted by some SchH enthusiasts. IF it was simply a relativity thing, then Goldens, Labs, Collies would also appear significantly smaller today, but they don't. My parents, uncles & aunts, who were adults when I was a child, would remember GS as medium sized rather than larger, yet they too remember the GS being a large rather than medium sized dog. Larger in & of itself is neither good nor bad. I like 'em big (tall & lean), but that's simply my preference. And as I've also stated, size is not my prime consideration.

There are good, bad & indifferent breeders of all 'types' & lines. Some SchH breeders select for a GS that's for my taste excessively sharp, hyper reactive & not enough of a thinker. Some oversized GS breeders prefer a GS that IMO is too soft, overly dependent & lacks spark. True byb of all types simply produce whatever comes about following essentially random couplings. Judging good breeders by the dogs produced by poor to middling breeders is simply unfair regardless of type.

Samba, that's an excellent post. IMO, GS people should be aware of an increasing need for working dogs of all sizes. MvS looked to the future when developing the breed & envisioned a working dog that would not become an anachronism with the inevitable decline of pastoral canine jobs. It seems that even as the world of working dogs is expanding, the world of working GS is contracting. That simply shouldn't be.

Cliff, I stumbled across some very interesting articles from a Seppala Husky breeder. I was in the middle of a 15" work break & didn't get into it very far but he's clearly an independent thinker. Although the Seppala Huskies are his passion, most of the info is generally applicable to anyone breeding. Have you seen it? I thought of you while perusing the material.

03-21-2010, 10:36 PM	#418 (permalink)
RubyTuesday Elite Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 1,194	Dainerra, I live in a bad neighborhood. Too often the nervous nellies who buy guns & shoot at shadows also acquire snarling, snappy unreliable curs. These so called PPD menace the many innocent people (including young children) that live here. In even the worst neighborhoods the vast majority of people are innocent & don't deserve to be at risk from the 'good guys' as well as the baddies. (Note, these ill bred, poorly trained dogs are not to be confused with legit PPD. Please don't think I'm confusing the two) I want a tough minded, discerning, deep thinking, well reasoned dog. IF s/he's appropriately protective that's a plus but it's imperative the dog have a solid, stable disposition that doesn't spook easily or react without thinking. My dogs must be over all reliable with people, good with other animals & excellent with children. The GS from my childhood were larger than the medium sized dogs promoted by some SchH enthusiasts. IF it was simply a relativity thing, then Goldens, Labs, Collies would also appear significantly smaller today, but they don't. My parents, uncles & aunts, who were adults when I was a child, would remember GS as medium sized rather than larger, yet they too remember the GS being a large rather than medium sized dog. Larger in & of itself is neither good nor bad. I like 'em big (tall & lean), but that's simply my preference. And as I've also stated, size is not my prime consideration. There are good, bad & indifferent breeders of all 'types' & lines. Some SchH breeders select for a GS that's for my taste excessively sharp, hyper reactive & not enough of a thinker. Some oversized GS breeders prefer a GS that IMO is too soft, overly dependent & lacks spark. True byb of all types simply produce whatever comes about following essentially random couplings. Judging good breeders by the dogs produced by poor to middling breeders is simply unfair regardless of type. Samba, that's an excellent post. IMO, GS people should be aware of an increasing need for working dogs of all sizes. MvS looked to the future when developing the breed & envisioned a working dog that would not become an anachronism with the inevitable decline of pastoral canine jobs. It seems that even as the world of working dogs is expanding, the world of working GS is contracting. That simply shouldn't be. Cliff, I stumbled across some very interesting articles from a Seppala Husky breeder. I was in the middle of a 15" work break & didn't get into it very far but he's clearly an independent thinker. Although the Seppala Huskies are his passion, most of the info is generally applicable to anyone breeding. Have you seen it? I thought of you while perusing the material.