Need help choosing between two rescue puppies

[Nutters]

Hello,

We are (soon-to-be) first-time GSD owners. I love this site; I've been exploring it over the past few days as we have been trying to prepare for our newest addition.

We have decided to adopt a puppy from our local shelter, where they have two litters of GSD (mix?) puppies, one litter about 3 months and the only dog from the other litter is closer to 4 months. There are two dogs that we are trying to decide between, a boy and a girl. I know it is difficult for you to provide any advice without having even laid eyes on them, but I would appreciate any insight that any of you could offer to help us in our selection.

Before we had even visited the shelter, we had (thought we) decided on a boy, simply because we have other small dogs in our house, predominantly whom are female. We were worried about SSA, even with the new dogs and our dogs being fixed, since it seems our females tend to quarrel the most. I had also read (maybe here?) that females are sometimes harder to train and can be stubborn while the boys tend to be more eager to please.

However, when I visited the shelter last week, I really was drawn to a sweet little girl. She was in a cage with three others and while they were all barking and trying to get my attention, she just calmly sat and stared right into my eyes. I was really taken with her. She didn't look as much like a GSD; her head was a bit rounded and she had a shorter nose. She was also considerably smaller. She would come right to me when I'd hold out my hand to her. When I held her, she clutched her little paws around my arm like a bear cub and licked my face. She is also the "runt" of the litter, which, according to the shelter, often end up being the biggest (! - any truth to that in your experience?) My husband was also reluctant for her because he thought she may have been shy or nervous, which he read was a poor quality in a GSD puppy. I think that she is just calm, mature and taking it all in.

So, we went back when my husband could accompany me, and while he did like the little girl too (who wouldn't? she was a doll), he thought the boy was better suited to what we were looking for. He was a big playful goofball who wouldn't stop chewing on me (my coat, pulling at my jeans, chewing my shoes with my feet in them lol) at the first visit, but he was adorable and looked more like a GSD. He was very distractable but we could sometimes get his attention and get him to come when called. He seemed more like a puppy should be, i.e, playful, curious, but he also never really made eye contact with me and would squirm away if I held him for any length of time. He is also considerably bigger, but he's a bit (~1 mo) older too.

My questions are, is there any truth to the gender differences of GSD (i.e., females being more protective of people, more nurturing of other animals, smarter, more independent) or is it too individual to generalize? Should I be worried about SSA with the little girl in our houseful of (much smaller) females? What should I be looking for as criteria in choosing between these two puppies, both of whom I love (I wish we could take both)? I'm having such a rough time deciding, and luckily, we have until tomorrow to make up our minds.

Thank you in advance for any advice and opinions you can offer us!

[Emoore]

If you already have female dogs, get the male. Really.

[carmspack]

the female sounds easier to live with -- more focused and attracted to you . go back and interact with her again away from the littermates . put her on the floor and see if she follows you . call to her and see if she comes, see how she plays - bring a knotted sport sock or something soft for her to pick up . if she brings it to you - bonus.

do the same with the male . he may be distracted , not interested in you beyond you being a prey item (pant legs) .

in your household the male may choose to be with the other dogs more - be their companion rather than yours

the bear clutch and licking was a little bit of insecurity.

[Castlemaid]

I'd get the male too for a number of reasons.

You already have females in the house, adding another one could be trouble.

I like the goofy, outgoing, playful personality of the male. To me it shows more confidence than the quiet one that just sits there and watches. The female may be the dog that grows up to be comfortable in her own home, with her own pack and very bonded to her people, but unsure and fearful whenever you go somewhere or introduce changes into your household. (Just a possibility, can't really know for sure).

If you take the male, start focus exercises as soon as you take him home to teach him to look at you and to you for everything. Looking into your eyes will then become second nature to him.

So again, my choice would be the male.

[BlackGSD]

You already have multiple females that "quarrel". There is NO WAY I would add another female to that. IMO, you is just begging for trouble. And unfortunately you are likely not to see that trouble until the new one is 2+ years old.

[GSDElsa]

Didn't need to read beyond the "females quarrel" issue. MALE.

[Geeheim]

The male would be best.

[nitemares]

I like the males personality better, he sounds more like a puppy than the female. That to me is important, if a pup doesn't act like a pup, something is off.

Also getting a male is better since you have a house full of females already.

[JeanKBBMMMAAN]

I would want to get the females in hand and behaving before adding another dog.

[middleofnowhere]

I've had both male & female dogs - dogs that appraised a situation & dogs that jumped right in. I am no help for you at all.