Giant German Shepherds

[XTOL]

This is my first post although I have been lurking
here for a while. I never really had need to post
anything up to this point.

A little background first...Im male aged 52 and had
a male GSD that was my best friend. This past May
I lost him to cancer at the age of 13. I went through
various stages Im sure many will recognize. Not wanting
another dog at first then saying I will get one eventually
to wanting one soon and progressing to wanting one NOW.

In my search for a suitable (for me) GSD Ive contacted
a number of breeders and what I ran into yesterday
really has me puzzled. One breeder sent me a nice
email along with many pictures of some of her dogs.
I was interested until I came across a notation that
the sire for the current litter weighed 160 pounds.

I thought that couldnt be right so after another exchange
of emails its confirmed that this dog weighs in at
ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY POUNDS...

Since when did GSDs weigh as much as a Newfoundland?
When questioned she assured me this is quite normal.

Now I admit Ive been asleep (figuratively) the past
13 years but upon awakening has the world really
been taken over by giant GSDs? My own dog at
his peak was around 86 pounds and I considered
him fairly large.

So what say panel of experts?

[LaRen616]

GSD's are not supposed to be that big. They should not be more than 90 or 95 pounds. That is an irresponsible breeder that cares nothing about the breed or about the breed standards. She is just making the GSD breed even more unhealthy by producing huge dogs.

[ba1614]

I'm no expert, but that's certainly a big boy and I've haven't come across a healthy GSD that weighed that much.

[Kalvin/Autmn]

Sorry for your loss. I see what you mean about size. It seems like it would be a factor in hip problems, etc. My male is also 85lb., tall and lean. I had him in the vet last week for otitis(sp?) and was sure she, like others, would say he was too thin. Nope, perfect! Good luck with your search!

[LaRen616]

My GSD is 16 months old and he is taller than the standard at 28' inches at the shoulder and he weighs 77 pounds. He is very lean and healthy, not an ounce of fat.

[Asche-zu-Staub]

I didnt even know it was possible for them to be that big...

[AbbyK9]

I would honestly run from any breeder who touts the WEIGHT rather than the size of a dog. There are many breeders who produce oversized dogs, which they often claim are "true, old-fashioned" Shepherds, and who will tell you all about the dogs' weight. Looking at photos, many of those dogs are just FAT in addition to being over the breed standard in size.

If you like a larger dogs, there are some reputable breeders whose lines tend to produce dogs that are slightly over the standard in height. For Shepherd, the standard calls for females to be no taller than 24" and males 26", which makes them a Medium dog breed, actually, not a Large dog breed. (Although I guess your definition of Large would depend on comparisons.)

Not at all "normal" for a properly bred GSD to weigh over 100lbs.

[MaggieRoseLee]

Originally Posted by XTOL

In my search .................

I thought that couldnt be right so after another exchange
of emails its confirmed that this dog weighs in at
ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY POUNDS...

Since when did GSDs weigh as much as a Newfoundland?
When questioned she assured me this is quite normal.

These are a bunch of the 'flavors' of GSD's being bred and you won't see any of them over 100 pounds... so it should help you with your further search for a real GSD breeder. Cause you'll be able to better figure out truth from fantasy...

Illustrated Standard of the German Shepherd Dog, TYPE COMPARISON

Breed Types & Related Families

[Chicagocanine]

No, they are not supposed to be that large. I would not be surprised though if the breeder was exaggerating the dog's size (or the dog is overweight.)
However just wanted to add, large size does not necessarily mean poor health and I know of GSDs over 110 pounds with OFA excellent hips.

[staxi2]

My inlaws got a gs pup at 8 weeks,he is now about 1 and a half. I wish I could get his pics posted ,but cant figure it out now. He is huge....I am only 5'1 and his back is nearly at my hips. He weighs a even 100 lbs now. The parents were on site when they went and got him,dad was around 140,mom was around 120 ish. He had parvo at about 3 months,and just afew months ago had a cyst removed from the bone that travels toward the tail.He walks alittle ( whats the world,lol) floppy,his feet are huge. I have said from day 1,there is something wrong with his legs,but... The pics I have show his feet,and they look odd to me. I was shocked at how quickly he has grew. What age do they stop growing ?