GSDs over 100lbs... How many ppl have one?

[JakodaCD OA]

I had a gsd born in 91, Kodi, that was quite large, the breeder was mortified and never repeated the two since parents were both within standard. Kodi ended up being 32" at the shoulders and 125lbs of lean bod. I kept him lean because of his size. We called him the mutant You could land a lear jet on his nose..will have to dig up a picture of him.

He was an 'ok' dog, but couldn't get out of his own way, a super couch warmer, unfortunately he ended up with spondylosis and I had to put him down at 9 years of age.

Would I want another that big? no thanks..I do like big dogs, but I don't like the issues that they can tend to end up with. IF I wanted one as big as Kodi I'd get a st bernard

My other males have always topped out at 26" and around 80lbs, my females have always been on the larger over standard sized also at 26" and anywhere from 70-75lbs.

I DO keep my dogs lean which I think keeps them in much better shape plus they get alot of physical activity ...

[Freestep]

Originally Posted by Mary Beth

Sting is 130 lbs. according to the vet's scale at his last visit in Nov. He is very tall. The avator is a his picture at 2 yrs old. His weight has stayed fairly stable at 130.

Am I the only one who thinks this dog is overweight? Maybe it's just the picture, but it appears he has a fat pad over his chest, ribs, and rear end. He just looks overall a little pudgy and his head looks proportionately small to his body.

Please don't be offended, I only mean this as some objective feedback... especially with very large-framed dogs, I hate to see them even a little bit overweight, as it's hard on their joints.

[arycrest]

Years ago there used to be a WGSD breeder who advertised his stud dog at 150lbs and judging from the photo he wasn't far off ... I have NEVER seen a fatter dog in my life ... I swear he wsa almost as wide as he was long, it was disgraceful ... he was so fat I honestly don't think Mr. Stud could have mounted a bitch to breed her.

[Mary Beth]

Originally Posted by onyx'girl

So you clicker train with him?
Wow that is one big boy how tall is he? What activities do you do with him? Is he agile and is he neutered(at what age if so)?

Sting is 32 inches at the withers. He was neutered at 5 months at his vet's recommendation. He is very agile. He has caught & killed rabbits in the backyard. A quick clean kill one bit to the neck and can't understand why I get upset and refuse to cook it for his supper. He will sit then very quickly lunge if he hears/sees/senses something to chase. That made leash training a challenge. Training - positive and also natural dog training (the tug part). I don't use a clicker - I whistle instead. Sting likes to go for walks - different places. I walk Sting 1/2 miles for his brisk morning walk. In the afternoon, I walk him on leash around the neighborhood or take him out to a different part of town for about 1/2 mile. His favorite activity is tug. I use it as a reward after his short afternoon obedience session. Since he loves to chase and pounce, I use 2 tugs - each on 6 ft. leashes. He has to wait on the down/stay while I walk out about 25 ft. (I have a big back yard). Then when I give the signal - he comes charging right at the tug - I scoot it along the ground and also make it "jump" so he jumps up to grab it- he grabs - I tug - he pulls - I hold on - he bites down and so on then I let go - and quick scoot the other one. And so on - tug - drop - grab. After about 10 minutes - I really hold on longer -he bites down harder- he pulls and of course it is easy for him to win. I act defeated and slink away. I then turn and praise him and he brings his 2 tugs to me - he drops them and gets a reward. That game helps to satisfy his prey drive and I've gotten stronger to his surpise Here's a photo of Sting winning tug. Click to enlarge.

[Mary Beth]

Originally Posted by Freestep

Am I the only one who thinks this dog is overweight? Maybe it's just the picture, but it appears he has a fat pad over his chest, ribs, and rear end. He just looks overall a little pudgy and his head looks proportionately small to his body.

Please don't be offended, I only mean this as some objective feedback... especially with very large-framed dogs, I hate to see them even a little bit overweight, as it's hard on their joints.

Not according to his vet for his size - bone structure - height.

[Mary Beth]

Originally Posted by KayleeGSD

I know the picture quality is not very good. I had to dig around the photo albums.

Thank you and so was yours. Beautiful markings. PM me if you'd like some suggestions on breeders.

[Mary Beth]

Originally Posted by Chicagocanine

Bianca was only 70 pounds at 26" tall and I could pick her up but not carry her very far, I am wondering what I would do if I had a larger or giant type dog if they were sick or injured and had to be carried... I may be getting a larger dog in the future (non GSD) so I am trying to figure that out. Or what if we were hiking and something happened? No way could I "pack out" a 100+ pound dog...

The vet will come to your house - they have stretchers to help transport the big guys. When my Husky got too old to jump into the car and I couldn't lift her , the vet made a housecall for her annual checkup and vaccines. When my Aussie (a big one 85 lbs) - when that sad day came when he was 12 1/2 and sick and in pain and all I could do was let him go. The vet came to my house. He was very understanding, I held Chance and said "rabies shots early" - I held him right up to the end so he knew I was with him.The vet took his body away. For out hiking, well, the same as if you were with another person and you couldn't carry the person. Call for help. Also a stretcher that you could drag can be made out of tent poles and a blanket. In my view, the issues involving the size of the dog can be managed.

[longhairshepmom]

Here we go...
This is my absolute biggest pet peeve when it comes to german shepherds !
The "oversize"
98% of them are simply overweight and look really wrong proportion wise. They will have "lab bodies" with a narrow small (for the body) looking heads and skinny legs. Shepherds should look somewhat "rangy" and have a very narrow body. They should never look thick or roly poly.

And I do agree that Sting looks overweight. That is NOT meant as an offense. His head looks very small compared to the rest of the body. Their is hardly a tuck-up and the back/hips/loin/chest are to "filled out" looking compared to the legs. Again, no offense meant. I'm sure he is a wonderful boy and he does look pretty !! I just don't think the weight he carries is in proportion to his body. I know the Vet said it is, but having grown up in Germany and being around countless german shepherds I have to say, the body doesn't fit the head/legs. He does have a GORGEOUS head though and is a attractive boy.

Then there is the countless times I've heard something along the lines of "my pup is 30 pounds at 2 month old, he's gonna be a monster", "my pup only weighs 25 pounds at 3 month old, what can I feed that he will be heavier/bigger", "My pup is 80 pounds at 6 month old", etc etc etc
Really ?? Do those people (the ones that are proud of the fact their pups are overweight) honestly think that their puppy will get larger/taller/bigger if they grotesquely overfeed it ??? How does that work ? So...if my mom would have pushed way more food/protein/etc into me as a kid, would I have ended up 4 inches taller, heavier and still in proportion ?? Would I have surpassed my genetically predisposed size ? NO, I would have been fatter, though.

Not only that, but there are SO many issues with bones/joint disease that are DIRECTLY related to people overfeeding their puppies. It is a human made problem. Sad thing is, many people have realized it, yet they still obsess over their puppy being as "big" as it can be for its age...SAD !!

They will grow to their genetically predisposed size even if you feed them appropriately (which is a lot less then most people think) and let them grow up SLOWLY !! I'm not saying to let them starve, but don't push the weight/food. Lots of people do, sadly.

Also, many of the digestion problems in puppies (runny poo) are also directly related to over feeding ! Many times when people say "this premium food is to rich for my pup" its simply that they are feeding TO MUCH of it !!! Even the recommended amount on the bags is often to much , esp. for Shepherd puppies.

My 1 year old male weighs 75 pounds. He looks wonderful. I assume he will top out at around 85 pounds, and I don't want him any heavier then that. He eats 1 3/4 cup of Orijen 6 Fish twice the day. Thats it. He is in perfect condition. He has always done great with that food, but yes, if fed the recommended amount on the bag, he would get the runs. It was just to much. They aren't meant to be roly poly lab pups.

I don't know what the fascination is with people wanting "the extreme". Bigger then normal, or extremely smaller then normal (giant/teacup).

If I wanted a giant dog I would get a great dane. They look "right"' at their size. Even they look bad overweight.

This is not meant as an offense at anyone having a oversized or overweight german shepherd, or one that is in any other way not up to "standard". I'm sure they are all lovely dogs and deserve the love and a good home.
My beef is with the people that are looking to create oversized in the dogs they breed or buy, or the ones that overfeed their pups/dogs because they want to brag about the how much their dog weighs.

Isn't it so much more important to worry about their joints/bones/tendons ? Who cares in 5 years what your pup weighed at 4 month old ? Noone. But you (generalizing) will care when your dog is painful and crippled at 6 years old and there isn't much to be done about it...
Growing bones aren't meant to carry all that excess weight, they aren't meant to receive all the excess minerals/vitamins that will mess up growth.

Ok. rant over ...

[longhairshepmom]

and here is the normal sized boy









he was about 8 month to 10 month old in the pics...

[Cassidy's Mom]

Originally Posted by Chris Wild

A lot of people do overestimate weight. More than once we've been out and about with 80lb dogs and had people swear they must be 110, 120, etc...

I get that with Keefer all the time - one guy guessed him at 115 pounds. He's 80 pounds. He may vary a pound or two on either side of that, but 80 pounds is his perfect weight and I'll adjust his food as necessary if I think he's looking a little thick or he's got some padding on his ribs.