looking for a family dog preferably long coat - Page 1

looking for a long coat german shepherd for a house dog. I am fixing to work late night shifts for law enforcement and leave the family alone, and i dont live on the best part of the neighborhood. if anyone can refer me or show me the best quality dog im searching for i would really appreciate it.

"Family" ? Children? How old? Are they used to dogs?

"House dog" = living in the house, roaming free, interacting with wife and kids?

Normally a dog, barking deep and loud, as soon as a stranger tries to enter the house, is the best alarm system you are able to buy - but there are some disadvantages...stable dogs don´t tend to bark a lot, but are great for family and friends, unstable dogs tend to bark soon, but are not the best choice for a family, in the best case your family may become lonesome, in the worst case the dog will only accept ONE family member...
I´d go with a puppy simply because of the children (?), you are able to raise the dog by yourself, the danger of any dominance problems within the family will be less, and as an adult the dog will either bark or at least look impressive...

Simply said there is no "best quality dog", but there are a lot of puppies out there, waiting to become part of an active family.
There is no Rintintin, but there are dogs waiting for a forever home.

i have two children a 5 year old and a 1 year old and i work law enforcement i work late night shifts and dont like leaving my family alone in the bad neighborhood we live in. and yes i want a dog who is living inside roaming the house. i would love a puppy or to adopt an adult or whatever i need to do. and of course i want the dog to be a part of the family and to protect my kids and wife as well.

In this case the best quality dog for you is healthy pup that will bond well to your family and kids whom you will socialize and train. A good candidate pup will most likely come from even temperament parents with good nerves and a nice shut off switch. With a good quality canvas to work with and minor mistakes here and there in the raising, it should be a shoe in fit for your end goal. I would recommend you teach that pup for the first six month ish that everyone is wonderful and is only bringing the love you do that by managing the pups experience's. Once the pup thinks everything is roses and chocolates around that six introduce, by managing experiences, that you may need some aggressive looking behavior and sounds. This will help bullet proof the dog & help reduce or eliminate quick over reacting behavior and defensive behavior that is not warranted. I have a litter that will have something for you if you would like to discuss. Melanistic black and tans and possibly a Bi color coat. Should be a similar look to this half brother.

 

 

A puppy is the last thing this guy needs. It will be at least 2 years before the dog is able to do anything that even resembles protection. On top of that the costs involved with raising a dog to bark and possibly bite and intruder will also pile up. If you chose to go the board and train route, most trainers won't take your dog until it's about a year old, those that take it earlier than that are just going to take your money when they know they can't actually do any protection work with the dog. If you do the training yourself with a trainer it will more than likely take quite a bit longer and isn't always a guarantee depending on your trainer. A puppy is also never a guarantee when it comes to protective instincts or the proper drive for protection work.

Bavarian living in an area that require some level of protection and purchasing a a real personal protection dog are quite different. any well bred sound good nerve GSD should provide adequate protection for most families. If there is some additional real Threat Level that's active then I would assume the poster would have posted that

If a person is taking the time to join a forum and post about the need for protection for their family…I’m assuming they believe there is a real threat. I don’t know what you mean by “real protection dog” I’m assuming a dog that will bark on command and possibly give a bite when necessary…that’s real enough in most people’s books and will not happen with a puppy for quite some time. On top of that…you cannot guarantee that the dog will grow up to have the proper nerve to be able to do that if/when it is called on doing that. OP has also mentioned he's law enforcement, so I'd assume that their "risk assessment" is fairly good to rely on. If the OP doesn't currently feel safe leaving his family at home at night...I'm not sure how an 8 week old puppy is going to fix that.

I understand you need to sell a puppy…but let’s not push a product on a person that might not fit what they’re looking for.

Certainly no need to be a rude twit I don't need to sell anything you don't know me you don't know my dogs and clearly you don't know that I guarantee my dogs to do the job they're placed for. I'm not pushing anything so stop pushing me the quote was discuss I place my pups and dogs after an extensive understanding of what the end goal is so stuff it

I completely agree with Bavarian.
I don't consider a dog that just will alert a protection dog, just a deterrent. Most dogs bark anyway.
If he is looking for a protection dog, biting is implied IMO.
A puppy is a horrible idea. New working dog owner trying to find a competent trainer+ risk of puppy not maturing as needed is a disaster.
He is wanting protection for his family NOW, not in 2 years.
That would be like buying a gun but no ammo for 2 years.

Gigante,
How can you say you have a litter coming up that will have something for him? Can you predict that the puppy you sell him will 100% mature into a protection prospect? If so, do you offer psychic reading services?
Your response for sure sounded like a sales pitch. How can you read his OP and think that a puppy would be a good idea? I would never sell a puppy to someone who genuinely needs a protection dog NOW.