American shepherds vs Germans........ - Page 1

Wanted to open this thread to see what folks think. Are American AKC Shepherds able to compete on a level with the German SV dogs as far as intelligence, hips, steady temperment, and work-ability are concerned? Let's hear what you all got to say! Augustine

yes we have seen U.S.A. bred and trained dogs competing in the BSZS.. starting off with the Sieger Pfeffer v. Bern who grew up in the states and winning the 1937 world sieger show...

he was German although a homeboy of the HOHELUFT kennels in the U.S. of A.

I meant more of the present day dogs the way they have been bred.

schauspielkunst, You may have opened a can of worms. If you do not recieve some good feedback in a while, I will post. I do not want to go into a long disertation on this, hope someone else does. Good luck with your post. P.S. You might want to define exactly what you mean by A.M. AKC bred gsds. If you mean breeders that love the looks and temperment of A.M. bred dogs, have been breeding for a long time and all dogs can be traced back for at least 3 generations of A.M. dogs, then this will draw the battle lines real clear. Good luck, I have not seen a good fight for awhile. This could be better then U.F.C. unleashed.

Are you talking about American bloodlines? Or are you talking about German/European bloodlines bred in the US? Obviously there are people who love the American lines... I have seen a few I like, but in general I do not see the nerve, drive and structure that I prefer. There may be statistics on hips/elbows that could be compared, but I would doubt it... This is all personal preference. If we all liked the same thing, there would be one breed. If you're talking about German lines being bred in this country, it is still unlikely in my opinion that we are approaching the quality present in Germany. Bottomline is that most breeders in the US started their program with German imports. And the question is always whether the Europeans are exporting their best dogs. I'm sure many are excellent as money can always buy quality dogs.

I'm pretty sure she's referring to the AKC American Showline. The answer to the original question is NO, IMO. Perhaps there may be a handful out there that are capable of being titled (very few and far between), but in no way could they stand up to a German dog on any level especially in terms of working abilities. Sure a matter of personal preference but also FACT. AKC showlines have been bred for Generations without working titles, therefore it is unreasonable to expect anything of quality in terms of working abilities from dogs who haven't proven themselves in that arena for generations. And without these working tests you cannot fully evaluate the dogs temperament.

which type of work? a number of Am showline dogs are successfully herding. i have no statistics on Am showline participation/success in schutzhund.

The AKC style of herding is far different from the HGH style of tending so it's hard to compare a dog that attains an AKC herding title to a dog that attains an HGH. It's like the difference between a BH and and a Schutzhund III.

I say German all the way ... my money is exported.