Introduction-In Memoriam-Puppy Help-All in my first post!! - Page 1

Hello!

My name is Joey, I live in Dallas, TX and have lived with a GSD all of my life. Just before Thanksgiving and his 11th birthday, my best buddy Kaiser passed away. He was a perfect dog in every way and I sure do miss him!

I grew up around GSDs. When I was a young kid my parents had an american show line. At about 10 or 11, my Grandfather, who was a Golden Ret/hunting/field trials hobbyist,  got us a beautiful West German line and drove me to obediance class for 8 weeks. When I was 20, I got my first apartment and moved away from home... After 3 months I had to find a house so I could have a dog! I spent months researching online and finally decided on Kaiser (a year before he was born;), and even passed on a litter so I could have first pick of the sire/dam I wanted. He was an absolute blast, a puppy-at-heart throughout his entire life and the best dog I ever could have asked for!

It has only been a few weeks, but the house feels empty and my wife and I are ready to take on another pup. I would love to get advice and guidance from all of the experienced GSD breeders on this forum! So... Here is my first question: Where should I post my "looking for a breeder" thread? (This site as well as any others)

Kaiser - 12/2/2003  -  11/26/2014

Beautiful dog, Joey!

It would help if you told us more about what you are looking for. Was your dog 'just a pet', or did you do work with him beyond basic obedience? A great many of the people on this board do schutzhund with their dogs, or other activities like tracking, herding, and advanced obedience.

There are a number of different 'lines' of German Shepherds, and the high-energy lines used for the sport of schutzhund, or for police work are not a good choice for someone who just wants a loving, loyal companion.

Very nice dog, sorry to hear you lost him. RIP, Kaiser. And welcome to the PDB.

I tend to disagree with my friend SS, I think working line dogs are a good fit for an active family.

Best of luck in your search for a new pal. If you would like to contact me by PM, I might be able to help you when you narrow down your search. Also, understand there are a lot of breeders here who will contact you privately be selective, take your time and ask a lot of questions.

Thanks Sunsilver!

I was going to save all of that for another post, but here it goes... 

Kaiser was a high drive, high energy working line from Boorman Haus in Burleson, TX. 

Sire: https://www.pedigreedatabase.com/german_shepherd_dog/dog.html?id=380583-cash-vom-germelhaus-usa1

Dam: https://www.pedigreedatabase.com/german_shepherd_dog/dog.html?id=461491-chitta-z-dvorakova-sadu

I would never have called him "just a pet" but he was a family companion and did not practice schutzhund. When we were waiting for him to be born, I was comitted to taking it up.  The first weekend he was home as a 8.5 week old I took him to a couple weekend sessions near Dallas. Frankely, between the distance I had to drive to the meetup, and the fact that I felt a little out-of-place being in my early twenties while everyone else was much older, I decided against it. Instead I started reading leerburg.com and training him myself (basic obediance +) every day. He did not do any of the cool schutzhund stuff, but he would 100% completely snap-focus on me and obey anytime I asked despite distractions. 

The only thing I ever struggled with was his intense prey drive. Fetch (which was his "job", come to think of it lol) was a little too intense at times. In the last few years I had to be careful with him because I was afraid he would take a spill and break his leg. He was the fist pick of what I believe was a very strong working litter, so I know that should come as no surprise.

For this reason I had been considered a west show line, but I cant help but prefer the east ddr / czech dogs for their personality, health, athleticism and honestly, looks!

This article helped me: http://gracekeh.hubpages.com/hub/Working-German-Shepherds-as-Pets-and-Companions Please let me know your honest opinion on her point of view..

If I could create the perfect next dog for my wife and I, he would be just like Kaiser, but with maybe 80% of the drive/intensity... and in a perfect world he would be a masculine plush coat black/red sable ;)

 Could I pick a pup from a working line litter that is expected to have lesser drive than the others?  Are there breeders that specialize in medium drive east lines dogs? Does that even exist?

I sent you a pm.

sorry about yr dog, but a wondeful story and i bet he enjoyed his life with you, RIP good dog.

looking ahead....

dude, don't never get on a dog forum and say you are looking to buy a dog, you are just fresh meat for the vultures to fight over.

post peds of prospective litters perhaps and ask for an opinion.

most breeder suck, makes sure they can demonstrate everything they say beyond some still photos on the internet, and don't buy anything unless you are within close enough range to get yr hands around their neck if they try shaft you.

there are sharks everywhere bro, tred carefully and shake the big; show me, don't tell me stick at them, scatters most of em for miles.

Joey, I like the article, but here's where you need to be careful:  "A dog who falls apart if not worked 24 hours a day, paces endlessly in his kennel enough to wear out the pads on his feet until he is taken out to work, goes in circles all day chasing his tail, and is missing an "off" switch may happen to be an outstanding worker in certain fields, but is not a good German Shepherd in my mind - and consequently, that is not a dog which I would breed as a German Shepherd Dog."

There are too many breeders out there breeding for that type of extreme working line dog.

No, I am not saying a working line dog can't be a good companion. There is a range of drives and ability in any litter, and a good breeder will be able to pick a pup that's right for you.

Good luck in your search!

Edit: I just viewed the pedigree of  your dog, and he shared some lines with my new pup on his dam's side! 

http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/german_shepherd_dog/dog.html?id=2224084-eska-von-den-roten-vorbergen

Lol I see what you mean with the PMs. Not all are bad though I have gotten some great advise over PM in the last few hours. I am not worried about the vultures I can weed them out, because I will do my own homework.

Posting specific litters was the idea when I signed up, and I just thought I would throw out an introduction before I started asking strangers to do research for me ;)

^ sounds like yr on the right track, good luck, and send me a pm with yr credit card details, i have a nice litter, whatever you are looking for they are it, will even throw in a nice leash imported from india, great leather.

Sorry for your loss..

Ask at least for official HD/ED results of the parents /ancestors. That´s no guarantee for a healthy dog, but it´s a better chance.
I firmly believe in "buying local" be it food or dogs, and a good breeder is a breeder who trains and breeds his own dogs out of his own females -
Try to support the smaller breeders, not the breeders who make a living out of their dogs - these people NEED to sell.

Might be helpful to tell us where you are located. A lot of serious breeders are not on this board, they don´t advertise because they don´t need to. Is there a club in your area? Club members always know about litters, and even in working line litters there are usually some calmer pups - another reason why you should take a look at the litters by yourself.

And don´t send your credit card details to VK, he is a scrupelous guy from Downunder waiting for greenhorns ...