Anyone have experience with Katzenblut shepherds? Hips? - Page 1

good luck you will need it

Saw one dog from there with moderate hips. 

I can't comment on the hips but it'll be a frosty Friday in Hell before I ever recommend that breeder.

I've got 13 stitches and a nasty scar on my right arm from a POS Katzenblut fear biter that a guy brought to my old SchH club trying to get help with training.

The guy was a novice to dogs and was impressed by the Katzenblut web site and the lady is apparently a real sweet talker.  She sold this guy a GSD and when he started to show his unstable temperment and aggression she blamed the behavior on everything BUT the dog and her breeding.  The guy knew he had a ticking time bomb on his hands and came to our club to get help.  We tried to work with the dog to get him under control and used to strangers. 

One day I had a momentary lapse in judgement and fed the dog some hot dog pieces out of my hand.  He wagged his tail enthusiastically while he munched on the treats but when I turned to walk away he nailed my arm and ripped open a nice gash.  The owner was horrified and promised to pay all my medical expenses on the spot, but I told him I'm not the average lawsuit-happy "opportunist" that unfortunately populates my home state. 

Once we got back from the ER, my club mates sat the guy down to talk to him, but the poor fellow had already decided he was going to get rid of the dog immediately.  Again, when he called Shirley at Katzenblut she blamed his behavior on everything BUT the dog, and told him to send the dog back and that she'd find a "proper trainer" to "fix" the problems.  I stayed in touch with Harold, and he told me the dog didn't last a month with the "proper trainer" as the dog was a threat to that family too.  However, instead of being put to sleep, he was resold and his current whereabouts are unknown.

I surfed to the Katzenblut web site after this incident was not at all impressed with her breeding program.  At the time her top stud was a huge black GSD named Jarrod that she bragged as being 112 lbs "verified on a veternarian's scale!".  She also had the SV GSD standard on her web page and when I emailed her asking why she would breed her oversize stud when he is clearly far outside the breed standard, I never heard a response.  I also emailed her asking how many SchH dogs she had personally trained and titled since so many of her litters at the time were "excellent prospects" for SchH.  This time I sent the email with a read-receipt notice - she opened the email, but again, I never got a response.  Go figure!

Any questions?

Yvette

Thanks. Confirms my fears. I have a mod hip dysplastic pup from her. Pup's sire  (Laras) was listed on the web page as OFA, but when I went to verify that on the OFA site he is not listed. I am a novice and I am learning a lot the hard way. No hip guarantee on this pup either. I like the pup as a pet so will make the most of a bad situation. I have already spayed the pup. So,  please give me some pointers for how to find a reputable breeder next time. Of course, I will check OFA status myself and never again take the sellers wiod for it!

how to find a reputable breeder - check references from people who have bought pups from them before - lots of references.  Perhaps a vet reference as well might shed some light on how they care for their dogs (or don't).  Recommendations, word of mouth - make sure you check out the dogs' accolades (titles, hip ratings) before assuming what they write behind the name is fact.  OFA website is a perfect way to see if the claim of "OFA" is fact or fiction.  Copy of scorebook, pictures of the dog working - and the best of all situations - if you are able to go meet the breeder in person, and meet the dogs in person.  Make sure the written guarantee is acceptable to you.

molly

Of course some dogs may have SV hip/elbow ratings and not OFA.  That does not mean that you wouldn't be able to see a copy of the certification. 

OMG!  The fear biter lives!

http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/gsd/pedigree/502723.html

Unless that woman has cranked out another GSD by the name of "Katzenblut von Pooh Bear" then this is the fear biter that tore my arm open.  There is no picture in the registration listing, but I can't imagine "Pooh Bear" makes the top 10 list for commonly used GSD names.

In the absence of a picture of the dog itself, here's a photo to recognize him by...

Sorry for the poor quality of the picture, but I only had my cell phone camera available at the moment to take the picture of the scar that he left me.  It's been about 4-5 years ago when this happened so this is as healed as it's going to get.

I hope that whoever has the dog now has sent him through some serious rehab with an experienced trainer.

Live and learn. 

Yvette

Ouch!!!!  When you go to a kennel website and it has lots of words but none of them mean jack, it's time to make tracks and run away fast as you can.