Off Topic: Buying a German Shepherd

[DarkHorse Member Find all posts View Profile Close DarkHorse]

G'Day Crew,

I know it is not Prado related, but hey this site has always been a great place for information, other pp's experiences and general help.

My family and I (wife, boy 9 and girl 6) have moved into a property in NSW which is fully fenced and is 3500 square meters (3/4 acre?). Plenty of room to explore and all very open to run around......

I love animals and have always wanted to get a dog when the time "was right". Good friends have had german shepherds, as well as my grandfather many many years ago. Basically I want a family pet that we can all enjoy, smart and easy to train. We are looking at getting a female, have her fixed and no showing etc.

Because of inherent medical problems she will have to be pure bred with ALL the correct medical history for hip and elbow displacia (sp.)

I am hoping that one of you may be a breeder or know of a breeder personally for a reccomendation and or information on what to look for etc.

As we will NOT be breeding her, showing etc. I am not concerned about "papers" as such but must be able to see her history and would prefer from a registered breeder that meet certain guidelines.

Anyone here recently been through the same process?

Sorry for the long post, but appreciate any help.

Regards,


Rob

[Damien Parker Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Damien Parker]

Good luck in your quest.

I love German Shepherds and if i had the yard i would have one in an instant. They are a lot of work though, in the training sense and obedience training is a must. However, work is not work if you enjoy spending time with your new family member.

We went through a similar process when we got our Labrador a couple of years ago.

My best advice would be to track down a reputable breeder and tell them what you are after and i am sure other than the price that they will be more than happy to help you. If you get a bad vibe from a breeder, take that as a sign and move on. Its a big outlay so its best you get your dog from the breeder you click with so to speak.

If you contact your local VET he/ she would have a good idea of who is about in the breeding game.

Check here

http://www.jyetara.com/

http://www.dogs4sale.com.au

http://www.dogzonline.com.au

http://www.eternbur.com/

As a kid we had a white one, bloody unreal dog.

[xvprado Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close xvprado]

Darkhorse,
I spent about 30 years in the "dog world" and am a licensed working dog judge (this includes GSDs) if you can send me a pm with what area you are in i could probably make some suggestions of good quality breeders
Buying a GSD pup is a bit trickey as there of lots of poor breeding going on in that world, also what style of GSD, all breeds or specialty, you maybe need to do a bit of research to understand them better if this doenst make sense at this stage
regards
glen

[Damien Parker Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close Damien Parker]

Top stuff Glen

[DarkHorse Member Find all posts View Profile Close DarkHorse]

Thanks VERY much for the replies. Really appreciate it guys. Thank you for the links, I have also been googling (tm) and found some excellent information etc.

Not something that I will take lightly and not rush into, although I would like to get our new family member sooner rather than later, I am in no rush and am trying to gather as much information as possible.

Glen I have sent you a PM.

Regards,


Rob