German Shepherd Popularity
The German Shepherd is one of the most popular dogs in the world for good reason. They are highly intelligent, incredibly versatile, loyal, courageous and endlessly trainable. Whoever originally claimed that dog was man’s best friend might well have been talking about the German Shepherd Dog.
As far as UK Kennel Club breed registrations are concerned, the German Shepherd is the fifth most popular dog in the United Kingdom. According to American Kennel Club (AKC) breed registrations, it is the third most popular dog in the USA. Those statistics are much the same the world over.
Wherever you go in the world, it seems there are rather a lot of fellow German Shepherd Dog lovers. It seems we all owe an enormous debt of gratitude to Max von Stephanitz, the German creator of the breed!
German Shepherd Puppies For Sale
There are many quality German Shepherd Dog breeders who have puppy German Shepherds for sale. Do your research. Check out the various German Shepherd breeders that you find online. Check to see if they also offer a health guarantee. Check that they are registered Kennel Club breeders. There are thousands of German Shepherd puppies for sale all waiting to be taken home and loved. Just make sure you choose the right one for you.
Decide why you want a German Shepherd puppy in the first place. Is it to show or is it simply a family pet or companion dog? It will make a difference as to the breeder you choose.
Make sure you see your German Shepherd puppy’s mother – it’s the best way of knowing how your puppy will look when it’s fully grown.
If you find the perfect puppy from a breeder that still has German Shepherd puppies for sale we would love you to share the information with us. Please comment on your experience and breeder information below.
If you have German Shepherd puppies for sale that you would like to advertise on german-shepherds.org.uk please contact us on:
Please see the advertising info here.
What Are German Shepherds Like?
German Shepherds are highly intelligent dogs with an inbred willingness to learn and a strong desire to please. Highly active dogs bred to work, under strong leadership they are amongst the most loyal of dogs and thoroughly deserving of their worldwide popularity.
If you would like to read more about owning a German Shepherd, please read some of these excellent, highly recommended books:
* German Shepherds for Dummies by: D. Caroline Coile
* A New Owners Guide to German Shepherds by: Charlotte Schwartz
* German Shepherd Dog by: Andrew Winfrow
* How to Train Your German Shepherd by: Liz Palika
* Care and Behaviour of the German Shepherd Dog by: David Sands
* Understanding the German Shepherd Dog by: John Cree
You Want A German Shepherd Puppy?
Before you purchase your German Shepherd puppy, consider why you want a German Shepherd in the first place. It will greatly determine what sort of puppy and what sort of German Shepherd breeder you are looking for. Simply searching for German Shepherd puppy breeders will not necessarily guarantee you your desired result.
Naturally you will want a pedigree German Shepherd puppy. Buying a pedigree German Shepherd from a registered breeder is the best way of being certain that you are going to get what you pay for. Unlike simply buying a German Shepherd – or any other breed of dog if it comes to that – without a pedigree certificate, if you buy a pedigree German Shepherd puppy you have a reasonable idea what your adult German Shepherd will look like because pictures of adult German Shepherds abound, especially on the internet.
All puppies look cute. But you need to know what your German Shepherd is going to look like when it is fully grown. You also need to know, as far as possible, that you are buying a healthy puppy. That is the main advantage of buying a German Shepherd puppy with a pedigree certificate from a Kennel Club registered German Shepherd breeder.
You also need to see the mother. That is important. If you see the mother then you have a fair idea how your pup will turn out. Does she have the right temperament to suit your lifestyle? Unless you are planning to show your German Shepherd, breed standards don’t matter too much. It is your puppy’s temperament that is most important. The fact that your German Shepherd might not be suitable for showing or fit the exact breed standards doesn’t matter a hoot if you want a happy, healthy, family pet. But at least by buying your German Shepherd puppy from a specialist German Shepherd breeder, you have a reasonable idea what you are going to get for your money.
Of course if you are buying a German Shepherd puppy for the purpose of showing it, then that is a different matter. You will want the best puppy your money can buy. But if you simply want a delightful and faithful family pet or companion dog, then a German Shepherd can be hard to beat. And the best way of ensuring that is to buy your German Shepherd puppy from a registered German Shepherd breeder, see the mother, check the pedigree certificate, and look forward to many years of happy German Shepherd owning.
German Shepherds At Work And Play
German Shepherd Dogs are so versatile, it’s little wonder they are one of the most popular dog breeds in the world, and the world’s most widely used working dog. Here are but a few of the German Shepherd’s abilities:
Herding
The German Shepherd was originally bred as a herding dog, in particular, to herd sheep.
Family Pet
The German Shepherd’s excellent temperament makes it a favourite amongst family dog owners. Providing they are properly socialized from an early age, German Shepherd Dogs are excellent with children and pets.
Guide Dog
America’s first-ever guide dog for the blind was a Swiss trained German Shepherd.
Therapy Dog
German Shepherds make excellent therapy dogs, visiting people in hospital or care homes.
Dog Agility
Intelligent and athletic, German Shepherds are excellent at all forms of dog agility, dog trials and obedience trials.
Schutzhund
Schutzhund is a dog sport developed in Germany during the 1900s to assess an individual German Shepherd’s suitability for police-type work.
Disabled Assistance
German Shepherds make excellent assistance dogs for those with disabilities.
Hearing Dogs
German Shepherds make excellent hearing dogs for the deaf and hearing impaired.
Guard Dog
The German Shepherd is the world’s most widely used guard dog.
Law Enforcement, Police & Military Work
The German Shepherd is one of the most widely used dogs for law enforcement, police, military and search and rescue work, including drug and explosives detection.
Let Your German Shepherd Puppy Choose You!
There is a trick few will tell you about, but we KNOW it works. It worked for us and it can work for you.
View a litter of German Shepherd puppies in their home surroundings, with their mother. The chances are that the puppies by this time will be in a pen of their own.
Step into the pen. If you are looking for the RIGHT puppy for you, ignore the way each individual puppy looks. (Of course if you are looking for a show dog, this will not apply. You will need to use a different set of criteria for choosing your pup. This works on the assumption that you are looking for a family pet or companion dog. It also works on the assumption that there are a number of pups for you to choose from, or rather, from which one can choose you!).
Some pups will have larger paws than others, some will have different markings than others. Some might look prettier than others – which of course is no guarantee that they will not change as they mature. Ignore all that. What you are interested in is how your potential puppy reacts to you.
Pick each puppy up one at a time. Fondle it, cuddle it, make a big fuss of it. Then put it down and walk away from it. Anything happen? Did it follow you? Did it continue to look at you, or did it go back to playing with the rest of its siblings?
Work your way through the litter carrying out the same procedure and noting the reactions of each pup in turn. If nothing out of the ordinary happened, try it over again.
Was there any reaction from one puppy that was different from all the others? Did any degree of bonding take place? Did one of those German Shepherd puppies choose you rather than you choosing it?
We’ve not only seen this done, we’ve DONE IT ourselves, and we can say quite categorically that it works. But only if you follow this procedure to the letter.
If the behaviour of one of those pups was different from the rest, try it again. Pick it up. Cuddle it. Make a fuss of it. Put it down and walk away from it. Note what happens.
Did it follow you? If it did, then that’s the pup for you. You might not have made the choice yourself, but your pup did, and that is so much better than it being the other way around. It means that that small puppy has already recognised something in you that tells it that you are its master, you are leader of the pack, you are the one it would rather be with than anyone else.
If your puppy can ignore all the considerable distractions from its siblings and surroundings at that early stage, you have bonded from the outset and made a true friend for life!
German Shepherd Health
You would be surprised at the number of German Shepherd health issues you could actually diagnose and treat yourself, at a fraction of the cost of taking your German Shepherd to the vet.
Written by vet John Bleby, The Dog’s Health from A-Z: A Canine Veterinary Dictionary, descibes how many canine illnesses can be self-diagnosed and treated, or avoided altogether, with a little knowledge and understanding.
While this book cannot take the place of your vet, it certainly demonstrates that there is much that you can do to prevent many problems happening in the first place. We are more than happy to recommend this excellent book which is certain to pay for itself in the fullness of time!
