Our fur friends.

[TMF]

Some, and then some are just from people who don't do their research on a breed before buying it. You know, the "SMRT" people. She does training, doggy daycare and all sorts of stuff. She has 2 EB's there for training right now that I have to resist the urge to "borrow". LOL

It was a big concern that an influx of unscrupulous breeders would flood the market with Mals, dutchies, GSDs and other working breeds for sale to people who aren't equipped to handle them. I know a lot of Mal rescues have popped up in the past decade, which should be abnormal for a breed that was used almost solely for military/police and a handful of competitive trainers.

Some of these breeders are giving these high drive dogs to sedentary people who aren't equipped to handle them, and the result is terrible for the dogs.


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[TGO David]

I've never been much of a runner even when I had to, but I do go for walks on a daily basis and my daughter (2yrs) is a ball of energy that needs another ball of energy to keep her company and run each other ragged until they both pass out.   We're also wanting a dog that can both be a pet and a protector, and will take us on as its "pack" and bond well with the family.

 

After speaking with MrsMonkeyMan's friend last night, we are very interested in meeting the dog she has in mind.  I just dig meeting cool dogs (preferring them to people most of the time, lol) no matter whether we're taking in a new family member or visiting, so it's a trip I will be glad to make.

 

The big sticking point for us is what the dog thinks of our daughter.  I really need the dog to protect her and love her as if she were one of her pups.  Too soon my daughter will be wanting to run around and play in the yard and I really want a dog that will watch over her and keep her safe.

[MrsMonkeyMan2500]

I've never been much of a runner even when I had to, but I do go for walks on a daily basis and my daughter (2yrs) is a ball of energy that needs another ball of energy to keep her company and run each other ragged until they both pass out. We're also wanting a dog that can both be a pet and a protector, and will take us on as its "pack" and bond well with the family.

After speaking with MrsMonkeyMan's friend last night, we are very interested in meeting the dog she has in mind. I just dig meeting cool dogs (preferring them to people most of the time, lol) no matter whether we're taking in a new family member or visiting, so it's a trip I will be glad to make.

The big sticking point for us is what the dog thinks of our daughter. I really need the dog to protect her and love her as if she were one of her pups. Too soon my daughter will be wanting to run around and play in the yard and I really want a dog that will watch over her and keep her safe.

Steer clear of Athena and Hercules while you visit! They're the two English Bulldogs. Their faces will make your heart melt and it's way too tempting. Luckily they have owners and are there for training. Christie is a really awesome chick, I hope it works out for you all!!

[MrsMonkeyMan2500]

It was a big concern that an influx of unscrupulous breeders would flood the market with Mals, dutchies, GSDs and other working breeds for sale to people who aren't equipped to handle them. I know a lot of Mal rescues have popped up in the past decade, which should be abnormal for a breed that was used almost solely for military/police and a handful of competitive trainers.

Some of these breeders are giving these high drive dogs to sedentary people who aren't equipped to handle them, and the result is terrible for the dogs.


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The ones that I know, breed to train and give them a true working dog life. They usually raise each dog up to I think like 1-2? They take them to competitions and it's a really serious world. They make fun of me all the time for the fact that my dogs run the house and not the other way around. Most of the ones I know end up selling the dogs to LE agencies. If not then they usually stay within the show world because of the bloodlines.

[Pain103]

Dutch Shepherds aren't bad breeds but they are a little spazy. I knew several guys that had one as a K-9 they did great but they had more of an attitude and didn't like down time. But with any high drive dog you have to exercise them and show attention.

[TGO David]

The past few months have sucked a little more than others, having lost our 10-year-old male Doberman and our 10-year-old female Boston Terror [sic] within two months of each other.  Bostons are highly social animals and become very attached to their people and to other animals that live with them.  The vet says the Boston passed after the Doberman pretty much due to grief and depression.  Very sad.

 

After the Doberman passed, and before the Boston stopped eating, we contacted a few local rescues to see if we could find her another "big dog" friend.  Sadly none of them responded to us quickly enough.

 

MrsMonkeyMan put us in touch with a wonderful lady who owns a combination training org, breeder AND rescue of Dutch Shepherds and we seriously considered that as an option although my uncle in VA, a retired SWAT officer, K9 handler and trainer, told us that a Dutchie might be a little more "high octane" than we wanted.  Others here with experience with the breed echoed those concerns in this thread too.

 

While a Dutch Shep is not off the table entirely for us, one of the local rescues did get back in touch with us.  To make a long story short, here is our new fur baby.  We call her "Mina" as it's a perfectly good German name for a perfectly good German lass.

 

 

 

She's about 5 years old and is even pedigreed.  She learned her name quickly, has chosen me as "her person" in the family, and watches over our 2-yr old daughter like a guardian.  She even endures my daughter laying on top of her.   (I'm pretty sure she enjoys it)

 

 

[felinesNfreedom]

Here are a couple of our fuzz balls after we put up the Christmas decorations.


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[ArmyBrat61]

Dogs are very cathartic when it comes to healing a hurt. My mother went ahead of me to be with our Lord back in September and it has been difficult getting used to the void that remains, especially now that the holidays are here. That being said...my wife and I rescued a GSD pup and named her Duchess Hilde von Wolfsburg...she was 5 weeks old when the rescue took place.  She has East German and Russian bloodlines and is a silver and black shepherd. She started to thrive as soon as she arrived and has gained 10 lbs a month for the last 4 months. Duchess is a sweet girl and I know that God had her waiting for me to lick my sorrow away.

 

Duchess at 5 weeks

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Duchess at 12 weeks

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Duchess at 16 weeks

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[felinesNfreedom]

Army, I love those ears. I really want a dog like that. 

Edited November 29, 2015 by XxthejuicexX

[MrsMonkeyMan2500]

The past few months have sucked a little more than others, having lost our 10-year-old male Doberman and our 10-year-old female Boston Terror [sic] within two months of each other. Bostons are highly social animals and become very attached to their people and to other animals that live with them. The vet says the Boston passed after the Doberman pretty much due to grief and depression. Very sad.

After the Doberman passed, and before the Boston stopped eating, we contacted a few local rescues to see if we could find her another "big dog" friend. Sadly none of them responded to us quickly enough.

MrsMonkeyMan put us in touch with a wonderful lady who owns a combination training org, breeder AND rescue of Dutch Shepherds and we seriously considered that as an option although my uncle in VA, a retired SWAT officer, K9 handler and trainer, told us that a Dutchie might be a little more "high octane" than we wanted. Others here with experience with the breed echoed those concerns in this thread too.

While a Dutch Shep is not off the table entirely for us, one of the local rescues did get back in touch with us. To make a long story short, here is our new fur baby. We call her "Mina" as it's a perfectly good German name for a perfectly good German lass.




She's about 5 years old and is even pedigreed. She learned her name quickly, has chosen me as "her person" in the family, and watches over our 2-yr old daughter like a guardian. She even endures my daughter laying on top of her. (I'm pretty sure she enjoys it)

I'm so glad it all worked out. Christie and I talked about you/the dog situation during thanksgiving. Your new girl is quite beautiful. Again, congrats on the new family member!

[Trekbike]

Beautiful dog you got there. Hope she continues to bond well with you guys.

[Dolomite`s Breezy]

I judge people how they treat animals.I think  I really like most of you :)

[MrsMonkeyMan2500]

I judge people how they treat animals.I think I really like most of you :)

I'd like you a lot more if you gave me that beautiful bulldog baby of yours ;)

[Dolomite`s Breezy]

I'd like you a lot more if you gave me that beautiful bulldog baby of yours ;)

Gus? oh no..lol.. he wont go anywhere.:) sorry.. get your own Gus:)

[MrsMonkeyMan2500]

Gus? oh no..lol.. he wont go anywhere.:) sorry.. get your own Gus:)

Oh, I'd love to! But the rule is this house is adoptions only. I doubt I'll even find one in a rescue!

[Dolomite`s Breezy]

there are tons of them in rescues.name an breed and there is a rescue..

[TGO David]

Well... bad news of sorts.

 

The German Shepherd didn't work out for us.  To be fair, we were warned that she had eaten someone else's couch after breaking free from her crate during the night.  Come to find out the rescue had been unable to successfully home her with several homes due to the behavior that we began witnessing after she'd been with us a week and came out of her shell.

 

Unfortunately we weren't told the degree to which she suffers separation anxiety nor the fact that it sometimes manifests as a crazed panic which borders on slightly aggressive behavior. She appears to have attached herself to me completely and when I was away from her became manic, acted out destructively and was inconsolable by anyone else. The fact that she acted crazed towards other people was the absolute deal-breaker for us.

 

It's a shame, really. We'd become very attached to her and loved having her around -- until Mrs. Hyde came out in her personality. I suppose hindsight is 20/20 because a 5-year old pedigreed dog that has been unable to be placed anywhere else should have been a flag. The fact that the rescue offered to waive the adoption fee *AND* help pay for a $400 crate to keep her in if we would just go ahead and adopt her... well that's an even bigger flag.   :rolleyes:

 

The folks from the rescue came back and picked her up yesterday.  They weren't super friendly about the whole thing but honestly I put that back on them.  Complete transparency would have gone a long way, and adding "incentives" to keep a dog that isn't working out is just poor form and honestly doesn't take the dog's best interests to heart.  What this GSD needs is professional help from a professional trainer to help her get over this behavior.  She may in fact need to be permanently homed with a trainer who can work with her constantly.

 

 

 

I think we're going to look for a Doberman pup to raise from scratch.  We had such good luck with our Dobe, it just feels like the right decision.

 

 

[56FordGuy]

David, sorry to hear it didn't work out. I love German Shepherds, our next will be another one.

Unfortunately, I've been involved with two different large animal rescues on the "inside" and the whole thing just left me with a pretty bad impression of rescue groups. Stories like yours are unfortunately not uncommon at all.

[Spiffy]

Our last several dogs have adopted us. I have to say they have impeccable taste.

 

You have dogs just show up?  We've had 2 do that to us. I guess they didn't pay the begals any attention when they said "move along!".

[TGO David]

So... divine providence, perhaps.  We found an AKC registered Doberman breeder who had two pups from a current litter remaining.  We will get to bring this little blue Doberman girl home on Christmas Eve.

 

(Photo redacted for opsec because there are weird-ass people on the Internet)

 

 

[Murgatroy]

My family had several Dobermans when I was younger, and they always did well.

[TGO David]

My family had several Dobermans when I was younger, and they always did well.

 

Yeah our last dog was a Doberman and we had good luck with him for 8 years.  We're essentially going back to the breed with know the best.  :)

[Chazmr]

Glad you found a puppy David.  That should be a great Christmas gift!

She's a great looking pup.

Be sure and post some more photos when you get her, and as she grows.  I can't wait to see what she looks like in a few months.

 

[Bassoneer]

David, we got our blue girl right around Christmas four years ago.  Due to the timing we named her Holly.  We got her younger brother (a black one) about six months later.  Dobies are the best dogs ever!  We took Holly through obedience school, but not her brother (Axl).  Now that they are 4 and 3.5 years old we are going through obedience school, ha.  They are picking up on things...extremely smart breed.  That is a very cute one you have there.  B

 

 

Edited December 7, 2015 by Bassoneer

[TGO David]

David, we got our blue girl right around Christmas four years ago.  Due to the timing we named her Holly.  We got her younger brother (a black one) about six months later.  Dobies are the best dogs ever!  We took Holly through obedience school, but not her brother (Axl).  Now that they are 4 and 3.5 years old we are going through obedience school, ha.  They are picking up on things...extremely smart breed.  That is a very cute one you have there.  B

 

Obedience school is a given.  These dogs are almost always smart as tacks.