If I want to breed a pair of german shepherds, should the puppies be...?

Question

1) Purchased when they're around the same age? And 2) From two separate separate breeders to prevent inbreeding?
I want to become a dog breeder and shower and I love german shepherds! However, this would be my first time breeding, so I don't really know what the best way to go is. Can anyone help me?

Answer 1

The best way to go about this is to first find a reputable breeder. Visit the OFA website and see what genetic screening tests are recommended for the breed you are interested in and find a breeder that performs most, if not all, of these tests on their breeding dogs. Ask them questions, if they don't do a particular test that the OFA recommends, ask them what their reasoning is. Visit the breed club website and read up on what they recommend you look for in a good breeder.



Once you have chosen a breeder, talk to them about your plans for showing and breeding. Your best bet may be to purchase a puppy with a co-ownership for your first breeding dog. This way you have a lot of guidance and mentoring from the breeder to help you navigate all of the nuances of showing and breeding.



There is a LOT more to it than just putting an intact male and an intact female together. Any idiot could do that, and many do! Most of those puppies end up euthanized in shelters or neglected. Those that are lucky enough to find a family often have health problems caused by an inexperienced or uncaring breeder pairing the wrong dogs together without realizing (or perhaps just not caring) what kinds of genetic faults could be produced.

Answer 2

To become a breeder, go to many shows and competitions and observe the GSD's. Research the pedigrees of those you really like. Join a breed club, such as the German Shepherd Dog Club of America, and read up on the breed and the people in the breed. When you know what you want, by which time you will know who is producing that look and temperament, then apply for a b*tch puppy and get on their waiting list.

When you acquire the puppy, you'll spend months raising and training her. As she matures, you will start proving her in competitions. When she is old enough, you will have her temperament tested and get the inherited health tests done. That is when you make the decision on which stud to use: her best match to compliment her positive traits and contrast her negative traits.

To be anything more than a scummy backyard breeder, you need to put in the time and effort.

Answer 3

Find a reputable breeder (one who does health testing for hips and such) who is willing to mentor you before doing anything. Also don't raise two pups at the same time that is bad idea and you don't know if they will grow up to be suitable mates. (your dogs mate should cancel out the other's faults and emphasize the good traits. You can't know much with a puppy!)

But really get someone to mentor you. Maybe you will want to try a co-ownership contract with a reputable breeder first. I dream of being a breeder and show person too but that is far in the future!

Answer 4

If you want to show, and one day breed you shouldn't be thinking about buying one of each. You should be studying the breed standard, health concerns, and learning as much as you can. You should get 1 puppy and show it to its championship and health test before you even consider breeding. You should start with responsible show breeders and once you find one you like talk to them about what you want. They will most likely Co-own with you which isn't a bad thing, quite the contrary generally. They will mentor you and help you with showing breeding and the works. If you are truly serious there is much to learn before breeding. There is also little to no money in it if done right. Good luck.

Answer 5

My advice first off is to research this. Buy books and attend shows and speak to breeders especially with the GSD breed. Research until you can answer any question thrown at you about breeding a dog. Become accustomed to both sides of the argument about breeding and not breeding. Be ready to spend a lot of money with very little revenue. The GSD among many is a breed that has been over bred for many years causing a lot of health issues this has come under a lot of scrutiny by the AKA and and KC for many years with the hope to take the breed back to their origins rather than allow the breed to look like the designer dog that we have now become accustomed to.



A year ago my brother asked me to find him a working cocker from a working breeder, when I found the right breeder we had a chat about breeding and the cost of breeding. B*tches sold for £450 and dogs for £400. The pups were vet checked at 4 weeks. The pups were wormed at home with a vet bought womer, The pups were on a specialist diet and received the first injections of two prior to leaving, The pups were also micro chipped and a final vet check was completed prior to them leaving/ There was also a registration fee for KC reg pups They also came with 6 weeks free insurance.. The income from the pups was between £60 and £100 each. The parents also needed to be eye and ear tested prior to breeding. In a GSD you would need to ensure both shoulder and hip scores are carried out and eye tests prior to breeding (If the hip scores are to high on either dog you would be advised not to breed from that dog) Almost all breeders will tell you that if at any point you are not able to care for the dog you buy from them then the first port of call should be to the breeder to return the dog rather than send it to a shelter (Sadly this does happen) So there are a lot of ethics involved also. If your looking at the show breed then you need both the sire and the dam to be winning show dogs with a great traceable blood line of champions. Like my brothers B*tch she had field trial champions throughout the blood line. You also have to accommodate for any vets bills for the dam while pregnant and any complications that may occur. You may find you have a beautiful Dam that shows well, You have paid for all your hip, shoulder and elbow scores and they have come back great you get her pregnant and then when it comes to her due date she starts to struggle you have to have a C-sect that costs £700 to £1500 with the chance that you may be told not to breed form that dog again. Leaving you with a dog you can no longer show or breed from. There is always a chance something could go wrong and unless you have deep pockets it can be costly.

Answer 6

The male should be older than the female. I would not buy from any big breeder, most have health issues. There are many hobby breeders that have great intelligent dogs. I breed. My dogs did not come from a breeder, but I have sold to police officers and a friend of Cesar the dog whisperer also buys my pups for protection work. I paid 250.00 for each of my dogs. So you see paying big money means nothing.

Answer 7

2) From two separate breeders. But ideally, you would have a 1 female and use a stud from someone with a healthy registered breed worthy stud. The stud fee is around $300-1000 depending on the breed and quality of the dog. This is less expensive in the long run because you aren't buying, feeding, and caring for a second dog. Not to mention, dealing with the stress of having a male around at all time with an intact female.



If you want to become a reputable breeder, it will take a lot of work and money. It is a hobby, not a money maker. You need to be devoted to breeding the most high quality pups.



You should read this before you even consider becoming a breeder: https://images.akc.org/pdf/breeders/resources/guide_to_breeding_your_dog.pdf

Answer 8

asking this means you have done no research on breeding dogs in books or on the net ....asking this means you are not in contact with a vet ..... dogs are not toys for you to play with to see what comes out ...find something else to do with your time then endangering dogs ...yes when you are clueless you endanger the dog and her pups....

Answer 9

don't talk about them like they're objects

Answer 10

● "If I want to breed a pair of german shepherds, should the puppies be..."



Wrong question, showing insufficient awareness to even THINK of being a breeder yet.



□ Step ONE:

LEARN about the breed so you:

(a) know its name (Deutsche Schäferhund, which translates as German Shepherd Dog - 3 words in the proper noun, so 3 capital initials required).

(b) know WHAT the GSD was developed to do.

(c) know its International Standard http://www.fci.be/Nomenclature/Standards/166g01-en.pdf almost off by heart. If you are in Britain, Canada, the USA, then what's published in your nation is a REBEL document invented in that nation, with the limits and all or most of the DisQualifications removed. Trying to produce a GSD based on any of them is like trying to build a Lamborghini based on the blueprint of an SUV.

(d) know which of a GSD's charms/talents are the ones you most wish to promote (but do NOT ignore any of the other charms & talents - otherwise you'll be producing pups that are only PART of a GSD).



□ Step TWO:

Buy a bìtch with the best pedigree you can afford, after making sure that:

(a) her breeder's previous litters have a record of success for their buyers in whichever aspect YOU are most interested in (I hope you don't see show-is-all as the main purpose).

(b) her breeder supplies a printed & signed Guarantee stating the compensation you will receive if any genetic problem arises in the first few years (see http://lesp90.wix.com/lorelei-gsd-kennels#!guarantee/cyaq and http://sequoyah-german-shepherds.com/warrantee.htm for examples) or disease in the first 7-8 days.

(c) her parents and grandparents possess all the certificates listed in https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/The_GSD_Source/links/all/Defining_a_GSD_001261993982 (you'll need to Join that group in order to access its Links, etc).

(d) her breeder is happy to sit with you for hours, discussing the breed and the good & bad traits produced by the ancestors. Ideally, the breeder should be happy to answer later questions by phone, or within 24 hours by e-mail.



Sometimes an adult is available still young enough to have one litter for you. Make your decision based on (1) the record of her progeny, and (2) her personality - a GSD should live until at least 12, some reach 15 or 16, so you need to LIKE her behaviours & personality throughout her remaining years.

My preference is to bring home a pup at 7-to-9 weeks old, so that I have time for all the familiarisation-&-confidence-building experiences pups need before they reach 13 weeks old. NEVER buy a pup aged 11-to-18 weeks old - its breeder doesn't care about (or doesn't KNOW about!) the developmental stages of pups!



□ Step THREE:

▪ Stay home 24/7 helping Pup settle in and OBSERVING her during the first week or fortnight. And follow the breeder's Diet Sheet for at least the first week, so it doesn't get a tummy upset while still learning to trust you and you are still learning its signals & timings for "Wanna go toilet".

▪ Work out how to be so attractive that pup willingly comes when you call, and willingly brings a suitable-sized ball or toy to you. (At 2½ years, my Bea http://www.pedigreedatabase.com/dog.html?id=1325022 still enjoys "teasing" me by turning her head away if I try to take her ball before she is ready to place it in my hand.)

▪ Once Pup trusts you to protect it, start supplying the safe & fun (in PUP's opinion!) experiences of every movement, scent, sight, sound and texture on your property.

▪ Book in to a proper training club so that there will be a space reserved in its classes for YOU to start getting coached when Pup is 19-to-22 weeks old.

▪ 2+ weeks after the vaccination usually given at 8 weeks, DRIVE pup to places where dogs do NOT run free, do NOT piddle-poo-vomit (spreading viruses), and continue adding safe & fun experiences.

▪ At shows, look for a knowledgeable old-time breeder who might be willing to be your mentor and inform you of the drawbacks in your bìtch's pedigree and in the lines of whichever studs have "caught your eye".



● "1) Purchased when they're around the same age? And 2) From two separate separate breeders to prevent inbreeding?"



DO NOT buy a dog.

Be aware of Les's Law:

"The best mate for your pooch belongs to Sum Wun Elss."



People who have a fertile male tend to use him, regardless. Real breeders don't seek cheap litters - they seek correction & improvement, Those willing to pay stud fees and take their brood to the best stud in their nation for producing whatever she needs improved, produced GSDs such as

https://www.pedigreedatabase.com/german_shepherd_dog/dog.html?id=433761

https://www.pedigreedatabase.com/german_shepherd_dog/dog.html?id=71

https://www.pedigreedatabase.com/german_shepherd_dog/dog.html?id=396411

Notice how their breeders kept their kennel-name going along the bottom of the pedigree, but used other dogs in the tail-male line.



You have to start somewhere, so start with a bìtch. And be prepared to neuter her and start again with a different bìtch, if she fails any of the certificates. You need to keep your numbers low, so that that you can give each one the individual attention all GSDs crave/need. And as GSDs live for about 12 years, if you breed from your first bìtch when she is 3, 4, 6 years old and keep a daughter from each litter, by the time she is 7 you will have 4 bìtches and be ready to start breeding from her daughters. By the time she is 11 you will be ready to start breeding from her grand-daughters.



And although I'm glad you haven't chosen a Best Answer yet, you really SHOULD choose one now - a well-asked question should attract a great answer in its first week, and yours is now 3 weeks old.



Add

https://group.yahoo.com/neo/groups/The_GSD/Source/

to your browser, so that you can easily look up all sorts of information about dogs, especially GSDs.

"Thanks to" Yahoo's /neo/-nut programmer, the settings have been changed from "Open" to "Restricted", so you'll need to apply to join instead of getting instant access to the Links



To discuss GSDs, join some groups such as

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/GSD_Friendly/info

The people in them KNOW about GSDs. Plus you can include actual photos in your posts.



King Les The Lofty - first pup in 1950; GSD breeder & trainer as of 1968