Buying a dog

Liesia

My partner and I have been talking about buying a dog for quite sometime now and we are trying to consider the different breeds that may suit us. I have never owned a dog before so I'm being very cautious about the whole thing. He however had german shepards growing up and has his heart set on getting a german shepard. We have a large back garden and due to our work patterns there would be only two days a week our working hours clash and then there would only be two hours of a clash, so there would be somebody home most of the time! we want to get two dogs as company for one another as naturally we will be out of the house at time visiting relatives or getting groceries or even when we are relaxing at home. I want to know whether anybody has any advise on whether it would be best to get two German Shepards or if certain other breeds would go better with German Shepards etc. Obviously I undedrstand that the dogs temperment would affect this.Any info anyone can give on German Shepards or breeds would be most welcome.

Ruu_Old

Have you considered adopting one instead of buying? Theres so many looking for homes I am sure.
Anyway to answer your question re:German Shepards, they can be inclined to be aggressive to other dogs and would require firm and strong handling from you guys. Lots of exercise needed with training if possible because without that they will become restless and destructive, they revel in strenuous activity.

Liesia

I would consider getting a dog from a rescue but as my partner really wants a German Shepard I want to be sure that the two different breds would get on together. I have been looking at german shepard crosses perhaps. I understand the amount of exercise that all dogs require and we live in the country side and both walk quite alot for fitness so I'd think that the excercise issue would be a problem for us, however I would be worried at the fact that they tend to be aggressive to other dogs. I do know that part of the reason that German Shepards appeal to my partner are because we live in the country side as a safety measure as this also part of the reason he had them whilst growing up.

EGAR

There are PB GSD's in rescue, not just x breeds. Also the GSD falls under the restricted breeds act:

the Control of Dogs (Restriction of Certain Dogs) Regulation, S.I. No. 123 of 1991 requires that in order to keep the following types of dogs

Bandogs, American Pit Bull Terriers, Bulldogs, Bull Mastiffs, Doberman Pinschers, English Bull Terriers, German Shepherd (Alsatians), Japanese Akitas, Japanese Tosas, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Rottweilers and Staffordshire Bull Terriers including any other strain or cross or every breed or type of dog so described - as specified in Regulation 4,

It is necessary to have these dogs controlled by a sufficiently strong chain or leash not more than one metre in length and by a person over the age of 16 years of age who is capable of controlling the dog, Regulation 5.

Further these dogs must be muzzled while in a public place, Regulation 6.

These dogs must also have collars which identify the dog and give an address, Regulation 7.

gypsygirl

If you intend getting two dogs and your'e set on Sheperds, a bitch and a dog would be my advice, get the bitch first and when she's well settled (and YOU'VE gotten comfortable with the temperment of this breed) get a younger dog, this will give your bitch alpha status and therefore help her overide his natural dominant tendencies, Most pairs of the same breed work well together provided its a bitch and dog, but as a previous poster stated, sheperds need an incredible amount of excerise and stimulation as they are bred as a working dog, but as you live in the country and enjoy walking, that shouldn't be a bother, get the bitch first and if you find sheperds too much hard work, get a male labrador or an equally placid dog, female sheperds are not usually as territorially/dominant as the males so there shouldn't be a problem with a sheperd bitch and a less dominant male. Best of luck. We've had sheperds for 15 or so years and find them to be highly intelligent as well as very affectionate and protective.

artieanna

I also think you must consider what sort of space you have for two large dogs... Have you got a large back garden that is closed off so you can let the dogs have a bit of a run. Dogs can become aggressive if tied up alot... You must consider the quality of life the dogs will have!!!

Sigma Force

2 dogs = twice the work and any breed like a GSD can be more work because they are a working type breed and very intelligent. However there are rescues that deal with GSDs you should contact them because they can find a dog for you that will suit your needs and vice versa. They also will give you lots of advice try logging on to irishanimals.ie there's a list of various breed rescues. Don't expect 2 dogs to look after each other, they will want your company at the end of the day even if they get on well together, if you had 5dogs they would still prefer to be with you. You might be better off with one dog, one dog is easier to manage and take with you if you go off places. See how one dog works out, although sometimes there are pairs of dogs that an owner is looking for a home together. Either way any dog will take up a lot of your time, if there are training classes in your area it would be a great way for a 1st time dog owner to get to know the dogs ways.

Strokesfan

I think two dogs is a great idea cos they are pack animals and it's great that you've acknowledged this... two german shepards is a matter of preference and what you can afford...Females tend to dominate over males (that's the case with ours) and socialising them and getting them used to each other while they are puppies or both new to the environment will mean they will probably get on better as the natural leader will emerge rather than them fighting it out for the upper hand.
If I were in your situation I might get a male and female German Shepard if you end up getting two of them (rather than two males). Let us know what you decide plus you could let them have a litter before neutering, just a thought.

SuzyS1972

I thought the let them have a litter before neutering saga was dead and gone and in the dark ages where it belongs......
What a load of crap - it makes no difference to the dogs to let them have a litter - all it does is add to the thousands of unwanted dogs out there.
Unless you are an experienced breeder than can afford to have a litter of GSD pups - have the parents hip scored - VERY important in GSD's then don't bother.

It's an old wives tail from years ago - originating from vets - Anaesthetic wasn't what it is now and spays were more difficult to perform - It was easier for a vet to spay a bitch that had had a litter as the womb was bigger and stretched - hence more convenient for them. Absolutely nothing to do with the interests or welfare of the dogs.

Dogs breed as a matter of nature - there's no " emotion " involved as we would feel it and they simply do NOT " miss out " on having pups - my 3 dogs are all neutered - male and females and I have yet to find them pining over the pups they didn't have.

They are friendly , well adjusted , obedient dogs. One of them is a super agility dog so so not let anyone fill you full of rubbish about spayed females not being good working dogs - simply not true.

Strokesfan

SuzyS1972 wrote:

I thought the let them have a litter before neutering saga was dead and gone and in the dark ages where it belongs......
What a load of crap - it makes no difference to the dogs to let them have a litter - all it does is add to the thousands of unwanted dogs out there.
Unless you are an experienced breeder than can afford to have a litter of GSD pups - have the parents hip scored - VERY important in GSD's then don't bother.

It's an old wives tail from years ago - originating from vets - Anaesthetic wasn't what it is now and spays were more difficult to perform - It was easier for a vet to spay a bitch that had had a litter as the womb was bigger and stretched - hence more convenient for them. Absolutely nothing to do with the interests or welfare of the dogs.

Dogs breed as a matter of nature - there's no " emotion " involved as we would feel it and they simply do NOT " miss out " on having pups - my 3 dogs are all neutered - male and females and I have yet to find them pining over the pups they didn't have.

They are friendly , well adjusted , obedient dogs. One of them is a super agility dog so so not let anyone fill you full of rubbish about spayed females not being good working dogs - simply not true.

I never meant let them have a litter for the good of their health or for that old wives tale thingy. I meant if the OP's are going to invest in two GSD which cost up to 500e each and it's better to get a male and a female - they could allow them have a litter and recoup some of their expenses before neutering. Where I am - German Shepards are in demand and selling at very high prices. I of course wouldn't push this view on anyone, it was just a suggestion since they may pay 1000e for two dogs. I'm no expert and don't want this to be misconstrued as recommending everyone breed their dogs for profit! It was just a suggestion. The OP seems like a responsible prospective dog owner thinking things through first. I hope that clears what I meant up.

Villain

Get a boxer, they have a great temperament and make a really good pet as long as you pay it attention.

Nala

Instead of paying God knows how much for 2 puppies why not adopt a pair of young adult dogs from a pound or rescue, where their temperments and behaviour are already known and they have been vaccinated and neutered already? There are thousands of dogs put down every year, adopting 2 dogs means there are 2 more spaces for dogs in need.

Have a look here to see some of the dogs needing homes either from rescues or private homes, visit "Urgent Matters" to see all the dogs that will be put down if homes are not found. I can never understand why people pay a fortune for puppies from a breeder when this is going on every day in rescues/pounds.

Click
http://petsireland.invisionzone.com/

FranknFurter

Nala wrote:

Instead of paying God knows how much for 2 puppies why not adopt a pair of young adult dogs from a pound or rescue, where their temperments and behaviour are already known and they have been vaccinated and neutered already? There are thousands of dogs put down every year, adopting 2 dogs means there are 2 more spaces for dogs in need.

Thank you Nala, I had posted almost the same and it vanished

Rescue dogs are best in my opinion. And will be A LOT cheaper as they will likely have been neutered, temper checked and given their vaccinations, As Nala said.
GSD's, luckilly for you, are a breed that seem to end up in shelters quite often. Probably partly because they are such big dogs.
There are plenty of pure-breed GSD's in shelters crying out for adoption, pups and mature dogs. (Personally I would recommend a dog over the age of two, usually almost out of the insane puppy stage by then )

Best of luck,

B

Carcharodon

SuzyS1972 wrote:

Dogs breed as a matter of nature - there's no " emotion " involved as we would feel it and they simply do NOT " miss out " on having pups - my 3 dogs are all neutered - male and females and I have yet to find them pining over the pups they didn't have.

Who are you actually quoting here ("emotion") ("miss out"), the poster never mentioned anything about what you are ranting about.
They are entitled to their opinion that they think the person could breed the dogs first to make a profit, not everyone wants dogs from rescue centres either and not everyone abandons dogs

Its nice to know that your dogs aren't pining over the pups they didn't have, how would you know this anyway

shinners007

obviously they cant pine over what they never had--- but not all bitches pine once a litter is taking away it depends on the bitch, number of litters, etc. some pine some dont in my experience even though it sounds cruel.

however from experience a bitch does not become settled or anything just because she had a litter, thats crap talk day from the old dogs.

the idea of buying a male and a female to recoup costs is ludricous, going into to breeding GS's knowing nothing about breeding, complications health wise, screen checks etc.. all this to try recoup money spent on dogs.

if they want to pay 1000e then pay it dont expect/intend to get money back by breeding.

if you want to keep that much money in your pocket then adopt/rescue a GS its as simple as that.

youll be getting the same breed (a german shepard )at the end of which ever route you take .

SuzyS1972

Carcharodon wrote:

Who are you actually quoting here ("emotion") ("miss out"), the poster never mentioned anything about what you are ranting about.
They are entitled to their opinion that they think the person could breed the dogs first to make a profit, not everyone wants dogs from rescue centres either and not everyone abandons dogs

Its nice to know that your dogs aren't pining over the pups they didn't have, how would you know this anyway

I am not referring to the original poster here - It was in answer to Strokes Fan saying you could let them have a litter before neutering - at which point he didn't clarify he meant this to re-coup the costs of buying a dog.

I was pointing out to anyone reading that it is not necessary to let dogs breed before neutering. Lots and lots of people beleive this and thats why we have waaaaaay too many dogs in this country than homes can ever be got for.
Look at the Buy and Sell every week - thousands of dogs for sale - not even taking into account the thousands in rescue / pounds.

I don't care whether they spend 2000 on each dog - I have no problem with people buying dogs at all - rescue dogs are not for everyone and not everyone wants one.
What I do have a problem with is people breeding willy nilly for profit - again look at the Buy and Sell -
There are a lot of hereditary problems associated with GSD's and if the parents don't have an excellent hip score then the poor pups with suffer with hip dysplacia and cost the new owners a fortune and cause the dog suffering over it's lifetime.

Gordon Gekko

Strokesfan wrote:

I meant if the OP's are going to invest in two GSD which cost up to 500e each and it's better to get a male and a female - they could allow them have a litter and recoup some of their expenses before neutering. Where I am - German Shepards are in demand and selling at very high prices. I of course wouldn't push this view on anyone, it was just a suggestion since they may pay 1000e for two dogs. I'm no expert and don't want this to be misconstrued as recommending everyone breed their dogs for profit! It was just a suggestion. The OP seems like a responsible prospective dog owner thinking things through first. I hope that clears what I meant up.

Hurray! More amateur breeding! Just what this country needs.

How about the OP either gets the dogs from a shelter, or if they insist on buying their dogs, which IMHO is just silly when there are so many dogs in shelters, they try saving for them rather than doing a spot of backyard breeding, with zero experience? :mad:

shinners007 wrote:

if you want to keep that much money in your pocket then adopt/rescue a GS its as simple as that.

youll be getting the same breed (a german shepard )at the end of which ever route you take .

Well said.

Nala

I don't get this whole thing of people insisting on buying puppies.
Puppies only stay puppies for a matter of months.

shinners007

nala some people feel `safer` so to speak by buying a puppy so that they know them from a young age and rare them the way they want. also some people have kids and a puppy being cute and all that entices the child to like dog's etc and they grow together and bond and build a relationship.

i personally think people dont realise that theirs plenty of puppys that can be rescued and adopted in ireland as well as adult dogs.

comes down to preference i guess some buy, some rescue/adopt, and some do both.

Carcharodon

Gordon Gekko wrote:

Hurray! More amateur breeding! Just what this country needs.

How about the OP either gets the dogs from a shelter, or if they insist on buying their dogs, which IMHO is just silly when there are so many dogs in shelters, they try saving for them rather than doing a spot of backyard breeding, with zero experience? :mad:

Respect your views but find your user name amusing

Two Gekko quotes

Greed is good.

What's worth doing is worth doing for money.

Liesia

Thanks for all the info from everyone. I think I can safetly say that no matter whether we decide on rescue dogs or bought puppies they will both be neutered as soon as they are old enough, personally I can 100% say that I have no knowledge whatsoever about puppies and will be depending on research and my partners knowledge never mind starting to breed dogs. That would be way way out of our league.

For those who want to know our space we have just over an acre and a half of back garden which we are in the process of getting properly fenced, and cthe ten acres surrounding our house is family owned so we could bring the dogs walking safetly there too.

I have been on to the German shepard club of Ireland also regarding training tips for GS's and rehoming GS's and also finding a local club for interaction for the dogs.

If anyone as any more advice or information I would be gladly recieved.

Arcadian

You could contact these guys for advice and perhaps they'll even have suitable dogs for you;)

GERMAN SHEPHERDS We always have German Shepherds available for rehoming. Please be aware that we do have a strict rehoming policy and we will suggest the most suitable dog for your circumstances. We sometimes have puppies, but will not be able to guarantee that they are purebred. All dogs will be wormed and vax'd etc. Contact: Lindsay 067 28129 / e-mail. You can also view all GSDs available on the IrishAnimals site (Contact the number listed in the individual ad)