Average Price Of A German Shepherd?

[mr.mister]

Puppies are cute and lovely and all, but I am sooo not a fan of the baby puppy stage. :laugh:

The toilet training, the chewing, the constant supervision, the chance to accidentally stuff them up in their fear periods.. the list goes on. That being said it is incredibly satisfying when you see your dog grow from a tiny puppy to a beautiful, well-rounded adult. :)

A dog that has been run on for ten months has a lot more money thrown into it than it would at 8 weeks - all the feeding, not to mention the time spent training, socialising, showing said dog. I would be more than happy to pay puppy price or more for such a dog.

[angelnkids]

thanks for all the advice, we are going to get her, the breeder has been great to accpet a deposit, and give us a few weeks to save up the money. We decided on a little older dog, cos it saves out the extra hard work of training etc, with having kids thats going to be harder, and we know what we are getting with this dog, and that its right for our family and children.

the breeder has tried to sell previously and had 15 people look at the dog, but said no to all of them, cos they were more interested in the fact it was a show dog, whereas we just want a loving pet to fit in with our family.

We have talked maybe about continuing with the showdog thing too, depending on how much training and stuff it needs, the current owners daughter use to show the dog, and loves it, says its only $10 a show once a month. I think it will be good to keep the dog mentally stimulated, but i dont know much about this, so will have to look into it, any thoughts about showing, anyone do it?

thanks again, cant wait to get her, the kids keep asking every day when she is coming home, theyre so excited

tracy :)

[bedazzledx2]

Sounds like the beginning of a wonderful adventure GSD's are highly intelligent and well suited to the performance sports also. Obedience training is a must for any dog and if you catch the bug you can work towards titles as well. Go to the Dogs West site http://www.dogswest.com/ for more options and clubs that are close to you.

[angelnkids]

thanks, we may be getting her sooner than expected, the breeder will let us pay half now, and take her and pay the rest when we have it. so i was wondering what toys are good, and how many do i need. i dont think we will need a crate, she will be sleeping inside with us, so a dogbed, is there anything else apart from a chain and collar, and name tag.

Just want to be prepared.

thanks

[CareyJ]

thanks, we may be getting her sooner than expected, the breeder will let us pay half now, and take her and pay the rest when we have it. so i was wondering what toys are good, and how many do i need. i dont think we will need a crate, she will be sleeping inside with us, so a dogbed, is there anything else apart from a chain and collar, and name tag.

Just want to be prepared.

thanks

food bowl, water bucket....

Edited February 29, 2012 by CareyJ

[OSoSwift]

I got one of mine at 7 months and paid the going puppy rate. He had been socialised in a very similar environment as my own, slotted right in and within days it was like he had been here forever. HE and I are very close.

IT sounds like you have a great dog, breeder and will have a great experience. Lets us know how it all goes :)

[j]

Do you still have your other little dog? Do you know what she is like with other dogs?

[angelnkids]

we dont have the other dog anymore, we decided that we made a mistake in getting that type of dog, through our own fault, so we decided to give her to a home that already had jack russells before. we have done a lot more research this time, and found a breeder.

thanks for asking

[Tilly]

GSD puppy are just sooo cute when they are babies ... so you fall in love with them and don't kill them when they go through to chewy, destructive, delinquent stage (ie from 6 months to 7yrs) :laugh:

[Bilbo Baggins]

thanks for all the advice, we are going to get her, the breeder has been great to accpet a deposit, and give us a few weeks to save up the money. We decided on a little older dog, cos it saves out the extra hard work of training etc, with having kids thats going to be harder, and we know what we are getting with this dog, and that its right for our family and children.

the breeder has tried to sell previously and had 15 people look at the dog, but said no to all of them, cos they were more interested in the fact it was a show dog, whereas we just want a loving pet to fit in with our family.

We have talked maybe about continuing with the showdog thing too, depending on how much training and stuff it needs, the current owners daughter use to show the dog, and loves it, says its only $10 a show once a month. I think it will be good to keep the dog mentally stimulated, but i dont know much about this, so will have to look into it, any thoughts about showing, anyone do it?

thanks again, cant wait to get her, the kids keep asking every day when she is coming home, theyre so excited

tracy :)

This sounds all great. The breeder will help you with Showing.

[gsdog2]

thanks, we may be getting her sooner than expected, the breeder will let us pay half now, and take her and pay the rest when we have it. so i was wondering what toys are good, and how many do i need. i dont think we will need a crate, she will be sleeping inside with us, so a dogbed, is there anything else apart from a chain and collar, and name tag.

Just want to be prepared.

thanks

The best person to ask is the breeder - ie. what food has she been feeding her, what type of bed is she sleeping in, what sort of toys does she like (tug, ball ....)

You are going to have a wonderful time with your new shepherd they make the best pets, but then I'm VERY biased :laugh:

Don't forget to post pics ;)

[bianca.a]

GSD puppy are just sooo cute when they are babies ... so you fall in love with them and don't kill them when they go through to chewy, destructive, delinquent stage (ie from 6 months to 7yrs) :laugh:

I totally agree with this! Apart from the cuteness factor I could easily bypass the puppy stage altogether!

Wishing you all the very best with your new addition, GSDs are the best (another biased person here!)

[BC Crazy]

Good luck with your newbie. Sounds like a terrific breeder too. Very understanding & supportive.

Have fun with your showing or whatever you choose to get into.

[Lugeanjaam]

Sighs.....you are so lucky. I so badly want a GSD, they would have to be my favourite breed, but the shedding, OMG the shedding!!!Good luck with your girl, pics are mandatory:)

[Salukifan]

thanks, we may be getting her sooner than expected, the breeder will let us pay half now, and take her and pay the rest when we have it. so i was wondering what toys are good, and how many do i need. i dont think we will need a crate, she will be sleeping inside with us, so a dogbed, is there anything else apart from a chain and collar, and name tag.

Just want to be prepared.

thanks

Can I suggest you rethink the "no crate" decision?

Crates are really only suitable to be used inside anyway.

With a young family and a young dog, a method of safely separating them is important. A crate provides a safe place for the puppy when you cannot supervise and I'd really recommend you feed her in there, give her her naps and sleep her in there. I would also place her in her crate when your family is eating - at any time.

Teach your children that the crate is your pupp's place and she is never to be bothered when she is in there. That gives her a refuge from the kids when she needs one and means you can keep her safely contained when you have visiting kids etc.

Seriously, a crate trained dog is a godsend and knowing that she is separted from your kids when you cannot supervise will give you serious peace of mind.

I don't know how old your kids are but I would not be allowing them unsupervised time with her until they are all aged 7 years or over.

What do you want the chain for? Do you mean a check chain?

Edited February 29, 2012 by Telida Whippets

[gsdog2]

Sighs.....you are so lucky. I so badly want a GSD, they would have to be my favourite breed, but the shedding, OMG the shedding!!!Good luck with your girl, pics are mandatory:)

Not all of them! I've had shepherds for over 30 years and I've FINALLY got one that hardly sheds - and she's a long-coat .

The difference is she doesn't have a double coat which I know is a fault but with our hot Qld climate it's a bonus. She's dry within a couple of hours (at the most) of having a bath too - whereas I have a Goldie (now they SHED!!!!) and he's still damp at the end of the day. Either way a shepherd makes up for this one incovenience in every other way

[Crisovar]

Sighs.....you are so lucky. I so badly want a GSD, they would have to be my favourite breed, but the shedding, OMG the shedding!!!Good luck with your girl, pics are mandatory:)

We don't have too much of a shedding issue, it seems to help if they are on a really good diet and you keep the grooming up. We have far more Lab hair around than GSD hair, and the Lab is much better than many I have seen. Don't be put off by the coat ;)

[Kavik]

Mine sheds like there is no tomorrow! But he has skin problems too, which doesn't help.

[Crisovar]

Mine sheds like there is no tomorrow! But he has skin problems too, which doesn't help.

My girl did too when she arrived, but since we sorted out the skin and other issues she has been just terrific.

[gsdog2]

Can I suggest you rethink the "no crate" decision?

Crates are really only suitable to be used inside anyway.

With a young family and a young dog, a method of safely separating them is important. A crate provides a safe place for the puppy when you cannot supervise and I'd really recommend you feed her in there, give her her naps and sleep her in there. I would also place her in her crate when your family is eating - at any time.

Teach your children that the crate is your pupp's place and she is never to be bothered when she is in there. That gives her a refuge from the kids when she needs one and means you can keep her safely contained when you have visiting kids etc.

Seriously, a crate trained dog is a godsend and knowing that she is separted from your kids when you cannot supervise will give you serious peace of mind.

I don't know how old your kids are but I would not be allowing them unsupervised time with her until they are all aged 7 years or over.

What do you want the chain for? Do you mean a check chain?

Good advice - and can I just add that at 10mths of age, even if she's never been crated before, it's still very easy to introduce your new addition to the crate. One other advantage is if she ever needs to stay at the vet (I hope this never happens) she will be quite comfortable in the cage/crate used by the vet - oh, and crates are also handy when going on holidays ;)