- Joined
- Jan 29, 2012
- Messages
- 240
I'm a dog man and train pro on the side. The state of the GSD is very bad in America. Hips, elbows, bloat, lumbar spine, and on and on and on
I saw a breeder tattoo her pups. I asked for the pink papers (denoting a dog breed under the more strict German system), only to find out she was simply tattooing to appear to be German-bred.
Dobermans have thier own issues like cardiac problem and on Willibrand.
Truthfully, if I wanted that type of dog, I would import from Germany or just buy a malinois.
Yes I think these breeds become negatively affected in the US because we breed for form and not function (i.e. show lines vs work). Apparently in WWII, there was a huge push to make Dobermans THE military working dog. They did fine, but they had more nervous issues when exposed to loud noises than the GSD did.
Now however, I have read about this von Willibrand's and they say other health problems too, and I think that when they get away from breeding for work it's a matter of time before genetic problems pop up.
As for the malinois, I have heard they're very resilient but that their drive is way too high unless you plan on devoting a VERY significant amount of time to their training/exercising. The ones I've seen seem like they can't slow down enough to play a little with other dogs. It's all about the ball/chew toy and nothing else will do.
As for importing from Germany, it seems like a good idea (or Netherlands or Belgium too). I'd consider working lines from both GSD and the Doberman