Doberman Pinscher Or German Shepherd

[burton_o6]

Want input from previous/current owners of either dogs..

So me, my girlfriend and my roomate are moving into a new house. Since we are moving, my roomate wants to by a puppy. We all want a medium to big size dog, and the two we really want are the two listed in the title. We've been researching the two and obviously there is pros and cons to both. Our one main concern is our little dog we have now. He loves to play and we just worry about him annoying the shit out of the new dog we get...

The Shepherd: Says its very loyal, but very protective. Obviously needs a ton of excersise to keep it from being destructive...

The Doberman: Says they are very loyal,loving,playful..Good family pets, and is loving of other pets in the family. Again obviously we would need to excersise this dog daily too. Thanks

[fineout]

my old dog was half shepard, he was the man, and i think theyre beautiful dogs so i say go for the german shepard!

[ryno]

I say German Shepard all the way. I had one and he was an awesome dog. He also played well with our dachsund we had at the time.

[burton_o6]

my old dog was half shepard, he was the man, and i think theyre beautiful dogs so i say go for the german shepard!

How are they with other animals/strangers?

[Bulldog_916]

I would go with the shepherd as they are highly trainable and extremely smart. I have had great experiences with them, but my brother did not, as he was on the receiving end of a nip when he was younger. Dont just get the first one you see, I would get a pre-grown adult dog from a shelter or pound. They have already been attitude tested and gotten their shots, spaying or neutering, some training, etc. Bottom line, its not going to stay a puppy but for a year and a half, after that you have an adult dog clean slate (training wise) you have to deal with. They have differing personalities and that something you have to deal with.

Training training training, from day 1. If this roommate doesnt like a lot of hard work, then dont get a puppy. Just saying "No" doesnt help ANYTHING. Wipe that word from your lexicon when you are training the dog. It doesnt work, it wont work, and it hasnt worked but for trained dogs. I hear people saying that word all the time and it's annoying.

Make absolutely sure that this roommate is trustworthy and is willing to give up their time to the dog, they are gonna need just about as much waking time as a child would.

[burton_o6]

My roomate wouldnt be a problem..He has been my bestfriend for years now. The dog will be like a family pet for all of us. So between us three the dog will have plenty of excercise and attention.

Edit: And with a bigger dog like these we would be sure to socialize the dog with everybody possible, to prevent the dog of being suspicious of strangers. Edited June 17, 2008 by burton_o6

[derogatory]

I love German Shepherds but our family did get a bad one once. He was too agressive and couldn't control himself. He bit me and attacked a few other family members including a child. He was a total sweety and obedient most of the time, but just flipped every now and then and we had to keep him seperated from our other dog because even though they grew up together they fought with bloodshed if they got near each other as adults.

Just a cautionary anecdote about not being choosy enough. I still say Shepherds are my favorite. But get yours from a reputable breeder, we (I didn't, another family member did) used a mall pet store that time and he turned out batshit insane and we had to have him put to sleep when he was about a year and a half old for fear he would injure or kill someone.

[SuburbanSmoker]

in terms of the little dog you ahve now, if you get a puppy the other dog will show dominance as soon as it meets it (most likely) which in turn will make the little dog the ring leader. Ive seen it with a corgie and a bernice mountain dog.

In terms of temperment, look at the parents.

[Snoopy1966]

Get a puggle. A friend of mine has one and he is a really good and smart dog. He is really cool.

A bigger dog takes up a lot of time because they need to be out to exercise more. I had Australian Shepherds and they were the best Dog I ever had. Had to run them everyday for hours though. I had to give one away to a farm because he needed to herd. He loved his new home.

[burton_o6]

Get a puggle. A friend of mine has one and he is a really good and smart dog. He is really cool.

A bigger dog takes up a lot of time because they need to be out to exercise more. I had Australian Shepherds and they were the best Dog I ever had. Had to run them everyday for hours though. I had to give one away to a farm because he needed to herd. He loved his new home.

Oddly enought my girlfriend really really wants a puggle.

[Johnny_D]

It's just my opinion [I've had this type of dog twice, my parents had Sherpard and Collies] That the best dog is a German Shepard Collie Cross.

Downside is it's a landshark with a brain

But I love 'em! Great dog and loyal to the last. No one comes near my kids when they are walking the dog!

[Speak_In_Vowels]

had Australian Shepherds and they were the best Dog I ever had. Had to run them everyday for hours though.

i used to have one too, seriously the most athletic and smart dog i have ever seen.
mine could,(i swear to God) jump from the ground onto the top of our 9 foot privacy fence. no lie.
i also had seen him more than one time kill bluejays mid jump.

very smart dogs just need ALOT of physical activity. i miss mine =/

[Snoopy1966]

had Australian Shepherds and they were the best Dog I ever had. Had to run them everyday for hours though.

i used to have one too, seriously the most athletic and smart dog i have ever seen.
mine could,(i swear to God) jump from the ground onto the top of our 9 foot privacy fence. no lie.
i also had seen him more than one time kill bluejays mid jump.

very smart dogs just need ALOT of physical activity. i miss mine =/

Me too Buddy. I had a Red Murle and a Blue Murle.

[Victim026]

Get a German Shepard, I've had both and the Shepard wins hands down.... I've got a new Shepard puppy on the way actually from a friend who's a breeder. Except my little guy is at bootcamp right now learning how to be Drug Trained/Bomb Trained/Missing Persons trained. Will he ever use the training? Probably not, but it's nice to have either way. The father of the pup i'm getting is smart as shit, my friend has a 1500 Acre ranch and has daughters who are twins, they can go out to the ranch and the twins can go hide on the ranch and you can tell the dog to find a specific twin and he'll go straight to them.

[ilikemyusername]

i work in an animal shelter, and my .02 is get the german shepherd.
they will herd your shep (family) and keep them very EXTREMELY well protected. thats what they were bred for.
also, they have a sense of anticipation, they are waiting for something to happen at all times, so they're always ready.
the dobie...
a stranger gives it a peanut butter sandwich and hes made a friend for life.
the shephers
a stranger gives it a peanut butter sandwich and he'll eat it, then bite him as soon as he's on the other side of the fence.

[burton_o6]

i work in an animal shelter, and my .02 is get the german shepherd.
they will herd your shep (family) and keep them very EXTREMELY well protected. thats what they were bred for.
also, they have a sense of anticipation, they are waiting for something to happen at all times, so they're always ready.
the dobie...
a stranger gives it a peanut butter sandwich and hes made a friend for life.
the shephers
a stranger gives it a peanut butter sandwich and he'll eat it, then bite him as soon as he's on the other side of the fence.

These are kind of things we don't want though..We don't want to have a high risk of legal liabilities.

[ryno]

i work in an animal shelter, and my .02 is get the german shepherd.
they will herd your shep (family) and keep them very EXTREMELY well protected. thats what they were bred for.
also, they have a sense of anticipation, they are waiting for something to happen at all times, so they're always ready.
the dobie...
a stranger gives it a peanut butter sandwich and hes made a friend for life.
the shephers
a stranger gives it a peanut butter sandwich and he'll eat it, then bite him as soon as he's on the other side of the fence.

These are kind of things we don't want though..We don't want to have a high risk of legal liabilities.

My shepard only bit one person, and they had it coming. My grandpa was over letting them out while we were away, and the front door was open, and my dog and grandpa had walked around back, and a salesmen walked right in the front door... didnt hurt him at all, and he only reported it because he had to for his work. He said the dog should've bit him, and once my dog seen the guy wasnt a threat to my grandpa, he was nice to him. Shepards will bit, if they feel you're with someone that is threating you.. just my other .02

[Victim026]

You shouldn't have liability issues if someone decides to hop your fence in an attempt to get into your house. My breeder friends shepards are very alert when someone new comes around, and if that new person shows any sort of aggression to the family(in paticular the kids) it's totally on. Otherwise the dog is friendly but cautious and can easily tell who's supposed to be there and who isn't based on how the family treats that person.

[MissLisa]

Get the G.S...

[burton_o6]

We're getting the White German Shepherd. Met the owners,pups,and the parents. The parents are very friendly. The pups have already been socialized quite a bit, so it seems like things will turn out well.

[ryno]

We're getting the White German Shepherd. Met the owners,pups,and the parents. The parents are very friendly. The pups have already been socialized quite a bit, so it seems like things will turn out well.

Sounds good man! make sureto get some pics of the pup up.

[oolatec]

GSD will shed a lot more too... grooming will be more time consuming as well. Just something to consider.