Diet will play a key role in the health of the Doberman as it does in all breeds. A premium quality food is essential for optimum health. It should be pointed out that the sub-standard foods such as those which are available in the grocery stores should not be fed. The main ingredient in those foods is a grain such as wheat, soybean or corn. These grains are common allergens in dogs and are frequently responsible for skin eruptions, shedding and itchy, dry skin. They also can be the cause of loose stools, vomiting, gassiness, dandruff, dull/matted fur, bad breath, digestive problems, lethargy, lack of appetite, face-rubbing and foot-licking as well as that offensive doggy odor coated breeds can have. Coat, skin and overall health will suffer over a period of time as a result of a poor diet. Feed a good diet and you may be amazed at the difference in the quality of life that your pet has. Their coats will be plush, they will have fewer allergies, fewer medical problems and a much healthier personality.

Commercial dog food has only been around since the 1930’s when cereal companies were trying to find something to do with their rejected grains–grains which were rejected for human consumption due to mold, rancidity and contaminants. Coincidently, the meat industry faced the same problem. The idea of mixing the rejects together and calling it “pet food” occurred to someone and the commercial pet food industry was born.

A food with no corn, wheat or soy is recommended. Meat should be your two top nutrition sources. The best commercial foods contain MINIMAL grain (preferably rice), no ‘by-products’ or ‘animal digest’, no artificial preservatives like BHA or BHT, ethoxyquin, no fillers such as beet pulp, rice flour or brewer’s rice.

Canidae, and Natural Balance are two foods which contain no offensive grains. The best foods for a dog include fresh chicken, turkey, beef, fresh vegetables and fruits, fresh brown rice, oatmeal, yogurt, eggs and cottage cheese. Lean meat scraps and the usual dog biscuits make delicious snacks that the dog will look forward to receiving.

We can also recommend NU Vet Plus. It has been proven to help prevent or reduce many of the problems dogs face such as poor coat, allergies, arthritis, digestive disorders, heart disease, and tumors. It has also been found to be effective in strengthening ear cartilage thus reducing the ear posting time after cropping.

In addition to a healthy well balanced diet, we recommend that a natural vitamin, mineral and antioxidant be given. This is especially important if you are feeding a commercially made dog food which contains corn, wheat, soy, preservatives or other additives which have been known to cause skin and coat problems, dangerous formation of cancer causing free radicals and a number of other ailments.

Count The Cost:

The Premium foods studied had an average of 22% crude protein and 10% crude fat. The Super-Premium dog foods examined had an average of 27% crude protein and 15% crude fat. The Economy brands averaged 20% crude protein and 8% crude fat. The Super-Premium foods suggested feeding an average of 1-3/4 cups of food per day for a 40 lb dog. Premium brands recommended 3-1/4 cups, while the Econo-brands instructed feeding 6 cups a day.

Feed ‘em Right

It costs an average of 24 cents a day to feed a dog a Super-Premium brand, compared to 26 cents a day for a Premium brand, and 31 cents a day for an Econo-brand. The Econo-brand actually costs you 7 cents more a day to feed your dog than a Super-Premium does. In order to give your dog the nutrition it needs, it has to eat 3-1/2 times more of the Econo-brand than the Super-Premium food. Thus, the big difference is in the waste: The seven cents more that you spend on an Economy brand buys you more waste in the cleanup department!

Something else interesting turned up in the study. If you have a giant breed, such as an Irish Wolfhound, you would have to feed your dog at least 12 cups of an Econo-brand for a cost of 64 cents a day. On a Super-Premium, he’d eat only 4-3/4 cups of food for a cost of 62 cents a day. That means the top quality food costs two cents less than the low quality food to get the same nutrition.

Money Talks (and what it says is morally repugnant):

Difficult as it may be to believe, millions of dead American dogs and cats are processed each year at plants across North America. Eileen Layne of the California Veterinary Medical Association states “When you read pet-food labels and it says meat meal or bone meal, that’s what it is – cooked and converted animals, including dogs and cats.”

Road kill, slaughter house rejects, animals that die on their way to meat packing plants – all are acceptable ingredients for pet food under the “4D” rule: Diseased, Disabled, Dead and Dying! Steroids, growth hormones and chemicals used to treat cattle for infestations – including insecticide patches – end up mixed into the final product. Meat from grocery stores past its final due date is also added to the mix, as are the Styrofoam trays and plastic wrap they were packed in.

Chemical Cocktails:

The addition of euthanized pets goes beyond morally repugnant – it also introduces a host of chemicals not listed on pet food labels. At the rendering plant, time cannot be spared to remove even the green plastic bags the pets came wrapped in, let alone the insecticide laden flea and tick collars they were wearing. Even the very chemicals used to put these pets to death also find their way into the final product. “Facts of Sodium Pentobarbital in Rendered Products”, a University of Minnesota research paper, stated that sodium pentobarbital, the barbiturate which is most commonly used to euthanize small animals, “survived rendering without undergoing degradation.” When ingested, sodium pentobarbital has been shown to cause liver damage as well as kidney damage and failure. The pet food companies claim these chemicals are found in such low doses as to be harmless but make no mention of what the cumulative effects of years of ingesting them may be.

Before meat even arrives at the rendering plants, it has already been saturated with chemicals. To comply with government regulations, all meat rejected by slaughter houses must be “denatured” – a procedure designed to make it unpalatable to humans, thus ensuring it cannot be resold as human grade meat.

The chemical cocktail does not end there, either. To prevent rancidity, a fat stabilizer is added to the finished product. Dr. Belfield writes “The common chemicals used are BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) and BHT (butylated hydroxytolulene). BHA and BHT are both known to cause liver and kidney dysfunction. Some European countries prohibit the use and importation of these preservatives. Another fat stabilizer often used is Ethoxyquin, suspected of being a cancer-causing agent.

Most vets agree that food allergies and toxic conditions are on the rise in modern day pets. When asked, many blame such possible causes as “environmental pollution” and “the stress of living in cities”. It’s an unfortunate fact that at many North American Veterinary schools, pet nutrition is touched on only briefly, usually during lectures that are presented by the major pet food companies.

In a lecture to the New Zealand School of Veterinary Medicine, Tom Lonsdale, DVM, said “The problem is in the main unrecognized and undefined by the veterinary profession. Veterinarians gain legitimacy and privileges as guardians of the public welfare in respect to animal health. The profession has failed badly in its duties.” Little wonder that so many vets remain painfully unaware of the possible toxins our pets ingest every day, not from their environment, but from the very food we shop so diligently for.

So what is the conscientious pet owner to do?

Long regarded as setting the standard for natural pet care, “Dr Pitcairn’s Guide to Natural Pet Care” sets out a variety of home cooked diets for healthy pets. Emphasizing fresh ingredients, raw meats, and balanced supplementation, Dr. Pitcairn’s book addresses the nutritional needs of everything from pregnant dogs to vegetarian cats. But few of us, especially those with multiple pet households, have the time required to feed a fresh, home cooked diet to our pets. We want a food that’s safe, but we also want convenience.

An answer may lie in the growing number of “holistic” pet food companies which are emerging. Many of these manufacturers are adamant about their commitment to using only “Human Grade” ingredients – that is, food sources which have been certified as safe enough to be eaten by humans. Candidae and Natural Balance are two foods which contain no offensive grains and NuVet Plus has been proven to help prevent or reduce many of the problems dogs face such as poor coat, allergies, arthritis, digestive disorders, heart disease and tumors. It may also help strengthen ear cartilage which reduces the ear posting time. Dog foods which use human grade ingredients include, Flint River (909)-682-5048, Abity, Aunt Jenis, California Natural, Innova, Wellness and Wysong Synorgon.

Several companies have combined the use of quality ingredients with enhanced packaging to preserve quality and increase shelf life, all without the addition of chemical preservatives. Wysong uses an ingenious packaging method of cartons that contain smaller, vacuum sealed bags of food. Solid Gold has also adopted this method of packaging and several other companies are planning to do so. Even more conveniently, Sojourner’s Farms offers meal sized packages of pet food mix which includes steamed and raw fresh vegetables, grains, vitamins and natural source minerals. It needs only to be mixed with fresh meat and a little warm water to become a fully nutritious and all natural food.

The California based pet food company “Innova” was started by Dr. Belfield, DVM, after his years of experience as a USDA vet gave him good cause to worry about the connection between pets he treated in his practice and the food they were eating. Other “Holistic” companies making a similar commitment include Solid Gold, Cornucopia, Nature’s Recipe and Natural Life.

Eager for your business, many smaller food companies offer a home delivery plan, saving pet owners from lugging heavy bags of food from store to home. This policy of home delivery often means fresher food. Rather than going from factory to warehouse to store and finally to you, many smaller companies ship their food straight to the consumer from the factory. As well, bulk buying and breeder discounts are offered by many companies comparable to the breeder programs offered by the major manufacturers.

It’s Our Responsiblity:

As pet owners, it is up to us to learn just what it is we are feeding our pets and to decide what we can and cannot accept as ingredients. Make inquiries – most manufacturers print their customer service 1-800 number on the side of their bag. Ask them what they put in their food and, if you don’t like the answer, tell them so.

Insist on food made from quality ingredients, sold in packages that are clearly labeled and tell them that you will only buy from companies willing to offer this. Those of us who breed can carry particular clout which we can exercise in part by recommending a food we trust to buyers who would otherwise be swayed by advertising. The fact that so many breeders are sought out to appear in dog food ads illustrates how much our opinions matter to the major companies so, when you call them, if you are a breeder, tell them so. Together, the pet owning public can flex it’s financial muscle to a degree that manufacturers will have a difficult time ignoring and, together, we may be able to ensure no other family pet finds its way into a food bag or can.

How to Read the Labels :

Ingredients are listed by volume in descending order. Therefore, a food with chicken listed first should have more chicken than other ingredients. Look closely. If several grains follow the chicken, there may be more grain content than meat. Is this bad? Perhaps, perhaps not. Many weight loss foods or senior diets have a grain as the first ingredient with several types of meat listed next. But, for the average dog, you want to see how much meat comes before the grains or vice versa. When evaluating a commercial dog food, consider the following:

Bioioigical Value: The biological Values of the ingredients are a key to good nutrition. The biological value of a food is the measurement of the ammino acid completeness of the proteins contained by the food. Eggs are considered a wonderful source of protein because they contain all of the essential amino acids.

The first ingredient should be meat if you want a quality product. Crude protein should be no less than 30 percent and crude fat no less than 20 percent. The fiber content needs to be 4 percent or less. If you absolutely can’t provide real, fresh food for your dog, whether raw or cooked, at least switch to a commercial diet which uses only ingredients which have passed USDA inspection. The best commercial diets also contain MINIMAL grain (preferably rice) and NO corn or soybeans which are difficult to digest. They will also contain no “by-products” or “animal digest”, no BHA, BHT or ethoxyquin, and no “fillers” such as beet pulp, rice flour, or brewer’s rice. Unfortunately, you will find very few commercial foods which meet all these criteria.

Meat/Meat Based: This is the clean flesh from a food animal. It may also include organ meats, tendons, blood vessels, etc.

Meat Meal: Rendered meat. It must NOT contain hair, hooves or stomach contents. Rendering is to extract all usable bits from the animal by heating such as removing oils from fats prior to making the end product available for dog food. Meal gives a better idea of true meat content because it is dried when used.

Meat by-Products: These are cleaned elements such as organs, bone, blood and fatty tissue. No hooves or hair should be in by-products.

Poultry By-Products: Clean parts of chicken like organs, feet and heads but not fecal material.

Poultry By-Products Meal: Rendered by-products with no feathers.

Meat and Bone Meal: From meat and bone but does not contain hooves, hair, blood, fecal material, hide pieces, stomach, etc.

Tallow: This is hard, white, wax-like fat which is hard to digest.

Animal Digest: Chemically broken down animal tissue. It does not contain horn, beaks, hair, hooves, feathers, etc.

Fish meal: Clean and dried fish. Great source of Omega 3 fatty acids. Salmon meal is great for both Omega 3 and 6!

Grains and other products: Common grains found in foods are corn, wheat and rice but dogs are not cows. There are concerns with allergies to corn and wheat. These grains are frequently responsible for skin eruptions, shedding and dry skin as well as the offensive doggy odor coated breeds can have. A food with no corn or soy is recommended because the quality of the grains used is suspect. Wheat grains are not only more digestible than corn, it is one of the most nutritionally balanced cereal grains. It is an easy-to-digest source of carbohydrates, fiber and energy. A combination of brown and white rice is good. The white rice for digestibility and the brown for its added nutritional value. A diet product that is 100% brown rice can be somewhat hard for some animals to digest. A combination of grains, like combination of meats, is better than just one source. Low quality fillers like wood fiber, corn cobs, peanut hulls, cottonseed, straw, soy beans or citrus pulp should be avoided. Fish is a prime source of a complete protein – it includes all the essential amino acids. it is rich in unsaturated fats (Omega 3 fatty acids), Vitamins A, and K and also contains iodine, calcium, phosphorus, iron, potassium copper and fluoride.

The good grain is reserved for the human market. What goes into the pet food bin is deemed unfit for human consumption due to mold, rancidity or contaminants. You might see a dog licking its feet or rubbing its face against the carpet, behaviors you might never think to associate with the grain in your dog’s diet, but that can often be the case. Other grains used may be brewer’s rice, soybean meal, sorghum and oatmeal. There may also be various vegetables in pet food as well as probiotics, glucosamine, lecithin, shark cartilage, cider vinegar, etc.

Preservatives: Most commercial dog foods need preservatives or they will spoil but not all preservatives are equal. BHT and BHA have raised concerns. Both cause liver and kidney dysfunction as well as bladder and stomach cancer. Ethoxyquin, is manufactured by Monsanto as a rubber preservative. The containers are marked POISON and the department of agriculture has listed it as a hazardous chemical. It has been linked to health issues but there has been no concrete proof of this. Nonetheless, breeders have put pressure on manufacturers and they have largely discontinued its use. Propylene Glycol is the chemical preservative found in some “safer for pets” antifreeze. It is not as bad as Ethylene Glycol which makes antifreeze deadly to dogs but it can still be toxic. Tocopherols sound scary but these are vitamin-based preservatives and are considered to be “safer” for pets. Most pet foods list these preservatives right on the bag, or can, but even when it doesn’t say so, it’s usually there anyway because a legal loophole allows manufacturers to list only what THEY themselves create and put into the bag. If they buy some of their ingredients from a supplier who has already added the chemical to the ingredients, they don’t have to list them!

Colored bits and semi-soft pieces: To put it bluntly, these are no more than added garbage. They are high in colors, sugars, preservatives and are basically junk.

Vitamins: Some breeders recommend that dogs receive vitamins every day. An example regimen might be: 1500 mg of vitamin C, a couple of fish oil pills, vitamin E, antioxidant mineral chelates, amino acids (the building blocks of vitamins) and glucosamine.

FLAX: The different proteins in flax provide a high proportion base of unsaturated, essential fatty acids and dietary fiber. Flax is recognized for its potential in reducing the risk of some chronic diseases as well as improving the thickness and sheen of the hair coat. It provides a great benefit to oven-baked food by resisting oxidation from the baking process and improving product shelf life.

LECITHIN: Lecithin protects cells from damage caused by oxidation. Lecithin is largely composed of the B vitamin choline – with linoleic acid and inositol.

MINERALS: Minerals are chelated (bonded with protein) which makes them easier to absorb into the animals systems.

COPPER AND IRON: A deficiency of iron causes nutritional anemia. A small amount of copper will improve utilization of iron.

PROTEINS: Proteins are organic chemical compounds and a major component of the structure of all living organisms. Protein functions to build and repair body structure.

A good pet food should contain highly digestible protein sources that provide the essential amino acids in adequate amounts. Digestible food protein from several sources is more desirable than protein from only one source.

CARBOHYDRATES: Carbohydrates serve primarily as an energy source while giving bulk to the diet. Plant material is made up of a high percentage of carbohydrates.

FATS: Fats are complex molecules which are broken down by the digestive system into smaller molecules known as fatty acids. Fat is a concentrated source of energy and works toward making hormones, skins and coat oils, membranes and parts of body cells.

ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS: Linolenic Acid (Omega 3). Linoleic Acid (Omega 6)

SUGAR: Not an ingredient most people would expect to find in dog food, but many
foods do, in fact, contain sugar, especially the semi-moist brands. In fact, some semi- moist foods contain as much as 15% sugar. The sugar adds palatability and moisturead aids in bacterial contamination prevention. Dogs do not need this amount of sugar which can stress the pancreas and adrenal glands causing diabetes. Completely devoid of protein as well as vitamins and minerals, sugar is literally empty calories.

SALT: Added to many foods as a meat preservative. Too much salt can irritate the digestive system and can cause a mineral imbalance because the salt itself can upset the calcium / potassium balance in your dog’s system. Too much salt can be life threatening for a dog.

WATER CONTENT: The amount of moisture in a food is important, especially when you are comparing foods. A food containing 24% protein and 10% moisture would have the same protein per serving as a food with 24% protein listed on the label but only 6% moisture. The thing to consider here is that your are buying water instead of food. This is why it is important to consider the saturation point of the moisture. The AAFCO guidelines are formulated on a dry matter basis, so that all foods can be compared equally.

Feeding a Pregnant Female:
Pregnant females which are fed a natural diet come very close to getting all of their nutritional needs met. It is important for a pregnant mother to get folic acid (the same as humans) and one of the best sources of this is raw beef or calf liver. Liver is also an excellent source of vitamin A and D. I would give it to females two or three times per week. If you feed cod liver oil on a regular basis, you may want to cut back on this during time that you feed extra liver. Just before the bitch whelps it is not a bad idea to modify her diet so her stools are a little softer. Liver and vegetables grown above ground help accomplish this. Cut out on the bones and below ground vegetables.

10 Things You Should Know About Dog Foods:

1. Pet food is NEVER mostly meat. 

Many ads suggest that their’s is but… In order to list a meat source first on the bag label pet food companies resort to a variety of gimmicks. Here are a few to get you thinking: Listing a “wet” ingredient in what ends up being an essentially dry finished product. Wet meat gets a lot lighter when the moisture is cooked out. This labeling loophole is blatantly deceptive to the general public. All ingredients should be weighed and listed in dry weight equivalents for you to know truly how much of each makes up the ration. If the label lists, “chicken” it means chicken weighed when wet. Drop 75% of the value. If, on the other hand, it says, “chicken meal” they play fairly. If it says, “meat by-product meal” or “meat by-products,” it was never meat to begin with. Find another food.

Another gimmick is to “split carbohydrates” (grains) into multiple parts to get the “meat” to list first. Label ingredients are listed in descending order by weight. So, if you have 10 lbs. of chicken meal and 25 lbs. of rice, which do manufacturers feel should appear first on the label? Chicken of course! (if you want people to buy the stuff). Here’s how it’s done… 1st- CHICKEN MEAL, 2nd- GROUND RICE, 3rd- RICE BRAN, 4th- RICE GLUTEN.

Pretty sneaky and obviously deceptive unless you know the trick. Rice flour, Brewer’s rice and Rice-a-Roni could also have been listed if they really wanted to be cute. A related tactic is to use a variety of grains with different names to get meat listed first. This is slightly more valid since they have different amino acid profiles and are truly different ingredients. Grains and meat “by-products” cost a lot less than meat. Both also have considerably less food value.

By definition, by-products may contain anything from the specified animal except (in the case of chicken) feathers and feces and (in the case of beef), hoof, hide and feces. Meat and fat are separated out first because they are costlier and are therefore not present in any appreciable quantity. What’s left is the bones, tendons, cartilage, beaks, feet and innards….proudly displayed and masqueraded as meat. A pet food bag is not the proper place for dumping stuff of unknown nutritional value. Some foods even use the term “SELECT products”. All these contortions serve one purpose: To make you think that you’re getting more meat than you really are in your bag of pet food.

2. The cooking process used in pet foods kills off a vital component: enzymes.

In order to eliminate bacteria and make cutesy shapes which pets care nothing about, processing temperatures in excess of 160 degrees are used to extrude or bake your pet’s food. This places the entire burden for digestion on your pet’s pancreas to supply the enzymes necessary for breaking down nutrients for absorption. In nature, this is far from the case. Animals naturally follow the path of “least digestive resistance” in the wild.

Consider the fox who catches a rabbit. The first item on the menu is the contents of the intestines and stomach. Let the rabbit do the digesting and enjoy! The rabbit spent hours nibbling grasses and grains readying them for the fox’s easy absorption of carbohydrates. Quick and cheap fuel. Then the fox buries or hides the rest. What we call, “turning rancid” the fox calls, “just getting better”. In a couple days, the live enzymes in the rabbit meat have broken it down into easily digested protein. Notice how no fire was used in this process? For dessert, a little bone gnawing for the marrow, the calcium and teeth cleaning, and it’s naptime. Left for the lower animals in the hierarchy are most of the by-products and the hide.

In puppies, the pancreas is usually robust and up to the task of supplying sufficient digestive enzymes to make dead food somewhat useable and fulfill it’s other vital functions. With age, however, pancreatic function is weakened and often can’t keep up with this undue burden. If the pet food you are feeding day in and day out is of low nutritional value to begin with, the taxing effect on the system will be all the greater and the pancreas will most likely give up that much sooner. Diabetes could be the result.

3. Giving “real food” aka “table scraps” is the RIGHT thing to do!

Forget the myth that you should only feed the stuff from the bag and nothing else ever. Unlearn that. Afraid that your pet won’t eat the chaff manufacturers call “food” after tasting the real deal? Or that it will throw the delicate balance of their finely tuned “nutrition” out of whack somehow? Hardly.

Here’s the scoop… Providing real food (not potato chips or other junk food) in its raw form counteracts some of the deficit that can be caused by only feeding commercially prepared pet food. It can provide the living enzymes to make digestion an easy rather than burdensome process. But, don’t just go wild and throw everything in the feeding trough. Good bets for pets are raw carrots, broccoli, yogurt, cheese, garlic and meats. Cooked oatmeal, rice, corn, squash and the like are fine too. Don’t feed raw grains, legumes, potatoes, onions, celery or chocolate which are either unusable or unhealthy. If you aren’t comfortable with raw meat and fish, don’t feed it.

Keep in mind, dogs aren’t people and have an entirely different gastro-intestinal system than we do. Introduce new foods a little at a time about three times a week to start and give your pet’s pancreas a much needed break.

4. Most “vet recommended” foods pay mightily for the “honor”.

Does it matter that the majority of vets know very little about pet nutrition? The public is told to “Ask your vet”. The vet is told by the pet food companies, “we’ll send you to Hawaii for a week of golf if you sell and endorse XYZ brand pet food”. In school, vets-to-be could ELECT to take an overview course in animal nutrition. Or not. There have been changes of late to make this required study AS IT SHOULD BE! You are miles ahead if you understand the pet food label yourself and take the time to learn some basic nutritional concepts. It’s not that complicated! Find out for yourself, trust your own judgment and ignore what people say who are getting paid to say it.

5. The #1 vet recommended brand is probably the #1 worst pet food value.

Read the label! Compare it to the cheapest stuff you can find. There isn’t a dime’s worth of difference in most cases. How much does it cost them to make a 40 lb. bag of this stuff? How about less than $3 including the cost of the bag? How much does the public shell out for the bushel of corn and peanut shells most recommended by vets? About $35.

6. Feeding “Soft-Moist” diets will cut your pet’s life expectancy in half.

Thankfully, these foods are on the steep decline but aren’t gone yet. Perhaps killing your customers isn’t a good way to develop long term brand loyalty. These toxic morsels are so loaded with chemicals to stay soft and prevent molding and so laden with sugar to cover the harsh chemical taste, they rip a pet’s insides out. The sweetness is addictive and you’ll hear owners say, “Fido just won’t eat anything else”. Well, then better buy the small bag because who knows how long Fido will be eating at all? Anyone feeding this should stop at once.
7. Many companies have stopped using ETHOXYQUIN.

The once popular preservative (antioxidant) called “Ethoxyquin” has been mostly abandoned because of “hushed” litigation and settlements with professional breeders. It formerly was championed by pet food manufacturers (and others) as an advanced and healthy inclusion in pet food in an attempt to hide the fact that it was never intended to be eaten, much less on a daily basis. It was originally formulated as a rubber stabilizer and a color retention agent. Tires stayed pliable and spices stayed red. Despite efforts to get it approved as a food stabilizing agent in people food, it is only allowed for extremely limited application with colored spices. There are innumerable instances of stillbirth, sudden liver failure, kidney dysfunction, permanent pigment changes, tumors and death thought to be caused by the addition of this wonder substance to pet food starting in about 1987. Much of the talk about ethoxyquin has quieted since the major pet food companies jumped off the bandwagon and switched to safer (and less legally troublesome) preservatives like forms of vitamins E and C.

8. Nature didn’t intend for pets to eat dry food devoid of enzymes.

Convenience is paid for in reduced pet health. Where is it written that your pet’s bowl has to be filled with chalk-dry nuggets of quasi-nutritious ground up brown stuff? We’ve been sold on a bad idea. We bought it because it made life easier. Until the real bill comes, that is. But doesn’t kibbled food make their teeth shiny and their breath fresh? Won’t their teeth fall out if they don’t eat that stuff? Yeah, right. Ever watch your dog eat? Does it look like some kind of teeth cleaning exercise?

The truth about teeth cleaning is this…sticks, rocks, yarn, bones, toys and saliva primarily accomplish this task, not food. Commercial pet food has to be flavor enhanced with digestive and sprayed-on fat to be even remain attractive to your pet. Without these palatability modifications, the old dry kibble would just sit there and get dusty. People get paid big money to invent coatings to make your pet dive headfirst into the food bowl. Because then you smile and feel like it must be healthy and that Fido loves the food and you so you’ll buy it again. Remember, the fox didn’t go in search of a crunchy rabbit. It ate the soft one and it has a dazzling smile and a fully charged pancreas.

9. Some companies sneak sugar into pet food to hook your pet.

Watch out for these guys! They call it other things of course…(cane molasses, corn syrup) but it absolutely does not belong in your pet’s food bowl. Processed sugars are foreign to dogs and, over the long term, can result in obesity, tooth decay and diabetes (along with other maladies). Until a few years ago, propylene glycol was being used as a sweet tasting preservative by those who must have cared much more about shelf life than about pet health. Thankfully, it has finally been banned.

Pet food companies will tell you that the industry is tightly regulated and that your pet’s health is being fastidiously protected. Do you buy that one? The FDA can’t even keep up with human food and didn’t lift a finger on behalf of the pet owners during the ethoxyquin debate. The regulating body for pet food ingredients is AAFCO. The American Association of Feed Control Officials. But the rules and definitions they adopt are made by those with vested interests and are enforced through “voluntary compliance”. The fox guards the rabbit hutch here.

10. Almost all manufacturers use stool hardening agents in pet food.

Convenience again triumphs over pet health. Stool modifiers make clean up easier and mask the effects of nutrient malabsorption. Who’s going to buy a pet food if you’ve got to SCRAPE up after your dog? It’s easier to just PICK UP those little piles.

Consider however the strain on your pet’s innards. Would you put concrete mix in your pancake batter? How about sawdust? If you were dieting, would you mix ground peanut shells into your breakfast cereal? Well, they do all that and more for your pet. See if any of these made it into your pet food bag: Sodium bentonite, powdered cellulose, beet pulp, tomato (or any other) pomace, and ground peanut shells. The explanation for including these usually is that they are fiber sources “for your pet’s well being”. There may be a little truth there but not the real reason they are added. Whole grains provide great fiber content. A bit of bran would do well too. The real goal is to make you buy the food again because clean up time is so easy and enjoyable with brand XYZ’s designer stools. Before you do this to your pet, try it yourself for a few days.

One question to ask a company representative is this: “Aren’t there times when my pet needs to evacuate it’s system rapidly such as when a toxin is ingested or when the doggy flu comes around?” You’ll then likely hear mumbling about “Our research…” and “regulating intestinal transit time for optimal nutrient absorption”. Do you buy that one? If the food is good and fed properly, stools will be fine without forcing your pet to work a brick through their digestive and excretory systems.

Your Doberman’s Diet

As you may know, each breed of dog has its own unique set of nutritional requirements which have been passed on from generation to generation down through the ages. Just exposing them to a different diet for a small amount of time or for a few generations will not change their genetic needs. The Doberman’s diet should contain nutrient sources which are similar to those found in the native environment of the breed’s ancestors and the proper balance of protein, carbohydrates, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals which match the breed’s specific nutritional requirements. One breed can require ten times what a different breed requires per pound of weight but this amount may simply be toxic to the next breed of dog.

The Doberman was developed in the shadows of Germany’s beer breweries. When compared to other breeds, it requires higher amounts of certain amino acids so the proteins you provide should be high in Phenylalanine and Thyrosine. Since the bulk nutrients of the area where the Doberman developed were high in these essential amino acids, this breed requires the same protein make-up today. Food sources found in the Doberman’s native environment included grain crops used for brewing beer with beef and pork as meat sources. Therefore, the best protein sources for Dobermans is a blend of beef, pork or horse meat. Conversely, the worst blend would be chicken and fish. The balance and amounts are not listed here because each individual animal can have different requirements depending upon such factors as sex of the animal, age, activity level, stress levels, medical conditions and other dietary factors (i.e. does the water supply contain high amounts of minerals?). The amount of vitamins and minerals the Doberman needs may have already been supplied or exceeded by the amount which is in most all-breed/any-breed commercial foods so owners should not supplement what may already be TOO MUCH. This can be toxic and just as harmful (or more so) than too little.

Good food is more expensive but owners who feed their Doberman CORRECTLY can save a lot of money. Many dogs are taken to the vet suffering from nutritionally related problems and the vet bills can be huge! So time spent learning about your puppies needs and then selecting the proper diet is like money in the bank. The basic idea here is to feed your friend “good food”. When I say good food, I don’t mean the type that costs about $5 for a 20 pound bag. When you look for a good food, fatty acids and oils are important. Test the food you are considering by placing about a cup of food in a brown paper bag for about an hour then check the bag. If the food has lots of oils in it, you’ll see the evidence absorbed by the now oily bag. Remember the old axiom: You get what you pay for… and so does your canine friend.

Feeding Schedules:

Start your new puppy off with 4 daily feedings using the same brand of feed the breeder has used and, if you plan to change it later, begin mixing in a little of the new brand until the puppy has had time to adjust to the new diet. Paper training or housebreaking a puppy with diarrhea is not much fun and abrupt dietary changes can virtually assure you of not having much fun. At about 10 weeks, the puppy can usually tolerate a feeding schedule change to 3 times a day instead of four. You must feed a puppy regularly during those first 10 weeks because of its rapid growth and the resultant nutritional requirements of that growth. Obviously, a brand name puppy food is essential. Adult dog foods usually do not have all the nutrients the puppy needs. By 5-6 months, the puppy will more than likely be eating twice a day with a possible snack treat or two between feedings.

The Doberman has many very well noted and recognized traits about its character, but few are as notable as their amazing bravery and loyalty. These are dogs that were breed for this purpose, and have been used as companions for soldiers all around the world for over a century. This makes the Doberman fearless and able to withstand some training methods that other breeds could simply not endure. Keep this in mind when you undergo Doberman training.

- The Doberman is a breed that is EXTREMLY active and thrives on exercise and physical and mental stimulation. This is a trait that is extremely important to remember. You can not train this dog in a boring or mundane way. This rule’s out trying to properly train a Doberman in your living room.

- The Doberman is a VERY assertive and confident breed of dog, this does NOT mean aggressive though. Because of this natural trait, the owner too must be a confident and assertive individual who can properly put their Doberman into place if they get out of hand, but NEVER hit you dog! It is important that the owner and breed match (this is true for all breeds) or problems during training and home life may pose to be an issue.

- Again it must be noted that when approaching Doberman training, it is wise to stimulate this breed with a lot of out door activities such as running, fetching, romping around and playing outside in general. This is a very active breed that simply needs these things.

These are only a few things that need to be known about the Doberman and it’s training before you start training this breed. It is very highly recommend, not just from my training and breeding experience, but by many other trainers, that you seek out and acquire all the needed information to undergo Doberman training properly.

It is also very important to mention that this breed, just like many others needs to be trained in a way that is specific to its personality and traits. You simply can not just train a Doberman like you would a Cocker Spaniel and expect good results to come of it, so make sure that you’re armed with the right information on the right training methods for this breed before you start training…it will pay off very well.

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Feeding your Doberman and providing enough water at all times is one of the most important and basic things you can do. An insufficient diet could affect your Dobermans overall health and cause behavior problems. Selecting the right dry food can be a difficult process. You want to take the vet’s advice and also find a food that your dog Doberman likes to eat.

Generally a good dry food will provide all of the necessary nutrients but there are exceptions. Puppies will start on a different type of dry food that has more of what they need and transition to an Adult food once they have reached full size. Your vet can help you determine when it is right to switch if you are unsure.

It is important to point out that there is no single best diet for every dog. Activity level and other health concerns can play a role in what your Doberman needs to eat, along with what they prefer, and just hope that they are not too picky!

Diagnosing food problems such as intolerance or allergies can be difficult so make sure to keep a close eye on your Doberman when they start a new food and take action when their behavior does not seem right or they exhibit any physical signs of a problem.

Exercise

Dobermans are very active and probably require more exercise than the typical breed. Your Doberman should have an area outside that it can roam freely and safely on a regular basis. Taking the dog on walks and playing often can keep your Doberman healthy and give you a good workout as well!

Exercising your Doberman will also help keep it from becoming bored and tearing stuff up in it’s environment.

Grooming

Regular brushing will help your Doberman keep a shiny and healthy looking coat. Short wire brushes work very well!

Bathing

Bathing does not need to be done often but there will be times when your Doberman gets into something or gets to a point where the coat is dirty enough to make it necessary. Make sure and start baths as a puppy and they will be less of an ordeal as the Doberman gets older.

It is a good idea to brush the coat before getting the coat wet and a shower or with a hose is a usually the best method. Use a dog shampoo and lather up your Dobermans coat, and then rinse the soap off carefully and rinse the head last. Make sure to rinse well and not allow soap to remain on the coat. Also be careful not to get soap in the eyes or ear canals.

An alternative to regular bathing would be to use a spray or powder to help clean the coat. These are not as good as a full bath but may help in between regular baths.

Nail Clipping

You should start nail trimming at an early age as a puppy and it will make this task much easier into your Doberman’s adult life. There are many good nail clippers on the market that reduce the risk of cutting and make trimming very easy to do.

Outside Dog or Inside?

Whether you keep your Doberman inside or outside is a matter of preference but just make sure they have a comfortable place to sleep that shields them from the elements such as extreme heat or cold. Dobermans can grow to be good sized dogs so keeping them indoors at all times may not be practical. Use common sense and don’t leave them out in extreme cold weather and make sure they have adequate water when the weather is warm during the summer.

Toys

Dobermans love to play and be active and good examples of toys are balls, ropes and bones. A rubber ball can be one of the best toys as they love to play fetch.

Description:

The Doberman Pinscher is a medium sized, squarely built dog with a compact muscular body. The head is long and when viewed from the side looks like a blunt wedge. The top of the skull is flat, and turns into the muzzle with a slight stop. The color of the nose depends on the color of the dog’s coat, black on black dogs, dark brown on red dogs, dark gray on blue dogs, dark tan on fawn dogs and pink on white dogs. The teeth meet in a scissors bite. The color of the almond shaped eyes is various shades of brown, depending on the coat color of the dog. The ears are usually cropped to stand erect (cut at the age of about 12 weeks). The pup’s ears have to be taped for a couple of months to make them stand up. A lot of breeders are starting to leave the pup’s ears natural.  If left natural they develop ears somewhat like a hound. The tail is usually docked at the age of 3 days. If the tail is not docked it grows a tail somewhat like a hound. Note: cropping ears and docking tails is illegal in Europe. The chest is broad and the legs are perfectly straight. Dewclaws are sometimes removed. The short, hard, thick coat lies flat. Sometimes there is an invisible gray undercoat on the neck. The coat comes in black, black with tan markings, blue-gray, red, fawn and white. When markings appear they are above each eye, on the muzzle, throat, forechest, legs, feet and on the tail. There is also a solid white color. While white markings are considered a fault in some clubs, in others it is accepted.

Temperament:

Doberman Pinschers are very keen, super energetic with tremendous strength and stamina. Dobes like to be with their people and are not suited to kennel or back yard life, they need human interaction and leadership. Loyal, tolerant, dedicated and affectionate with the family. Determined, bold and assertive while working, they are very adaptable, highly skilled and versatile. They areintelligent and very easy to train. They are an outstanding watch and guard dog and do not need additional protection training. This breed is not for everyone. The Doberman needs an owner who is willing and able to display a natural authority over the dog. All family members must be firm, confident and consistent, setting rules and sticking to them. Learning to handle the dog properly, as Dobermans can become stubborn and willful if allowed to have their own way. Everything must be on the humans terms. The dog is the follower, and the humans are the leaders. The dog will appreciate knowing his place in his pack and feel secure about it. He should be thoroughlysocialized when young to prevent skittishness. Mental stimulation and a lot of daily exercise is important in order to produce a happy, stable minded Dobe. The Doberman needs to be consistently and thoroughly trained. Dobes can be good family dogs if the alpha role belongs to the human and if they receive enough exercise, are well trained and are socialized with children.Although the Doberman has the reputation of being a very aggressive dog, this is just not the case. For example, Dobes make great therapy dogs. Issues arise when they reside with owners who do not display the proper leadership and or do not provide enough exercise. They are sweet and gentle with nursing-home patients – tippy-toeing over IV tubing and walking at the resident’s speed (which can be very slow), while at the same time will fiercely defend his master if it becomes necessary. Dominancy levels vary, even within the same litter and the breeds temperament will vary greatly depending on how well the owners understand canine behaviorand how willing they are to take the time to provide what the dog instinctually needs.

Height, Weight:

Height:  Dogs 26-28 inches (66-71cm.),  Bitches 24-26 inches (61-66cm.)
Weight:  66-88 pounds (30-40kg.)

Health Problems:

Prone to possible cervical spondylitis (wobbler syndrome) due to fusion of neck vertebrae and compression of spinal cord; possible inherited blood disorder (Von Willebrands disease); obesity in middle age. Also prone to skin issues, bloat, hip dysplasia, and congenital heart defects. The gene which produces the albino (White) Dobermans is said to be the same gene which produced the famous white tigers and lions owned by Siegfriend & Roy in Las Vegas. Some also believe the gene is a masking gene, meaning it “takes over” and masks the color that the dog would be otherwise. White Dobe fanciers say there is no evidence, that this gene carries with it any deleterious or adverse health concerns that are sometimes associated with all white animals such as deafness, blindness, or unstable minds. Some breeders beg to differ claiming the gene does cause health issues.

Living Conditions:

Will do okay in an apartment if sufficiently exercised, but does best with at least an average-sized yard. Dobes are very cold sensitive and are not an outside dog. That is why police in areas where it gets cold are not able to use them.

Exercise:

The Doberman is very energetic, with great stamina. They need to be taken on a daily, long walkor jog, and need to be made to heel beside or behind the human holding the lead, as in a dog’s mind the leader leads the way and that leader needs to be the humans.

Life Expectancy:

Up to 13 years.

Grooming:

Dobes need little grooming and are average shedders.

Origin:

This is a breed of relatively recent origin. It was developed in Germany in the 1860′s, presumably by crossing among the old shorthaired shepherds, German Pinschers, Rottweilers, Beaucerons,Manchester Terriers, and Greyhounds. The creator of this mixture was a German tax collector named Louis Dobermann. Dobermann had to travel frequently through bandit-infested areas, and decided to develop a watchdog and bodyguard capable of handling any situation that might arise. The breed is named after its originator (shortened by one n). The Doberman was first presented at a dog show in 1876. It was immediately a big success. The Doberman was first recognized by the AKC in 1908. Doberman Pinschers have many talents including tracking, watchdog, guarding, police work, military work, search & rescue, therapy work, competitive obedience and schutzhund.

The Doberman is the only German breed which bears the name of its original breeder, Friedrich Louis Doberman (02.01.1834 – 09.06.1894).

He was believed to be a tax collector, offal abattoir manager (knacker) and a part time dog catcher, legally able to catch all stray dogs. He bred with animals from this reservoir that were particularly sharp. The so called “butcher’s dogs” which were already considered a relatively pure breed at that time, played a most important role in the origination of the Doberman breed. These dogs were an early type of Rottweiler, mixed with a type of shepherd which existed in “Thüringen” as a black dog with rust red markings. Herr Doberman bred with this mixture of dogs in the Eighteen Seventies. Thus he obtained “his breed” : not only alert, but highly protective working and housedogs. They were often used as guard and police dogs. Their extensive use in police work led to the nickname “Gendarme dog”. They were used in hunting to control large vermin. In these circumstances it was a matter of course that the Doberman was recognized officially as a Police Dog by the beginning of the century.

The Doberman breed requires a medium sized, powerful, muscular dog. Despite his substance he shall be elegant and noble, which will be evident in his body line. He must be exceptionally suitable as a companion, protection and working dog and also as family dog.

General Appearance

The Doberman is of medium size, strong and muscularly built. Through the elegant lines of its body, its proud stature, and its expression of determination, it conforms to the ideal picture of a dog.

Important Proportions

The body of the Doberman appears to be almost square, particularly in males. The length of the body measured from the point of the shoulder to the point of the buttock shall not be more than 5% longer than the height from the withers to the ground in males, and 10% in females.

Behaviour and Temperament

The disposition of the Doberman is friendly and calm; very devoted to the family it loves children. Medium temperament and medium sharpness (alertness) is desired. A medium threshold of irritation is required with a good contact to the owner. Easy to train, The Doberman enjoys working, and shall have good working ability, courage and hardness. The particular values of self confidence and intrepidness are required, and also adaptability and attention to fit the social environment.

Food from the Native Environment of the Dog’s Parents Is Recommended

Foods that contain nutrient sources that are similar to those that are found in the dog’s ancestors’ native environment means the food should not be foreign to the digestive system of the German Shepherd and should also be easy for its glandular system, thus making the food easy to assimilate. German Shepherd diet and nutrition should also contain a correct balance of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals as well as fatty acids and should match its nutritional needs like they did for its ancestors.

Feeding the German Shepherd proper nutritious food in its diet also helps save on vet’s fees that would be incurred if the dog were to suffer from nutritional problems such as itchy, dry or flaky skin or hot spots or yeast infections in the ear. It is thus imperative that the dog owner studies the requirements of feeding a German Shepherd and only then choose the diet that complements these requirements, which would keep the German Shepherd healthy.

According to experts, the most nutritious diet for a German Shepherd would be to prepare fresh and preservative-free food that contain quality ingredients which does not take much time to cook the meal for the German Shepherd and is certainly more effective than buying average all-breed foods. However, be warned that the adult German Shepherd would consume almost 40 pounds of dry dog food in a month though exact amounts depend on its metabolism and activity level.

One may give it vitamin supplements, meat and coat conditioners even though it would add to the cost of feeding the German Shepherd. There are many good brands that offer highly nutritional foods which the German Shepherd would consume less of but get more of the required nutritional value from and it would use such foods for fuel and also produce less manure. But, the diet as well as nutrition of the German Shepherd is not all that limited and it may also be fed with home cooked food treats.

Casserole and Dog Pie

One could think of including nutritious foods in the German Shepherd’s diet such as a casserole that contains 500 grams of any meat and has a potato and some sliced green beans along with a finely chopped carrot and a stick of finely chopped celery and also some Gravox. This should be cooked for an hour to prepare a well liked treat which any German Shepherd would relish.

One may also cook the German Shepherd a dog pie that contains six ounces of broth and contains whole wheat flour and eight ounces of meat scraps and the same amount of dog meal and this should be baked at high temperatures and be served after allowing it to cool till it is just warm enough to eat. One can also add vegetables and cheese in case you think the dog would like that too. These basic parameters about diet and nutrition help in deciding what is the right diet to feed your German Shepherd.

The German Shepherd grooming profile is that it requires moderate grooming which should be continued for eight to twelve weeks and maintained fortnightly. One would expect a well groomed German Shepherd to look and feel happy and for the purpose of grooming one would require tools and blades such as slicker brushes, pin brushes, natural bristle brushes, shedding blades, metal rakes, metal combs as well as a pair of scissors.

Grooming Tips and Use of Tools

For German Shepherd grooming, one would need to regularly brush and comb the dog twice a week so that the double coat is well managed. One should remove wooly hairs from the undercoat as well as the outer coarse guard coat. Mostly, the German Shepherd is known to shed all year round and for this one may use shedding blades during the German Shepherd shedding season.

Using the shedding blade requires being trained in its proper use and another tool one can use is the metal rakes that can be used to take out the matted undercoat that is commonly found in the neck, chest and thigh areas. After bathing the German Shepherd, one may use a modern high velocity dryer to take away the excess water and slicker brushes are very good for this breed for hand fluff drying. One should remember to brush in the direction of the hair growth.

Hair Cuts

One may also want to give groom the German Shepherd by giving him a hair cut and for this one may use a pair of scissors to cut away long hairs such as those found under the feet as well as other stray hairs around the feet. However, the German Shepherd must not be clipped for cosmetic looks since it may lead to serious faults. Instead, to make it look fluffier or fuller of coat, one may brush the hair in the opposite direction to its hair growth and follow it with light brushing in the direction of the hair growth.

In case one does want to give the German Shepherd a hair cut one can use thinning shears to make its overall appearance look neater. Also, selective thinning may help in making the German Shepherd look heavier boned. Remember to cut the nails on the feet of the German Shepherd regularly. The toenails, ears as well as teeth need your attention and one should check the nails every week while brushing and thus help avert it getting split or broken nails that may be left unattended and grow too long.

One may also groom the German Shepherd by cleaning the ear wax every week and an ear solution would do well for this purpose. Check the teeth of the German Shepherd every month as well as when it goes for its check up at the vet’s. Hard cookies may be a good idea to keep the teeth and gums in optimum health. Once the owner understands the importance of grooming, he would also need to know what you need to groom your German Shepherd.

Intelligent and Quick to Learn

German Shepherd training is easy as they are keen as well as intelligent and enjoy learning. Therefore, giving them basic obedience training should not pose much of a problem as many German Shepherds are even adept at learning tricks. One would be surprised at how well and quickly it can pick up what is taught and one should make it a point to reward it for good behavior as it may make a connection between accomplishment and reward even though it is not always easy for the dog to do so. Food acts as a bridge in understanding what is desired from the dog.

Socializing the German Shepherd is an essential part of its training regime as it will ensure that one gets the best out of its breeding traits and also ensures that it will be comfortable with the owner. Behavioral training will rectify bad habits such as jumping, car chasing, begging, climbing on furniture as well as chewing. The German Shepherd should be dealt with firmly and consistently when training it and one should prohibit it from activities that are simply not allowed. Being ambivalent would only confuse it.

German Shepherd obedience training is also essential and making the dog understand commands such as ‘sit’, ‘no’, ‘stop’ are essential and can be performed in various locations so that the dog gets the hang of it and generalizes its behavior as well as enhances its learning curve. The timing of the obedience training session should be frequent though not too long as extended sessions can easily bore the German Shepherd. Ideally, one could spend ten to fifteen minutes twice or thrice a day teaching it commands such ‘sit’, ‘stay’, ‘heel’ and ‘come’.

German Shepherd potty training is essential and it should be taught to keep its crate clean and go and eliminate outside. This will take time and requires a great deal of patience. The best time for German Shepherd potty training would be when it is young since puppies often relieve themselves six times a day approximately and so, need to be taught where to eliminate. Potty training requires that it be taken out immediately after meals and there are several other methods of potty training it and one can choose whichever they feel is the most convenient for their lifestyle.

It is also necessary to teach your German Shepherd outside training so that it does not make enemies of your neighbors. A barking dog can be a nuisance and one may need to use special collars that eliminate excessive barking in the dog as they give mild electrical stimulation every time it barks. German Shepherd obedience trainingis also a very important aspect of the dog’s training program and the owner should learn as much as possible about it.

Build on its Good Qualities

Remember that if one takes good general care of the German Shepherd, it will also pay back in kind and serve you well throughout its lifetime. To build on its good qualities the owner of the German Shepherd needs to get it trained from a young age. In case an owner does not feel capable enough of training the German Shepherd him or herself, he or she can always enroll it in a dog obedience school. One should combine basic obedience training, exercise, challenging tasks as well as give it a balanced diet and leave the rest to the German Shepherd which will happily serve the owner faithfully and obediently.

The German Shepherd has two coats of hair and the outer coats shed periodically while the inner coat sheds twice yearly. To take good care of your German Shepherd you will need to brush it daily and thus remove dead hairs as well as massage to its skin. One does not need to bathe it very often and spraying water on the outer coat to splash away the mud and dirt should be sufficient.

As part of general German Shepherd care, its nails should be trimmed every three months and for removing parasites such as fleas, the owner may use dust powders or other anti-flea aids like tick-collars. The dense coat of a German Shepherd warrants that the owner stays very vigilant and eliminates the fleas before the dog becomes infested.

Diet

The German Shepherd needs a good and balanced diet and it should be served dry food which will help to prevent tooth decay. Commercially sold meals or kibble foods are also recommended as such foods have the required nutrients as well as added vitamins and minerals that help to keep the German Shepherd healthy. Water should always be available for the pet and one should ensure that it remains fresh by changing it frequently and thus prevent insects and mosquitoes from using the water.

Another aspect of general German Shepherd care is that it needs a cool and shady area where it should be housed and as a breed that loves exercise, the owner may need to take it out for walks daily and if possible, in the cool of the evening. The dog should be kept on a leash since they are very protective of their masters and may attack others whom they think are posing a threat.

German Shepherds are always in need of both physical and mental health exercising and should thus be given both in ample measure. To keep the coat of the German Shepherd shining it should be given healthy diet. Its ears should be checked as well as cleaned every week and using an ear solution may help remove wax from the ears. One should also check its teeth every month as well as during its annual vet check-up and feeding it hard cookies will help keep the teeth and gums in good health. Having attended to the general German Shepherd care, the owner will then be faced with health concerns facing the German Shepherd.

Working Breeds as Well as Show Lines

North American show lines are primarily bred for their appearances and are very different in appearance from the international show line Shepherd by having a pronounced sloped back as well as sharp angulation of the hock joint. In the East Germany of past times, the type of German Shepherd was closer to the old prewar standard and had a straighter back as well as longer and denser coat of a darker color. Such German Shepherds are wonderful working specimens and are less prone to hip dysplasia. The female may usually be gray sable stock coated while the male would likely be heavily saddled black and red stock coated.

The full adult sized German Shepherd would stand between 24 and 26 inches in height at the shoulder depending on its genetic background and the corresponding female would stand at 22 to 24 inches at the shoulders. The male German Shepherd would weigh approximately 65 to 90 pounds, depending on its bloodline while the female may weigh only between 55 to 80 pounds.

Broadly speaking, the different German Shepherd types include the German high lines or show lines, various working lines, the East German/Czech lines, North American show lines, the Long Haired German Shepherd, and the White German Shepherd as well as German Shepherds of the United Kingdom.

The type of white German Shepherds are normally used as police dogs and are used for bomb detection, drug interdiction as well as tracking and attack work. They are also used in Search and Rescue work and are a versatile dog indeed. The long haired German Shepherd is also referred to as a ‘coated German Shepherd’ and has three coat types which are normal stock hair, long stock hair and long hair and there are a range of coat lengths.

German Shepherd types are also distinguishable by their coats which are of various hues and shades. One may need to understand color genetics to delve deeper into the color of this breed. Common colors are black and tan,  sable, white, solid white, red, cream, liver, powder blue and steel blue. In addition, there are also coat types that range from short coat, plush coat, as well as long coat.

An Intelligent and Versatile Breed

More information about the German Shepherd tells us that it has the wonderful trait of being intelligent and is very good for training, as throughout its history, it has shown itself to be a versatile breed that is often found doing police work as well herding sheep.The more one learns about the German Shepherd the more one becomes aware that it is very good at being a watchdog, leader of the blind, good at tracking and rescue as well as excels in scent identification and its agility as well as obedience are exemplary. It is also a wonderful companion and a good guardian and is poised as well as calm and if required, can also be alert and startling.

An ideal German Shepherd is useful as a guardian and working animal that has a well muscled body that lends to its agility and power. With its well-balanced body, it is a long as well as tall animal that has a deep body and looks substantial in a way that shows off its muscular fitness to good effect. And, while on the topic about the German Shepherd one learns that it also seems to be very nimble and not at all clumsy or flabby and it may also be termed as noble.

It measures approximately two feet by 26 inches tall at the shoulder, though the females are slightly smaller and their body is slightly elongated but still strong. They are muscled and the bone is clean as well as its general frame is firm. One perceives it to be of depth as well as solid and not bulky having a deep and capacious chest that has more than enough room for its heart and lungs.

The rib cage of this breed is well-sprung as well as long and its correct rib layout makes it able to move freely, more so, when trotting. The loin is quite short and only has a slight tuck up and the stomach is flat as well as firm. The German Shepherd also has long shoulder blades and a well-laid back and the front legs from every side are straight as well as strong. The bones of the legs are oval instead of round and the feet are short and compact. Its toes are well-arched and it has thick and firm foot pads with short and dark nails.

One may describe aspects about the German Shepherd’s head as being noble without any coarseness and it is also cleanly chiseled and the long and strong muzzles contain the tightly fitted lips. The forehead is slightly arched and the strong jaws are filled with 42 teeth with 20 upper teeth and 22 lower teeth. Its eyes are medium sized and are set obliquely and the dark eyes of this breed show off its keen and intelligent expression. The ears are medium-sized and taper slightly and are erect unless the dog is reposing or in motion.

The history of the German shepherd may be traced back to the late 19th and 20th century and originated with Captain Max von Stephanitz, whose goal was to breed an all-purpose working dog. Von Stephanitz was an admirer of the landrace herding dogs of his native country, Germany and saw in them the potential to become an all-purpose working dog. In this direction, he created the schutzhund trial that was a breed test for the German Shepherd and prohibited the breeding of dogs that could not pass this trial. This trial system gave rise to many of the rapid developments of this breed’s abilities.

The end of the First World War saw British and American soldiers being impressed with the abilities of this breed and they were imported to their own countries for breeding purposes where they became instant hits and this is how the history and origin of the German Shepherd unfolds.

Captain Max von Stephanitz, a German cavalry officer, developed the German Shepherd Dog breed in 1899, based entirely on his vision of the perfect working dog – one type of dog which could work equally well under any conditions.

German Shepherd Dog history began in just this way. Using a variety of German sheep dogs as his foundation stock, Max von Stephanitz developed a new and distinctive working dog breed, the German Shepherd Dog.

He greatly admired the herding dogs of his native Germany, and believed they had the full potential to be the total all-purpose working dog. Max von Stephanitz was very aware of the historically declining need for herding dogs and believed that the working abilities of the breed would decline unless they were put to other uses. 

He saw no beauty in a non-functional dog and was ruthless in discarding what he considered weak. Tireless and determined, he laid the foundations of theGSD history that were later to make the breed the greatest all-round working dog in the world.

Until Horand, herding dogs came in a variety of shapes, sizes, types and abilities. Shepherds in Germany like elsewhere in the world, chose their dogs for their fitness, mental and physical, and for work only, and cared little for the dogs appearance. Max von Stephanitz had very positive ideas about the mental, anatomical, and bio-mechanical characteristics required of a herding dog. He had a great understanding of the mental and anatomical requirements of a working shepherd dog.

Very possibly by chance, the beginning of the GSD history started at a dog show in Germany. While at the dog show, a medium-sized yellow-and-gray wolflike dog caught the attention of von Stephanitz, attending the show with his friend Artur Meyer.

Only weeks later von Stephanitz and his friend Artur Meyer founded the Verein für Deutsche Schaferhunde, or SV (German Shepherd Dog Club), along with the help of a few other co-founders. The dog club, the Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde (SV), was to become the largest and most powerful dog breed club in the world and a major step in GSD history.

A standard for the GSD breed was soon developed based on mental stability and utility. The captain’s motto was “Utility and intelligence”. To him beauty was secondary, and considered a dog worthless if it lacked the intelligence, temperament, and structural efficiency that would make it a good servant of man. 

The German Shepherd Dog breed standard was developed as a blueprint listing the exact function and relationship of every aspect of structure, gait, and inherent attitude, combined with a comprehensive breeding regulation, which required that dogs used for breeding had first to prove their worth physically and mentally.

Later, using the co-operation of local police and working dog clubs, a set of specific dog tests were developed in tracking, formal obedience, and protection work. This developed into present day Schutzhund dog trials - another important part of the GSD history. The authorities were persuaded to utilize the German Shepherd Dog in many branches of government service and served during the war as supply carriers, sentinels, Red Cross dogs, messenger dogs, tracking and guard dogs, to name a few.

The German Shepherd Dog, historically speaking, was just gaining notice in the United States when World War I broke out. In 1917, when America entered World War I, all things German became tabu. The AKC changed the name of this dog breed to the Shepherd Dog and the German Shepherd Dog Club of America became the Shepherd Dog Club of America. In England, the name of the German Shepherd Dog breed was changed to the Alsatian. 

German Shepherd Timeline 

After WWI, British and American soldiers, impressed by the abilities of theGerman Shepherd Dog, brought home examples of their own to breed. The dog breed instantly become popular, both as a family pet and as a working dog. After the war the movie stars Rin-Tin-Tin and Strongheart stimulated interest in the GSD history and dog breed again.

The striking good looks of this breed, combined with its remarkable intelligence and loyalty, have made it a favorite working and companion dog. Puppy factories soon flourished to meet the huge demand, flooding the American market with poor quality “German police dogs”, resulting in a down-turn in popularity of the breed.

Later during World War II, the German Shepherd Dog was widely sought after and employed by both Allied and Axis forces.These dogs performed various duties such as mine detectors, sentinels, guard work, and messengers. In America,Dogs for Defense was formed, providing thousands of dogs to the army.

In German Shepherd history the paths of German and American German Shepherds diverged after World War II. Many German Shepherd Dogs had been killed or destroyed due to lack of food. Later on the breeders again had individual dogs dominant in the desired virtues of the breed.

By about 1949 quality GSD specimens again began to appear at German dog shows. In the 1950′s American breeders recognized the need for some infusion of outcross blood and Troll von Richterback, 1957 Grand Victor, was dominant in his day.

In the 1960′s there was an emergence of several strong families of stud dogs. This was an important part in rebuilding the GSD historically speaking. While the SV was in control of German bred German Shepherds, American German Shepherd breeders were open to follow their own preferences. American and Canadian Grand Victor, Lance of Fran-Jo, represented a new era in American shepherds and was widely used during the 1960′s. Lance produced many GSD puppies which in turn became historical pillars of the breed in America.

In Germany, GSD history reveals that a very active market soon developed forGerman Shepherd Dogs and puppies sought in countries such as South America, Japan, Italy, many Scandinavian countries, and France. Additionally, the SV began to place more and more importance on dog training degrees. Temperament and courage tests became much more demanding, and the SV forced breeders to concentrate on puppy and dog problem areas such as missing teeth, poor croups, etc.

Starting with a common base, the German Shepherd breed in Germany and America have taken a separate course.  The Americans and the Germans have both evolved closely-breddogs. They differ in looks, movement, style, and structure and have developed both desirable and undesirable characteristics into the breed.  For even more info, check out the links below:

German Shepherd Dog Facts 
GSD’s in the News 

The Americans have a broader option to persue their own views and choose their own bloodlines whether from within or outside their own country. The Germans, controlled by the SV, will likely continue to look within themselves to further develop the breed.

Today the German Shepherd Dog is still considered one of the most intelligent and versatile breeds in existence and the future will indeed be very interesting for the breed. Indeed, the GSD history has been nothing short of intense so far.