What to look for when you are buying a German Shepherd.

First, the dog’s pedigree tells you a lot about the parents and grandparents of the puppy.

You’ll know if they won awards and what kind of awards they won.

These awards are much more than mere trophies or ribbons.

SCHUTZHUND TRAINED dogs are evaluated for their character, intelligence, performance ability and conformation or physical structure. Schutzhund training was actually developed by Max von Stephanitz ( founder of the German Shepherd Dog ) as a breeding suitability test for the German Shepherd Dog Schutzhund training combines tracking, obedience and protection. The GSD’s natural talents and abilities are brought out through Schutzhund training.

The tracking portion tests the dog’s trainability, ability to follow a scent and mental and physical endurance. In the obedience portion, dogs perform exercises such as heeling, sitting, retrieving, and remaining steady during distractions. The Protection portion tests the dog’s courage, strength and agility by requiring the dog to find a hidden person and defend its owner against a decoy aggressor.

Schutzhund is a German word for “protection dog” but this does not mean Schutzhund trained dogs are attack dogs. Through their training they are trained to ward off dangerous situations, not provoke them.

This training makes German Shepherd Dogs perfect for law enforcement, search and rescue, security dogs and show dogs. It also makes them the perfect family dog. Their character, temperament and obedience have been tested. They’re courageous and strong and above all love their families and strive to obey and please.

These qualities are passed on to the offspring of Schutzhund titled dogs to be built upon with proper training. So, it truly does begin with the breeder breeding dogs only after a thorough search of the pedigrees.