Merjuke

My name is Samantha and German Shepherd Dogs have been in my family before I was even born.

I have always adored animals, and thus my parents were rather unsurprised when I undertook an Animal Science degree (including taking an additional 30 unnecessary credits in Animal Behaviour) that specialised in genetics, physiology, behaviour, and nutrition.

I have always wished to own and show my own GSDS. After reading about the breed’s original purpose and the confirmation of dogs in general I came to realise that my ideal representative of the breed standard did not exist, and that the only way it would exist would be for me to produce it.

However since GSDS have very large litters I knew that it would be extremely unfair as well as being impractical to keep all of my litters, and that as a result the majority of my puppies would be going into pet homes (even homes that select our puppies for show or working must be a pet home first).

In our opinion GSDS that are healthy, with the potential for a good temperament and working ability make the best GSD pets. In our experience puppy owners desire this and they also wish for a puppy that has gorgeous aesthetics. We ourselves look for a puppy with all of this, but we also look for one more thing; a puppy that should hopefully become a good example of the breed standard.

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In terms of health we did not only chose to treat our puppies against damaging parasites whilst raising them on a premium food, we also decided to health test my dogs in an attempt to try and prevent genetic health problems.

In our opinion preventing hip problems is just as important as preventing elbow problems, and thus any non-scored dog coming into our family is both hip and elbow scored. We also believe in haemophilia testing our males.

So far we have been very lucky in that not only have all of the dogs within our household obtained hip scores below the breed average, but a lot of them have also been gorgeously low (such as 2:2 and 2:3 when taken under general anaesthetic a week before her 2nd birthday!).

We have also been extremely lucky in that so far all of our elbows have come back as 0:0, and that our male dog has come back as haemophilia clear.

The fear of producing bad hips did result in me looking into the general trends that could be seen within hip productions within GSDS throughout this country, and to be honest the results shocked me!

I found that it was EXTREMELY common for at least one (the male was usually more affected due to being able to have more litters and thus having a great chance of having more progeny scored) of the parents of a litter to at some point produce a puppy with a hip score way over the breed average. Or if this were not so then it would not be too long before a dog was found within the pedigree that despite having a good score itself had done a similar thing. Even dogs that had produced 0:0 hips were not immune to this fact! This even applied to pedigrees that looked ‘clean’ on paper (i.e. the descendents upon the pedigree itself did not have bad scores, but some of the dogs themselves had produced high scores which would be harder to find out about).

To make things more confusing although it has been pointed out that breeding a below recommended score to another below recommended score should have a higher chance of producing a low score SOME GSDS with a high score are known for being good hip producers.

Also a newcomer to this breed should not forget that diet, exercise, age of the dog when scored, whether or not the dog was x-rayed when under general anaesthetic or sedation, the skills of the vet x-raying also all can affect a dog’s hip score.

To make things even more confusing it is also extremely common for owners of dogs that look to have a bad score to chose not to submit their x-rays to the BVA for hip scoring (never mind all of the pet GSDS that are not scored), and thus the breed average on paper (currently 19) is probably not as high as it really might be.

Unfortunately for the time being the way things stand any puppy that you chose to obtain from ANY breeder may or may not go onto develop hip problems.

However having said aside from correctly raising your baby you can reduce your chances of obtaining such a puppy via choosing a puppy from a breeder that has hip scores below the breed average (currently 19), via choosing a puppy from a breeder in which the parents have produced a majority of puppies with hip scores below the breed average, and via picking a puppy from a repeat mating if the original paring did not produce any very high hip scores.

Personally I think that honesty is the best policy when it comes to the potential problems with our breed. I also don’t think that I need to elaborate upon breeders who claim that not only are their lines 100% clean, but that they will never ever produce high hip scores. Personally I dream about the day that a breeder can hand on their heart honestly state that this is true. Unfortunately for the time being this day is a long way off, and thus as a breeder all that we can do is try to reduce our chances via breeding from parents with below recommended breeding BVA & SV scores.

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In terms of temperament I researched how puppies develop and the main contributing factors that can affect temperament. Then I applied this knowledge to how I raised my puppies. Although I have noticed working kennels within the USA using a similar approach, and although I will be the first to admit that I am not aware of how all of the kennels within the UK raise their GSD puppies for the time I believe that my attempts to encourage temperament and trainability appear to be relatively unique within the UK. My approach takes up a LOT more time and expenses than the normal way of raising puppies, but personally we think that the results that we see time and time again within our pet homes speak for themselves.

I also researched (including going to an Ian Dumbar lecture) how to prevent and overcome potential behavioural ‘problems’ that develop in my puppies, so that I can give prevention advise and help to my puppy owners in the future. In addition to this I worked out an easy way of advising and helping my puppy owners to train for a wide verity of sports (obedience, agility, working trials, and KC good citizen). I am a big believer in happy puppies means happy owners and vice versa, and thus I adore imparting my knowledge to all of my treasured forever homes in an attempt to try and ensure that this is so.

In terms of working abilities we believe that puppies can start learning at a very young age, and we try to take advantage of this by introducing them to basic training as soon as possible. Different puppies learn at different rates, and some puppies excel where others lack. But even those I found lacking went straight to the top of their classes. Other puppies had teachers deeming that they could complete their bronze good citizen straight away after the first lesson, and yet others were completing amazing feats prior to 16 weeks of age (including a drops on recalls and out of sight sit and down stays).

We are proud of each and everyone of our forever homes, the smallest success means the world to us, and nothing makes us happier than hearing nothing more than how much the owner loves their dog and vice versa. We are also extremely proud of the fact that homes that have made up obedience champions, represented their region or the UK in obedience at Crufts, that have trained up police & prison dogs, that wish for a dog for SAR, and that have competed and won top honours in working trials desire our babies. In addition to which we currently have several of our forever homes requesting another puppy from a future undetermined litter. This to us speaks for itself.

In terms of aesthetics we are very lucky in that our dogs own some very desired attributes.

For example the majority of my bitches carries the pure black gene. This means that when I place them to a black and tanned male they produce black & tans with very dark black-pigmented masks and unbroken big black blankets (as opposed to flecked small washed out saddles). One such bitch also carries the sable gene, and thus within her litters she will always produce a combination of either a beautiful sable or a gorgeous dark masked baby. Another also carries the black and tan gene and thus she produces a combination of normal black and tans and the aforementioned dark masks. Whereas my other girl only carries the pure black gene and thus she can only produce dark masked babies.

My only bitch that does not carry the pure black gene is a beautiful saddled rich red girl, and she also produces this red colouration.

Personally although I do have a soft spot for black sables my favourite colouration is a GSD that has red so deep it is nearly brown, a big unbroken saddle, and a dark neck and mask pigmentation.

In terms of size I would prefer it if my bitches produced medium sized dogs (as per the UK breed standard), but unfortunately for me to date I have found that they do produce top sized dogs to dogs that are over top sized dogs. However I know I am in the minority when it comes to this preference (which arises from my interpretation of the breed standard).

Also I would never seek to actively produce long-coated GSDS, as a long-coated GSD would not be a perfect representation of the breed standard. But to date all of my girls do carry the short coat, long coat or plush coat (looks like a long-coat, but it has a double jacket) genes. Thus we will produce puppies with all coat types.

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Our ultimate aim is to one day produce a healthy GSD of an excellent temperament and working ability and that looks as close as possible to my ideal representative of the breed standard. We would also aim for this dog to able to produce its attributes through its progeny, because if it were to be a ‘one off’ then it would be of no further use to the breed.

I can see virtues in all the types of GSDS, and because I wish to acquire these virtues within my progeny I do from time to time use prestigious blood from a wide verity of types.
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For example in terms of working attributes I currently own blood that derives from descendents of the following kennels:

Mayanser (which includes Tiekerhook, Fero, Troll and Nick vom Heiligenbösch bloodlines)
Terschlads
Vom Haus Nye
Carlithos
Shadowsquad
Kazzardsway
Limasmythe
Asoka (which in the breeder’s younger years used to be renowned for producing Dual Champions: Confirmation & Working, and what also stems back to the famous Brittas lines which incidentally I have been informed the Shadowsquad lines also go back to)

I am extremely lucky in that I own dogs that have the following working awards within their pedigrees:

English / Welsh / National / Dutch / WUSV / BSP Winners & Placements
Police Dog & Prison Dog & Diplomatic Protection Producers
SCH 3 / FH / IPO3 / HGH / VH Gold Good Citizen / 1st place in obedience class holders / Working Trials WD Excellent winners

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In terms of confirmation we are always striving to improve the confirmation of our bitches.

Certain lines are known to produce, and certain types are known to be fairly consistent at producing particular attributes. We are not afraid to mix the different types, because these types can also be fairly consistent at producing points that are not desirable in terms of my interpretation of the breed standard, whereas another type may be known for not consistently producing this undesirable factor.

As well as the aforementioned working bloodlines we also own and use both European & current UK & ‘Old English’ show lines.

For example I am extremely lucky in that I own bloodlines that stem from too many prestigious dogs and kennels to mention. But I will try to give an extremely small summery of some of the conformational bloodlines that exist within the dogs that live within my household.

For example I currently own dogs with the following European show lines:

VA1 ZAMP VOM THERMODOS (who is also the CC & BOB winner at Crufts 08)
VA1 YASKO VOM FARBENSPIEL

VA 3 Esko Vom Danischen Hof & VA4 Mark Vom Haus Beck

I own dogs with the following UK modern show lines within their pedigrees:

Gayvilles / Videx / Mirrwood / Rafaye / Rosehurst / Peterwell / Moonwinds / Gavington / Delnat / Kutridge / Kelnik

I own dogs with the following ‘Old English’ show lines within their pedigrees:

Asoka (going back to Brittas & Vikkas) / Hendrawen / Delridge / Verdandi / Folklaw / Mirabos / Marlish / Marvid

I am also extremely lucky in that I own dogs that derive from dogs with the following conformational awards:

The Current Breed Record Holder
The Record Holder For Winning Most Best In Shows At General Championship Level
The Old Breed Record Holder
The Last GSD dog to win the group at Crufts
International & World Champions
UK Champions
Seigers
UK Breed Class Survey
JW / CC / RCC / 1st place at Champion show level / KKL1 winners

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Most people who are not into showing and breeding are not bothered about the angulations of their potential puppy’s pasterns, but they are interested in the top-line.

Because of this I will state that my perfect top-line would be a long defined withers, a short 100% horizontally level short back, a lumber region that was neither too long nor too short and that had the 1st half of it set at 0 degrees and the second half set at 11.5 degrees, and a very long croup set at 23 degrees.

The majority of my bitches do have 100% level backs & lumber regions. However in my opinion there is more to the GSD than its top-line. Thus in certain crossings I will chose dogs that have attributes that I would like to introduce into my lines, but they may have my un-preferred top-line.
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I don’t wish to own too many GSDS, especially because in my opinion each GSD needs a lot of time for loving it and working its mind and body. I already have several GSDS, and not only is there only so many hours in the day but I want my GSDS to be members of my family and not just another mouth to feed. But at the same time I adore my hobby of improving the breed so much that for the time being I do not wish to give it up.

This is especially true when you consider that not all puppies fulfil their potential, and even the best Champion-producing kennel can sometimes let their best puppy slip through their fingers.

Because of this I have come to the conclusion that unless I am trying to bring 2 developed lines together instead of keeping my pick of the litter I will instead be looking to place it in co-ownership.

Dependent upon the litter if I am still happy with the overall look of the puppy I will either just simply request the owner’s permission to show the puppy or I will request this in combination with the intention of returning to this dog and further developing my line from it (as long as it passes its health tests, etc.).

That way someone will get the opportunity to obtain a pick of the litter that they otherwise would not have been allowed to obtain, and they may even get the chance of having an opportunity of obtaining additional pride if and when their puppy wins some awards within the conformational ring. If the puppy then turns out to be good enough to consider breeding from, and the owner has a good knowledge of the breed and a desire to one day attempt to produce their own ultimate representation of the breed standard they may then also have the additional bonus of having what should hopefully be the best puppy from that litter which I have invested time and expenses into proving its merits to the world (obviously this would also be dependent upon the puppy passing its hip / elbow and if necessary haemophilia test results, etc.).

This year I have been extremely lucky in that my pick of the litter male and female have both gone into homes that have been kind enough to agree to this. Ironically when I first mentioned this idea to all of my puppy owners only one took me up on the offer, and then when the majority of them saw the male saw they kindly asked me to consider them as a co-owner. Unfortunately much to their disappointment (and to his new owner’s delight) I had already entered agreed to be the co-owner with the aforementioned person.

At the end of the day when a breeder is breeding in an attempt to improve the breed they can do so not only by attempting to produce a nice litter in the first place, but they can also do so by hopefully further developing their lines from the progeny and via showing the GSD world the results of what they have produced (which in turn can help towards the breeders own developments of their lines and maybe even in turn towards helping another breeder developing their own lines).

Until the litter is born and has developed we cannot get excited about show quality etc. Thus aside from in some circumstances in which a breeder may be having an ‘experimental litter’ (in which they are not 100% certain what attributes should come to the forefront) or unless you have already proven via commitment to either working or confirmation disciplines a reputable breeder would not aim to give you their pick of the litter unless they thought that it could had a chance of further helping towards hopefully improving the breed.

We have shown a commitment to the breed and thus we have been EXTREMELY lucky in that some top kennels have given us the honour of having a pick of their litters. It would not matter how successful I was within the GSD world. I will always treasure and be extremely grateful for each honour that every breeder gave me when it came to giving me an opportunity of having a chance of obtaining their pick of the litter. I know how much that I treasure and value my pick of my litters, and I understand the value of pups from such well though out breeding.

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We have planned a couple of litters this year, and we are hoping to retain a female from one litter and a male from the other. There is a chance that we may already have a home that wishes to go into co-ownership with the male, but nothing is set in stone yet. We also already have interest in both litters, and one home has already confirmed their commitment to it. Like the litter that we have just had we expect that it won’t take us long to find perfect forever homes for each of our beloved babies, and thus if you are interested in becoming such a home then please do not hesitate to get in contact.

Our previous litters have attracted a wide range of homes, including show homes, agility homes, obedience homes, working trials homes, Shutzhund homes, search and rescue, and pet homes. The experience of our owners ranges from first time dog owners to owners that have represented the UK in obedience and owners that have made up International Champions in a wide verity of fields, vets, etc.

If you desire a puppy that has been bred with the breed standard / temperament / confirmation / working ability in mind, that is from health tested parents, and that will have a pure platinum pedigree then don’t hesitate to get in contact. Then if we both decide that we love the sound of each other we can look at placing one of our much-loved babies in your home.