How To Weigh Your German Shepherd Puppy
Weighing your German Shepherd is essential because it helps you to monitor their weight and ensure that they are in the right German Shepherd weight category for their age.
Generally, you should weigh your puppy once a year but weighing them twice per year will help you find any potential health issues at an early age.
However, if your puppy has a serious health condition, consider weighing them more frequently with the help of your vet.
You can use your bathroom scale to weigh your puppy. Ensure that the weighing machine reads zero and is placed on a hard, flat surface. First, weigh yourself and write down your weight. Then, pick up your German Shepherd puppy, step on the scale and record the weight.
To determine the weight of your puppy, subtract your weight from the combined weight of your puppy and you.
Overview: A Few Fun Facts About The German Shepherd
Developed by Captain Max Von Stephanitz, German Shepherds were originally meant to be herding dogs before being appropriated as militants.
Their loyalty and trainability have ensured them a top spot on the American Kennel Clubs list of most popular breeds.
Despite their popularity, many dog lovers dont know that there are five different types of German Shepherds:
The Alsatian also comes in different shades, and the classic Black and Tan isnt the most common color! To find out what it is, head over to the full article on all German Shepherd colors.
To 2 Weeks Old German Shepherd
A GSD puppy at this age needs its mother. They can rarely survive without her because she will provide nutrition, help them defecate, and keep them warm.
Those that breed dogs know that its best to leave the dam to it and support her with quality sustenance. It is also crucial to keep the whelping box clean.
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How To Tell If Your Dog Is Overweight
The Alsatian has a naturally trim shape, featuring a deep rib cage and a pronounced taper to the waist. This defined shape will start to disappear if your dog is overweight. If you press gently through their coat, you should be able to feel your dogs ribs. If the ribs jut out, they may be underweight. If you cant feel them at all, they may be overweight. If you notice your dog panting regularly, this can be another sign that they are out of shape.
German Shepherd Personality Differences
With their family, the German Shepherd Dog is silly, playful and lively. This breed is known to stick closely to their person, which can turn into possessiveness if not corrected early.
Having different family members use positive training and taking turns working with your dog can help prevent this issue.
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What Kinds Of Red Rocket Discharge Should I Worry About
If your GSD looks ill, acts aloof, or licks itself more often than usual, you may want to consider booking an appointment to the vet. As mentioned earlier, yellow-white or greenish-white fluid discharge is normal but large amounts of it, pus-colored or bloody discharge, are huge warning signs.
Pus-colored or bloody discharge may be signs that your German Shepherd red rocket is infected, suffering some form of traumatic injury, exhibiting symptoms of a blood-related disorder or cancer, so meet with your vet as soon as possible if you notice this.
Remove All Items Your Current Dog Feels Territorial About And Supervise All Interactions
You definitely want to create a neutral area inside the home. Because of the great difference in size, supervise all interactions until you are sure it is safe to do otherwise.
By learning everything you can about each dog breed and going slow with your introductions, you will have the best chance to see your German Shepherd and Yorkie get along.
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Are Male Or Female German Shepherds Better
I often get asked whether there are personality differences between males and females? In short, the answer is yes! But how do you decide which one is better?
To determine whether a male or female German Shepherd is better depends on your purpose for the dog, knowledge, experience, and lifestyle, such as whether you have children or other pets. Although there are some personality differences, either sex can make a great pet as long as you socialize and train them well.
An important factor to consider, as mentioned above, is your experience as a dog owner. Although German Shepherds are good first dogs, females are generally recommended as better pets if you have never owned a dog before.
But why is this?
Is It Good To Neuter A German Shepherd
Health Benefits of Neutering: Apart from preventing testicular tumors and cancer, neutering your German Shepherd would also prevent prostate problems as he ages. Neutering is also believed to reduce the risk of diabetes as well as perianal fistulas, a medical condition thats relatively common among German Shepherds.
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Final Thoughts On The Best Age To Neuter A German Shepherd
It would be best if you neutered your German shepherd when its done with the growth phase from 18 to 24 months. Its at this age all the growth is coming to a halt. If done early, you risk predisposing your dog to a host of health issues. Again, when choosing whether to neuter your German shepherd, consider discussing it with the veterinarian.
*CCL- Cranial Cruciate Ligament
How Big Will My German Shepherd Get
German Shepherds are considered a medium-to-large-sized breed. This means they often fall around the line that separates medium-sized dogs from large-sized dogs. The AKC wants males stand at 24-26 inches and weigh 66-88 pounds, making them considerably larger than females in some cases. Females stand at 22-24 inches and weigh around 49-71 pounds.
As you can see, this is a huge range. There is a significant difference between a 49-pound dog and an 88-pound dog. Therefore, how big your particular dog might get depends largely on their genetics. You can often get somewhat of an idea by looking at both of their parents. Typically, if the parents are smaller, their puppies will be as well and visa versa.
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German Shepherd Mix Size
If you are fun of mixed dogs, then perhaps you should read this. Having a crossbreed of a German shepherd as a pet is lovely besides having a less susceptible dog to illness.
Similar to other breeds, every mix carries the genes of the more assertive parent. Below are the various breed mixes of the German shepherd and their sizes.
Other Neonatal Physical And Behavioral Developments
When your German Shepherd puppy is born, it is not as well developed as a human baby. Puppies are only in the womb for about nine weeks, and at birth, their brains are not fully developed, and their eyelids and ear canals are sealed to protect the still-developing structures of sight and hearing.
German Shepherd puppies are extremely helpless in the neonatal stage. They are toothless and unable to regulate their body temperature. They even require help to urinate and excrete fecal matter.
Puppies rely heavily on their sense of smell to locate their mother, who devotedly provides all they need: milk, warmth, and comfort.
German Shepherd mothers even have to stimulate urination and excretion by licking their puppies bottoms.
Over the first week, the puppies will begin to crawl, and 10-14 days after birth, German Shepherd puppies eyes and ears open.
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Whats The Life Expectancy Of German Shepherds
An average healthy German shepherd enjoys a long life of up to 9 13 years. That being said, some may surprise by outliving their standard life expectancy.
German Shepherds have a slow growth rate that starts to decline when they reach their adulthood. As they grow older, their height increases, but once they are fully mature , they stop growing altogether.
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Other Socialization Period Physical And Behavioral Developments
This is a crucial period for German Shepherd puppies. Their history as herders means that they are not naturally very sociable dogs and can develop behavioral issues if not taught how to interact with humans, other dogs, and other pets.
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During the socialization period, German Shepherd puppies should stay with their mothers and littermates to learn dog manners and social cues.
You can start to supplement their milk diet with soft foods, but dont change them over completely. This supplementation is also helpful for the mothers because the German Shepherd puppies now have all of their needle-sharp teeth!
You can start house-breaking a German Shepherd puppy at around 7 weeks of age, but dont expect them to master it immediately they are still very young. You can also start some basic training at 9-12 weeks.
In the middle of the socialization period, around 6-9 weeks of age, German Shepherd puppies go through a fearful stage. You should help them overcome this through positive reinforcement and encouragement. This stage is perfectly normal for dogs, so do not worry, but be patient with them.
Another great milestone towards the end of the socialization period is that your German Shepherds ears should start to stand up.
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Finding A German Shepherd Breeder
The first step is to do your research. Sadly, there are many puppy mills posing as reputable breeders along with many online scams. Be aware, and reach out to different online forums for conversations about getting your future furry family member.
Be sure to ask questions, make arrangements to meet the parent dogs or mother, and follow your gut. If something seems wrong at a breeder you visit, or the German shepherd puppy seems too good to be true, theres likely something going on. The AKC also offers resources for finding a breeder, with fairly strict guidelines on who they let participate.
Most Common German Shepherd Behavioral Problems
Before we dive into the most common behavioral problems associated with German shepherds, I think its important to look at where the breed has actually come from.
Over the last century, German shepherds have been used for tracking, search and rescueespecially for the police and protection and guarding. So, its no surprise that a lot of the issues are in this exact area.
They have been intentionally bred for traits such as fierce loyalty, intelligence, and strength.
This leads to one of the first common problems for German shepherds, which revolves around aggression and the need to protect. Its very possible that an untrained German shepherd would be likely to bark or lunge at other dogs or people, especially on his own property.
Its not at all that this type of dog is being mean or nasty. In fact, from the dogs point of view, he believes hes just doing his job of protecting his family or territory.
Its a very, very common problem, and, at the end of the day, it is what the German shepherd has been bred to do a lot of the time.
The good newsthis behavior can be untrained. Or even better yet, if youre working with a German shepherd puppy or a young German shepherd, you can easily avoid this behavioral problem. And in case you are wondering, this does not automatically mean, that if you ever really do need help, that they wont rise to the occasion!
Once again, with some basic training and a good sturdy harness, this behavior can be easily prevented.
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Average Female German Shepherd Height And Weight
An average female weighs between 48 and 70 pounds, or 22 and 32 kilogramsa little less than the average male. At the shoulder, the average female German Shepherd is 22 to 24 inches, or 55 to 60 centimeters tall.
While your dog might appear to be fully grown at one-year-old, the truth is that he or she will still be an adolescent dog at this point, and you might start to experience behavioral problems that you never saw when your dog was a puppy. Dont let your dogs size fool youat a year old, they are still fairly young and need discipline and structure in order to grow into well-adjusted adult dogs.
Six Months Old Sexual Maturity
A puppy reaches sexual maturity at around six months old, meaning that all of their sex organs are fully developed despite their skeleton still growing. Physically, your female dog is able to become pregnant and have puppies at this stage of their development. Therefore, six months is usually the period where owners begin to consider spaying their dogs to prevent unwanted pregnancies. Your dogs ears should also stand on their own by now.
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What Are Normal Kinds Of Gsd Red Rocket Discharge
A small amount of fluid a few drops is normal to find on the tip of your GSDs penis. More importantly, the fluid can be yellow-white or even greenish-white. This is smegma and is a sign that your GSDs red rocket is healthy your GSD may even use its tongue to clean itself of this discharge every couple of hours or so.
How To Spot A Black Shepherd
If you ever came face to face with a Black Shepherd, your initial instinct might be to run away since they look like a wolf. Dont fret theres more to love than to fear from this canines majestic features.
The Black German Shepherd has a chiseled face and long muzzle. Perched on their rounded forehead are their semi-pointed and erect ears.
Some German Shepherds aged 16- to 20-weeks old have floppy ears. But once the cartilage hardens, their ear will become stiff and upright.
These dogs have dark almond-shaped eyes which match their black nose.
They have a muscular body with sturdy and thick legs. The Black German Shepherd has a straight back which ends with a bushy tail. Sometimes they tend to have a straighter back than the regular one.
The Black Shepherd has a medium-length double coat a dense and straight outer layer with a soft undercoat.
These dogs may get long hair, which is a bit wavy and fluffy. Usually, they have a longer or straighter coat than the standard German Shepherd.
But no matter the length of their coat, this canine has one primary color, black.
For a German Shepherd to become black, both of his parents must have a recessive gene for a black coat. A more sure way of producing this rare canine is breeding two Black Shepherds.
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Whats The Average Adult German Shepherd Weight
The average weight of German shepherds varies by gender. Males usually end up weighing 66 88 pounds while females 48 to 70 pounds. This is the ideal weight that adult German shepherds should have. In case a German shepherd is not gaining weight, they may show signs, such as loss of appetite, lethargy, dull fur, loss of muscle mass, etc.
German Shepherd Body Condition Score
Body Condition Score is the equivalent of Body Mass Index in humans. It is a subjective rating that standardizes the weight level of animals to help create an exercise plan and diet that suits your puppys activity level, body, and lifestyle.
Body Condition Scale range from 1-9 or 1-5. The ideal BCS for your German Shepherd puppy should be 3/5 or 5/9. This is where the ribs, pelvic bones, and backbone have a very thin layer of fat and is easily palpable.
The tummy tuck should be seen from the side and the waistline should also be visible behind the ribs when seen from above.
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What Are The Benefits Of Spaying
Most dogs not only German shepherds become more affectionate after this process they are often friendly to other animals and even untrained stop spitting urine around the house.
Because spayed pets remove their ovaries and uterus, these organs are not subject to cancer or other diseases.
Of course, spayed dogs cannot get pregnant, which could be a comfortable option for new pet owners who do not wish to have puppies.
This will reduce the population of dogs, making the shelter more likely to adopt pets and find loving homes.
To 4 Months Old German Shepherd
Considered the juvenile period, you can expect GSD puppies to be boisterous and more inquisitive. If they are still with their littermates at this point, they will begin asserting their position in the pack.
As most dogs will have gone to their new homes at this age, expect some nipping to establish their role in the family and because they will start teething at this age.
Ensure you give them some age-appropriate chew toys and teethers to keep them from chewing shoes and furniture.
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