Update! Tell me about your GSD!

Most protective dog ever.

The shedding is insane. You will encounter people who are terrified of them. You may want to consider if you'll have homeowner's insurance issues. We once rec'd a request from our homeowner's requesting we identify if we owned any of the following breeds: Rottweiler, Doberman, GSD, "pit bull" of any stripe, etc. At the time we did have a GSD and I kept my fingers crossed and never returned the form. We never received a second request. This was 2002-2003. We lost our boy in 2004 so it was a moot point after that.

They can have significant allergy issues. We switched to a raw food diet with our GSD that cleared up his skin allergies.

Still, the short two years we had our beloved GSD, Max, were wonderful. He was a lovely boy who was devoted to me. He was the perfect hiking partner.

Ha! Our GSD would defend us to the death from squirrels, but other people? Those are just more potential ball-throwers in his mind! FWIW, though, the 8 lb. cat totally bosses the 90 lb. dog in our house, so maybe that's how your situation will turn out too, OP.

I still would never mess with you/family. I saw a fun playful baby of dog smash through a glass door to defend a child who was getting a spanking from his dad.

German shepards are to be respected. A more loyal dog you not find.

We have two Samoyeds and one German Shepherd Dog. They are nothing alike

Our Samoyeds have always been pretty lazy (throw rugs), laid back and fairly stubborn when it came to training and/or focus. We applied to get a GSD through our state GSD rescue because dh has always wanted one. They denied us because we did not have prior GSD experience. I didn't understand that at the time since we'd had dogs for almost 10 yrs. After getting our GSD I did understand the difference between general dog ownership knowledge and ownership specific to GSDs

Our GSD is 4 and a lovely girl. She has been our 17 yr olds 4-H dog. When we got her as a puppy we were told she was the dominate puppy in the litter. That didn't really mean much to us at the time. Remember we came from Samoyeds that love everyone and are more likely to lick you to death   We were lucky that that first year we had her we had a wonderful obedience trainer that volunteered with our 4-H club. 

Like many GSDs, Nita had dog fear aggression and would lash out to other dogs. We worked really hard to overcome that. Our trainer passed away just after Nita turned 1 and that year was very hard on Nita and us without her knowledge and support. We were able to get her over her fear aggression and her tendency to guard me and our dd.

GSD puppies are known as land sharks because they are very mouthy. They like to nip and put everything in their mouths. We were constantly putting a toy in her mouth. She learned to grab a toy herself every time she got excited

They are also very smart, which is great for training, but that also means they get bored quickly. So our rule has been to keep her both mentally and physically stimulated to keep her out of trouble. We worked on obedience (sits and downs heeling, etc) for her mental state and then also did a lot of physical things with her like throwing the ball, agility, dd would jog with her. 

GSDs are a lot of work but very worth it. I wouldn't trade Nita in for anything, but at the same time, I would still rather get another Samoyed for myself.

Before the last and current PITA, I mean Aussies, (I love him, really. He's just like a third child who never grows up!) we had 2 German Shepherds. They were brothers and in their prime were both over 100 lbs but big babies. I think a lot is how they are raised, as with any dogs. Never bothered anyone. (except each other- they acted just like brothers!)  The bigger one did stop a friend from entering the house once when we didn't hear him knock. The dog didn't jump or bite but just slowly and gently pushed his hand away from the doorknob. Friend said "yeah, Shadow, you're right, I'll wait."

They do shed a lot. When I brushed them both in yard at one time it was unreal how much fur came off of them and I didn't think it could get any worse.  Then I got the brilliant idea to get Aussies next. Smooth move, Aussies are even worse.  Hair, hair, hair has been in my whole adult life.  I'm smart like that.

Some people fear German Shepherds just because of their size but I find the little dogs are more aggressive because of their size. The big guys don't have to be because, well, they're big.

A few pictures of Nita because she really is a good girl

Oh, that poor baby! Glad he is doing well and getting a forever home. He looks so sweet. Good luck this weekend!

I missed the original thread, but I'm loving the update! Congratulations on the new addition to the family, and thank you for rescuing!

Oh my heart aches for him that he was attacked like that. So thankful he will be in a great place now. Precious pup!

He's precious!   Congratulations!