# What coat type is this?



## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

Hello,

Just curious what you would call a coat like this?

I've owned a few GSDs before and have other family and friends with them so am fairly familiar with the breed... but they have all been standard short coats or obvious long coats. My girl seems to kind of be a half and half. As you can see (assuming the photos show up, never uploaded photos before... apologies if I do something wrong :blush she has quite long hair, especially around the neck and shoulders... almost like a mane. Her hair length is noticeably longer than most Shepherds we spend time with. Not sure of the word for it but her ears don't have the fluffy-ness you usually see from long coats.

Both parents did well in shows as short coats. I don't know if it makes a difference but the dad is a German import; the mother an Australian bitch who looking through her lineage is mainly German lines.

I constantly get asked if she is a long coat... everyone who has ever owned a GSD feels the need to come up and tell me that they used to have one and love the breed... but theirs had shorter hair 

There are a few long coats at the dog park but they all tell me she is not a long coat... which I agree with... but it is also different to the short coats we bump into (or I have previously owned).

How should I describe her coat? A short coat with long hair :crazy:


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## qbchottu (Jul 10, 2011)

Stock coat - just has a nice full coat. She is not long coat. Looks to be carrying a couple extra pounds. Lean and mean is best for long term health.


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

qbchottu said:


> Stock coat - just has a nice full coat. She is not long coat. Looks to be carrying a couple extra pounds. Lean and mean is best for long term health.


Thanks, she is supposed to be short coat... but as I said I constantly get asked if she's long coat so I started to question it myself.

Maybe I should cut her food a bit. Since the puppy turned up her exercise levels have decreased dramatically while the treats intake has increased due to my training them both together. I was kind of keeping an eye on her but figured she still had a tuck around the waist. Thank you for mentioning it, it's always easier for an outsider to pick up on weight issues :blush:


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

Yep, definitely not a longcoat. Longcoats have telltale fuzz on their ears that sticks out. A clean, smooth ear like your dog = normal coat. She just has a very full, "plush" coat.

And I agree with cutting her food back just a bit. She doesn't need to lose much, maybe about 5 lb., going by the last photo.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

agreed - just a good coat , NOT long . Dog appears to be "wet" lots of extra skin around the neck area which accentuates the neck area making it look like a ruff. You can see this in your last picture where the neck puffs out . Look at the area under the tongue in the picture .


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

Thanks for your opinions guys, I hold more confidence in peoples thoughts here than the randoms i bump into while walking her.

Not that it really matters what she is; even if i was told she was a different breed, she would still be my little princess... but I've found it interesting just how different her coat is to any other GSD i've known. I've searched pictures of shepherds on the net and seen some that look similar so i guess she just has some different lines in her than most around here.

Oh and my pudgy little girl has been put on a diet as of today, along with an increase of exercise =D


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

She doesn't have an unusual coat, just a nice normal west german showline coat. You have to compare apples to apples - look at west german showlines, which is what your dog looks like.

There are several "varieties" if you will of german shepherds. Some lines have different coat types. West german showlines are bred for nice full looking coats.


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## Questforfire (Apr 18, 2012)

Yes definitely a standard coat but it looks quite "plush" (as has been said). She is lovely


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## Mooch (May 23, 2012)

She's gorgeous - looks very similar to my female 
Are you in Australia?


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## robinhuerta (Apr 21, 2007)

She has a very nice stock coat......


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## Mikelia (Aug 29, 2012)

I often get asked about my boys coats too. They have nice, thick, plush stock coats. A lot of the random bred gsds around here have very short, flat, harsh coats and I think it is almost a culture shock for people to see a proper gsd coat. My boys are asl lines and there are a lot of shorter coated dogs in these lines as well. I am happy my guys are so plush - although it does mean more hairs to shed lol.


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

Rerun said:


> She doesn't have an unusual coat, just a nice normal west german showline coat. You have to compare apples to apples - look at west german showlines, which is what your dog looks like.
> 
> There are several "varieties" if you will of german shepherds. Some lines have different coat types. West german showlines are bred for nice full looking coats.


 
Thank you for this, this response was exactly what I was looking for. I've had a quick look into west german show lines and am quite confident that's what she is - so next time someone asks me, at least I have an answer other than "yeah, she has got kind of long hair hasn't she".


I feel so naive... my knowledge basically covered show lines vs working lines, and long coat vs short coat (and obviously I wasn't totally clear on that either).


Before I bought her I knew the look I was after (without knowing the name), and had reseached both parents fairly extensively. I had looked at progeny of both parents and had a fairly good idea what she would look like. In fact I'd probably gone a little overboard considering I had no plans to breed from her... I had looked into what the sires titles meant i.e. V1 SchH3 (Imp Ger) Kkl 1 a Normal ED Normal HD ZW 77.. I had watched videos of him working, competing and his protection work. I read reviews from owners of his progeny. I'd even compared his stud fees to other dogs... and all that was before I had even been guaranteed a puppy from that litter.

When I met the breeders/dam and was guaranteed a pup, I did even more reseach on both parents... and after all that I still had no idea on the different lines. Colour me clueless .


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

carmspack said:


> agreed - just a good coat , NOT long . Dog appears to be "wet" lots of extra skin around the neck area which accentuates the neck area making it look like a ruff. You can see this in your last picture where the neck puffs out . Look at the area under the tongue in the picture .


She has got loads of extra skin around the neck... I had always thought it was 'growing room' but seeing as she is now about 10 months old, somehow I don't think she is going to be growing into it 




Questforfire said:


> Yes definitely a standard coat but it looks quite "plush" (as has been said). She is lovely


Thank you, she is a lovely dog... although I have never owned an animal that I didn't feel that way about, so am aware of my biased opinions :laugh:



Mooch said:


> She's gorgeous - looks very similar to my female
> Are you in Australia?


Thank you too and yes, I'm in NSW.


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

Mikelia said:


> I often get asked about my boys coats too. They have nice, thick, plush stock coats. A lot of the random bred gsds around here have very short, flat, harsh coats and I think it is almost a culture shock for people to see a proper gsd coat. My boys are asl lines and there are a lot of shorter coated dogs in these lines as well. I am happy my guys are so plush - although it does mean more hairs to shed lol.


Yep, all the GSDs around my area seem to be either very short coat, or there are a few long coats around. Mine appears to be the only inbetweener out here.

And yes, the shedding hair has been ridiculous  We've only recently gone into summer months and I have mainly floorboards and tiles in the house... I've never seen so much hair before.


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## Freestep (May 1, 2011)

Mikelia said:


> I often get asked about my boys coats too. They have nice, thick, plush stock coats. A lot of the random bred gsds around here have very short, flat, harsh coats and I think it is almost a culture shock for people to see a proper gsd coat.


I don't think the short stock coat isn't "proper", in fact, I prefer it to plush coats. Plush coats look amazing when well-groomed, but there is a lot more hair to deal with, and I like the easy care of a working-dog coat. The harsher, the better. Harder guard hairs shed water and dirt like crazy.

I don't think GSDs should have a coat like a Lab or a Doberman, though. It shouldn't lie absolutely smooth, and I have seen GSDs with that type of coat. Some of the girls look that way when coming into season, but it's only temporary.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

Dog in the original post has a nice stock coat. There are stock coats (short) and long stock coats. "Plush" is a descriptive word some people use but I've seen if have very different meanings and it's not a coat type as far as dividing dogs into show classes like stock and long stock. To me the dog in the pics has a normal stock coat, not really plush.


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

I would agree that it's not what many would consider a "proper" coat. that is not to say it's not a very nice coat and the proper coat for a WGSL dog. If we are splitting hairs (pun intended...) then technically the working line people like czech/DDR, etc would argue that their type of coat which is very short and tight typically is what the original GSD's had. Most showline dogs of any variety are not what the breed was originally structured like, coat type included.

I have always seen the term "plush" to describe the long stock coats who have shorter fur than a longer long hair. It is not an actual official coat type or term.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

Rerun, me too, usually dogs I see described as plush and think of as plush are LONG stock coats but they have a really full undercoat and not the really long, stringy long hair like some have. Falon's dog Kastle is one that I think is rather plush now that he's filled out a bit and has a nice undercoat. He is a long stock coat but just barely, but fluffy and soft. My Coke is not a GSD but also very plush, just very soft like what it feels like to hug a plush blanket or plush stuffed animal. Very thick undercoat but very soft overall (like the hairs themselves are not thick or coarse but the undercoat is very dense).

My WGSL dog Nikon has less coat than Pan (WL). I think plenty of WL dogs have really nice coats. A lot of times what I see with WGSL is not that they have more coat, or longer coat, or more plush coats but they are more "wet" and have more excess skin, if that makes sense? Like the dog in the original post.


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

Liesje said:


> Dog in the original post has a nice stock coat. There are stock coats (short) and long stock coats. "Plush" is a descriptive word some people use but I've seen if have very different meanings and it's not a coat type as far as dividing dogs into show classes like stock and long stock. To me the dog in the pics has a normal stock coat, not really plush.


See this is where I get confused... if she has a stock coat, then what do you call the shorter hair variety?

You have mentioned stock coat (short), but that seems to be the more standard/common coat type (at least where I live), so wouldn't this be considered stock? My dogs hair is longer than these dogs... or is it just a case that the term 'stock' covers everything from short to fairly long?

I realise that these varieties probably make no difference as far as categories in shows etc. but is there is a set of descriptive terms that are usually used?


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## Rerun (Feb 27, 2006)

There are stock coats and long stock coats. That's it. If the dog isn't a long stock coat, it's a stock coat. There is no other term, official or otherwise, to describe it. Plush is really the only other (unofficial) term to describe GSD coats, and it applies to long stock coats.

Your dog has a perfectly normal/standard (per your words  ) coat. It's not unusual. It may be unusual where you live and the type you are used to seeing, but spend some time here and you'll see it's not unusual. It's how WGSL dogs are supposed to look.


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## qbchottu (Jul 10, 2011)

Here are some stock coats with a shorter or a "tight" coat:
Uran









working line girl 









full coats:
Omen 









Nutella - pint sized powerhouse puffball 









Waiko full coat









my female Wiva has been called "plush" and full coated stock coat:


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## qbchottu (Jul 10, 2011)

Qita shorter long coat









Buffalo bill working line LC









long coat WGSL female


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

Rerun said:


> There are stock coats and long stock coats. That's it. If the dog isn't a long stock coat, it's a stock coat. There is no other term, official or otherwise, to describe it. Plush is really the only other (unofficial) term to describe GSD coats, and it applies to long stock coats.


Well that clears it up. Thank you for giving a clear, concise answer to my rambling question 




Rerun said:


> Your dog has a perfectly normal/standard (per your words  ) coat. It's not unusual. It may be unusual where you live and the type you are used to seeing, but spend some time here and you'll see it's not unusual. It's how WGSL dogs are supposed to look.


I think it really could just be that I am not used to seeing WGSL dogs around here so figured that there must be some kind of description for it... with the number of questions I get about her, I am certainly not alone.

And no offense meant (or taken) with the normal/standard comment... I am not up on the breed lingo so for want of a better term tend to use more layman's terms


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

qbchottu said:


> full coats:
> Omen
> 
> 
> ...


 
Gee that Omen is a beautiful dog. I'm hoping my male turns out something like him.

Wiva is a beautiful dog. My parents female has a very similar face to her.


I guess your posts go to show that there are some major differences in dogs that are all considered 'stock' coats. I have some major learing to do


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## qbchottu (Jul 10, 2011)

Thank you! - if your boy does grow up to look like Omen, you would be a very rich owner 

There can be different ranges in each type. There are some really really full stock coated GSDs - can have almost a long coat type length. My trainer has a funny story where a judge actually told him when he was showing a very full coated stock coat that if he (judge) didn't know my breeder as well as he did, judge would have had him test the bitch for long coat - that's how full the coat was!. In hotter climates, that can also have an influence on how full the coat is. When we are getting ready for a show, I put Wiva in the basement with the AC very cold to get coat on her. When we prepare for a show in the winter months, I stick her outside as much as I can so she can put on a heavy coat. Females going into heat, after whelping etc can blow coat very badly and look almost bald. Stress, travel, weather changes do it too. 

By definition: stock coat GSD means normal coat with undercoat. 
long stock coat is longer outer coat with undercoat
long hair is long outer coat with NO undercoat. 

United Schutzhund Clubs of America - Breed Standard
*correct coat: The correct coat for the German Shepherd is a stock coat (outer and under coat). The top coat should be as tight as possible, straight, coarse, and clinging closely to the undercoat. The head, including the inside of the ears, the front of the legs, the paws, and toes have short hair. Neck hair is longer and thicker. On the rear side of the legs, hair length increases downward to the pastern and hock. The rear of the thighs is covered show moderate "pants".
*Long stock coat (long, soft loosely fitting outer coat with undercoat, flags on ears and legs, bushy pants and bushy tail with flag on underside)
*Long coat (long, soft outer coat without undercoat). This coat type frequently is parted along the center line of the back, has flags on ears, legs, and tail.


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## Ziltoid (Dec 16, 2012)

qbchottu said:


> Thank you! - if your boy does grow up to look like Omen, you would be a very rich owner


Oh, I'm not expecting him to be quite at that level... but if he has some similar characteristics, I'll be happy. I love the strong/powerful head and build some of the males like that have.

I've heard the figures spent on importing my females sire and the amounts recouped so far... and lets just say I was a bit shocked. It's a much bigger business money wise than I ever expected.



qbchottu said:


> There can be different ranges in each type. There are some really really full stock coated GSDs - can have almost a long coat type length. My trainer has a funny story where a judge actually told him when he was showing a very full coated stock coat that if he (judge) didn't know my breeder as well as he did, judge would have had him test the bitch for long coat - that's how full the coat was!. In hotter climates, that can also have an influence on how full the coat is. When we are getting ready for a show, I put Wiva in the basement with the AC very cold to get coat on her. When we prepare for a show in the winter months, I stick her outside as much as I can so she can put on a heavy coat. Females going into heat, after whelping etc can blow coat very badly and look almost bald. Stress, travel, weather changes do it too.
> 
> By definition: stock coat GSD means normal coat with undercoat.
> long stock coat is longer outer coat with undercoat
> ...


Thanks for the information


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