# Opinions on breeding my male GSD



## KaiserRodriguez

My 8 month old GSD comes from some beautiful breeding. Some champion show lines. I would like to breed him at least once. I would like to get some opinions as to whether or not this would be a good idea. Not all dogs need to be bred, only the best representations of the breed should and I want to see if he stands up to those standards. His mother and father are both hip and elbowe certified. Maternal grandfather is Croatian Sieger champion, Ben Vom Bonihaus, the breeder who owns him also used to own the grandmother Isabelle. Currently owns his sister as well. If anyone wants to take a look at his mom and dad's pedigree and tell me what you think. I don't have Kaiser's pedigree on my computer yet. Also I posted a pic of Kaiser and some of his ancestors.


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## Fodder

in the same way that I doubt you'd let me operate on you based on my grandfather being a successful surgeon.... I think you should let your boy mature, physically and mentally, train him, title him, clear him medically, allow him to show and prove his worth then ask yourself this question in a couple years. right now all he has is a pedigree.


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## KaiserRodriguez

Absolutely, I didn't mean to imply that I was considering breeding him NOW. If we do it obviously wouldn't be for quite awhile.


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## Fodder

I didn't think you were intending to breed him now, I'm just saying a lot can be reveled in the next 2 years that may answer the question for you... but if that is a direction you're considering then there are a lot of things that you should be doing NOW to prepare him for that. training, showing, working, testing.


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## lhczth

Just remember that if you want to draw a good quality female to him for breeding then you will need to prove he is as good or better than all of the other males out there. Breeders with good quality females will be looking for titled, health tested and proven males.


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## KaiserRodriguez

Thanks to everyone for responding. I dont think I will be breeding my pup, after having researched the topic more. My next question would be about neutering him, would it be okay to leave him unaltered, or is it necessary to neuter him at some point? I wouldnt feel comfortable doing it until he is at least 1 year old. I dont want to disrupt his development.


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## yuriy

KaiserRodriguez said:


> Thanks to everyone for responding. I dont think I will be breeding my pup, after having researched the topic more. My next question would be about neutering him, would it be okay to leave him unaltered, or is it necessary to neuter him at some point? I wouldnt feel comfortable doing it until he is at least 1 year old. I dont want to disrupt his development.


Thank you for choosing to not add another unnecessary litter to the world.

I would wait until he's around 2-3 years old (ie. fully grown/mature) before the neuter. It's certainly 'okay' to do so, just keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't accidentally impregnate another dog.

If you plan on needing dog boarding at any time, keep in mind that many (not all) places require the dog to be altered, so think ahead.


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## KaiserRodriguez

yuriy said:


> Thank you for choosing to not add another unnecessary litter to the world.
> 
> I would wait until he's around 2-3 years old (ie. fully grown/mature) before the neuter. It's certainly 'okay' to do so, just keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't accidentally impregnate another dog.
> 
> If you plan on needing dog boarding at any time, keep in mind that many (not all) places require the dog to be altered, so think ahead.


Its like I said on another thread, there so many reputable breeders already out there that have years accumulation of knowledge for breeding and it really is a full time job, it's best to leave the breeding to them. I'm perfectly okay with that, I don't have to breed my dog, I'm okay with just spending as much time with him as I can while I have him. I know several other German Shepherd owners in my city who are planning on breeding their dogs, simply based on the fact that they're cute puppies. Can you imagine if every single person with a cute puppy bred their dog, well I guess that's why there's an overpopulation and so many unwanted dogs in the shelters. It really is heartbreaking to think of any of my dogs puppies going to a home that no longer takes care of them and then ending up in a shelter. No thank you!


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## onyx'girl

KaiserRodriguez said:


> Thanks to everyone for responding. I dont think I will be breeding my pup, after having researched the topic more. My next question would be about neutering him, would it be okay to leave him unaltered, or is it necessary to neuter him at some point? I wouldnt feel comfortable doing it until he is at least 1 year old. I dont want to disrupt his development.


I see no reason to neuter him, unless you let him roam and cannot control him reproducing. My males are intact, I plan to keep them that way unless something medically gives me a reason to neuter.


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## cdwoodcox

Everything I have read says that neutering has no impact on development. I'll be having my pup neutered next week simply because he is now just six months and already starting to hump everything


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## Saphire

cdwoodcox said:


> Everything I have read says that neutering has no impact on development. I'll be having my pup neutered next week simply because he is now just six months and already starting to hump everything


There is alot of research showing early neuter does have developmental consequences. To each their own, it's a personal decision we each make for our dogs, just important to get ALL the information possible.

Neutering may have zero impact on your dog's humping behaviour so don't be surprised if it continues. That's easily corrected without neutering, FYI. .. many females hump.


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## Nigel

cdwoodcox said:


> Everything I have read says that neutering has no impact on development. I'll be having my pup neutered next week simply because he is now just six months and already starting to hump everything


There's plenty of info that says otherwise. The body is a complete system with no unecessary parts. I have no problem with spay/neuter, I spayed my females at 6 months, knowing what I know now I wish I had waited until maturity.


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## yuriy

Nigel said:


> There's plenty of info that says otherwise. The body is a complete system with no unecessary parts. I have no problem with spay/neuter, I spayed my females at 6 months, knowing what I know now I wish I had waited until maturity.


I'm in exactly the same boat, with the same 6-month spay.

A little detail my vet neglected to mention until it became an issue: about 8% of spayed female dogs develop urinary incontinence (essentially dripping/leaking urine without any control over it). It's easily treated with cheap meds, but does require a blood test every 6-8 months to keep an eye on the white cell count (which may increase due to the meds and result in serious problems). 

The more you know...


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## Stevenzachsmom

Both of my current dogs came from shelters. They were spayed/neutered EARLY! Because SHELTERS.

My male (hound mix) was 12 weeks when he was neutered. My female (shepherd) was 7 weeks when she was spayed. I would have opted for 6 months, but the choice wasn't mine.  They are none the worse for wear. I don't expect any problems.

As for spay incontinence - Every bitch I have ever owned was spayed. My Annie was spayed and re-spayed, after the shelter messed up. None of my girls ever had spay incontinence.


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## MythicMut

A good alternative to neutering is a canine vasectomy. This will leave your dog and his hormones intact, not interfering with his natural hormonal development.


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## middleofnowhere

cdwoodcox said:


> Everything I have read says that neutering has no impact on development. I'll be having my pup neutered next week simply because he is now just six months and already starting to hump everything


I think you need to review your reading list and add to it. You missed some up to date information. Neutering early (before 2 yo) does impact development. The dog will be taller, thinner - genrally lankier. There's also info about skeletan development that says neutering may = problems. And info that says neutering = propensity to some forms of cancer. 

I would hold off until the dog was at least two before I removed those items from his anatomy.


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## Sabis mom

Saphire said:


> There is alot of research showing early neuter does have developmental consequences. To each their own, it's a personal decision we each make for our dogs, just important to get ALL the information possible.
> 
> Neutering may have zero impact on your dog's humping behaviour so don't be surprised if it continues. That's easily corrected without neutering, FYI. .. *many females hump*.


 I second that. None of my male dogs humped anything, most of my females have.

I own a 13 year old intact male, never had any issues with him and he has shared my home with any number of intact males and females over the years. Certainly won't be neutering him now.


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## Blitzkrieg1

Id breed the dog and neuter the pup , both great ideas.


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## cdwoodcox

I will discuss it with my vet today. I thought it was pretty cut and dry. 6 months was the best time to neuter. Neutering before they started spraying everything, and no negative effects.


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## Saphire

cdwoodcox said:


> I will discuss it with my vet today. I thought it was pretty cut and dry. 6 months was the best time to neuter. Neutering before they started spraying everything, and no negative effects.


Dogs don't spray, you have confused with cats.


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## onyx'girl

cdwoodcox said:


> I will discuss it with my vet today. I thought it was pretty cut and dry. 6 months was the best time to neuter. Neutering before they started spraying everything, and no negative effects.


Your vet will push for neuter. My own vet(and the techs) constantly brought it up with my puppy. I let them know each time he was staying intact. It is routine for pets to be S/N and the earlier the vet can do it, the better for them. 
"Spraying" you mean marking, and that is a training issue, has nothing to do with whether or not the dog is intact.


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## cdwoodcox

Vet told me that he doesn't neuter his own dogs until 18 months. So I decided to leave Rosko intact. seemed a lot more concerned with lyme prevention.


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