# "Is this one of those Belgian Maaooaass?"



## the.siegel (Mar 15, 2020)

[sarcastic rant]

Pictured below is Ranger, two year-old working-line GSD. I'd like you to help me to come up with a suitable answer for people that approach us and ask about the breed. I'd love to hear how you describe your working-line GSD, or explain the breed in order to keep things short and snappy and get us out of awkward conversations 

Answers to the question "Is this one of those Belgian Maaooaass?" I have tried and tested below:


"It's a working-line German Shepherd"
Usual response: "A what?" and the conversation continues... 

"It's a DDR German Shepherd; you see when Germany split into East and West, the East...blablahblah explanation for 3 minutes"
Usual response: ""

"Yes it's a Belgian, like in the movies"
Usual response: "So cool that's the next dog I'm gonna get, my brother just got one." 😫

"It's a Wolf"
Usual response: "Oh yeah I could totally tell that he's got wolf in him" 😂

"It's a German Shepherd"
Usual response: "I grew up with three of them, they were all much bigger than yours"

"It's a Czech Shepherd"
Usual response: "Ahhhh" (usually shuts the conversation down pretty quickly!)


Feel free to add suggestions 🤓

[/sarcastic rant]


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## finn'smom (Oct 4, 2019)

Finn was often mistaken for a Mal when he was younger... I always replied that he was a German Shepherd.. then they'd ask what he was mixed with.. and I'd say another German Shepherd.. Generally by then they were done with asking me questions lol and moved on. One man surprised me in the park and asked if my German Shepherd was from Dutch lines.. I did stop and have a chat with that man, once he heard that he was a mix of Czech and WGWL to the best of my knowledge.. he laughed and said "Oh shoot a serious one".

He was also called a King Shepherd one day by a man who insisted on following me down the street to explain to me all the reasons he believed that to be true lol including "he has king shepherd hips", I did make the mistake of asking what those look like and he pointed at Finn and said "Well like his"...


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## Fodder (Oct 21, 2007)

prior to finding out that mine actually is 37.5% Mal, i just said “no”


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## brittanyS (Dec 11, 2018)

So funny, I have had these same experiences. I’m not sure why people feel the need to point out their childhood German Shepherds were bigger, but they do.

I have occasionally run into people who know what a working line GSD is. It’s like being part of an exclusive, slightly crazy club.


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## Gwyllgi (Aug 16, 2017)

I've been asked of she is a Dutch Shepherd. One man asked if she is a Malinois, when I told him that she is a GSD, he then told me he is a GSD breeder 

Some one kept asking what is she crossed with, so I said the father was a German Shepherd and the mother was a Deutsche Schaferhund. Thought so, he replied

The best one was when a child told his mother that my dog was a Wolf-Bear dog 

Sent from my X2 using Tapatalk


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## NadDog24 (May 14, 2020)

I’ve only had a handful of people call Nadja a Malinois but my answer is usually “She’s a working line German shepherd, if you don’t know what that is google it” usually shuts them up


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## LuvShepherds (May 27, 2012)

Tervuren.


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## Hopps (Dec 5, 2021)

finn'smom said:


> "he has king shepherd hips",


HIPS DONT LIE SHAKIRA SHAKIRA


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## Dunkirk (May 7, 2015)

It's your Mom's chihuahua crossbreed?


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## banzai555 (Sep 2, 2019)

I get asked that with Willow ALL THE TIME because she has a malinois coloring (fawn/blonde, no saddle). I just say, "She's a German shepherd without the saddle" and I usually don't get any argument. 

But yeah yours is so much more obviously German shepherd. There do certainly seem to be people who don't realize sables exist.


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## drparker151 (Apr 10, 2020)

All black GSD

I get is that a wolf a lot, followed by I didn't know German shepherds could be black.


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## Hellish (Jul 29, 2017)

Yeah, telling people to Google it since they wont believe you anyway. "There are 5 different flavors of German Shepherds." 

I get a lot of comments about mine must be crossed with a black lab since they have never seen an all black shepherd before. And yes, that is exactly what I allow my homeowner's insurance to believe he is and what I registered him with the county as.


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## Lauren Kelly (Feb 27, 2016)

You got nothing on my dog. At least your dog's ears are up and the coat is more typical. So most people will assume its a GSD. My dog only gets strange looks and I kinda told myself to just say she is a shepherd-mix, but I forget to lie and say GSD. People have gotten argumentative about what kind of dog she is, assuming i am lying. In my mind I'm always like "you asked me what kinda dog she was...its not like I interrupted you and said in case you wondering...?". 

coincidentally recently discovered her papers which i never looked at before and she is AKC GSD.


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## Katiebob (Aug 9, 2021)

"Is that an Alsatian or a German Shepherd"

"Yes"


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## Chloé&Buck (Jul 1, 2020)

People stop to say the dog is gorgeous and ask what breed it is all the time. I usually say he's a GSD mix, thank you, and will try to get away with this.

Sometimes, people start throwing bets on what's the other breed, I most often get Picard.
I won't blame them since betting on what's in a dog mix has been one of my all time hobbies.
Some like sudoku, I like to guess about mixed breeds lol

One of the most surprising conversations I had about Buck was at the local landfill. He was in the front of the truck and I saw a guy going around it and observing the dog. He comes to me and asks about the breed. I explain he's a mix, plus I got him from a rescue organization.

And then... That guy asked if I knew where he could "buy one of these" 😂
I certainly didn't expect that.

And even after I said again he was a mix and I had no idea, he still asked about the dog's temperament, how life was with him, if he had good guarding abilities, etc.

The whole time I was a bit anxious the guy would reach his hand through the window to pet him as he was getting closer, but he didn't.


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## Chloé&Buck (Jul 1, 2020)

I never see sable GSDs around here, I've only probably met 3 in my whole life. And I grew quite fond of that colour through this forum actually 

Unfortunately, working line GSDs in general aren't common where I live, the whole working world is crowded with Belgians.

I'm not sure why they don't use GSDs more, as I feel there's huge quality in those lines, whereas the Malinois breeding has gone hectic and produced some problematic dogs in the past years.
(Not ditching Belgians, but there's a huge Malinois mania in France which doesn't do good to that breed... Our shelters are now crowded with frenzied, eye-popped and mad panting Mals, desperately waiting for someone to work them. It makes me really sad)


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## Rabidwolfie (Apr 9, 2021)

Strangely enough, I've had a few GSDs in my time and somehow never had this problem. Even had an over-sized sable once that was a rescue. No one ever saw him as anything but pure GSD.

Even now with Sutter Cain I get people constantly asking me "Hey, is that a white shepherd?" And the few times I've been asked what breed he is and replied with "White GSD." Not one person has argued with me about it or asked if he's mixed with anything..


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## Zeppy (Aug 1, 2021)

Hellish said:


> Yeah, telling people to Google it since they wont believe you anyway. "There are 5 different flavors of German Shepherds."
> 
> I get a lot of comments about mine must be crossed with a black lab since they have never seen an all black shepherd before. And yes, that is exactly what I allow my homeowner's insurance to believe he is and what I registered him with the county as.


The lab-cross thing - get this constantly! Very annoying and people act like they know better than I, the owner of the dog and CKC paperwork of a purebred GSD 🤣


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

People just want to have a conversation. Often, I don't explain. Other times I might.


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## taylor.j.bacon (12 mo ago)

the.siegel said:


> [sarcastic rant]
> 
> Pictured below is Ranger, two year-old working-line GSD. I'd like you to help me to come up with a suitable answer for people that approach us and ask about the breed. I'd love to hear how you describe your working-line GSD, or explain the breed in order to keep things short and snappy and get us out of awkward conversations
> 
> ...


Lol I've been going through the same thing the last few weeks with a mostly czech line shepherd "Nice puppy is that a malinois?". I've gone down the, well after WW2 line a few times which never seems to work, but it does bore the other person into ending the conversation. Also had a few "I had three growing up, one was 130lbs" replies. In the future I may just roll with "Yes"


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## car2ner (Apr 9, 2014)

my favorite is "what's it mixed with?" the answer: more German Shepherd


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I had a guy who thought Seger was a porcupine. Can't make that up.

Came out of a store to find his entire upper half of his body in my car window. Asked me what I had back there and when I told him a GSD he looked very confused and said "oh...I thought it was a porcupine"

Because 25" tall, 80# porcupines even exist. GET. OUT. OF. MY. CAR. RIGHT. NOW.


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## Katiebob (Aug 9, 2021)

I remembered another one!

"She's very small for an Alsatian, the ones I had were all much bigger"

Juno is 25.5" and 33kg (73.7lbs) so over breed standard. I've tried to point this out but now just give a weary "oh right" in response.

Is Alsatian a European term? Again, tried to correct people but cant be bothered. They glaze over as soon as I mention the war! 😆


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Is that a Mini Shepherd - to Faren who is 58# and 55 cm (bottom of standard but still in)

There. Is. No. Such. Thing. 

Alsation! I know that history. I have friends in Scotland who explained the history to me. People don't understand the trauma.


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## NadDog24 (May 14, 2020)

Jax08 said:


> I had a guy who thought Seger was a porcupine. Can't make that up.
> 
> Came out of a store to find his entire upper half of his body in my car window. Asked me what I had back there and when I told him a GSD he looked very confused and said "oh...I thought it was a porcupine"
> 
> Because 25" tall, 80# porcupines even exist. GET. OUT. OF. MY. CAR. RIGHT. NOW.


You have got to be kidding… a porcupine? Now I’ve heard everything


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

NadDog24 said:


> You have got to be kidding… a porcupine? Now I’ve heard everything


Seriously...can not even make that up. I'm not that creative.


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## davewis (Jan 7, 2020)

I just say somewhere along the must have been a 'hole in the hedge' somewhere along the way.


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## Verachi (Mar 22, 2021)

lol all these stories are hilarious and people are freaking weird! Glad it’s not just my dogs, sometimes I think “are my dogs really that weird looking?”

People ask me if Vera is a Malinois all the time, but she is a GSD/Malinois mix so nothing off there. She’s “small” though so I’ve gotten Border Collie mix so many times.

Chi has gotten the most stupid comments though. She’s black so I don’t know if black dogs are just confusing or what… I had a guy tell me she is definitely part Schipperke and Jack Russel Terrier. Um okay? I was like nope buddy she is 100% Chihuahua and is registered as such. He replied “she is black and has fluffier hair around her neck and butt and those are from Schipperke genes.” Before I even got to reply he just changed the subject himself and asked how I keep her so shiny. Nothing beats the woman who came up and asked if Chi was a Bulldog. I assumed she was thinking of the wrong breed.


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## misfitz616 (Jan 10, 2022)

Jax08 said:


> Is that a Mini Shepherd


I've been asked that about my Eskie 😂 To be fair, he does kind of resemble one when his tail is down.


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## Sunsilver (Apr 8, 2014)

Zeppy said:


> The lab-cross thing - get this constantly! Very annoying and people act like they know better than I, the owner of the dog and CKC paperwork of a purebred GSD 🤣


Me, too, Zeppy! Haven't had anyone argue with me (yet!) when I tell them she's a purebred GSD, though.

Not surprisingly, I did have some people think Tasha was part Husky due to her reverse mask. She also lacked the extreme angulation of the ASL dogs - one guy said to me, "Look at her, her butt's almost as high as her head!"  

Um, no, that certainly looks like GSD angulation to me...


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## Buckelke (Sep 4, 2019)

"part Sasquatch"...
when you want to be left alone.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

This is a Boxer cross. Or Pit cross. Depending on the neighborhood.









This is a Lab cross. Sometimes a Husky cross. And sometimes she was a boy.









This is a Miniature Shepherd. Sometimes she is part Sheltie. Often she is not done growing.


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## Sunsilver (Apr 8, 2014)

sabismom, where do you FIND these people?? 🤣


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

People don't generally approach a 200 pound man in the woods walking two German Shepherds off leash....
I have been aksed if Rogan is a King Shepherd. I tell them no he's not a mix but a purebred German Shepherd....


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## Hopps (Dec 5, 2021)

Jax08 said:


> I had a guy who thought Seger was a porcupine. Can't make that up.
> 
> Came out of a store to find his entire upper half of his body in my car window. Asked me what I had back there and when I told him a GSD he looked very confused and said "oh...I thought it was a porcupine"
> 
> Because 25" tall, 80# porcupines even exist. GET. OUT. OF. MY. CAR. RIGHT. NOW.


JWhy are all the weirdos drawn to Seger? Wasn't there a lady that basically whacked Seger on the head to "pet" him? And the other person at the vet office trying to sneak a pet? Thank goodness Seger is very good natured lol! Maybe you can dress him up as a porcupine for Halloween


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## davewis (Jan 7, 2020)

Buckelke said:


> "part Sasquatch"...
> when you want to be left alone.
> View attachment 586877


Looks like he has some Wooly Mammoth genes in there somewhere.

I always get a kick out of it when a giant dog is hanging out near someone's handmade quilt. Those quilts take forever to make.


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## Rabidwolfie (Apr 9, 2021)

I can no longer say this hasn't happened to me. Today at the post office some guy asked if Sutter Cain was "one of them malamutes or something".

So for the record, he asked if THIS:









Is THIS:









I can see how you'd make that mistake. /s


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## Buckelke (Sep 4, 2019)

_
Looks like he has some Wooly Mammoth genes in there somewhere._

Something. Closest his DNA could come was a tiny bit of collie. He's 4% Samoyed which is long haired but they are no wheres near as large as 133 lbs. He's also got some Portugese water dog but they're curly and not that big. He's the sweetest dog ever, just wants to be with you and petted. Not an agressive bone under all that fluff. Vet said she cannot tell if he's overweight or not because she can't tell what's dog and what's hair. But a walking magnet for lawn debris. He likes to have his face cleaned and combed and he likes to be brushed, but not the back part, just the front half. So he always looks like that photo. Never gonna be well groomed, so we settled for sasquatch. I'd post a pic of one but all their photos are very blurry. I envy all the photos of neat dogs here.


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Sunsilver said:


> sabismom, where do you FIND these people?? 🤣


I'm just a weirdo magnet.
Some guy said Sabi was a handsome boy. I said she's a girl. He said, I kid you not, Are you sure?

Some guy a few weeks ago asked what breed Shadow was. I said a German Shepherd. He asked what kind. I said the German kind. He said she was too small. Then asked what her dad was. I said male. He said that explained it.

A guy last week said Shadow had some growing to do. I said she will be 12 soon. He said they keep growing all their lives, the Germans altered the genes to make better military dogs.

A guy asked if Buds head had been surgically altered to make him meaner.


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## David Winners (Apr 30, 2012)

I used to have soldiers argue with me all the time about Fama being a GSD.










Seriously, what else could she be?

People are forever telling me about how small Valor is and their 120 pound GSD they had when they were young, or their buddies 120 pound GSD, or this one police dog they met that was 150 pounds.

Um... Sure. Have a nice day.


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## mpack (Aug 21, 2021)

Katiebob said:


> "Is that an Alsatian or a German Shepherd"
> 
> "Yes"


I was once asked if he was a pure bred German Shepherd? To which I replied "yes he is" Oh my parents had one, is he from the Alsatian line???? I said, "what a coincidence, yes he is..."


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## Baileyshuman (Apr 26, 2021)

David Winners said:


> View attachment 586914


not on topic but that is a gorgeous dog


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

Hopps said:


> *JWhy are all the weirdos drawn to Seger? *Wasn't there a lady that basically whacked Seger on the head to "pet" him? And the other person at the vet office trying to sneak a pet? Thank goodness Seger is very good natured lol! Maybe you can dress him up as a porcupine for Halloween


I have wondered that same thing so many times.


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## Zeppy (Aug 1, 2021)

The size comments are so annoying. To my 95lb male : “he’s kinda small isn’t he?” 
When did the idea of shepherds’ size change? And the general population’s obsession with “king shepherds” (whatever that even is).


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## Rosebud99 (9 mo ago)

Lauren Kelly said:


> You got nothing on my dog. At least your dog's ears are up and the coat is more typical.


I love her coloring. It's gorgeous.


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## David Winners (Apr 30, 2012)

Baileyshuman said:


> not on topic but that is a gorgeous dog


Thanks!

Here's a good pic of her.

Definitely a GSD


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

David Winners said:


> Thanks!
> 
> Here's a good pic of her.
> 
> ...


That's on o' them Mal-in-nerds for sure ...


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

According to a few people, this is a Lab.


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## davewis (Jan 7, 2020)

We often take our morning walk while the elementary school kids are waiting for the bus at various bus stops around the neighborhood. Among that crowd, Ole is known as the 'police dog who didn't go to police dog school.'

We have two other German shepherds who are retired police dogs in our neighborhood. All the little kids associate German Shepherds with police dogs. It doesn't hurt that all three are black and tan saddlebacks. Around here, that is what German Shepherds are 'supposed' to look like 

With three of us in the area, everyone knows that you don't pet 'police dogs' without asking for permission first. It is pretty awesome.


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## Amadan (9 mo ago)

[/QUOTE]


Lauren Kelly said:


> You got nothing on my dog. At least your dog's ears are up and the coat is more typical. So most people will assume its a GSD. My dog only gets strange looks and I kinda told myself to just say she is a shepherd-mix, but I forget to lie and say GSD. People have gotten argumentative about what kind of dog she is, assuming i am lying. In my mind I'm always like "you asked me what kinda dog she was...its not like I interrupted you and said in case you wondering...?".
> 
> coincidentally recently discovered her papers which i never looked at before and she is AKC GSD.


Our previous GSD, "Ripley", looked similar; his ears never peaked, and had inverse colorings.😆


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## Lauren Kelly (Feb 27, 2016)

the.siegel said:


> [sarcastic rant]
> 
> Pictured below is Ranger, two year-old working-line GSD. I'd like you to help me to come up with a suitable answer for people that approach us and ask about the breed. I'd love to hear how you describe your working-line GSD



Today is nice sunny day. I took my dog for a walk down a main street (usually i don't and only take her to private areas). As I was walking, a couple were walking towards me. The woman turned towards the man and loudly said "That's not a purebred!!" knowing that I could hear her. She said with almost disdain for me in her tone of voice. 

Again, this is the kinda stuff i deal with daily so I really just try to keep my head down and not even engage with people. I can immediately tell the skeptical faces whenever i answer other peoples questions. I may as well say she is an english bulldog considering I am going to be doubted anyway.


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## Rosebud99 (9 mo ago)

Lauren Kelly said:


> I may as well say she is an english bulldog considering I am going to be doubted anyway.


🤣


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## Fodder (Oct 21, 2007)

got a new one yesterday…
guy asked if my 55# dog was part wolf, i said no, then he followed with “oh, a _domestic hybrid_?”
no need to be fancy, lol, he’s just a mix


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## Sabis mom (Mar 20, 2014)

Sunflowers said:


> According to a few people, this is a Lab.
> View attachment 586918


Sooooo.....now I want a lab?


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## Amadan (9 mo ago)

Was walking Finn (our DDR red sable pup), in a local Rural King store, Sunday.
Was asked:

Q: "Is he a mini-shepherd"?
A: "No sir, he's 19 weeks old".

Q: "Are you sure he's a purebred?"
A: "Can you provide documentation that he's not?"

Q: "Is he a mix?"
A: "No ma'am, he's all dog."

Q; "Why is he so behaved, at so young?"
A: "He doesn't wish to emulate humans."

Q: "You know those things just eventually turn on their masters".
A: "Perhaps the masters need to be put down earlier, for safety's sake?"

(_Used to take our late Newfoundland there - you can only imagine the questions/comments about that fur mountain_)


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## Anabelle McMann (Jul 26, 2021)

My Molly pup gets all sorts of people wanting to pet her, but the majority are kids. Sometimes if we take her places there will be a kid or two just hovering a couple feet away...Then I just ask if they want to pet her. Thankfully they always ask politely before petting, never just pet without. I have gotten caught in conversation when some older person gets on a rant of there GSD or mixes. If you don't have the dog I'm not interested at all! I've also got some sHe DoEsN't LoOk LiKe A GsD. She still is, just black, longhaired and with floppy ears. I don't have anything to add to what to say to people though, I'm still learning myself


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## LuvShepherds (May 27, 2012)

Sunflowers said:


> According to a few people, this is a Lab.
> View attachment 586918


I also have a lab with ears or a Belgian Tervuren. They don’t understand German Shepherds can be black.

I met a woman in a class who insisted her 150 lb rescue was a Mal. He was so Great Dane! Calm, a little lazy. But he had big pointy ears so maybe a mix.


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## Hopps (Dec 5, 2021)

LuvShepherds said:


> I also have a lab with ears or a Belgian Tervuren. They don’t understand German Shepherds can be black.
> 
> I met a woman in a class who insisted her 150 lb rescue was a Mal. He was so Great Dane! Calm, a little lazy. But he had big pointy ears so maybe a mix.


Can you imagine having an oversized 150lbs mal? It'll probably play two ball fetch with bowling balls.


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## Rabidwolfie (Apr 9, 2021)

Hopps said:


> Can you imagine having an oversized 150lbs mal? It'll probably play two ball fetch with bowling balls.


While juggling flaming chainsaws because mals are always such over achievers at any size


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## peachygeorgia (Oct 5, 2021)

I havent gotten anyone questioning Charlie's breed yet, which I dont even know myself. I mostly reply with "Mostly GSD" and people never question further, just tell me hes pretty. Ill get around to a DNA test some day, im certain he has a tiny bit of something else in there.

As for size, I havent gotten any comments about that either, although im sure they will come, Charlie would probably be considered small at 73 pounds and 26', especially the ones used to these "120lb+ GSDs"


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## DogParentofOne (10 mo ago)

I don’t have a GSD yet, but I a have a Golden Retriever and so many people ask me if he’s a lab or if he’s a Golden mix… my pup is a field Golden, so he’s on the smaller side as well as not nearly as fluffy as the show line Goldens 🤦‍♀️ On top of that, the typical “square bone” structure we see in the majority of Goldens nowadays is actually not natural and really is just a showline thing. A lot of people don’t believe me when I say he’s a pure Golden even though he looks just like one and I have pictures of him and his family 😂


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## dojoson41 (Oct 14, 2018)

the.siegel said:


> [sarcastic rant]
> 
> Pictured below is Ranger, two year-old working-line GSD. I'd like you to help me to come up with a suitable answer for people that approach us and ask about the breed. I'd love to hear how you describe your working-line GSD, or explain the breed in order to keep things short and snappy and get us out of awkward conversations
> 
> ...


ooohhhh staring contest-I could stare at this picture all day.


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## dojoson41 (Oct 14, 2018)

Gwyllgi said:


> I've been asked of she is a Dutch Shepherd. One man asked if she is a Malinois, when I told him that she is a GSD, he then told me he is a GSD breeder
> 
> Some one kept asking what is she crossed with, so I said the father was a German Shepherd and the mother was a Deutsche Schaferhund. Thought so, he replied
> 
> ...


#2 thats just too funny


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## finn'smom (Oct 4, 2019)

When I took my Corso to puppy class, I had to chuckle at the trainer running it.. she got one look at him and says "OMG he's a real Corso!" I got the impression she had a lot of interesting looking Corsi through her class lol. That poor puppy also got us followed around at a Pet Expo by a bylaw officer telling me I needed to neuter my "Corsica" right away because there was no way I could handle a dog like that. He might have been 5months old at the time and wandering through the crowd on a loose leash like he owned the place. "Uh lady I think we're doing just fine thus far." He definitely drew more attention and questions than Finn ever has, I never thought I'd have to tell a bylaw officer that I'd take my puppy raising advice from people who didn't think he was a car.


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## ABehm (Jul 22, 2020)

the.siegel said:


> "It's a Wolf"
> 
> Usual response: "Oh yeah I could totally tell that he's got wolf in him" 😂


We took a cross country trip with my male GSD. We ended up in Rapid City, SD. There were elder Native Americans having their morning prayer at a local park we visited with him. The elders insisted my male was a wolf. An elder lady walked right up to him, I asked to not do that as my male is afraid of people. She bent down looked him right in the face and whispered to him. Stood up, patted his head, stared at me and said, "Wolf spirit." I didn't argue with her. (My dog gave no signals of being nervous or distressed.) The most bizarre experience I've ever had with someone regarding my dog.


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## drparker151 (Apr 10, 2020)

What a great experience, A true dog whisperer. She had the body language, energy and presence your dog understood and trusted.


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## goodmandog (Feb 25, 2020)

This is spot on and really funny.

I usually keep it to "She's a sable German Shepard" 

I'm a first-time GSD owner and the thing I think is funny is that I get #5 [grew up with German Shepards, they were amazing, we loved them, etc.] ALL THE TIME. BUT most do not have German Shepards now. 



the.siegel said:


> [sarcastic rant]
> 
> Pictured below is Ranger, two year-old working-line GSD. I'd like you to help me to come up with a suitable answer for people that approach us and ask about the breed. I'd love to hear how you describe your working-line GSD, or explain the breed in order to keep things short and snappy and get us out of awkward conversations
> 
> ...


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

finn'smom said:


> When I took my Corso to puppy class, I had to chuckle at the trainer running it.. she got one look at him and says "OMG he's a real Corso!" I got the impression she had a lot of interesting looking Corsi through her class lol. That poor puppy also got us followed around at a Pet Expo by a bylaw officer telling me I needed to neuter my "Corsica" right away because there was no way I could handle a dog like that. He might have been 5months old at the time and wandering through the crowd on a loose leash like he owned the place. "Uh lady I think we're doing just fine thus far." He definitely drew more attention and questions than Finn ever has, I never thought I'd have to tell a bylaw officer that *I'd take my puppy raising advice from people who didn't think he was a car.*


OK I laughed!


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## xthine (Nov 9, 2018)

Out on the trails: 

“Is your dog a mal-(3 second pause)-
amute?”
“Oh no, she’s a German Shepherd. _smiles_
“Just a German Shepherd huh?” 
 


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## RosiesPaw (8 mo ago)

It's funny how many people want to talk with us (me, wife, and Rosie) when we're out walking. I've had numerous people pull up in cars to say "that's a beautiful dog. he's a full German Shepherd?" I generally say so far "SHE is German Shepherd, Husky, Akita." The reply is generally "oh, that's going to be a big dog..."

It's a pretty rural place (farming and tourism are economic drivers) where we're at and many, many people have had working dogs of some sort, so for the most part, people have been respectful. It's the visiting/tourist families with children that are trying to get close or engage in conversation as we're on a brisk walk for training as evidenced by short leash, me talking to the puppy non-stop "goooood, leave it, gooooood, come on, goooood." Gotten real good at ignoring people these past fews. We were practicing sitting around people at a cafe on one of our first outings and EVERYONE was trying to talk to us. This one older gal, hippy farmer in her late 60s/70s says "ooh, what a beautiful shepherd. I had them for years. can I pet her?" she was cool so we obliged and man, this lady had the spirit. she started stroking Rosie's tail and laughs "my you've got that big beautiful tail." then she grabs a paw and says "what big beautiful paws you have!" I normally wouldn't want anyone doing that, other than us, but it was a sweet interaction.


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## Kiki18 (Nov 12, 2021)

Lol! This happened to me the other day a man saw Rex and said what a handsome shepherd is he one of those mauas? he didn’t even it pronounce it right.. And I said no he’s German.. lol he is bi color so that probably throws people who don’t know GSDs off though the same day a lady on her bike rode by and said he’s a beautiful German shepherd. Although he’s been called wolf so many times usually by little kids lol I just smile it’s cute. Just shows how much people who aren’t used to GSDs know lol


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## ODA564 (Jun 23, 2021)

We used to have a big fuzzy black dog (rescue mutt). People would ask what he was and I'd say "North Carolina Black Dog".

They'd nod sagely and say 'yes, I've heard of those'.


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