# American vs Import



## stick75 (Jan 6, 2008)

I heard that American lines are "calm" and Import lines are "hyper" Is there any truth to this?


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

No? Those are pretty darn general terms....


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## Chris Wild (Dec 14, 2001)

Um, no. No truth to it. There are "calm" and "hyper" dogs in all the types; American, German show, German working, DDR, Czech.... It comes down to the individual dogs, their specific bloodline, and what the breeder is breeding for.

Also, just want to mention since you'll no doubt hear this too, a dog that has drive does not mean it's hyper either.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: Chris Wild
> 
> Also, just want to mention since you'll no doubt hear this too, a dog that has drive does not mean it's hyper either.


Haha, I was going to post this before I read your whole post! Kenya is perfectly calm in the house, not really anything I can think of that I'd want to improve on her manners, but when she is training, doing her off-lead runs, playing with Coke, running the agility course....there's no stopping her or toning her down!


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

i have a German import. he's six months old and he's pretty calm. this is my first import. i've had three American bred. one of my American bred was a little more active than the rest. some of that hyper stuff might have something to do with how you raise them. which do you have or are you thinking about which one to get????? i picked an import this time because i fell in love with the Black&Reds and i found that color to be prevalent in the imports.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

what' the DDR????


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## Chris Wild (Dec 14, 2001)

DDR = East German


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## Kuklasmom (May 13, 2005)

DDR is an abbreviation that stands for Deutsche Demokratische Republik, commonly known in English as East Germany, a country that existed from 1949 until Germany was reunified in 1990.

I hope those forum members who are more knowledgeable about history--and whose German is better than mine!--will please correct my spelling and any factual errors.

Thanks, in advance, for your help!


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

thanks.


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## doggiedad (Dec 2, 2007)

thanks.


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## caligirl07 (Sep 21, 2007)

DDR was used long time ago. But you are righ about the history.


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## Andaka (Jun 29, 2003)

> Quote: Um, no. No truth to it. There are "calm" and "hyper" dogs in all the types; American, German show, German working, DDR, Czech.... It comes down to the individual dogs, their specific bloodline, and what the breeder is breeding for.
> 
> Also, just want to mention since you'll no doubt hear this too, a dog that has drive does not mean it's hyper either.


And you will find different level of drive in all of the lines as well. My American Show Lines have good drives and steady nerves, and will GO...GO...GO when training or showing, but also make good therapy dogs and service dogs.

You just have to look around, find the style of dogs you like, find a breeder you trust, and then let them choose the best fit for you.


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## chruby (Sep 21, 2005)

I'm going to go out on a limb here and "generalize" about what I have seen at my local AKC club as far as American vs. German lines. The American lines tend to be less drivey and quite a bit slower in both obedience and agility. Since they are not as high drive, they are not as motivated by balls/tugs and the general enthusiasm to work is not the same as I see in the German lines. These are just my observations but I am active in a couple of AKC clubs in a large metro area so I do see quite an array of dogs. 

I suggest you go observe GSD's at a local AKC club and SchH club. There is a very wide range of temperaments/drive levels and it would certainly be worth your while to decide exactly what your goals are with your prospective dog and then do your research. Trust me, time well spent.










I have 2 W. German dogs and as long as they get a reasonable amount of exercise, they are calm house dogs. But remember, GSD's are bred to work so if you want a super calm dog perhaps you should consider a different breed such as a Golden.


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## Chris Wild (Dec 14, 2001)

> Originally Posted By: KuklasmomDDR is an abbreviation that stands for Deutsche Demokratische Republik, commonly known in English as East Germany, a country that existed from 1949 until Germany was reunified in 1990.


Correct.

And during that 40+ years of isolation from most of the rest of the world, and the restricted gene pool of dogs being bred due to that isolation, the East German dogs took on a unique physical look and temperament, different from the other types. Hence why the DDR bloodline is considered a separate subset of working lines, as they're a bit different. There are still many pure DDR dogs, and also many breeders who have crossed DDR bloodlines into their western European lines.


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