I've had German shepherds since 1988, and before that grew up with a GSD mix. I absolutely love the breed.
Now I have two - the oldest is Trick, a Hawks Hunt's bitch (Suzanne Clothier lines) who is German lines on her father's side (AKC/CKC UD TDX) and mixed German and American performance lines on her mother's side. She's an incredible dog. Very loyal, very trustworthy in all situations. I rarely put a leash on her because there's no need to. She's done everything from herding to obedience trials to agility to fetching a beer. Truly a versatile dog! And she has helped me raise other pups, which has been wonderful. She's the one we take in to help with puppy class, because if there's a rambunctious puppy she "explains" to the pup that it can't act that way.
Here she is putting up with Khana (about 16 months old at the time) hanging onto her tail while playing last winter. Trick just turned ten.
And my other shepherd is a sable bitch, Tori, who is German and Belgian lines. She's got a very impressive background, but due to a lack of handling when she was very young (and a scary trip in a kennel on an airplane) she had multiple problems when I got her. Even so, she has worked through many of those and is a very loving and athletic girl. She would probably prefer to be in a home as a single dog with a person or family who would dote on her, but at least with me she is well taken care of and fed. In spite of her shortcomings, her temperament has been exquisite and she is very gentle with people (I've even taken her to the nursing home to visit). She's been trained in agility and is very speedy and agile, but she doesn't do well under the stress of competition so I've never pushed her into it.
I can't imagine not having a shepherd in my life. They're kind of the family choice in dogs - both my Mom and my sister have GSD's too. I feel safe with the girls here .. they are socialized and good with people, but I have no doubt that they would also protect me.
Melanie and the gang in Alaska
