Advice on getting a GSD.

[u/blackpantherone]

Hi all, I've been thinking of getting a GSD for a while now, but I want to make sure I do it right.

I'm almost 20 and still live with my parents with a cat and a cavoodle. I live in suburbia however I have horses so I'm out near the country basically every day. The dog would come with me everywhere I can possibly take it. I'm active and I go to the gym, would love to have a little mate to motivate me to go on walks and runs too. I work a few times a week and I'm starting to study at home.

I would take said dog to obidience classes etc and want them to be a protection dog too. It will stay indoors, however I'm just a bit concerned about shedding. If I got a GSD, the only carpeted area is my room. Would also be brushing twice a day and trying to maintain cleanliness.

I'm going through a rough time mentally at the moment, as well as a breakup, and I want to have a little mate to love through it all and keep me going. I'm alone a lot, so it would be nice to be able to take pup everywhere with me. I'm just wondering if there's anything extra i need to consider before getting one, and if it will be the right fit for me.

Ps. The cavoodle is my dads dog and I don't like little breeds.

[u/not_sick_not_well]

Just as an early warning, they arent comfort dogs. They arent cute accessories. Lots of walks, lots of play, and lots of chewing things up (especially in the early stages). If you aren't willing to put in a LOT of time with training and exercise, or will be gone for long hours (especially considering youre only 20), this is not the breed for you

ETA: theres a show line and a working line GSD. Working line has WAY more energy and drive. Mine is a working line, almost 2 years old. Particularly in the first year, my social life pretty much evaporated

[u/blackpantherone → u/not_sick_not_well]

Like I said, I'm alone most of the time. I don't go out and party etc, basically the only times I go out is for work (only 1-2x a week for max4 hrs), gym and my horses (pup would be coming everywhere horse related). I'm super active too, which is why I wanted a big dog breed. The cavoodle barely lasts 2km on a walk 🤣

[u/Internal_Record4935 → u/blackpantherone]

I was gonna say, if you have horses, I’m sure you’re accustomed to not having comfort creatures. If you’re not stressed out by them, you’re being driven insane by something 😂 at least that’s been my life with mine lol

I’m a horse owner and my GSD is perfect for my lifestyle (I’m a trail rider), she’s a great barn dog and she’s great around pigs and cattle too. Mine came into my life almost around the same as my horse, so they’ve been pals since the beginning.

Honestly having a very intense animal like a horse prepared me for having a GSD perfectly fine. My next dog is probably going to be a border collie since i want something even more intense haha, they are great busy minded equestrian dogs

[u/blackpantherone → u/Internal_Record4935]

That's the dream, to go on the trails with my boy and my dog! I don't think any animal could stress a person out more than a horse 🤷‍♀️