I live in the DFW metroplex and my family is looking for a German Shepherd breeder who specializes in "Sable" color shepherds.



Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

My dad was the first K-9 unit in our county back in the 1960's. We had GSD's my whole life as a kid. My wife and I raised GSD's for about 15 years. Great dogs.
Sables are hard to find cause they just " happen". You can breed for black and tan or black and silver and even solid black or white. But Sables is a different thing.
Beautiful for sure.
Unless you are going to train for protection I can offer to try not to get a Czech or East German lines…..they can be tough dogs. West German and American bred lines are more family oriented imho.
I knew a breeder in the DFW area but she started becoming a puppy mill and her dogs started having all kinds of health issues.
There was a good breeder in East Texas called Pine Cone Kennels that had some sables from time to time.
A lady named Nancy owned it. Can't remember her last name. She mainly sold to law enforcement for drug and bomb dogs.
Wish I could help more. Good luck on your search. Try to stay away from the puppy mills or breeders that do multiple litters a year.

There is nothing like the German Shepherd brain.

Gunny456 said:

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My dad was the first K-9 unit in our county back in the 1960's. We had GSD's my whole life as a kid. My wife and I raised GSD's for about 15 years. Great dogs.
Sables are hard to find cause they just " happen". You can breed for black and tan or black and silver and even solid black or white. But Sables is a different thing.
Beautiful for sure.
Unless you are going to train for protection I can offer to try not to get a Czech or East German lines…..they can be tough dogs. West German and American bred lines are more family oriented imho.
I knew a breeder in the DFW area but she started becoming a puppy mill and her dogs started having all kinds of health issues.
There was a good breeder in East Texas called Pine Cone Kennels that had some sables from time to time.
A lady named Nancy owned it. Can't remember her last name. She mainly sold to law enforcement for drug and bomb dogs.
Wish I could help more. Good luck on your search. Try to stay away from the puppy mills or breeders that do multiple litters a year.

There is nothing like the German Shepherd brain.

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Pretty neat that we have such a resident expert in everything.

Gunny456,

Thanks for the feedback!

My wife and I purchased our first German Shepherd (black and tan) from a Waco breeder in '09 and she was our family dog for the past 12 years. Wishing I knew then what I know now, one mistake I vow not to repeat is not thoroughly vetting the breeder. Although our GS was a fantastic family dog (terrific around my children, etc.), she developed major hip issues in her older years. I understand that hip dysplasia is common with the breed and there's no guarantee it can be 100% eliminated but I think if I did more in-depth research before I purchased my dog I could have lessened the chances.

I would love to own a puppy that after being screened meets the criteria for "personal protection" but it would be too much "dog" for my family to handle when I'm not home.

Yes sir. Know what you are talking about. Because of my dad, my wife and I really got into GSD's. We are olds now and married since 1978 and have had lots of Shepherds in that time. We found out the hard way that the American bred show type of Shepherds had the best temperament for families but that desired long slanted rear end show trait was real susceptible to hip dysplasia.
So we evolved to more of the East German and Czech lines and they did not have hip issues but were more aggressive temperament.
We spent a lot of time with Schutzhund/IPO training and with some folks that knew a lot about GSD's in the United Schutzhund Clubs of America. They made us realize how little we actually knew, lol.
There is a group/club called Dallas Working Dogs in the DFW area that might could help you in your search … or maybe contacting someone in the United Schutzhund Clubs of America.
As you say, check out the breeders, get some references etc. Breeders of all types of dog's nowadays offer great health guarantee's…. sometimes up to two years. That's great but you can't get their hips OFA'd till they are two years old and by then you and family are so attached to them you don't want to return them for a new puppy.

I will add that we loved our GSD's for many years but we, like you, experienced health issues with the American show lines so eventually we evolved to our last GSD which was a Czech Shepherd line dog. He had great health but was a handful in training and around strangers.
Because of our age and our lifestyle we bought a lab when our last GSD passed a few years ago. We love him greatly and he is a typical lab snuggle buddy and could only hurt someone if he licks them to death!
We still miss that unique German Shepherd brain and intelligence.
We will so hope you find the Shepherd of your dreams my friend.

My 15 month old 95 pounds all east german bloodline could be a twin to dog in picture except mine darker. Got him from sudenblick shepherds located about 30 miles south of San Antonio.
Sudenblick.com

I have a friend who breeds working line dogs, but I think she still has a female who didn't make the cut. However, if you have another female - it's not going to work. Same sex aggression is the norm in the working dog side and that one has it. I feel like she may have had a male as well who was ok, but I don't recall. She's in the DFW area. Health Tested, titled, proven dogs that she actively works and competes with. If I were into the GSD's I wouldn't hesitate to purchase from her. However, I work Malinois.

Treuer Hund Working Dogs
https://www.instagram.com/treuerhundworkingdogs/

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that desired long slanted rear end show trait was real susceptible to hip dysplasia.

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One of the reasons I despise AKC and dog shows

Thank you!

Thank you!

As you say, check out the breeders, get some references etc. Breeders of all types of dog's nowadays offer great health guarantee's…. sometimes up to two years. That's great but you can't get their hips OFA'd till they are two years old and by then you and family are so attached to them you don't want to return them for a new puppy. [/quote said:

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GSDs are probably one of the top 3 most common breeds in our hip replacement program. Doing a hip on an GSD tomorrow. Also a top 5 for CCL (knee) problems and top 5 for elbow dysplasia. We don't have predictive methods for CCL degeneration….yet.

Yes, OFA must be done at 2 years. The Penn Hip system is a quantitative x ray method that can predict hip dysplasia in dogs as young as 16-20 weeks. If you want to know early, when you can return the puppy or have a curative surgery done such as JPS or DPO, get your GSD puppy Penn Hipp'd by 4-5 months of age.

There is no Penn Hip method for the elbow unfortunately.

Sable GSDs do not "just happen". Sable is a dominant color. You must have at least one sable parent to get any sable pups. But color is the absolute last thing that matters in getting a quality GSD. First and foremost is temperament. Second is health. Third is looks. Always. As a buyer and as a breeder. A good breeder won't let you pick your pup, anyways. Well, they might narrow it to a couple but they aren't going to say pick a pup any pup. And I wouldn't limit yourself by geography.

What I actually recommend is to adopt an older dog. You get your color and a known temperament. Again, temperament being a non-negotiable most important thing. I have too many years in GSDs and the average buyer doesn't stand a chance in finding an actual high quality breeder. Even the sport folk are terrible at it.

Your comments mirror what I've heard and read. Personally, I don't mind a breeder picking out the correct puppy because the last thing I want is raising a hell dog.

Because the price of GSD puppies varies immensely ($1800 - $6500), is there a significant difference between quality of dog vs cost?