Little recap:
Amy is a "Modern" American bred German Shepherd. Some breeders have been going for the "Moderns" in hopes of eventually changing the basic conformation by breeding out the problems of the L7 and Hip Dysplasia which is what took the life of my beloved Tracey, my heart dog. The theory is based on (in laymen's terms) growing the moderns tall with a flatter back, much less slope to the back and less pressure on the hip so that the hip joint will stay put in the socket. The "American" aspect was I think orginially to make the GSD taller, longer and rangier, less aggressive and more "pretty" as show animals. There's a lot of controversy there on that subject; many german breeders think it has ruined and distorted the breed. So anyway, I end up with a "Modern American" thinking if I can avoid going through the dysplasia problems again its worth a try. The only thing I don't like is that she is so tall and narrow and streamline that it looks like I don't feed her. I get a lot of "looks" when we are out in public and I can imagine people are thinking I'm starving my dog.
We have survived another Christmas with Amy, pup-zilla who I think because of her modern breeding is very slow maturing. She is still every bit a baby puppy, very smart, a quick learner, loyal to a fault but is as hyper as she can be. I have a lot of training on her but there is much more to go. She must have more lives than a cat since she has made a diet of eating rocks, screws, money, you name it since she was a baby. She grabs and eats anything and we always have to watch her closley. I've clocked a lot of time with her at the vets because of that. She is a metal dector's nightmare and I hope she grows out of that. She is also very enthusiastic about life and is always up for anything. She lives to play ball, tree a cat, and go for a ride in the truck and just runnnnnnn. She has her Dad time where Hus plays with her every night after dinner throwing her toys for her from his reclyner. When Dan gets home its his turn and they get down on the floor and wrestle hard. She thrives on being "ruffed up." It still doesn't tire her out. She doesn't sleep much at night. She paces up and down the hallway and keeps checking on us during the night. If we get up during the night to use the bathroom, she's right there with her ball, expecting you to play at 3:00 am. But we certainly can't complain about our girl. She's a wonderful dog, loving to a fault and the best entertainment we could have.
Lately she has taught herself how to climb up the steep stairs to the loft and lay on the deck and watch over her herd from up there. She's getting a bit protective more and more so she is trying to mature a little bit that way but hasn't attempted to bite anyone so that's a good thing. She is really very good natured and loves to make friends out of everyone.
She enjoyed Christmas and Santa brought her a few things.
Her she is styling by the tree in her new collar. She loves to pose.
This is Amy in her new tee shirt
And here she is in her waterproof jacket. She cannnot stand the rain and the freezing cold and won't go out to use the bathroom when the weather is nasty so I thought if she wore this she'd go out instead of standing at the door with her legs crossed. She has incredibly short hair coat so she feels the cold a lot.
Last but not least is Devin showing his tee shirt, our old bad doggy; junk yard dog as Hus calls him. He's not well but he still is quite active. He had a major operation last year for a large tumor and now he has two more. We don't want to put him through any more surgeries at his old age.
Amy is a "Modern" American bred German Shepherd. Some breeders have been going for the "Moderns" in hopes of eventually changing the basic conformation by breeding out the problems of the L7 and Hip Dysplasia which is what took the life of my beloved Tracey, my heart dog. The theory is based on (in laymen's terms) growing the moderns tall with a flatter back, much less slope to the back and less pressure on the hip so that the hip joint will stay put in the socket. The "American" aspect was I think orginially to make the GSD taller, longer and rangier, less aggressive and more "pretty" as show animals. There's a lot of controversy there on that subject; many german breeders think it has ruined and distorted the breed. So anyway, I end up with a "Modern American" thinking if I can avoid going through the dysplasia problems again its worth a try. The only thing I don't like is that she is so tall and narrow and streamline that it looks like I don't feed her. I get a lot of "looks" when we are out in public and I can imagine people are thinking I'm starving my dog.
We have survived another Christmas with Amy, pup-zilla who I think because of her modern breeding is very slow maturing. She is still every bit a baby puppy, very smart, a quick learner, loyal to a fault but is as hyper as she can be. I have a lot of training on her but there is much more to go. She must have more lives than a cat since she has made a diet of eating rocks, screws, money, you name it since she was a baby. She grabs and eats anything and we always have to watch her closley. I've clocked a lot of time with her at the vets because of that. She is a metal dector's nightmare and I hope she grows out of that. She is also very enthusiastic about life and is always up for anything. She lives to play ball, tree a cat, and go for a ride in the truck and just runnnnnnn. She has her Dad time where Hus plays with her every night after dinner throwing her toys for her from his reclyner. When Dan gets home its his turn and they get down on the floor and wrestle hard. She thrives on being "ruffed up." It still doesn't tire her out. She doesn't sleep much at night. She paces up and down the hallway and keeps checking on us during the night. If we get up during the night to use the bathroom, she's right there with her ball, expecting you to play at 3:00 am. But we certainly can't complain about our girl. She's a wonderful dog, loving to a fault and the best entertainment we could have.
Lately she has taught herself how to climb up the steep stairs to the loft and lay on the deck and watch over her herd from up there. She's getting a bit protective more and more so she is trying to mature a little bit that way but hasn't attempted to bite anyone so that's a good thing. She is really very good natured and loves to make friends out of everyone.
She enjoyed Christmas and Santa brought her a few things.
Her she is styling by the tree in her new collar. She loves to pose.
This is Amy in her new tee shirt
And here she is in her waterproof jacket. She cannnot stand the rain and the freezing cold and won't go out to use the bathroom when the weather is nasty so I thought if she wore this she'd go out instead of standing at the door with her legs crossed. She has incredibly short hair coat so she feels the cold a lot.
Last but not least is Devin showing his tee shirt, our old bad doggy; junk yard dog as Hus calls him. He's not well but he still is quite active. He had a major operation last year for a large tumor and now he has two more. We don't want to put him through any more surgeries at his old age.
