Black German Shepherd – Complete Guide On The Striking Dog Breed

• Origin: Germany
• Size: Large
• Dog Breed Group: Herding
• Purebred: Yes
• Lifespan: 9-13 Years
• Height: Males: 24 – 26 Inches (60 – 65 Cm), Females: 22 – 24 Inches (55 – 60 Cm)
• Weight: Males: 66 – 88 Pounds (30 – 40 Kg), Females: 48 – 70 Pounds (22 – 32 Kg)
• Coat Appearance: Double Coat
• Coat Colors: Black
• Temperament: Alert, Athletic, Affectionate, Cheerful, Energetic, Friendly,  Intelligent, Lively, Loyal, Protective, Pleasant, Responsive, Social, Spirited, Territorial, Watchful
• Good With Children: Yes
• Intelligence Level: High
• Good With Pets: Yes Under Supervision
• Hypoallergenic: No
• Grooming: High
• Shedding: High
• Barking: High
• Suitable For Apartments: No
• Need For Exercise: High
• Easy To Train: Yes
• Good For First Time Owners: Yes
• Health Issues: Hip  Dysplasia, Degenerative Myelopathy, Von Willebrand’s Disease, Bloat, Hemophilia, And Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency
• Average Price: $700-$1000  USD

The standard German Shepherd and Black German Shepherd have some different physical differences

What’s the same?

• They have a large, angulated, muscular build
• Have a fluffy, slight curve like a saber tail
• Ultra-erect ears and signature head tilt
• Have a double coat of medium length
• They are German shedders as they shed heavily

What’s different?

• Of course, they have a solid black color
• They have larger physical conformation than standard ones
• Often have relatively straighter back (Typical German Shepherds have a saddleback)
• Have noticeably straighter coats, sometimes with skirting (on either side of the body between the front and back legs), feathering (long hair on the ears, beneath the tail and backs of legs) and a flowing mane (around the rear of the neck).

Black German Shepherd Size

• Height – Males: 24 – 26 inches (60 – 65 cm), Females: 22 – 24 inches (55 – 60 cm)
• Weight – Males: 66 – 88 pounds (30 – 40 kg) Females: 48 – 70 pounds (22 – 32 kg)

Black German Shepherd Lifespan

A healthy German should expect to enjoy a life expectancy of between 9 – 13 years, yet many of them live past 15 years when properly cared for and fed a good quality diet to suit their ages.

• Exercise Needs –High
• Intensity – High
• Activity Level – High
• Exercise Requirements – >60 Minutes/Day
• Walk Mileage/ Week – 10 Miles
• Playfulness – High
• Grooming Needs – High
• Tendency To Drool – No
• To Snore – No
• Bark – High
• To Dig – Low
• Social/Attention Needs – High

All breeds are equal. Some are more than equal. As a German Shepherd owner, you have a quite hard conviction that your dog might really is smarter than you are.

After all, what can’t your dog do?! There is literally nothing this dog can’t do because of their great deal of stamina, retentive memory, and a ‘sharp’ mind.

Picking the daily paper, playing with your kids, bossing on strangers and swimming are among the things they can be trained for.

They are eager to do anything for you if you can help them recognize what that is. It’s the tenacious and optimistic training that makes them obedient and loyal.

They take their jobs to heart and try to be the best at what they do, whether it’s serving as a seeing-eye dog, hunting, sniffing bombs, working in search-and-rescue, or just being a loving companion.

They are used in a number of specialized situations in military, police and security agencies.

Do you know that “the top 20% of black German dogs are proficient of recognizing up to 250 words (that includes gestures too), can carry out simple arithmetic calculations and can understand new commands in fewer than 5 repetitions?

Yes. True. They are also deliberate tricksters, which is something that toddlers only start developing later in their life.

Cold and detached with strangers or those outside the pack (family unit), they have been known to bark protectively or “over-guard”

This is one smart dog has great instincts and fertile mind. He can be level-headed, loyal, friendly towards his owners but when comes to the job, and he is an active beau who craves for challenges.

What’s more, is an excellent companion dog, this dog is also recognized to be an incredible working dog and will stand by your side through thick and thin.

Who Gets Along With Black GSD Dogs?

• Active families
• Disciplinarians
• A-Type Personalities
• Energetic people

For first time owners 

Black German Shepherd is a good choice for first time owners, thanks to their high intelligence levels.

Having said that, you must keep one thing in mind- it’s EXTREMELY important that you train your German shepherd dog from puppyhood, therefore tweaking his ability to play your game and not theirs.

Moreover, these dogs will grow up to become relatively large dogs with a whole lot of physical strength to them, which will make your training much more difficult.

However, this super breed shrewdness makes training easy, so considering this – Black shepherds make good pets for novice owners.

Adaptability

• Apartment Living – No
• Good For First-Time Owners – Good
• Sensitivity Level – High
• Loneliness – Hates To Be Left Alone
• Cold Weather – Good
• Hot Weather – Good

Friendliness

• With Family – High
• Kids – Good
• Other Dogs – Good (If Properly Trained)
• With Cats – Good, If Raised Together
• Strangers – Suspicious

General Behavior

• Independence – Average
• Dominance – High
• Combativeness – Aggressive
• Indoors – Active
• Outdoor – Highly Active
• Territorial – Yes
• Easy Of Transportation – Good

• Trainability – Easy
• Intelligence – High
• Memory – High
• Mouthiness – Low
• Prey drive – high
• Wanderlust potential – Average

This dog is one of the cleverest canines out there which mean that they won’t give you such a hard time in training and they will be quick on the uptake.

Despite the beefy, physically daunting and intimidating-looks, they will grow up to become supreme sweethearts toward the people who treat them right, if they’re given proper training and socialization early.

The black German shepherd puppies without apt obedience training from puppyhood often grow up to have problems following orders of others because they think that they’re the pack leader and not the follower.

Then graduate to training for safety, like leash training, crate training and responding when you call.

It’s highly recommended that pet parents/trainers expose their puppy to as many people, pets and noises as possible so as to make sure they get a friendly dog once their pup reaches adulthood.

Like most independent and confident dogs, they do not respond well to any sort of heavy-handed training or inconsiderate correction methods.

They are regale animals which require lots of physical activity and also needs serious mental stimulation.

He always wants to go and sniff new people, track scents on the sidewalks, loves crunching through the leaves and picking up sticks.

Great dog to walk. We recommend long walks twice a day if possible, and make sure to take them to a big field of the grassy area or dog parks as they love to run at full throttle and to be chased.

Calorie considerations – A typical, healthy Black German shepherds should be fed about 40-50 calories worth of food per pound of body weight. So,

-the puppy (four to 12 months) who doesn’t exercise a lot, weighing an average of 10lbs, needs around 500 calories per day, split between two or three meals (¾ to 1½ cups of dry dog food).

-A super, bouncy adult dog in the (55-85 lbs) range should get around 1700-2200 calories per day.

-Sedentary adult Black shepherds need 1300-1600 calories per day

-The average adult black 75 lbs black shepherds should get 2000 calories per day.

• Daily cost – $1.50 – $2.00 (average)
• Monthly cost – $45.00 – $60.00
• Pups 2-3 months old – 3 meals every 24 hours (260g- 300g)
• 3 to 6 months old –  3 meals every 24 hour period (300-600g)
• Feed puppies 6 months to 10 months- 2 bowls of food daily (600g)
• 10^th month – 16^th month -600g
• After the 16^th month, one bowl or two smaller bowls every 24 hours is typically all that’s necessary.

Remember, the feedings depend on puppy’s build, eating tendencies and depending on their activity level.

For an adult, black GSD- rough feeding guide

• Dogs weighing-26 kg = 280g to 440g
• 35 kg =600g
• 44 kg = 640g

Macronutrient breakdown

• Protein content should be anything from 14 – 25%
• Carb content should be 30 to 60%
• Fiber content should be less than 4%
• Fat content should be less than 8%
• Calcium content should be 0.5 – 0.8%
• Phosphorous content should be 0.4 – 0.7%
• Sodium content should be 0.2 – 0.4%

The best dog foods do’s and don’ts:

• No unidentified meat ingredients, meat by-products
• No controversial chemical preservatives, fillers
• Avoid coffee, chocolate, garlic, onion, macademia nuts, grapes, and raisins
• Do not give generic animal fats
• No artificial coloring agents
• Substantial amounts of meat-based protein
• Fat-to-protein ratio 75% or lower
• avoid unhealthy grains and fillers
• Modest carb content
• Should have essential vitamins and minerals
• Choose certified organic labels

Top 10 dog-good foods

1. Peanut butter
2. Oatmeal
3. Chicken
4. Salmon
5. Broccoli
6. Pumpkin
7. Green beans
8. Cottage cheese
9. Carrots
10. Eggs

• Coat Density – Normal
• Length – Medium
• Texture – Straight
• Brushing Frequency – Daily
• Trimming/Stripping – Yes
• Hypoallergenic – No
• Shedding – High

As far as shedding is concerned, then you have to face the reality that they will shed excessively and especially more during shedding seasons so they are called German Shedders.

This means that you have to brush their coat on a daily basis to remove loose hair ahead of shedding. Always use a brush that can contact deeper layers of the coat. Or else, you’ll be doing lots of vacuuming and cleaning.

Make grooming your dog a part of your regular routine, at least 5-10 minute daily and pooch-pampering sessions to keep his coat healthy, shiny and tangle free.  Bathing can also help with excessive shedding.

Keep him away from dirty patches, brush him, and he’ll take care of the rest.

Black German Shepherds are susceptible to certain health problems.

Major concerns:

• Hip dysplasia that could result in a severe issue such as arthritis
• Degenerative Myelopathy
• Congenital heart diseases

Minor concerns

• Panosteitis
• Pannus Perianal Fistulas
• Hemophilia
• Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency
• Von Willebrand’s Disease

Occasional diagnosis

• Pituitary dwarfism
• Anal Furunculosis
• Bloat/Gastric Torsion
• Raisin toxicity

Black German Shepherd Price

You should expect to pay between $700 to $1000 but can go all the way up to $2000 for your Black German Shepherd puppy depending on the breeder. Always make sure to buy your puppy from a reputable breeder or look at local dog shelters.

Black German Shepherd Breeders

Breeders, animal shelters and rescue groups

The good way to start is by searching for a good breeder on national kennel or breed clubs. Start your search with breed rescue groups.

Check with German Shepherd rescue groups in your state and let them know what you are looking for in the event that they know of an eligible cross available for adoption.

It’s not necessary to go to a local SPCA or animal shelter these days to find out what dogs they have. Most organizations have a strong online presence and in social platforms such as Facebook.