How to choose the best German Shepherd Dog puppy in the litter.
by Dennis Fisher.
If you are interested in getting a dog that will turn out to be a show winner andyou have the opportunity of choosingthe most promising animal fromthe entire litter, here are important points to look for.
It is of course not easy to choose the best pup in the litter because pups do change € sometimes quite dramatically. There have been occasions where the runt of the litter has turned out to be far better than his more promising littermates. But as a rule, when one has the opportunity of examining the entire litter at eight weeks, it is generally possible to choose the best € certainly the best pup at that stage of growth. Eight weeks is a probably the best time to make the choice.
After taking your time to examine all the pups in the litter carefully, make sure that the forelegs of the pup that takes you r fancy are straight and sturdy. See that the pup has good bone which is indicated by thick €knuckle€. If it is a male you are looking for, size and masculinity is important. Although one must be aware that in recent years over-size in males is a problem that has become more common in the breed. It is a fault and is something to be guarded against.
The pup should have a good strong and clearly masculine head. This is also of importance because there is a tendency in recent years for heads in males to be finer and less noble than one would like.
The movement of the pup can be reasonably well assessed even at this tender age of eight weeks. The well-balanced pup will appear to move with more harmony and more easily than the others in the litter.
Look for a pup with a high wither. This is fairly easy to access, but try and make sure that the high wither is not at the expense of a good shoulder formation. This is rather difficult because excellent shoulde r formation is not as common as one would wish. The high wither that is such an attractive feature of the modern Shepherd is one of the reasons for this. The shoulder should be well laid back with good length of upper arm. Even at this early it is possible to see whether or not the pup has a good shoulder. Of course a good shoulder is not merely an aesthetic requirement, it is essential for good forward reach and sound movement when the pup grows into a mature dog.
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