No one knows of BLACK GSD's??

[GSD Keira]

Something that peopl have to address is that there ARE such things as black GSD's! Everywhere I go with Keira, people ask me what she is and i tell them "german sheperd", they look at me as though i've lost my mind and then they say "ive never heard of an all black one before!" It irritates me to no end! Why is it so hard for people to accept that yes she is a purebred sheperd, and yes, they do "come in black!" Aarrrggghhh! Anyone have any probs like this??

[D.Schäferhund]

hmmm sometimes people don't recognize my longhaird ones as GSDS, they are the Oldworld GSDs or
"altdeutsch" but not too popular.
Most know the TV ones, with the saddle on the back...

or the Swiss Shepherds (sometimes called) white GSD, because they ahd a big boom.

Don't get ticked off too much about the ignoranze of people, it is not worth it!!!

[Checkers]

When I had liver colored purebred dalmatians I ran into the same problem all the time. People would give me the strangest look because they didn't know Dals could come in brown! I can't say I got upset about it too much though... not their fault if they are only familiar with the most popular image of a certain breed. Also, it was a great ice breaker for me to share more knowledge of the breed with them.. and most people were quite interested. I got to dispell quite a few breed myths because of their color!

-Cheryl

[Cassiepeia]

Yeah I think it's just that the majority of people aren't as into dogs and dog breeds as we are. Hell, I've been asked what kind of dog my Chihuahua is...and he looks just how a Chihuahua should. lol One of the most popular dog breeds in the world. *shrugs*
Personally I've always loved black GSDs (and the sables as well).

Cass.

[Beryl]

My purebred registered GSD was almost 100% black. I had a 90% black Pomeranian also. People are only familiar with what is popular on television. GSDs are "supposed to be" black and brown and Poms are "supposed to be" auburn.

[mulroony]

If I saw a black GSD I would probably think flat coated retriever mix before I thought Black GSD (we seem to have a lot of flat coated around here).

Better to not be recoginized then be false identified al the time like pitties do... How you mistake a raccoon for a pittie is beyond me.

[Swiftwind]

Non-dog people usually seem to know only about the most common colour/s a breed comes in. I used to know a very gorgeous black GSD called Buzz.

[Shadowkins]

Don't be too upset, just take advantage of the opportunity, when it presents itself , to educate them on black GSD.

[IceyBlueSibes]

I've had people tell me that my Boxer/GSD was a pitbull, and my rottie was a pitbull. I just sluffed it off.

My GSD/Rottie mix looks ALOT like a Shepherd. His features are probably 90% GSD, just a tad shorter and broad chest like a rottie.

I agree with Shadowkins... take the opportunity to educate people about your breed. You'd be surprised how many people will remember that and pass it on. There are the occassional few that will argue to no end that "No... that's a pitbull!" or "No that's a mixed!"

[rmci]

I also agree with Shadowkins about educating people about your dog and try not to let it get to you. Personally, my favorite GSD's are mostly black.

I get the same thing with my car, which most people don't know unless they're into cars. I have a 64 Barracuda, which has mistakenly been called a Studebaker among other things. Would you know a 64 Barracuda? If you don't, I'd show ya my car and talk about it.

[TinyAlbinoDancer]

Ok, question! Are the black German Shepherds AKC register-able? And are they able to be shown?

We have someone around here with a litter that has signs on every street corner advertising them as AKC, but that seemed wrong to me for some reason... Never can trust those BYB anyway.

[rmci]

Originally Posted by TinyAlbinoDancer

Ok, question! Are the black German Shepherds AKC register-able? And are they able to be shown?

We have someone around here with a litter that has signs on every street corner advertising them as AKC, but that seemed wrong to me for some reason... Never can trust those BYB anyway.

I believe the only ones the AKC does not allow are white german shepherds.

[GSD]

Whites are a fault, black are not. Black GSD's are the same as sable, bi-colors, and black and tan/red and are accepted by the AKC

[GSD Keira]

I dont get to mad, it just bugs me i guess. I met a couple on the beach one day and they stoppped me to pet her. They said they have owned GSD's before but also have never seen a black one and they were very curious and interested in meeting her! I think we stood there for almost 35 minutes talking to them! They also didnt know that some people beleive there are differences in personalities with the different colors. Like, say that black dogs are more protective of their people than sables, whereas the sables are more protective of the property. or that blacks want to be petted more than sables and they are more leniant towards stranges childeren than sables. i always keep this in mind when I meet people who tell me they've never seen a black gs before. I had to argue with my uncle one day because he tried telling me keira wasnt a purebred sheperd. His argument was "there are no all black sheperds! she cant be a purebred". I drove all the way home and brought all her papers back to his house to prove him wrong. Boy, he felt foolish!

[IceyBlueSibes]

I had to argue with my uncle one day because he tried telling me keira wasnt a purebred sheperd. His argument was "there are no all black sheperds! she cant be a purebred". I drove all the way home and brought all her papers back to his house to prove him wrong. Boy, he felt foolish!

Haha! You go girl