2. THE SILENT MAJORITY ????? Maren von der Heyde, National Breed Supervisor May, 2012

3. Who are they? They are not the show winners They are not the Schutzhund III titleholders

4. THEY ARE OUR CORE CUSTOMERS

5. THE PET OWNER

6. WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON QUESTIONS ASKED?

7. BEFORE PURCHASE Hip Dysplasia Temperament Are they big Will they have a big head Are they good with children Color We don’t want a sloping back

8. ARE THEY BIG? The word big does not always relate to size. What the public means is “substance” and here the breeder has a monumental task ahead of him. We have to concentrate on breeding substantial MEDIUM size dogs. When I say substantial medium size dogs I mean we have to look at bone strength. A flat shaped bone will normally not develop into a big bone and therefore will remain of medium strength..

9. WILL THEY HAVE A BIG HEAD ? In my experience it is much easier to sell a puppy with a good head, what I mean is a head with a pronounced stop. The public does not like ski slopes A good head must also have a strong lower jaw. The eye color does not seem to be a major issue for the pet owner.

10. How do I introduce the puppy to my adult dogs Where must the puppy sleep What food must I feed What do I do if ………………… When can I start training BETWEEN PURCHASE AND COLLECTION OF PUPPY

11. TEMPERAMENT The common term ‘temperament’ is mistakenly used when we mean ‘nature’. The dog is born with these natural traits. We use them to manipulate the dog and we can nurture them or try to eradicate them, but we cannot create them. The nature of the Shepherd can be broken down into

12. DRIVE (TRIEB) Working people have analyzed many drives but broadly speaking drives relate to the survival instinct which includes procreation. The most commonly recognized drives are The food drive The prey drive The sex drive The defense drive

13. SELF ASSURANCE (Selbstsicherheit) The dog’s degree of certainty that he can deal with a given situation without becoming obviously frightened.

14. STRESS TOLERANCE (Belastbarkeit) The ability to accept loud noise, like gunshots or fireworks, or accept an attack without becoming obviously frightened. The ability to accept reprimand without fear. The ability to stand your ground if threatened for example a burglar. The ability to remain calm amongst screaming children.

15. ATTITUDE TO LIFE (Einstellung) The happy, positive, fearful or aggressive demeanor usually displayed by the dog.

16. APTITUDE FOR WORK (Gebrauchstuechtigkeit) The natural aptitude - he may show a natural tendency to track, to retrieve, to guard, or to do any number of useful things – or none at all.

17. INTELLIGENCE Problem solving ability including solving the problem of what you are asking him to do. A German Shepherd should display the I.Q. of at least a two year old child.

18. NOBILITY Including demonstrating kindness to weaker and younger dogs, patience, for instance with children, and faithfulness to the owner. The thoughtful application of intelligence demonstrates nobility.

19. CHECKLIST FOR BREEDING FOR THE SILENT MAJORITY If we go through the points we have discussed and have taken healthy puppies as an additional most important point, then we actually are doing a very good job in breeding. Should we however only breed for the fanatics then we have failed.