Hi guys,

I have a friend who has a lovely long haired GSD, she has entered fun dog shows with him and done very well. her dog has very good breeding for showing.

Are long haired  GSD'S successfull in open shows or Championship shows?

afraid not, they are not excepted as breed standard

Shame because I love longhaired GSD's, think they're gorgeous. 

i know me too, especially the true long coats with the wooley hair rather than semi long

The standard on acceptable coat says:
Coat
Outer coat consisting of straight, hard, close-lying hair as dense as possible; thick undercoat. Hair on head, ears, front of legs, paws and toes short; on back, longer and thicker; in some males forming slight ruff. Hair longer on back of legs as far down as pasterns and stifles and forming fairly thick trousers on hindquarters. No hard and fast rule for length of hair; mole-type coats undesirable.

I had a friend who used to show her long coated GSD at local open shows.  She knew she was barking up a tree so to speak but she was there showing her other two dogs.  She wouldn't go out for the day and leave him at home alone.  She won best of breed on a few occassions even with more correct coated GSD's there as competition.  Her boy died and she now has a blue long coat pup that she has been placed with, again he goes so as not to be left at home on his own.

donna there is nothing to say you cant show a long coat, as long as it is kennel club registered your friend has got the right to show it if she wishes.   it will be upto the judge to decide if it is good enough to win or be placed.
a long coat is just one fault, at the moment there are some bl###y awful shepherds being shown.
tell your friend   "she pays her money,  she takes her chance"  just remember to enjoy it and at the end of the day she takes the best dog home !

good luck.

> she now has a blue long coat pup

OOOOOHH   To die for!  ;-)

i know someone with a blue LC..... really is to die for, absolutely stunning, but the thing is a sod! and i say that in the nicest way possible

Oh!  But I do sods!

hehe, i'll put your name on their waiting list :-p .... have just mated him some people just wont listen to advice

>> she now has a blue long coat pup
> OOOOOHH   To die for!  ;-)

OOOOOOHH suits him to a tee, really turning into a handsome boy.
Hate to wish his live away but can't wait to see him standing around 3 or 4 years old. :-)

Can someone explain what is Blue in GSD's.  The photos I have seen the dogs have just been a very dull looking black, not what I would call Blue, as in Russian or British Blue Cats or Blue as seen in Rabbits, what I have seen was like a black garment washed too often.

yeah, blue in gsds is like a washed out blacky grey type colour

I thought it jsut bad photography, can't see the attraction to such a non colour???  Just looks like poor pigment.

Thank you for all your comments, I totally agree with you Ho1mer about there being some terrible GSD's being shown out there.

I think it is a real shame the long coated types are not recognised, especially if the dog is sound and in very good health.

>> Can someone explain what is Blue in GSD's.  The photos I have seen the dogs have just been a very dull looking black, not what I would call Blue, as in Russian or British Blue Cats or Blue as seen in Rabbits, what I have seen was like a black garment washed too often. >>

Glad to know it isn't just me that thought that

There are pictures of blue GSDs here.

I love long coats too. Its said that they have a softer personality and maybe this is because, they look so lovely, everyone wants to stroke and cuddle them. Blue doesn't do it for me but its personal preference.

We have a blue sable bitch and a blue and gold boy (both longcoats and gorgeous).  We've always had longcoats and they've all had temperaments to die for...much sounder than any short coats we've met over the last 20 years.

Donna, I think your friend would be better off at shows that the White and Longcoat Society organise (WALCS) where likeminded people take their dogs. My only experience of taking my very handsome (IMO) longcoat to a GSD champ show was met with stares & someone came up to me, pointed at him & said "what the hell is that?"  I didn't bother to stay for his class PGD. I'd already been in MPD with my shortcoat & came 2nd to a couple double handling & decided I'd had enough of that lark. Give me a longcoat any day!

I am so sorry to here your experiance showing your GSD's, I can't believe people can be so cruel!!!

I just can't get my head around the fact long coated GSD's are so different from short haired types.

I will tell my friend about the society you attend with your dogs.(WALCS)

I also feel that if she wants to attend an open show why should'nt she? and that she should go to enjoy the experience, and as previously said, she will be taking the best dog home.

It seems so strange having no MM giving her 'opinion' :-)

Whilst there is no reason not to show with the short coats, you would need a thick skin. It might take the pleasure out of it, if you were getting nasty comments.

In all my time showing GSD's the only people I met were friendly, welcoming and helpful. It may have helped that when I decided I wanted to show, I studied the breed standard, went to shows and watched and talked to people, then went to a reputable kennel and purchased a puppy with potential for the show ring. I accepted that in order to successfully participate, my puppy had to comply as closely as possible to the breed standard.

Whilst I love longcoats, and indeed grew up with one, I accepted that they had an obvious deviance from the breed standard, Hair on head, ears, front of legs, paws and toes short, not lovely and feathered as on a longcoat.

Personally I love the look of the white GSD, but again Blues, livers, albinos, whites (i.e. almost pure white dogs with black noses) and near whites highly undesirable. Yes coat colour is of secondary importance, but it is HIGHLY UNDESIRABLE and as such will be considered a major fault.

IMHO should your friend get a placing at a show, then the chances are that they stood alone and the Judge didn't chose to withhold the place, or indeed had no idea about the breed standard.

I accept that these dogs all make wonderful companions, and when I used to compete in obedience, I did contemplate getting a longcoat as their lovely fluffy bums, can hide a slightly crooked sit!! Instead I put in more work as I knew that I also wanted to show.

The GSD is such a versatile breed, that there is an activity for them all, be it longcoat, standard coat, or any shade of colour.

Sorry to have gone on, but I really feel the GSD fraternity are having a tough time at the moment and whilst I no longer own one, I still feel passionate about the breed.

Good luck to your friend and I hope she continues to enjoy her wonderful companions.

> It seems so strange having no MM giving her 'opinion' :-)

Just what I was thinking :)

> It seems so strange having no MM giving her 'opinion' :)

Where is she? have I missed something important again?

My father had a Grey Sable German Shepherd (many, many years ago)- she looked like a wolf and people were often scared of her, but she had the most wonderful temperament :)   Don't often see Grey Sable these days :(

> It seems so strange having no MM giving her 'opinion' :)

Where is she? have I missed something important again?

My father had a Grey Sable German Shepherd (many, many years ago)- she looked like a wolf and people were often scared of her, but she had the most wonderful temperament :)   Don't often see Grey Sable these days :(

> It seems so strange having no MM giving her 'opinion' :)

Where is she? have I missed something important again?

My father had a Grey Sable German Shepherd (many, many years ago)- she looked like a wolf and people were often scared of her, but she had the most wonderful temperament :)   Don't often see Grey Sable these days :(

My first GSD was a grey sable rescue, he was a lovely dog to live with. The colour is having a revival though as a lot of the international bloodlines used within the working fraternity carry the gene.

Some photos for you to enjoy
http://www.thehavendogtrainingschool.co.uk/html/rh_gsds.html
http://tyguardgermanshepherds.co.uk/

>It seems so strange having no MM giving her 'opinion' 

lol do you know I was thinking exactly the same thing yesterday when I was reading this thread !!

Sorry for the triple posting, something very strange happened with the board last night and I thought it hadn't posted at all, got a weird pink message, imagine my surprise today on seeing three posts

To Goldie mad
Thanks for supporting our breed , You,re right we do have a hard time of it and I,m the first to admit that a few people can spoil it for us all.
Now I have no intention of getting into the longcoat versus correct coat argument as far as I,m  concerned its each to their own I,ve known lots of great dogs of both coat types but I,ll stick with my own .
Thanks again

No problems, they will always be close to my heart, and I wish I had one now, but I know that I could not put in the work required and don't trust OH with a juvenile delinquent. He was spoilt and waited to inherit a "ready trained" credit to the breed, then took them out with great pride. He still thinks they come pre programmed!!. Now if I'm having a bad day I send him on his merry way with Jade, and know I don't have to worry about his complacency.

I agree that it's each to their own, as I am sure they all make wonderful companions, and are very special to their owners. As I have said, I love longcoats, and think white longcoats are gorgeous, but I know they are breed standard and would never (even if I could) dream of showing one.