5 Different Types Of German Shepherd Breeds & Their Features (2024)

Do you want to know about the two major groups and five different types of German Shepherd breeds and their traits? You’re in the right place.

German Shepherd is a modern, medium to large size dog breed originated in Germany. These dogs were originally trained and popular for herding sheep and patrolling territory borders during wars. Beside petting, GSDs are also used for herding, search & rescue operations, building protection, grabbing criminals, etc.

Following topics will be covered in this article:

1. Introduction
2. Show Line Vs Working Line German Shepherds
3. Types Of German Shepherds

01. Introduction

Before you go to Types of German Shepherds section, here is some useful information that will help you to know more about German Shepherds.

Why So Popular? German Shepherd is considered as one of the best dog breeds because it is highly intelligent, protective, attractive, elegant, smart, obedient, working, and strong.

Names? Some of the other names of German Shepherds are: Alsatian wolf dog, Berger Allemand, Deutscher and Schäferhund.

Weight & Height? Their weight vary from 20Kg to 40Kg and height ranges from 55Cm to 605Cm.

How Many Puppies Does a Female give Birth to? At one birth German Shepherd female gives birth to 4-9 puppies.

How Many Types of German Shepherds? There are five main types of German Shepherds which have been further classified into two groups i.e Show Line German Shepherds and Working Line German Shepherds, which we have briefly explained below.

GSD Price? The prices for world class purebred German Shepherd puppies with pedigree range from $2000 to $10,000 or more Whereas the prices for young fully-trained world class protection German Shepherds with pedigree range from $18,000 to $95,000 or more.

Besides young, fully-trained protection German Shepherds the prices for good quality young German Shepherds could range from $3000 to $25,000. In order to know more about the prices of German Shepherds and top-quality German Shepherd breeders in the US, read this article: 20+ Best German Shepherd Breeders In The United States.

As a Police Dog: German Shepherds are found all over the world, and they are not only kept as pet dogs, but also police dogs. They have a very keen sense of smell, vigilance, hearing and intelligence. The German Shepherd’s character is very stable, and its attack and bite abilities are very powerful.

In the military and police circles, the use of German Shepherd dogs is very extensive. After professional and strict training, German Shepherd dogs can become excellent bomb search dogs, drug search dogs, guard dogs, military dogs, customs anti-smuggling dogs, and so on.

In the police department, they are collectively called the K9 Police officer. These dogs protect our troops every day, and work tirelessly, giving their lives for others – keeping the citizens safe at home! The K9 police challenge coins are the perfect way to honor the selfless animals that protect our troops every moment of the day, and it’s also a token of appreciation for the K9 unit dogs. If you want to know more about the challenge coins, visit GS-JJ.

02. Show Line Vs Working Line German Shepherds

In this section, you will learn about the major differences between Show Line & Working Line German Shepherds.

Show Line German Shepherds

• Show Line German Shepherds as from their name “Show Line” are used for dog shows.
• In order to look excellent, these GSDs have to be perfect like their teeth have to be lineup perfectly, their ears have to be lineup, their hair should be proper, their length should be perfect, their height should be perfect, their weight should be perfect, angles of their bones should be perfect because the show always look for the perfect physical German Shepherds.
• They have an angulated back that slopes from high to low as you go from shoulders to rear end.

Working Line German Shepherds

• Working Line German Shepherds have straight back and athletic type of figure, purely built to work all the time tirelessly. They have bigger heads & bigger bones.
• The Working Line German Shepherds don’t need to be perfect. Their tail just not need to be in the right angulation.
• The Working Line GSDs as clearly evident from their name “Working Line”, always ready for work, work and work. They never get lazy, always active and desireful.
• In short we can say that Show Line German Shepherds excel in the shows whereas Work Line German Shepherds excel in work.

|| DON’T MISS! Today’s Deals on Chewy – Pet Foods, Pet Products, Pet Supplies, Pet Toys and more..

03. Types Of German Shepherds

In this section, you will learn about 5 different types of German Shepherd breeds, their features, and traits.

1. American Show Line German Shepherds
2. West Show Line German Shepherds
3. West Working Line German Shepherds
4. East Working Line DDR German Shepherds
5. Czech Working Line German Shepherds

01. American Show Lines German Shepherds

• The American Show Line German Shepherds are also called the AKC Lines GSDs. This type of German Shepherds are generally taller and longer.
• They come in different colors like black and tan saddle, solid black, saddle sable and solid white.

• The coloring of American Show Line German Shepherds coat is typically lighter. This type of German Shepherd are generally more laid-back.
• Have lower drive, means they have less energy as compared to Working Line GSDs.

• Good pets for family.
• Very obedient, tracking and good at herding sheep as compared to Working Lines GSDs.
• They are active but have low strength, and because of this weakness these GSDs do not really best for top personal protection or law enforcement, but some of them do reasonably good and are widely used.

02. West Show Line German Shepherds

• The West German Show Line German Shepherds are widely considered as the most beautiful GSD breed.
• Very gracious in movement, very intelligent and can be trained very easily.
• Have a sloped body, but it is not as sloping as American Show Line German Shepherds.

• The West Show Line German Shepherds tend to have black and red saddles, black and tan, sable, bi-colors and black.
• Every dog in the West Show Line German Shepherd breed is required to be fully fit with his health (hips and elbows) before he/she mate or pass their genes.

• The West Show Line German Shepherds can do great both as protectors and family pets as compared to American Show Line GSDs.
• Not lazy, and in fact they need a lot of exercise and training.
• Have better health and better drive than the American Show Line German Shepherds.

03. West Working Line German Shepherds

• The West Working Line German Shepherds have a very stable temperament and got stunning looks.
• Have strong drives, excellent working ability, calmer attitude and perfect colors.

• The West Working Lines GSDs have different colors like sable, black, bi-color, and black and tan.
• The back of West Working Line German Shepherds is bit more sloping than the East Working Line DDR German Shepherds.
• Could counter more health issues than the East Working Line GSDs.

• West Working Line GSDs often excel at different sports and jobs such as search and rescue operations or guarding protection.
• Though the West Working Line GSDs have a very strong desire, but they have such a cool temperament that they know when to become aggressive and when to sit calm. This fantastic trait make them ideal German Shepherd breed for an enthusiastic family.

04. East Working Line DDR German Shepherds

• The East Working Line DDR German Shepherds are very sturdy & graceful dogs particularly long coated.
• Have really strong bones, large heads and expanded shoulders.
• Use for military and search & rescue purposes, mainly for patrolling territory borders.
• Excellent in tracking and attacking. DDR stands for Deutsche Demokratische Republik(East Germany).

• The East Working Line GSDs have darkest colored coats among all GSD Lines.
• They are mostly black sable or sable, but some can be solid black, but it is very rare. Their backs are little sloped.
• Can resist extreme harsh weather conditions and long working days.
• More defensive and reserved in nature.

• The East Working Line DDR German Shepherd have very strict breeding standards. These GSDs are only allowed to breed if they are fit and free of hip dysplasia.
• Even puppies are tested for proper bone structure code quality temperament. If the bones in hip joint don’t fit together correctly, one can develop a condition called hip dysplasia.

05. Czech Working Line German Shepherds

• Czech Working Line GSDs originated from communist Czechoslovakia, that’s why they are called Czech Working Line German Shepherds.
• Very loyal, graceful, agile, and got the most powerful desire among all other German Shepherd breeds.
• Have extremely powerful jaws and broad shoulders.

• Their coats have dark coloring, can often be found by their darker coats and less sloping backs.
• Have more uniform coloring like wolfish gray, dark brown to black.
• Ears are slightly smaller than the other 4 GSD breeds.

• These dogs also have very strict standards for breeding and that’s why they are very healthy like East Working Line DDR GSDs.
• Have the least behavioral problems as compared to other four types of GSDs.
• Best for chasing down criminals, patrolling border territories, protection jobs and search & rescue operations.

Conclusion

So it was all about 5 different types of German Shepherd breeds, their features, and traits. Hope, this article would have provided enough information about them. If you like this post then don’t forget to share with other people. Share your suggestions or feedback in the comments section below.

Also Read

• How To Identify The Purity Of The German Shepherd Puppy | 4 Ways To Identify The German Shepherd
• How To Identify The Purity Of German Shepherd Using Dog DNA Test Kits