Breed # German Shepherd The German Shepherd is a herding breed from Germany, standing males 24–26 in · females 22–24 in at the withers, weighing males 66–88 lb · females 49–71 lb. Recorded lifespan is 9–13 yrs. ![A photograph of the German Shepherd](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/lg/german-shepherd.webp) Breed group Herding Origin Germany Height males 24–26 in · females 22–24 in Weight males 66–88 lb · females 49–71 lb Lifespan 9–13 yrs Among the 500 breeds here with recorded measurements, the German Shepherd is taller than 74% of the measured breeds, heavier than 80%, one of 27 in the Herding group, one of 32 from Germany. Compare the German Shepherd with another breed ## Living with the German Shepherd Two breed references score every breed they cover from 1 to 5 on the things an owner lives with day to day. These are the German Shepherd’s, with what a 1 and a 5 mean on each row. Around people and other dogs Affection with family 5 of 5 1 independent · 5 devoted Good with young children 5 of 5 1 not suited · 5 very good Good with other dogs 2 of 5 1 not suited · 5 very good Openness to strangers 4 of 5 1 reserved · 5 everyone is a friend Watchdog / protective nature 5 of 5 1 unbothered · 5 vigilant What they will ask of you Energy 5 of 5 1 couch potato · 5 busy all day Exercise needs 5 of 5 1 a short walk · 5 a job to do Playfulness 4 of 5 1 only when invited · 5 non-stop Barking 4 of 5 1 only to alert · 5 very vocal Around the house Shedding 5 of 5 1 barely · 5 constantly Drooling 2 of 5 1 a dry mouth · 5 keep a towel What they tolerate Tolerates being alone 2 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Tolerates hot weather 3 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Tolerates cold weather 4 of 5 1 poorly · 5 well Rated 1 to 5 by the American Kennel Club and DogTime, averaged where both rate the same thing, and read from their breed pages in 2022. Nobody at Woof & Beyond has met this breed — these are the publishers’ judgments, not ours.[German Shepherd on AKC](https://www.akc.org/dog-breeds/german-shepherd-dog/)[German Shepherd on DogTime](https://dogtime.com/dog-breeds/german-shepherd-dog) ## Breeds that look like the German Shepherd A neural network trained to tell breeds apart by sight read all 510 photographs in this reference, and these are the 6 it placed closest to the German Shepherd. - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/east-european-shepherd.webp)East European Shepherd](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/east-european-shepherd/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/pastor-garafiano.webp)Pastor Garafiano](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/pastor-garafiano/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/icelandic-sheepdog.webp)Icelandic Sheepdog](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/icelandic-sheepdog/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/eurasier.webp)Eurasier](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/eurasier/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/chow-chow.webp)Chow Chow](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/chow-chow/) - [![](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breeds/czechoslovakian-wolfdog.webp)Czechoslovakian Wolfdog](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/breed/czechoslovakian-wolfdog/) Side by side Height 0–38 in 1. German Shepherd24–26 in 2. East European Shepherd26–28 in 3. Pastor Garafiano24–28 in 4. Icelandic Sheepdog12–16 in 5. Eurasier20–24 in 6. Chow Chow17–22 in 7. Czechoslovakian Wolfdog26 in Weight 0–220 lb 1. German Shepherd66–88 lb 2. East European Shepherd75–105 lb 3. Pastor Garafiano77–101 lb 4. Icelandic Sheepdog25–30 lb 5. Eurasier51–71 lb 6. Chow Chow40–90 lb 7. Czechoslovakian Wolfdog66 lb Lifespan 0–20 yrs 1. German Shepherd9–13 yrs 2. East European Shepherd10–12 yrs 3. Pastor Garafianono recorded figure 4. Icelandic Sheepdog~12 yrs 5. Eurasier12–14 yrs 6. Chow Chow11–13 yrs 7. Czechoslovakian Wolfdog12–16 yrs Nothing here was grouped by hand. The ranking is an opinion about appearance, not about ancestry, which is why it sometimes puts together breeds no kennel club would — and why it is worth looking at the photographs rather than taking the order on trust. ## Guides that mention the German Shepherd Every guide on this site whose text actually discusses this breed. - [Can a Dog Get a Cat Pregnant?](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/can-a-dog-get-a-cat-pregnant/) - [Dog Crate Sizes: Guide & Calculator by Breed](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/dog-crate-sizing-guide/) - [How Many Puppies Do Dogs Have? Answered for All Dog Breeds](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/how-many-puppies-do-dogs-have/) - [The Intelligent Canine: How Many Total Words Can a Dog Learn?](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/how-many-words-can-a-dog-learn/) - [How to Effectively Get a Dog to Release a Bite](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/how-to-make-dog-release-bite/) - [From Couch-Potato to Bodyguard: Training Your Dog for Personal Protection](https://www.woofandbeyond.com/how-to-train-dog-for-protection/) See the German Shepherd on the breed map Read about the German Shepherd on Wikipedia