Dutch Shepherd Forum

Hi guys!

We adopted a puppy and have been told a few different breeds: Dutch Shepherd, Tervuren Shepherd, and just General Belgian Shepherd.

I was curious as to your thoughts on him. He is incredibly smart, but can be timid/fearful (possible abuse before being rescued?). The thing that throws me is his coat. It has gotten longer now that he has had solid nutrition for the last 2 months. When he is wet, you can really see that he isn’t as stocky as he initially appears. Unfortunately I don’t have photos of that, but I tried screen shorting from a video.

Regardless, he is a gorgeous dog! He is about 5 months old in these pictures. Some of the ones I wanted to show are unfortunately too large for uploading so be prepared for angles that make him look stockier than he actually is

Oh dear. Only one picture posted. My apologies!

Ok I am sooooo sorry. It’s only letting me post one photo t a time from my phone

I’m not a good judge of breeds but I love him. He does remind me of my fuzzy Xander. Beautiful dog!!!

Absolutely beautiful dog. I do think you have some DS there, but I'd like to see a better picture of him standing from the side.

Thanks for rescuing

centrop67 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 04, 2018 11:45 am Absolutely beautiful dog. I do think you have some DS there, but I'd like to see a better picture of him standing from the side.

Thanks for rescuing

Here you go! Hopefully this picture gives you an idea

He is fairly fluffy, which I think throws off what his bone structure actually looks like. He is dry in this picture, but when he is wet from swimming or bath time, he isn’t nearly as “thick” in his legs or trunk.

Looks like you have yourself a Long Hair DS!!! So pretty

Soooo gorgeous. I hope Lisa is right. I hope you have a long haired DS because he’s so handsome.

That's a long coated dutchie

How common are they?

Oh wow! How cool Someone at our training facility mentioned that his white spot on his chest wasn’t typical of a Dutchie so thought he was possibly mixed.

Mine is a pure bred and she has the white spot.

oddbird wrote: ↑Fri Apr 06, 2018 1:57 pm Oh wow! How cool Someone at our training facility mentioned that his white spot on his chest wasn’t typical of a Dutchie so thought he was possibly mixed.

They have no idea the. Lol white on the chest and feet is super common

oddbird wrote: ↑Fri Apr 06, 2018 1:57 pm Oh wow! How cool Someone at our training facility mentioned that his white spot on his chest wasn’t typical of a Dutchie so thought he was possibly mixed.

as steve said, they dont know what they are talking about. Sadie has a white jet on her chest

FCI Breed Standard wrote:Faults: too much white on chest or on feet; white stripes or spots in any other part of the body.

Yes, it's a fault, but it doesn't mean it's not a DS. The fact that they mention it all means, it's known to be a DS trait.

I would guess if we asked the genetic experts from Wisdom, the white patches are probably a recessive (but common) trait for a large number of dog breeds.

Based on this community's make up, I would say they are rare, but the rough coat DS is probably even more rare.

Welcome to the forum - what's his name again?

Please take a moment to create a signature for your self in your profile, so we can keep track of who's who.

Finally, keep the photos and stories coming.

I have to say, if he is any indication of what most of the breed is like, I am absolutely in love with the Dutch Shepherd and I didn’t even know they existed until him! I get compliments on his temperament all the time. He has been an absolute blast to go hiking with, training has been so easy with him, and not nearly as neurotic as an Aussie! I can’t wait to get him out on the paddle board with me. Plus he is just so gorgeous to watch. Once we are where we want to be with obedience, I think I want to do some sort of dog sport with him!

We lovingly nicknamed him Monster because of his gigantic paws

oddbird wrote: ↑Sat Apr 07, 2018 5:53 pm I have to say, if he is any indication of what most of the breed is like, I am absolutely in love with the Dutch Shepherd

If he is quiet, then no, he is not an indication of the breed. They are so very varied in drive and temperament. My two are complete 180 from each other. My Thalie , who is 16 now, is a high energy, low drive. Training her in Ring sport was so much fun but they are usually a very high drive dog. She is def on the low end.

My Sadie is the complete opposite, very very HIGH drive and HIGH everything. She is on the go all day and never takes her eye off me, if I move, she jumps up and is ready.

Dutchringgirl wrote: ↑Sat Apr 07, 2018 6:06 pm

oddbird wrote: ↑Sat Apr 07, 2018 5:53 pm I have to say, if he is any indication of what most of the breed is like, I am absolutely in love with the Dutch Shepherd

If he is quiet, then no, he is not an indication of the breed. They are so very varied in drive and temperament. My two are complete 180 from each other. My Thalie , who is 16 now, is a high energy, low drive. Training her in Ring sport was so much fun but they are usually a very high drive dog. She is def on the low end.

My Sadie is the complete opposite, very very HIGH drive and HIGH everything. She is on the go all day and never takes her eye off me, if I move, she jumps up and is ready.

I wouldn’t say he is quiet per say lol. He just is good natured/sweet. He will definitely attention bark and if other dogs are barking, he goes nuts. I’m always on the go with him when I am not at work because otherwise he and I would both drive each other bonkers with his energy. When we are out, he is pretty mellow usually. At home is another story! Always wants to be in something or terrorizing his older (but little) brother.

oh yes, they are very sweet. Sadie does not like to be touched and isnt a snugger, but I think that its her hips, she has Double HD so she gets ouchy easy. But she does love to give kisses and come into your face. Thalie is the quiet one and will just be next to you at all times.

As long as you are always active and bring them and do things with them and keep them busy and they have a job, then you should be fine.

karenz wrote: ↑Wed Apr 04, 2018 3:40 am I’m not a good judge of breeds but I love him. He does remind me of my fuzzy Xander. Beautiful dog!!!

I just came across some pictures of your Xander while reading some old threads and they sure do look similar!