Difference between male and female GSD's? Discussions

I was wondering what main differences there are between male and female GSD's (in case someone got confused at the title )

Things like... is one calmer than the other?
One easier to train?
More affectionate?
More protective?
Better with other dogs?

Etc etc

I was sure I wanted a female... but now I am thinking a Male would be nice, although I already have Alfie who is a male so hope that wouldn't cause problems if I did decide I wanted a male GSD?

Neither sex is calmer than the other or more affectionate or easier to train or better with other dogs in my experience.

However, males can become "overbonded" with female owners if you do not proactively take steps to tackle this.

The main differences (as in most breeds) are that males tend to be taller, heavier and stronger than females.

Ahhh awesome cheers SB.

Was just I did a quick search on male/female differences and a few things came up like the females are more "stubborn" when training, and can be more "tempramental" and the males are more affectionate etc... so wasn't sure if that was the same for GSD's

If the only difference is the size then I will be getting a female!

ETA: the over bonding thing was something that bothered me, as chances are when I moved out I would be on my own!

Hormones can make an unspayed bitch more hormonal!

I do not believe ANY dog is stubborn, I just believe that the owner has not found what floats their boat!

Well I would be spaying her anyway!

Ahh, makes sense! I was just going off a few threads that came up in the search

My immediate answer would have been one has a penis... lol... Sorry...

I find my male much more affectionate than my female (in general, the males I have met seem much more affectionate, but not many people I am in contact with have females to compare with).

My female is MUCH smarter than my male, but I'm convinced my male had his brain took out when they removed his eye lol

My male seems more clingy than my female, but then my female used to be like this when she was younger too, so don't know if it's age.

My male is MUCH more protective than my female, but I don't generally let him protect me (I would if I needed it though). My girl would protect with barking... My male I don't think would hesitating in moving forward and possibly biting if needed.

My two are very different though, but I think the main reason for this is that one is English show lines (I think - he's rescue, but carries those traits), and one is German lines (I think - she's a rescue as well, but carries those traits and is much more driven).

I can't really add anything to the answers you have already had. All dogs, whether male or female, are individuals.

However, as SB has said, males are generally larger and heavier than females and therefore stronger.

Thanks guys!

I think I probably will still get a female then - would be nice to have the mix

Do agree about bonding. One of my friends has a show kennels & its noticable how the males by & large look for her & pull after her while the females prefer the male kennel manager. When my parents were alive only one of my bitches bonded with me closer than with my father.

Hmm that is interesting!

Just out of interest, why is this - is it something one finds in other breeds, or something particular to GSDs?

Thanks for any other info

I have not observed it in other breeds but it is very apparent in GSD, no idea why, but because I have noted it over the years it was something I paid particular attention to avoid.

My dog is still "all me" as several people have said, but at least he does not whine, creep, howl, bark or overly object when left or handled by other people.

The difference is that the boys widdle standin up and the girlies squat.

Whatever generalisations you make, a dog will come along to be the exception and prove you wrong IME.

I have only had one male GSD so far, my others were bitches, but I can't say I have noticed that Yogi is over-bonded to me. He is definitely "my" dog, but is happy to be walked etc by others too and doesn't whinge and whine if I leave him.

With mine it wasn't so much that they overbonded but if father & I were together the bitches, apart from Cariad; obeyed his command before mine etc while the dogs obeyed my commands first & ignored him ,though when he took them out alone they were totally obedient with him. Should explain that my parents & I shared my house so they were with them more than I, as I was at work & they were retired for 6 of my dogs.

I know a huge female, bigger than any male I have met (KC reg). That said both parents were big. Why do males sometimes over bond with their female owner?

Well, I certainly loved my Sheppies more than the ex.
But I had bitches so that disproves that theory.

Having owned & trained both sexes of GSDs I didn't find any difference between dogs & bitches & never had any problem with my males"over bonding with me", but(& it is a HUGE but)all my GSDs were bred for Temperament, Character & Health equally.

My father's first GSD was awful & ended up being PTS for attacking my brother for no reason(he was only saved from worse injuries by my bitch flattening my father's bitch)she was bred from the popular lines of the 1950s which whilst being very pretty, were also very nervous, had fear aggression & were totally unpredictable.

Your choice of puppy, breeder & lines is therefore extremely important, I personally cannot separate T, C or H, looks come a very distant 2nd place, which is why a despair at people who go for looks(Long coat, colour etc )first & treat C, T & H as additional unimportant things.

My males were on the whole far more up for training all the time, because they are effectively "in season" all the time, whereas bitches can have pre/during/post season attitude to training

Health and temperament are the first things I look for in any breeder - of any type of animal! Looks have never been important to me, sure it is nicer to get a really lovely looking animal, but I would much rather have a healthy wonderful temperamented (is that a word? ) dog than one because it is pretty!

It is tricky to decide if a male or a female would be best for me... hmmm

Thanks Any info on this breed always of great interest to me