DDR German Shepherd: Rarity, Guarding, Protection, and More!

Everyone loves a “buy one get one free” deal. And when you get a DDR German Shepherd as a pet, you are getting a worker and a pet rolled into one. Whether you have your dog protect your property or use his keen sense of smell for tracking, you’ll get practical utility from having a working line GSD like the DDR German Shepherd.

DDR German Shepherds are working line German Shepherds originating from East Germany and can guard, protect, track, and carry about 20 lbs of weight in a dog harness. Just like its working line peers, this dog is among the most agile GSDs and is quite intelligent.

This article is your complete guide to having a DDR German Shepherd. It will also help you decide if you should get one in the first place. Everything from the dog’s health, traits, and cost to life expectancy is covered here.

But, if you’re in a rush, here’s a quick look at the breed.

DDR German Shepherd	Breed Characteristics
AKC Group	Herding
Origin	East Germany
Type	Working / Companion
Other Names	East German Shepherd
Breed Size	Medium-Large
Height	24-26 inches (Males) 22-24 inches (Females)
Weight	66-88 pounds (Males) 49-71 pounds (Females)
Temperament	Brave, Protective, Guard-dog, Strong, Confident, Intelligent, Alert, Independent, Loyal, High-energy, Aloof, Affectionate, Versatile, Territorial
Appearance	Muscular, Erect Ears, Athletic, Agile, Straighter Topline
Lifespan	12-13 years
Health Issues	Bloat (GDV), Pancreatitis, Hip Dysplasia (rare)
Coat Colors	Black Sable, Sable, Black & Tan, Solid Black
Coat Type	Double-coated, Short-Medium, Medium
Shedding	Heavy
Grooming	Moderate
Easy to Train	Yes
Exercise Needs	Medium-High
Hypoallergenic	No
Child Friendly	Yes
Pet Friendly	Yes
Good for new owners	Yes
Cost	$1500 – $3000

If you want to know all about the East German Shepherd, you’ll love this guide. Let’s get started!

Origin and History

What is a DDR German Shepherd?

When you look at the different areas in which this GSD excels, from athleticism to intelligence, you cannot help but marvel at how such a wonder came about to be. And just like the internet and the moon landing, this miracle is a result of wartime competitive innovation.

DDR German Shepherds are dogs originating from East Germany’s Cold War military canine development efforts. Due to rigorous training and strict breeding standards, the DDR produced a specimen with fewer health risks, higher physical potential, and admirable intelligence.

But before we cover how this came about, I should probably address why DDR and East Germany are being used interchangeably. Back when this breed was in its final stages of development, East Germany was called Deutsches Demokratische Republik. Of course, DDR is the more popular term because Deutsches and Demokratische are hard to pronounce for non-Germans. DDR at the time is the same as eastern Germany now.

So how did East Germany’s government do from 1940 to 1990 to leave behind one of the most impactful working line GSD breeds that professional breeders have since preserved? Here are a few criteria that branched of East German Shepherds:

• Unhealthy dogs don’t get to breed – While GSDs are prone to many health risks, and even working line GSDs are no exception. The DDR breeding program didn’t let a single dog breed if it developed hip dysplasia or even the visible potential of having any health problems.
   
• Training that exposes weakness – DDR GSDs were famously trained to scale six-foot walls. But their training was as much for military utility as it was to expose joint problems, lack of stamina, and endurance issues. If a dog got hurt easily, his “reward” was getting put down and, of course, not breeding.
   
• If you can’t beat West Germany, you can’t work for us – Finally, the DDR German Shepherds were bred and raised not to meet rigid pre-set criteria but were trained and used for breeding based on sliding scale criteria that depended on West German Shepherds. The better the West GSDs got, the more DDR German Shepherds had to do to remain in the purebred line built solely to make East Germany superior.

With the above criteria, it makes sense that DDR German Shepherds were used to instill fear in East Germany’s opponents and to attack its deserters. Now, these dogs are used to guard and scare delivery guys! 

While that is an amusing step down in terms of duties, it is quite reassuring to know that a DDR German Shepherd is more than capable of handling any modern protection task.

Difference Between DDR and Czech German Shepherd

In a vacuum, the decision to get a DDR German Shepherd is quite a straightforward one. However, you have to consider other options and compare, so you don’t just make a good choice but make one that’s best for your situation. 

When considering the opportunity cost of getting an East German Shepherd, people often compare the dog to Czech GSDs.

Czech GSDs are working line German Shepherds originating from Czechoslovakia, which you may now know as the Czech Republic. On the other hand, DDR German Shepherds come from East Germany, making them technically more authentic to the name “german” shepherd. 

The difference in origin doesn’t give any particular one superiority over any other breed, especially since both areas have similar climate and canine living conditions. Czech Shepherds were bred for patrolling, DDR German Shepherds for offense.

Check out this fascinating Czech & DDR Bloodline Chart by Von Ultimate Kennels for an interesting insight into the lines.

While the country of origin doesn’t matter as much, the circumstances under which a bloodline is established matter more than most things. DDR German Shepherds were meant to attack deserters and maintain the integrity of the Berlin Wall. 

That’s a much greater task than immigration control, which the Czech GSDs were supposed to aid the Czech military. That said, the DDR superiority in aggression, willingness to go on the offensive, and strength to take down a human is only slightly more prominent than that of Czech German Shepherds. 

Since you won’t require your GSD to attack humans during your regular daily routine, DDR variety’s superiority in offense is virtually useless compared to a Czech German Shepherd. DDR or Czech, if the dog looks intimidating enough, you’re protected.

DDR GSDs Mature Faster Than Czech German Shepherds

When Czech GSDs gained popularity after East Germany and West Germany reunited, their breeding standards got compromised. While still bred to have a great work ethic, they were also meant to be more house pets than patrol buddies. 

As a result, they can be slower to mature. While there’s no evidence that a fully developed DDR German Shepherd is any smarter than a fully grown Czech one, it is evident that in the right environment, a DDR German Shepherd will mature much faster than its Czech counterpart.

This means nothing if you don’t care about how soon your GSD can start telling the difference between different commonly used phrases. But it means everything if you want to get GSD puppies only so they can get to work fast.

DDR GSDs Have Thicker Bones

Next, we have the difference in endurance level that can be visibly correlated with bone thickness. DDR German Shepherds seem to have better stamina than Czech Shepherds of the same age and gender. This could be because work activities like carrying a patrol vest don’t take as much toll on the dogs with thicker bones.

Czech GSDs Are More Prone to Hip Dysplasia

Finally, we cannot talk about bones without bringing up hip dysplasia, which is an unfortunate condition that many big dogs, including German Shepherds, are prone to. 

Among GSDs, different types are at varying levels of risk of getting hip dysplasia. Of the two being discussed here, DDR German Shepherds have the lower exposure to hip dysplasia, mainly because the breeding program that spawned this line of working German Shepherds had a much lower tolerance for dogs with hip or joint problems.

I know this can get pretty confusing, so if you’re feeling less than crystal clear right now, you might want to check out this article, Czech German Shepherd (Working Drive, Training, & Care).

Appearance and Size

DDR German Shepherd Colors

In an ideal world, a German Shepherd’s colors or even appearance wouldn’t matter. But the reality is, there is an entire “show line” of GSDs bred for their beauty. 

DDR German Shepherds, however, don’t belong to this line, which means their owners care less about their looks. As a result, it makes sense that there are only a few visual variations of these dogs that can be spotted mainly by color.

DDR German Shepherds are mainly dark in color, either black sable or solid black. They can also feature a mix of black and tan, where tan can even border on red. The black sable colored GSD is usually assumed to be a DDR German Shepherd because of the look’s prominence among East German Shepherds.

If you find a DDR German Shepherd who has more of any other color than black, black sable, or black and tan, you must ask questions about his lineage and origin as he might be a mix. 

Related: What’s Your German Shepherd Mixed With? 5 Ways How to Tell.

Because DDRs have retained their working line purity for a long time, it has become their unique selling point, which is why the risk of getting a mixed DDR is lower, especially if you get one from a breeder who specializes in East German Shepherds.

How Big Do DDR German Shepherds Get?

DDR German Shepherds grow to the maximum height of 26 inches. The expected minimum height for adult DDR Shepherds is 22 inches. Being gender-specific, an adult female is anywhere between 22 to 24 inches and weighs around 70 lbs, and a male is 24 to 26 inches, weighing 88 lb on average.

While the dog might have a denser bone structure than a typical GSD, you’ll notice that the shoulder height isn’t any higher than what you’d get from a regular German Shepherd. 

This is because the DDR German Shepherd’s physique can be attributed to its denser bones. If you decide this breed is for you, definitely choose a Big Barker Orthopedic Dog Bed as it’s scientifically proven to improve the quality of life for big dogs by supporting their joints. It’s also the bed that my German Shepherd sleeps on.

It is only when you consider that for having a dog roughly the same size as a show line German Shepherd, you get better protection and functioning utility that you can truly appreciate the value of a DDR German Shepherd. That’s why learning more about the dog’s temperament is crucial before you visit a breeder.

Temperament

DDR Guarding and Protection

DDR German Shepherds were bred and trained to be military dogs. Some people might think that what makes a military dog is his training. In reality, certain dogs are bred so that they can become functioning military dogs with as little training as possible. 

You could theoretically train a pug to help a soldier. But the effort it takes to train one is not worth the outcome. On the other hand, a dog bred for military use will require little training before he is ready to assist on the field. And the DDR German Shepherd is one of those dogs.

What makes any dog inherently good for military use are the following criteria.

• Must have strong guarding and protection instincts 
• Must have superior physical potential 
• Must have a capacity for discipline

The first among these is certainly true for DDR German Shepherds and can even be translated to home use. After all, an intimidating dog who cares deeply about its owner is reason enough for most average thieves and B&E Scouters to stay away.

“What’s endearing about East German Shepherds is that despite their reputation for ruthless offense capabilities, they care about their owners and their families as well.” 

World of Dogz

Your DDR German Shepherd will not just want to protect you but will see your baby and older kids as members of his family. This, of course, doesn’t mean you can leave an infant around your DDR Shepherd without supervision or training.

Your dog might not know what hurts the baby. More importantly, your child might unwittingly touch or grab the dog in a place where the dog’s knee-jerk reaction is to bite or claw.

In other words, your DDR German Shepherd has strong protective instincts but requires a great deal of training before you can feel comfortable having kids around him.

This isn’t that big of a problem if your children grow up with a DDR puppy. However, an induction is in order if you bring home a fully grown DDR Shepherd or have a baby while your dog is all grown up. You can read more about this subject in my article, Are German Shepherds Good With Babies?

Types of Work Suited to DDR German Shepherds

DDR German Shepherds fit the military dog criteria covered above, which indicates that they can guard and protect well and have the capacity to follow an order. In this section, I’ll cover what each of these attributes means when it comes to getting work out of your GSD.

Protecting Property

DDR German Shepherds can be awkward at socializing because even when getting to know other dogs, they’re simultaneously focused on protecting their owner. 

You won’t have to worry about teaching a DDR Shepherd how to protect. If anything, you’ll need to teach them who it is okay to let on the property. Ultimately, you’ll have the DDR in a position where he cannot truly hurt anyone.

Some households have their GSDs chained to a kennel in the backyard; others consider it cruel and find other ways to make sure the dog doesn’t fetch a lawsuit by biting the neighborhood lawyer’s kid. 

The best cross between having your DDR Shepherd protect your property and protecting others from your dog is to have him be a security alarm with sharp teeth!

Your dog’s role should not be to attack intruders (as he can misjudge guests as intruders) but to sound the alarm by barking and keeping away actual trespassers.

Protecting (and Herding Livestock)

The role your DDR Shepherd plays when herding sheep or cattle is different than when protecting your property. In protecting your home, the dog acts only as an alarm, not the attacker who “fixes” the alarming situation. 

But when the same dog is protecting your livestock from hyenas or foxes, he should be free to attack. This requires a different kind of training.

DDR German Shepherds who are trained to be actual shepherd dogs are often familiarized with humans in such a way that they don’t feel odd even encountering a stranger. This allows them to focus only on problematic animals like foxes and coyotes, who might want to mess with the chicken coup. 

You can train a DDR German Shepherd to kill foxes at sight by using dummies and giving the puppy a treat for every dummy “killed.” Despite formidable offense capabilities, though, DDR German Shepherds don’t make good hunting dogs.

Yes, they can track, but their hunting assistance is subpar at best. Instead, their tracking abilities are better used elsewhere.

Detecting Substances

Since DDR German Shepherds have a very keen sense of smell, they can be trained to sniff out drugs and explosives, find lost objects, and even dead bodies. 

The urban legend surrounding the DDR military’s use of these dogs is that they would use deserters’ old articles to prime the DDR German Shepherds for attack and send them after soldiers who would try to escape on the other side of the Berlin wall. 

What’s confirmed from the story is that the military did use DDR German Shepherds to attack deserters. But whether it was by having them smell old clothes or by simply pointing at someone who had just taken off, what matters is that DDR Shepherds used to track people regularly.

As someone from a law enforcement background, I’ve seen countless times, detection dogs indicate a “find” and it’s amazing to watch.

World of Dogz

Just because the East German Military used DDR Shepherds to catch deserters doesn’t mean you can use your dog to bring home your ex! Times have changed. Now the same ability to track is best used to rescue a lost individual, find missing persons, and locate illegal or dangerous substances.

Carrying Gear on Treks

Whether you’re going on a hike or want to trek an unfamiliar territory, your muscular DDR German Shepherd is capable of carrying a reasonable amount of weight effortlessly in a harness with pouches like the Auroth Tactical Dog Harness from Amazon. If you’re looking for a no-pull harness, I particularly like this one which gets a mention here.

So, what counts as reasonable weight?

I avoid mentioning the exact weight your GSD will be able to carry because it depends on a range of factors, including but not limited to your dog’s gender, age, athletic ability, and how well-fed he is. But you can estimate a reasonable amount by taking 25% of your dog’s weight, given that he is well nourished.

Companionship

While DDR German Shepherds are not specialized in being therapy dogs, they are as emotionally intelligent as other GSDs and can be service dogs. Their eagerness to please (which translates to work ethic among dogs) is also great emotional support for people recovering from trauma. 

However, before using a DDR German Shepherd for therapy, you should consult with professionals and seek guidance on the matter. All I can say is that your dog can help. But when it comes to the “how” of it, that’s best left to professionals. You can read more here, Can German Shepherds Be Emotional Support Dogs?

Do DDR German Shepherds Make Good Pets?

Companionship isn’t valuable just for those recovering from trauma. A good companion dog is also a good pet. And knowing that DDR German Shepherds are eager to please and have the emotional intelligence to form a strong bond with their owner’s family can lead to only one conclusion.

DDR German Shepherds make good pets for active families, including those with young children or teenagers. They require a lot of exercise and having multiple active members in the family helps. DDR Shepherds are early to mature emotionally and can form a sense of belonging to the whole family.

However, before you get a DDR Shepherd, you must consider the functional feasibility as well as the utility of having one. Even if there’s no overt benefit to having an East German Shepherd, you need to at least have practical means or lifestyle to accommodate one.

There are inconvenient aspects to having any pet. And the more the inconvenience, the better the utility must be to make it worthwhile to have the pet long term. Here’s what you can expect when you get a DDR German Shepherd as a pet.

DDR German Shepherds Require a Lot of Activity

• Inconvenience: Someone will have to walk the dog every day, twice a day. 
• Utility: The dog walker will reap the benefits of an active lifestyle.

DDR German Shepherds Are Big Dogs

• Inconvenience: You will need a large home or at least a decent backyard to accommodate the dog. 
• Utility: The dog’s intimidating athletic size will keep intruders away from your home.

DDR German Shepherds Are Quite Intelligent

• Inconvenience: Your dog will get bored if you don’t give him enough mental stimulation or new areas to explore. 
• Utility: The dog’s intelligence allows him to process each member of the family as distinct individuals and develop connections with them.

The above points bring us to the conclusion that families that will have the best experience owning a GSD are ones that don’t even count the “inconveniences” listed above as inconveniences.

So, you should only get a DDR German Shepherd if you have a big house, like to take long walks, and love to engage your pet in games and playtime.

How to Care for a DDR German Shepherd

Training and Exercise

To engage your pet in activities and games, you need the right structure that relieves them of their boredom in the short term and develops them long term. You’ll need to reign in the immense physical potential of DDR Shepherds by using daily training as an outlet for excess energy.

You should train your DDR German Shepherd to respond to basic commands and engage in activities you prefer. Exercise must be done daily for about two hours for adult DDR Shepherds, and walking can be counted as one of the exercises. Others can focus more on improving obedience and mental faculties.

Coat and Grooming

East German Shepherds have three different kinds of coats, mainly varying by color combination. When it comes to thickness, East German Shepherds are no different from other working lines.

DDR German Shepherds have a thick double coat and require regular grooming. You can expect the undercoat to be almost entirely replaced twice a year because of how fast they shed. But instead of avoiding coat blowing, simply comb and groom regularly to assist organized shedding.

Do you want to learn more about GSD care? Check out this article, How To Care for a German Shepherd.

DDR German Shepherd Health

Hip Dysplasia Rarity

DDR German Shepherds rarely get hip dysplasia and aren’t genetically as prone to the condition as the mainstream variety. This is because hip dysplasia was weeded out of the East German Shepherd line with zero tolerance for the condition among DDR studs.

How Long Do DDR German Shepherds Live?

DDR German Shepherds live close to the standard average of 12 to 13 years, which is not too different from most German Shepherds. What’s important is that DDR GSDs are likely to reach this age with fewer health problems than their non-DDR counterparts.

Is a DDR German Shepherd Right for You?

A DDR German Shepherd is right for you if you can accommodate his lifestyle and his presence improves your life quality. This is usually the case if you know the utility and the convenience of having this breed.

Pros

• They are great guards and are extremely loyal – You can feel secure in their presence.
• They can develop an emotionally intelligent bond – They truly feel like family.
• They don’t require a lot of baths – Less time spent bathing your dog.

Cons

• They are big and athletic – Require more space
• They need a lot of activity – You need to spend a lot of time walking and exercising them.
• They shed a lot – Need regular grooming

FAQs

What is DDR Bloodline?

DDR bloodline refers to German Shepherds bred in the DDR without bloodlines from outside of East Germany. DDR stands for Deutsche Demokratische Republik (German Democratic Republic), which is now the eastern region of Germany. They are mainly bred for their work ethic and lower risk of disease.

How Much Does a DDR German Shepherd Cost?

A DDR German Shepherd can cost up to $3000, with many breeders selling purebred puppies for $1500. DDR bloodline dogs sold any cheaper should raise concerns. Regardless of what you pay, you should always insist on meeting the dog’s parents and getting appropriate health screening tests.

Related Posts You May Like:

• German Shepherd Types: 5 Breed Variations (With Pictures)

• Best Diet for Working Dogs: Nutrition to Optimize Performance

• Working vs. Show Line German Shepherds: Key Differences