“The German Shepherd Dog must be well-balanced (with strong nerves) in terms of character, self-assured, absolutely natural and (except for a stimulated situation) good-natured as well as attentive and willing to please. He must possess instinctive behaviour, resilience and self-assurance in order to be suitable as a companion, guard, protection, service and herding dog”
Quoted from FCI standard n°166. It describes the breed the registry recognises, not any individual animal.
Drawn from sources, not opinion: FCI breed standard; UFAW — Genetic Welfare Problems of Companion Animals: German Shepherd Dog, Hip Dysplasia. An empty column means we hold nothing for that side, not that there is nothing to say.
What a judge marks the German Shepherd Dog down for, and what puts one out of the ring, in the registry’s own words. This describes the breed standard — it is not a checklist for the animal in front of you, and a pet with a disqualifying fault is an unshowable dog rather than an unhealthy one.
Marked heavily against a specimen in the ring.
The German Shepherd Dog standard is published by the FCI (Fédération Cynologique Internationale), the international federation of pedigree-dog clubs, and it is what show judges apply. This section sums up what it says about coat and colour and size. It does not assess any one animal: use it to know what to ask the breeder.
The German Shepherd Dog is bred in the hair varieties double coat and long double coat – both with undercoat.
Double coat: The guard hair should be as dense as possible, particularly harsh and close fitting: short on the head, including the inside of the ears, short on the front side of the legs, paws and toes, some-what longer and more strongly covered in hair on the neck.
On the back side of the legs the hair extends to the carpal joint or the hock
it forms moderate ‘trousers’ on the back side of the haunches.
Long double coat: The guard hair should be long, soft and not close fitting, with tufts on the ears and legs, bushy trousers and bushy tail with downward formation of tuft.
Short on the head, including the inside of the ears, on the front side of the legs, on the paws and toes, somewhat longer and more strongly covered in hair on the neck, almost forming a mane.
On the back side of the legs the hair extends to the carpal joint or the hock and forms clear trousers on the back side of the haunches.
Colours Colours are black with reddish-brown, brown and yellow to light grey markings
single-coloured black, grey with darker shading, black saddle and mask.
Unobtrusive, small white marks on chest as well as very light colour on insides are permissible, but not desirable.
The tip of the nose must be black in all colours.
Dogs with lack of mask, light to piercing eye colour, as well as with light to whitish markings on the chest and the insides, pale nails and red tip of tail are considered to be lacking in pigmentation.
The undercoat shows a light greyish tone.
The colour white is not allowed
Shortened from FCI standard n°166 — each label is the standard’s own wording with the verdict lifted into the tag beside it. Read the full clause at source.
The colours and patterns the standard admits, and what it prefers, discourages or disqualifies in each. An accepted colour says nothing about health.
An adult's measurements, per the standard. It does not say how big this puppy will be. Quotations from the FCI are in English, as the standard publishes them; the headings are ours.
Known hereditary risks for the German Shepherd Dog breed, and the specific documentation to request from any breeder before paying a deposit. A responsible breeder will have these readily available; deflection is a red flag.
13 conditions documentedThis is breed-level literature, not veterinary advice about an individual animal — your vet knows the animal.
Health checklist (PDF)Found in more than about one in twenty of the breed's dogs screened, or described as common in the sources.
FCI divides the German Shepherd Dog into these varieties, listed in the registry's own words. Depending on the breed they separate colour, coat, size or line — they are not a full list of colours, which no registry we hold publishes. Ask a breeder which variety their line is.
Breed-level information from The Dog API. It describes the German Shepherd Dog in general; any individual animal can differ.
Malformation of the hip joint causing joint laxity that progresses to arthritis; UFAW rates the welfare impact as major for many affected dogs, ranging up to euthanasia in severe cases. Prevalence estimates for the breed range from about 18% to 49% depending on the population and scoring method. In Sweden's national screening of young adult dogs (2007–2016), 3,154 of 12,335 German Shepherd Dogs (about one in four) had hip dysplasia graded C or worse.
What to ask for
A hip evaluation via a recognised scheme — OFA, BVA/KC or FCI — on both parents, required for the parent club's CHIC certificate.
A group of developmental abnormalities of the elbow joint that cause pain, lameness and secondary arthritis, usually appearing before two years of age. In Sweden's national screening of young adult dogs (2007–2016), 2,077 of 12,309 German Shepherd Dogs (about one in six) had elbow dysplasia, most of it mild.
What to ask for
An elbow evaluation via OFA (or the FCI/BVA-KC equivalent), on both parents, required for the parent club's CHIC certificate.
Malformation of the hip joint causing joint laxity that progresses to arthritis; UFAW rates the welfare impact as major for many affected dogs, ranging up to euthanasia in severe cases. Prevalence estimates for the breed range from about 18% to 49% depending on the population and scoring method. In Sweden's national screening of young adult dogs (2007–2016), 3,154 of 12,335 German Shepherd Dogs (about one in four) had hip dysplasia graded C or worse.
What to ask for
A hip evaluation via a recognised scheme — OFA, BVA/KC or FCI — on both parents, required for the parent club's CHIC certificate.
A group of developmental abnormalities of the elbow joint that cause pain, lameness and secondary arthritis, usually appearing before two years of age. In Sweden's national screening of young adult dogs (2007–2016), 2,077 of 12,309 German Shepherd Dogs (about one in six) had elbow dysplasia, most of it mild.
What to ask for
An elbow evaluation via OFA (or the FCI/BVA-KC equivalent), on both parents, required for the parent club's CHIC certificate.
Documented in this breed, but no source says how many of its dogs carry or have them. That is a gap in the evidence, not a sign they are rare.
A slow, progressive breakdown of the spinal cord's nerve fibres that starts in the hind legs and typically appears from around 8 years old, eventually reaching the front legs. The SOD1 variant most associated with it in this breed is a risk factor with incomplete penetrance, not a diagnosis: some dogs that test homozygous for the risk allele never develop signs, and the test cannot be used to confirm the disease in a dog that already has symptoms.
What to ask for
A DNA test for the SOD1:c.118G>A variant, on both parents, from a laboratory such as the University of Missouri (via OFA), Embark or Genomia.
An inherited storage disease caused by a missing enzyme (beta-glucuronidase): a German Shepherd puppy lost the ability to walk from about nine weeks old, with skeletal deformities and cloudy eyes, and was put to sleep at twelve weeks. The same variant had been found 20 years earlier in a mixed-breed dog probably of German Shepherd descent. It is recessive. It is not on the large screening panels, so how common it is now is not known.
What to ask for
Mucopolysaccharidosis VII (GUSB) DNA test result, on both parents
Destruction of the pancreas's enzyme-producing cells, usually starting before 4 years old, leaves the dog unable to digest food properly, causing progressive weight loss and a ravenous appetite despite eating; it needs daily enzyme replacement for life once diagnosed. It is dramatically more common in this breed than in the general dog population and is thought to have a polygenic, partly immune-mediated basis.
What to ask for
No validated pre-breeding DNA test exists. A risk allele in the dog leukocyte antigen (DLA) region has been identified in research but is not offered as a commercial breeding screen. A symptomatic dog is diagnosed on a serum trypsin-like immunoreactivity (TLI) blood test, not a breeding screen; ask the breeder whether the condition has occurred in the line.
A slow, progressive breakdown of the spinal cord's nerve fibres that starts in the hind legs and typically appears from around 8 years old, eventually reaching the front legs. The SOD1 variant most associated with it in this breed is a risk factor with incomplete penetrance, not a diagnosis: some dogs that test homozygous for the risk allele never develop signs, and the test cannot be used to confirm the disease in a dog that already has symptoms.
What to ask for
A DNA test for the SOD1:c.118G>A variant, on both parents, from a laboratory such as the University of Missouri (via OFA), Embark or Genomia.
Found in roughly one in a hundred to one in twenty of the breed's dogs screened.
An inherited platelet disorder described in this breed: platelet counts are normal, but platelets cannot properly support the clotting reaction on their surface, so affected dogs can have nosebleeds and bleed heavily after surgery or an injury. It is recessive. Roughly one in forty of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it.
What to ask for
Canine Scott syndrome (TMEM16F) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited defect in a pump (ABCB1, also called MDR1) that keeps some common medicines out of the brain, so some of them, ivermectin among them, can cause serious poisoning. It is uncommon in this breed — roughly one in seventy of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it — but the vet should know the result before prescribing.
What to ask for
MDR1 (ABCB1) DNA test, on both parents
An inherited platelet disorder described in this breed: platelet counts are normal, but platelets cannot properly support the clotting reaction on their surface, so affected dogs can have nosebleeds and bleed heavily after surgery or an injury. It is recessive. Roughly one in forty of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it.
What to ask for
Canine Scott syndrome (TMEM16F) DNA test result, on both parents
Described in this breed, but found in few or no dogs in recent screening, or only ever in one dog or one family. They are here so a test result makes sense if a breeder mentions one.
An inherited loss of the cone cells of the retina, described in a German Shepherd puppy with its own CNGA3 variant: from eight to ten weeks old affected dogs see poorly in daylight but keep their vision in dim light. It is recessive and looks very rare — none of more than 15,000 German Shepherds in a large screen carried it.
What to ask for
Cone degeneration (CNGA3, German Shepherd type) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited defect in kindlin-3, a protein that white blood cells and platelets both need, first found in a German Shepherd: white cells cannot leave the blood to fight infection and platelets cannot clump, so affected dogs have repeated infections and serious bleeding. It is recessive. Roughly one in 230 of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it.
What to ask for
Leucocyte adhesion deficiency III (FERMT3, kindlin-3) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited high level of uric acid in the urine (SLC2A9 gene) that makes urate bladder and kidney stones likely; a stone blocking a male dog's urethra is an emergency. It is recessive. It is very rare in this breed — fewer than one German Shepherd in a thousand carried it in a screen of more than 15,000. Once known, it can be managed with diet and monitoring.
What to ask for
Hyperuricosuria (SLC2A9) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited bleeding disorder from a shortage of clotting factor VIII: affected dogs bruise easily, have nosebleeds and bleed for a long time after surgery or an injury. Two F8 variants have been found in German Shepherds, each first in an affected male, and in 2026 a female with two copies of one of them was described. It is X-linked, so it shows in males while their mothers carry it silently. Both look very rare — in a screen of more than 15,000 German Shepherds one variant was found only a few times and the other not at all.
What to ask for
Haemophilia A (F8, German Shepherd types) DNA test result, or a factor VIII activity assay — on the dam especially, since carriers are female
An inherited failure of the skin's appendages described in a German Shepherd puppy: affected dogs have bald patches, missing or misshapen teeth and no sweat glands in the bare skin, and in the research colony bred from him many had repeated chest infections. It is X-linked, so it shows in males while their mothers carry it silently. It looks very rare outside that colony — none of more than 15,000 German Shepherds in a large screen carried it.
What to ask for
X-linked ectodermal dysplasia (EDA, German Shepherd type) DNA test result on the dam, since carriers are female
An inherited cancer syndrome first described in this breed: affected dogs develop firm nodules in the skin and multiple tumours in both kidneys, and females also get tumours of the uterus. One copy is enough to cause it. It looks rare now — roughly one in 800 of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it.
What to ask for
Renal cystadenocarcinoma and nodular dermatofibrosis (FLCN) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited loss of the cone cells of the retina, described in a German Shepherd puppy with its own CNGA3 variant: from eight to ten weeks old affected dogs see poorly in daylight but keep their vision in dim light. It is recessive and looks very rare — none of more than 15,000 German Shepherds in a large screen carried it.
What to ask for
Cone degeneration (CNGA3, German Shepherd type) DNA test result, on both parents
Median survival 11.3 years
95% confidence interval 11.3–11.4 years, from 10,773 recorded deaths among 19,847 dogs
Mortality hazard 1.24 (1.22, 1.27) relative to crossbred dogs, whose median is 12.0 years.
Measured in the United Kingdom from 584,734 dogs. Median survival is not a prediction for an individual dog.
McMillan, K.M., Bielby, J., Williams, C.L., Upjohn, M.M., Casey, R.A. & Christley, R.M. (2024) Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death. Scientific Reports 14, 531.
An inherited storage disease caused by a missing enzyme (beta-glucuronidase): a German Shepherd puppy lost the ability to walk from about nine weeks old, with skeletal deformities and cloudy eyes, and was put to sleep at twelve weeks. The same variant had been found 20 years earlier in a mixed-breed dog probably of German Shepherd descent. It is recessive. It is not on the large screening panels, so how common it is now is not known.
What to ask for
Mucopolysaccharidosis VII (GUSB) DNA test result, on both parents
Destruction of the pancreas's enzyme-producing cells, usually starting before 4 years old, leaves the dog unable to digest food properly, causing progressive weight loss and a ravenous appetite despite eating; it needs daily enzyme replacement for life once diagnosed. It is dramatically more common in this breed than in the general dog population and is thought to have a polygenic, partly immune-mediated basis.
What to ask for
No validated pre-breeding DNA test exists. A risk allele in the dog leukocyte antigen (DLA) region has been identified in research but is not offered as a commercial breeding screen. A symptomatic dog is diagnosed on a serum trypsin-like immunoreactivity (TLI) blood test, not a breeding screen; ask the breeder whether the condition has occurred in the line.
An inherited defect in a pump (ABCB1, also called MDR1) that keeps some common medicines out of the brain, so some of them, ivermectin among them, can cause serious poisoning. It is uncommon in this breed — roughly one in seventy of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it — but the vet should know the result before prescribing.
What to ask for
MDR1 (ABCB1) DNA test, on both parents
An inherited high level of uric acid in the urine (SLC2A9 gene) that makes urate bladder and kidney stones likely; a stone blocking a male dog's urethra is an emergency. It is recessive. It is very rare in this breed — fewer than one German Shepherd in a thousand carried it in a screen of more than 15,000. Once known, it can be managed with diet and monitoring.
What to ask for
Hyperuricosuria (SLC2A9) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited failure of the skin's appendages described in a German Shepherd puppy: affected dogs have bald patches, missing or misshapen teeth and no sweat glands in the bare skin, and in the research colony bred from him many had repeated chest infections. It is X-linked, so it shows in males while their mothers carry it silently. It looks very rare outside that colony — none of more than 15,000 German Shepherds in a large screen carried it.
What to ask for
X-linked ectodermal dysplasia (EDA, German Shepherd type) DNA test result on the dam, since carriers are female
An inherited defect in kindlin-3, a protein that white blood cells and platelets both need, first found in a German Shepherd: white cells cannot leave the blood to fight infection and platelets cannot clump, so affected dogs have repeated infections and serious bleeding. It is recessive. Roughly one in 230 of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it.
What to ask for
Leucocyte adhesion deficiency III (FERMT3, kindlin-3) DNA test result, on both parents
An inherited bleeding disorder from a shortage of clotting factor VIII: affected dogs bruise easily, have nosebleeds and bleed for a long time after surgery or an injury. Two F8 variants have been found in German Shepherds, each first in an affected male, and in 2026 a female with two copies of one of them was described. It is X-linked, so it shows in males while their mothers carry it silently. Both look very rare — in a screen of more than 15,000 German Shepherds one variant was found only a few times and the other not at all.
What to ask for
Haemophilia A (F8, German Shepherd types) DNA test result, or a factor VIII activity assay — on the dam especially, since carriers are female
An inherited cancer syndrome first described in this breed: affected dogs develop firm nodules in the skin and multiple tumours in both kidneys, and females also get tumours of the uterus. One copy is enough to cause it. It looks rare now — roughly one in 800 of more than 15,000 German Shepherds screened carried it.
What to ask for
Renal cystadenocarcinoma and nodular dermatofibrosis (FLCN) DNA test result, on both parents
