German Shepherd Dog vs Mixed Breed
The check that settles it
Black-and-tan mixed dogs with erect ears are labelled German Shepherd routinely.
Confirming a german shepherd dog
- Large erect ears set high, with a long wedge-shaped muzzle.
- Longer than tall — the outline is rectangular rather than square.
- A bushy tail set low and carried in a gentle sabre curve, never over the back.
- A dense double coat that sheds heavily twice a year and steadily in between.
Confirming a mixed breed
- No consistent set of breed characters — features from several types, or none in particular.
- Frequently medium-sized, short-coated and drop-eared, which is where mixed ancestry tends to land.
- Documented pedigree absent, which is what a breed actually is.
- Generally fewer of the concentrated health problems that come with closed breeding populations.