King Shepherd

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Breed Details

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Breed Rating

Breed Details

General

The King Shepherd is a large and massive dog that was developed recently as a versatile and adaptable working dog. A result of cross breeding between the German Shepherd, Alaskan Malamute and Great Pyrenees, this impressive dog perfectly fits the name "King". It was developed in 1990s by American breeders, Shelly Watts-Cross and David Turkheimer, in an attempt to create a superior dog that would not only be a great family dog but also a very capable working dog.

This is an impressive looking dog that will seldom fail to turn heads to its impressive appearance. The dog stands between 25-29 inches and weighs about 90-150 lbs. The King Shepherd resembles a German Shepherd, naturally because the GSD is used as main ingredient of this dog. The King Shepherd has a massive head with rounded forehead. Moderate size, V-shaped pointed ears are erect and set on high. Almond shaped medium sized eyes are set rather aslant and give an intelligent and lively expression. Eye colors vary from very light to very dark shades of brown to almost black. Black is the only acceptable nose color for this breed although during the winter months, a 'snow nose' or a lighter streaked nose would be acceptable. Medium length muscular and rounded neck fits the body smoothly. The body is slightly longer than tall. It comes with full deep chest and well sprung ribs. The dog sports a richly coloured coat that is either coarse or long haired. Coarse coat is flat and close-fitting. The coat can be solid white or solid black, sable or bi-coloured.

This is a rather new breed that is NOT yet recognized by AKC or any other major kennel club.

Color

The King Shepherd comes in a wide range of coat colours. The richer the colour, the more it is preferred. The dog comes in sable, black saddle with tan, gold, cream, and tan or silver markings. Small white spots on chest are acceptable.

Coat

There are two coat varieties found in this dog. One is coarse haired variety which sports a very dense top coat that is straight and very close fitting to the body. This coat is shorter on head, ears, front of legs, paws and toes while longer and denser on neck. The other is long haired variety which is longer than coarse coat, not close fitting and not always completely straight. The longer hair on ears, back of forearm and lumber region. The hair forms tufts at the ears and fringes from the elbow to the pastern. The trousers are long and dense. The tail is densely feathered with light fringe below.

Personality

The King Shepherd is not only valued highly for its head turning handsomeness but the dog is gaining popularity for its working abilities and excellent temperament as well. Loving and loyal to their family, these very good looking dogs can be trained easily due to their eager to please nature and high levels of intelligence. Its protective instincts, loyalty to its family and aloofness towards strangers make it an excellent watch and guard dog though it is not hostile to strangers. As a gentle, kind and playful breed, the King Shepherd makes a very good playmate of children and can be a trust worthy nanny for children. This easy to train dog is used in search and rescue missions, as therapy dogs and in police work as well as sheepherders. It gets along well with other dogs and pets in the family. It is not a suitable dog for apartment living, not only because of its large size but also because of its high exercise demands that call for atleast a large yard where the dog can take care of its exercising needs. The King Shepherd is an excellent family pet, working dog and a trustworthy guardian of the family.

Care

Both coarse haired and long haired varieties will need moderate grooming twice a week to keep the coat in top condition. Bath only when necessary. This high energy dog should be given two hours of moderate to strenuous exercise daily.

Training

This is a very easy to train dog that loves to learn and eager to please. With high intelligence levels, this willing dog can learn to respond to commands without any difficulty.

Activity

Any working dog loves to be outside, involve itself in some task. That is also true for King Shepherd. The dog loves and needs to be working rather than being indoor doing nothing. It needs large open space to play and take care of its exercise needs and hence suitable for families with large yard.