The best way to describe Tess is to say that she’s a Golden Retriever in a German Shepherd’s body. She is an absolute love and wants nothing more than to be with her people, to cuddle with her people, and to make her people happy. She’s the sweetest dog you’ll ever meet and is exceedingly eager to please. We are loving watching her mature and can’t wait to see her become someone’s safe and discriminating Family Protection Dog. Read on to learn more about Tess!
1. What are Tess's favorite things to do?
Tess is a go-anywhere, do-anything dog. As such, she is down for absolutely anything. She loves to hike and has great endurance. She also really enjoys training, learning new things and working for food and praise. She’s extremely motivated and is a fantastic student! That said, she also absolutely loves to cuddle on the couch or in bed. (Yes, we let her on our couch and in our bed, shh – don’t tell the others!) She melts into you when you pet her and offers everyone her belly to be petted and loved on.
2. What's something most people don't know about Tess?
After meeting and training thousands of dogs, I can tell you this – Tess is an Old Soul. It’s like she’s already “been there, done that.” She’s seen it all before. She takes life in stride and has absolutely rock-solid confidence. Nothing phases her. She is not the most energetic dog, but rather she enjoys trotting alongside the four-wheeler while the “young-uns” play. She is playful, but also perfectly content watching others play. There is something about her that is just so special! Her lower, old-soul energy makes her very easy to live with.
3. How long will Tess's coat get?
A long-coat German Shepherd is basically any dog with the long hair gene, but there are varying lengths of what “long” really is. Now that Tess is nine months old, her coat is not excessively long, so I think she will have a medium length of coat. It’s long enough to be fluffy and soft, but not so long that it gets tangled or messy more than the average German Shepherd. It’s a low-maintenance coat and, so far, I don’t have to brush her more than once or twice a month. It also stays clean. When she goes swimming, all it takes is a good shake when she’s dry and all the dirt comes right off!
4. How drivey is Tess?
Tess is not a super drivey dog. She has high food drive, which is awesome because it makes training easy and fun. She has moderate prey and toy drives, so she likes to play with toys and give chase to the flirt pole, but she isn’t a wildly out-of-control dog. She has just enough prey/toy drive to be fun and playful. She has moderate hunt drive, so she’d be a nice dog to do Nosework with, but she isn’t drivey enough to be a police K9. She has low defense drive right now. At this age, we’re seeing a nice big girl alert bark from her when she hears something out-of-the-ordinary, but so far we have not done any protection training with her because she is not ready for it yet. And her pack drive is high, which I love, but she isn’t needy. Does she want to be with her people? Yes. Does she need to be with her people, and is she annoying, whining or breaking out of her crate if she can’t get to you? Absolutely not. She’s pleasant to be around and loves affection and attention, but isn’t needy in any way.
5. Why would Tess make a great Family Dog?
For all the reasons listed above in the answer to question 4, and because Tess is 100 percent solid and bombproof socially and environmentally. She takes everything in stride and nothing phases her, and she loves adults, kids of all ages, dogs, cats, you name it. She’s the sweetest-natured and safest German Shepherd you could hope for for protection dog work. So on top of her high food drive, moderate working drives and high pack drive, she has been professionally raised and trained, and I know with absolute certainty that she’d be a fantastic family dog.
6. How big will Tess get?
Tess has big boning, but is currently 57 pounds which means she will probably top out at around 65 pounds as a fully-grown dog. That puts her at the large end for a female Czech German Shepherd, and she is of average height. I swear half of her weight is in her head alone – she has a gorgeous blocky head that she inherited from both her parents! (Click to view her pedigree.) She’s a beautiful dog who is easy on the eyes and will be the perfect size for a family dog and travel companion. She is a great size for fitting into tight spaces, flying on planes and doing everyday tasks. Tess’s height and weight are ideal.
7. What training is included with Tess's purchase?
Tess will come fully obedience and protection trained. This includes obedience to basic commands on leash (name, sit, down, come, heel, place, wait, crate, leave it), as well as off leash e-collar training for recall and place training. Also included are manners around people and dogs and manners in public around distractions. This comprehensive training is everything most owners want, so that she will be successful in her new home. She will also be fully protection trained which will include carjackings, home invasion, kidnapping and more. Additionally, Handover Training hours are included in her purchase price. Pick-up location is here in Boise, Idaho, or we can bring her to you!
If you are looking to purchase a Fully Trained Protection Dog sometime in the next 1-2 years, look no further! Tess is a one-in-a-million dog! You are also welcome to call or text me at 208-577-0744 to learn more about Tess. Thank you for reading all about Tess! To access her bio, click here!
