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Originally Posted by FidoTheYorkie  No The dog would not work as a rescue dog in water, only on land, for an example looking for missing people in the woods etc. 
I'm in love with Malinois but they are so rare here and I can't afford to buy a dog in another country and move it to iceland.
The dogs that are used most here in obedience and rescue work are Dobermans, Rottweilers, German shepherds, border collies, australian shepherds, and also the Icelandic sheepdog is in everything here in iceland, but the icelandic ones just aren't my types :P
I like german shepherds, but are they good around children, other animals and so ? do they tend to bark much ??
Are they loyal to their owner? |
I would look at the National Breed Club for German Shepherds. My experience with shepherds is yes around children (but like any dog), needs to be constantly socialized around children, ummm ( high prey drive) would likely be fine being raised up around other dogs in the household (watch out for the puppy months though), and yes they are trained to guard and protect and if you get a dog from a good working line, prey drive/alertness/and working ability etc usually go hand in hand. Shepherds are incredibly loyal to their owners and their family.
European Shepherd lines thankfully are not usually subject to the awful hip dysplasia that got bred into the North Amercian lines.
One thing on Shepherds really research out your local breeders for their pre breeding testing protocols. Also it is my understanding that European lines are somewhat larger than the N.A. lines. So weight might be an issue. Not too sure how strong you are, but I'd not want to be lifting a 80-90lb large male in and out of buildings n such. How-ever females are almost always smaller.