Welcome to ShadyOak Long Coat German Shepherds, where we strive to provide high quality, well-bred, mannered, tempered dogs. On our page, you'll find information regarding our dogs and puppies, what we do with the puppies during their time with us, and health standards that we adhere to. Our goal is to teach. You will find several pages on our website dedicated to learning more about the breed, the standards we hold to, and how to help you as future owners.
To learn more about German Shepherds in general, click the link below to jump to another page on our website.
ABOUT US
At ShadyOak Long Coat German Shepherds, we are dedicated to breeding top-quality, West German Showline long coat German Shepherds with exceptional temperament, health, and beauty. Our dogs are part of our family, raised with love and care to ensure they make loving and loyal companions. We adhere to high breeding standards to produce puppies that meet the breed's characteristics and are suitable for various purposes such as family pets, working dogs, and hopefully service dogs.
With years of experience and a passion for the breed, we strive to provide our clients with healthy and well-socialized puppies that are ready to join their new families. We conduct health checks, screenings, and genetic testing to ensure the well-being of our dogs and the quality of our breeding program. Our goal is to match each puppy with the perfect family for a lifetime of happiness. Learn more about who we are and our story by clicking the link below.
Meet the Parents
What We Do
What we do to help your future puppies
01
Early Neurological Stimulation (ENS)
Socializing puppies has traditionally been considered the responsibility of the new owner. We instruct them to take the puppy to classes and make sure they are exposed to a variety of people and situations.
But more research shows that encouraging a stable temperament can start even before puppies are born. Breeders can do a lot to instill adaptability in puppies during the first three weeks of their lives so that they can handle new situations well.
The US Military developed this method designed to improve the performance of future military working dogs, according to the Breeding Better Dogs program developed by Dr. Carmen Battaglia, esteemed breeder, judge, seminar presenter, and AKC board member.
What Does ENS Do?
When performed correctly, ENS is believed to impact the neurological system by kicking it into action earlier than would be normally expected, the result being an increased capacity that later will help to make the difference in its performance, according to Breeding Better Dogs. ENS is time sensitive and must be performed from the third to the 16th days of a puppy’s life.
The exercises are not a substitution for daily handling and stroking of young puppies.
Five benefits have been observed in canines that were exposed to ENS, including improved cardio vascular performance (heart rate); stronger heart beats; stronger adrenal glands; more tolerance to stress; and greater resistance to disease.
In learning tests, ENS-stimulated pups were more active and exploratory than their non-stimulated littermates, according to Breeding Better Dogs.
For more information on ENS, click the link below.
02
Early Scent Introduction
Just like ENS, ESI is performed during the period of development often referred to as the "critical window" Days 3 through 16.
Dogs introduced to a diverse array of smells from a young age are often more confident and less fearful in unfamiliar situations. ESI helps in the cognitive growth of dogs. Regular exposure to new scents stimulates their brains, which may result in enhanced problem solving abilities. These activities are also recorded and provided to the new puppy parents. Click the link below to learn more about ESI.
03
Rule of 7
After the ENS process, the puppies are introduced to what is known as the Rule of 7. This means that the puppies are introduced to different stimuli that adhere to their senses and increase socialization skills. The rules state that by the time your puppy is 7 weeks old, they should be exposed to the following:
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Been in 7 different locations
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Eaten from 7 different containers
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Met at least 7 different people
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Ridden at least 7 miles in a car
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Been in a crate at least 7 times
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Played with 7 different types of toys
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Been exposed to 7 different types of contexts
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Been played with or taken somewhere alone, without mom or litter mates, 7 different times
As we move forward with training our puppies, we dive further into The Puppy's Rule of Twelve (Margaret Hughes). Similar to the Rule of Seven, the Rules of Twelve simply increases the number of exposers by the time the puppies are twelve weeks old.
We record all the items on the lists and provide this evidence to our new puppy parents and encourage the continuation of these experiences.
04
Health Tested
Here at ShadyOak Long Coat German Shepherds, we care about the health of the breed. All of our dogs are Degenerative Myelopathy (DM) clear. DM is a progressive, irreversible neurological disease that affects a dog's spinal cord, causing muscle weakness and loss of coordination. It is common in large breed dogs. With our dogs being DM clear, we do all we can do do to help eliminate this SILENT KILLER.
For more information on DM, click the link below.
Our parents are also hip and elbow tested: OFA rated, SV or PennHip
05
Sound Desensitization
More confidence building!
Hopefully it has become evident by this point that we truly care about the puppy you choose.
We will expose your puppy to all sorts of sounds that could cause your pup to be nervous or fearful. These sounds include but are not limited to: doorbells, other dogs barking, fire engines, fire works, cars and motorcycles, lightning and thunder, leaf blowers, lawn mowers...
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"I HIGHLY recommend ShadyOak Long Coat German Shepherds! I have nothing but good things to say about this breeder. Lisa has really worked with me in depth to be matched with a puppy that best suits my needs (mainly for service work). She's been 100% thoughtful, caring, and her passion for producing amazing GSD shows. My Calcifer (Dumbo from Koda x Gypsy second litter) has been proof of that. I even loved being kept in the loop with all that was being done with the puppies to prepare them for their future homes! Lisa has also been the first breeder I've actually talks about doing Rule of 7, ENS, ESI, and Volhard testing on all the puppies on top of making sure their physical health is top priority. My boy has been super quick and eager to learn from day one of being home! His gorgeous looks, how he handles stressors/distractions, his behavior around family/children, and even mitigating my disabilities has all been phenomenal. I would most definitely come back to Lisa for another puppy in the future!"
Kathrine, Texas