Male or Female Doberman?

AnyaDanneel

New Member
My boyfriend and I already have a male Pit Bull. He's the sweetest thing in the world. He's two years old and he wouldn't hurt a fly. I had a male Doberman puppy when I was 8. He was the sweetest thing ever. He was hyper and loving. But, my dad was always really mean to him so I called my landlord and she pretending to make us get rid of him, just so I could get him into a better home. It was really hard on me because I loved him so much, but I didn't want my dad to keep hurting him. But, my question is, I want a Doberman who will be a good family dog, but will also protect the family if he/she needs to. I know males probably won't get along with the Pit, even though the Pit has been around other males and there was never a problem, bringing a male Doberman in probably isn't the best idea. I know females obviously can also be protective and such, but is there a major personality difference between the two? I've been researching the breed and there's so many different answers by different people. Will a female Doberman be suitable for me? I would like a male more because I'm not a big fan of female animals, but I don't want to cause possible fighting. Is there anything you guys could also help me out with for training the Doberman and everything? I plan on getting a puppy, I know they can tear up the house and everything if they don't get enough attention and they need plenty of exercise and time to just play and everything. What else do I need to know? Can you guys please help me out? Thank you so much. Please don't criticize me for my questions, either and tell me I know nothing about dogs and everything else. This is why I'm here. I want to learn a lot about the breed before I go and get a Doberman. Thank you. :)
 
Hello and welcome!

No one here is going to criticize your questions and good for you for asking them before jumping into it! You'll definitely want a female since it isn't recommended to keep a male Doberman with another male of any breed since you can get male to male aggression.

I'm short on time right now, but the others will be more than happy to answer any questions you have. :)
 
Hi and :dc: from California. We have 3 males and one female Doberman, two of our males don't get along and have to be always separated, our female is the most hyper and protective as well as being the queen of the roost. With that being said I think it has a lot to do with the actual dogs themselves and what kind of temperament they have, I know many members here have same sex Dobermans or dogs with no problems. Personally to be on the safe side I would get a female.
 
Welcome to the site.I am no pro,just a guy and a couple dogs.
I would be looking female. I think you will have male vs male issues.If protection is what your looking for this is the breed.Make no mistake though,you will only get out of the dog what you put into it.Beyond that,you having a Pit now,only a fool would try to mess with a house protected by a Doberman and a Pitbull.:D
You have picked a great place to learn about the breed,so sit back a few and look around.There are some folks here who know their stuff.
 
Good questions, I will answer to the best of yet abilities.

I agree getting a female would be your best bet. Female or male the protection is in their blood. Some dogs have a higher defense drive then others.

As far as training goes, I would find a Doberman specific club near your location. Puppy classes are a lot of fun and relatively cheap too. I think I paid 100$ for two dogs in puppy class, and they loved every second of it.
 
Thank you guys so much! Are there any specific health issues Dobermans get? Don't they have sever cardio problems? I know German Shepherds can suffer from hip displeasure, do Dobermans get the same thing? The old Doberman I had was almost put down because the breeder bred Dobermans for police dogs, but he had an overbite and had some problems with his hip so they couldn't use him and they were going to put him down, that's why we got him, his hip was fine after some good exercise, it didn't seem to bug him anymore. But are there major health problems with Dobermans?
 
Welcome from Missouri and glad you could join us.

If you want the best chance at success I would get a female. Then you can enjoy both dogs without a much stronger chance at problems of same sex aggression.

Defense drive has nothing to do with dog aggression. They are completly separate drives and one has nothing to do with the other JFYI.

The best place to learn official correct info is the DPCA.org - they have articles written by some of the top Doberman people in the world and they have all the health info also.

Another great place to read up on the history is adpef.org American Doberman Pinscher Educational foundation.
 
Welcome from Missouri and glad you could join us.

If you want the best chance at success I would get a female. Then you can enjoy both dogs without a much stronger chance at problems of same sex aggression.

Defense drive has nothing to do with dog aggression. They are completly separate drives and one has nothing to do with the other JFYI..

She asked about protection in the breed. I was referring to defense drive towards that.
 
Thank you guys so much! Are there any specific health issues Dobermans get? Don't they have sever cardio problems? I know German Shepherds can suffer from hip displeasure, do Dobermans get the same thing? The old Doberman I had was almost put down because the breeder bred Dobermans for police dogs, but he had an overbite and had some problems with his hip so they couldn't use him and they were going to put him down, that's why we got him, his hip was fine after some good exercise, it didn't seem to bug him anymore. But are there major health problems with Dobermans?

There are some major health concerns in Dobermans. DCM, OCD, wobblers and vWD just to name a few.

Dobs4ever will no more about Doberman specific health issues than me, but I know that those 4 can be common. Especially DCM.
 
While there can be health issues in Dobermans as well as any other purebred dogs, researching and buying from a reputable breeder can help eliminate many of the potential problems a Doberman may have.
 
Thanks guys. :) Also, when are you supposed to crop their ears and tails? And why do they do this? I've read it's because of protection, and their ears can easily be damaged from their rough housing if they aren't cropped. How short are you supposed to crop their ears and tails?
 
You probably won't need to worry about it as most reputable breeders will have had their pups cropped and docked prior to handing it over to the new owners, but as a rough guide cropping is done usually when they're 7-8 weeks old and docking when they're 2-5 days old.
 
I would get a female. However I completely understand you wanting a male! I am a "male dog person" too! I ended up getting a female dobie because in the litter I wanted, all the males were reserved. I Love my girl! She is a bit of a tomboy though.;)
Just make sure the breeder does health testing of the parents! And also hopefully titles their dogs.
You should crate train your puppy. There is some info on how to do this here on this forum.
I am sure others will have some good advise too.
Welcome to the forum!
 
Hi Anya, welcome to DCF from Indiana. You are doing such a good job asking questions here! We love to answer them and there are many people here that are knowledgeable and are so glad to help you. :)

I second getting a female. I'm a male dog person too, but since you already have a male and he is also a breed that is very well known for same-sex aggression, female is the way to go. Having two males could end up with a life of crate/rotate where one male is always separated from the other. As Sammy said, you shouldn't have to worry about cropping at all since purchasing from a reputable breeder will already have the ears cropped and tails done for you. I personally prefer a mediumlong to long crop. For training, look around in your area for a club for puppy classes.

As for reputable breeders, a good place to start would be the DPCA breeder referral list. You will want to do your research on health testing and titles, and of course ask the typical questions to decide whether or not they are a good breeder because, being on this list doesn't necessarily mean they are the breeder for you. DPCA | The Doberman | Breeder Referral Of course, if you have any questions about a certain breeder you can ask away here, too.
 
Just wanted to say welcome from the UK! Your breeder should be ble.to advise you on a suitable puppy for you based on the pups personality. Im a male.dog person too but already having a male dog and not a huge amount of personal experience with larger breeds, I've opted for a female too. Discuss with the breeder you.choose, if you've picked a good one you will have.sound advice. Keeping more than one male does happen, but can be so hard and you'd hate to have.to rehome one later on. Good luck in your puppy search though and can't wait till you find one (and post tons of pics of course!)

Sorry for all the full stops, im on a touch screen phone and right now feel like throwing it out the window!
 
Thank you guys so much! I also have one other question, haha. I do have a cat. Would the Doberman get along with my cat since she would be a puppy when I got her and I'd be able to bring her up around my cat? Or will she try to bite and attack my cat as she gets older? My cat was fine with the Pit we have after he got used to him.
 
Your puppy should be fine around cats if she grows up with them, just like your Pit now is. The only thing I would watch for would be how high her prey drive is, because some dogs (like mine) have a very high prey drive despite having grown up with cats. And so my dog is fine with cats and other small animals when I am around but I would not risk leaving them alone together, even for short periods of time.
 
Welcome from Missouri (usually Colorado)! It sounds like you are getting some really great answers. Just for the record we do protection training for Schutzhund with both our male and our female and both are doing just wonderfully. The keys are really to find a great reputable breeder and how you raise the pup.
 

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