Hi guys! I want to thank everyone for their messages. I get lots of requests for updated Big photos. It seems he’s become quite the celebrity since I first posted his puppy pictures about 3 months ago. Well, much has changed with Big, the obvious thing being his size. He’s quite a bit, well, bigger. We knew we were getting a big dog, hence his name. We just didn’t know how appropriate his name would become.
At his last puppy visit to The Pet Doctor, my wonderful, amazing veterinarian, Marcy Hammerle, predicted that he may be upwards of 150 pounds full grown! Umm, wow. That is big. Really big. The staff there is so nice and they were all amazed at how he had changed in just 4 weeks. One tech said he had a “man face” and I think she’s right. Sometimes you just know a dog is a male dog. That’s Big… all boy… even at 17 weeks of age. That was last Friday and he weighed in at 52 lbs.
He now weighs 56 pounds. That’s a gain of 4 pounds in one week. At that rate, he’ll be over 100 pounds by 7 months of age. We may have to rename him Huge. So I think Dr. Hammerle is probably right on with her prediction of his potential size.
He also started obedience training and is doing so well. He’s a smart little, um I mean big, puppy. He’s still quite distracted by 1 or 2 of the other dogs in the training room. He has private lessons but there are always a few dogs in there having their own private lessons too. Hopefully by the end of the summer his puppy boot camp will be complete and then he’ll move on to personal protection training. Although, just his size and appearance is enough to scare away would-be evil-doers.
He’s still very much puppy at heart and in his personality, but people mistake him for a full grown dog a lot. He’s taller than my 10 year old female Golden Retriever so I understand why.
One of my favorite things about Big is is funny little dog ‘fro on top his head. That hair just likes to stand up everywhere like a lion’s mane. I hope he doesn’t lose it. The rest of his fluffy puppy hair is morphing into a silky dark saddle back with true sable markings. He’s just so dreamy!
If you are at all interested in the breed, check my other Big post and there’s some history there about how the breed originated and is being preserved today. I’ll try to take some pictures of him during his training class and I’ll be sure to update all you Big fans as often as I can.
Lastly, I think back before Christmas and remember being very skeptical about getting a puppy, especially in the dead of winter. But I must say that this fellow has captured my heart almost as much as one of my own babies. Sometimes I just look at him and say, “You are just so CUTE!” He has yet to make good friends with the cats, the but the rest of the house loves him just as much as I do.
Here are some more snaps from yesterday’s impromptu photo shoot (click the thumbnails to enlarge):
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{A} on 
I’m in love, don’t tell Lily, she’d be jealous. I can’t believe that you look at him and say “you are just so cute” because I’ve told Lily “you’re so flippin cute I cant stand it”
I love all the pics but especially the one of him laying on/over the pillow, Lily does that to my sofa cushions as she’s watching the world go by out my front window. Thank you for the peak into your world!!! Pam
Love Big! He’s a cutie dog for sure. I don’t think I had ever heard about the particular breed until you wrote about it. Interesting for sure.
I still cannot believe Big got so ummm….(going through my thesaurus, big, no uhh.. ) found it! Large!!
@pam lee: I knew you’d love them Pam. We need to fix Lily and Big up, when he’s allowed to date LOL!
awesome shots teri… I love that dog, he’s gonna be “Big!”
@mary: Thanks Mary. We had never heard of the East German Shepherd until we went looking for a large German Shepherd. We found that most of the East German Shepherd breeders touted larger blockier puppies. Perfect for what we were looking for.
@{A}: large indeed {A}. You would love him and he would love you!!!!
@Jonathan: ISO 5000 on the 5DmII. A little grain but not too bad. Sort of film-like.
WOW he has gotten BIG! Great captures as always!
Well you know I already saw all of these photos of Big, but I’m just as in awe and impressed every time I see them, over and over! I still just can’t believe he has grown SO much, and that ‘man-face’ fascinates me. Blocky indeed. Strong angular features. Those EYES! I loved reading this post. Glad I saved the read to enjoy with my Sunday morning coffee.: ) LOVE your photos, the colors & clarity, and the collage arrangement is awesome. I keep scrolling up to look at them again as I comment. Can’t help myself! As you know, I never knew or would have believed I would get sucked in about a dog. But here I am. : ) Because he’s ‘special’.
I’m really looking forward to the post & photos of him at training camp!
@Heather: I know, right? You saw him when we first got him… Putt couldn’t believe a 4wk old puppy could be that big then. Well look at him now! I think I may need to hire out the backyard duty this year (read: add to the boys’ ever-growing chores list). It can get like a mine field in no time. Ha!
@Laura@OurHouseOfJoyfulNoise: He is special! Not in the “he’s lost in the closet again” kind of way though. (By the way, I had a dog that would get lost in a closet, so I consider myself an expert in the field.) And he hasn’t yet realized what a handsome devil he is, so he’s still bearable to be around. The day he figures it out… there’ll be no living with him after that.
Next training session is Tuesday… I’ll see if I can get a few shots. He has his eye on this cute little yellow lab. Typical male… always after the blondes.
I no, not “lost in the closet” sort of way. lol. Let’s hope Big can stay humble, when he realizes how good lookin’ he is, huh? With all of us doting on him though, he’s likely to get the other kind of ‘big head’ too. lol.
Be sure to remember your camera on Tuesday then. I want to see shots of him going after the blonde. ; ) One look in those eyes of his, and it”ll be all over for that girl. lol
@Laura@OurHouseOfJoyfulNoise: Do you hear Barry White music in the background?
I am a huge German Shepherd fan and your pup is GORGEOUS! I’m hoping to have another of my own someday soon. Thanks for the Twitter follow. Gonna return the love and hope to dig into your blog a bit more today!
His nose loooks like he was digging for gold out in the garden prior to these pictures.
For his next set of pics, may I recommend a washcloth, or at minimum a quick swipe with some black shoe polish prior to posing? His nose does not appear to be self cleaning.
@Roger: Big said “I got your gold right here” and then he made a foul gesture. You better think twice about coming home. He’s wicked mad.
oh wow..he IS so very very BIG!!!
he is beautiful
@Courtney: Thanks for stopping by Courtney! And Big says thanks too for the compliment
@LV: Thanks LV
Will post more an a couple weeks. Stay tuned…