Pet Health And Care >> Dog Breed >> German Spitz

German Spitz Dog Breed, Puppies, Size, Appearance, Life Expectancy and Cost

The German Spitz includes a variety of breeds and is considered a variety of the Spitz breed.

The German Spitz is a type of dog and a breed of dog. Different breeds like Mittelspitz, Grossespitz, and Kleinspitz breeds are also from the family of the German Spitz.

The German Spitz finds its origins in Wolfspitz from the early 1800s. Once this dog was brought to America, it was renamed as the American Eskimo Dog due to a prejudice towards anything German.

These dogs apparently also have links to dogs in the Stone Age. There are even links that indicate that the German Spitz has descended from the breeds of Nordic Samoyed and Lapphund. The German Spitz is also one of the oldest dogs in Central Europe.

This dog breed is small in size and can vary in color.

The different colors you find German Spitz in are black, white and whitish, cream and gold. Often the miniature Spitz is mistaken for a German Spitz. This breed is classified as a toy or a utility dog by breeding clubs. It also does come in sizes of toy, medium and giant. It can grow up to 18 inches and weigh up to 40 pounds. This breed has a life expectancy of about 13 to 15 years.

This dog has a dense coat on a compact body. The tail is curling and the head has a distinct fox life appearance because of its triangular, erect ears. It is also covered with fluffy fur. It has skinny legs that are not covered with fur. As with most dogs, all training should start with the German Spitz puppy, but these dogs are not that easily trained. If you want a well trained dog, this is perhaps not the breed for you. These dogs have largely been guard or companion dogs. It tends to be a loving and companionable dog with a cheerful personality. It makes a good family dog and often demands a lot of attention. If the dog is deprived of the attention, it tends to get yippy and bark a lot especially at children as it sees children competing with it for the attention.

This breed does have some inherent health problems. It is known to be susceptible to patellar luxation, especially if the dog is overweight. The German Spitz puppies roughly cost $500 upwards depending on the color.

Submitted on September 5, 2011