When people hear the word 'Doberman', many think that this is a killer dog, because they have used them in movies for so long; that is what people have seen and it scares them. The movies started in the 1970s and some of them are called, Doberman, They Only Kill Their Masters and The Daring Dobermans. In these movies they make them mean and hurt others but that is not what doberman dogs do.
The truth is, dobermans are one of the kindest animals around, they are so protective of your whole family. Loving, gentle, and the biggest baby. The girls are more protective of the family, if they have had babies or not. They will not let anyone hurt you no matter what. Also they will pick one or two people in the family to protect them more. For the boys, they are also protective of the whole family and they will bond faster than a girl.
You have two kinds of dobermans: American and European. The American dobermans are a little bit on the small side, they are about 25 to 27 inches tall. They can weigh around 60 to 90 pounds. The girls are 25 inches and weigh 60 to 70 pounds and the boys are 27 inches and weigh 80 to 90 pounds.
European dobermans are around 28 to 30 inches tall and weigh from 80 to 115 pounds, that is for the boys and girls. They are both able to run up to 32 miles per hour. Out of the top 15 fastest dogs the dobermans are the ninth fastest dogs. These dogs can turn in a small circle in a blink of an eye and not get hurt. They are so muscular in their legs and whole body, they can run for hours and not get tired. They can also jump over the couch without thinking, they are high jumpers.
The colors that they come in are black, red, blue and fawn. The black is stretched black, the red looks like dark brown, the blue looks gray and the fawn is white.
Dobermans will have crop tails and the reason why is that they are so much thinner than the other dogs' tails; if they get it broken it will be a lot harder to fix because of how much smaller and thinner they are. So even though it is mean when they are just born in the first week they will have their tails cropped and the cost starts around 10 dollars and goes up to 50 dollars.
When you see dobermans with their ears down and floppy they look so sweet. Then you see them with the ears up. If they have the ears up, whoever bought them paid to have them cropped to stand up. Your puppy has to be around eight to twelve weeks old to get them cropped. They start at around 150 dollars and go up to 700 dollars depending on who does this. Posting ears is when the veterinarians take the ears, lay them over the dog's head and tape them for one month. Then the second to third month, take the tape and go around the ears and tape them so they are standing up. Every three to four days you have to look at the ears to make sure they are clean and not infected. If they are infected you need to wash them with warm water and dog shampoo and call the vet. Some veterinarians are not very good at posting the ears and that is how you get one ear to stand straight up and the other is floppy. They will free hand cut the ears, others take their time to cut the ears with molds so it will come out with both standing up. Google the vet and read reviews so your dog can have both ears standing up if that is what you choose to do.
No matter what kind of doberman you choose, American or European, they are amazing animals to have. Going for walks, playing games with them inside the house or backyard or doing dog agility. When you look at them and they show you their teeth, they are not growling or being aggressive, they are smiling. They have the funniest smile and people think they are growling, but they are not. I hope that when you see one at the pet stores or at the park or wherever you may be, you will look at them differently.