Gerberian Shepsky - A German Shepherd Husky Mix

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Modern dog owners love picking specific traits for their dogs, and that is why many crossbreeds became so popular. One of these crossbreeds is the Gerberian Shepsky. If you haven’t heard about it before, the first thing you should know is that it is a German Shepherd Husky mix. If you want to know more about this interesting cross, stay with us for a couple of minutes. We will let you know everything you need to know about the Gerberian Shepsky.

What is a Gerberian Shepsky?

The Gerberian Shepsky is an intentional German Shepherd Husky mix. It is possible that unintentional mixes of these two breeds happened, but it wasn’t until the 90s’ when dog breeders started intentionally breeding these two breeds. The idea behind creating a new breed like the Gerberian Shepsky was the creation of a crossbreed with the best characteristics from both breeds.

Physical characteristics

When picking a dog, you might be interested in their looks. Some owners don’t care about that and only want to get a companion they can share their life with. However, we believe it is important to know which physical characteristics you are getting with a specific dog. It will make a significant impact on the way you live and the needs the dog might have.

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Crossbreeds like the Gerberian Shepsky will inherit physical characteristics from both sides of the family. The first thing we need to know is that both Huskies and GSDs are medium to large dogs. You can expect their puppies to grow 20 - 25 inches tall and weigh between 48 and 88 pounds. The sex of the puppy will influence its size. If you don’t care about the dog’s size, you should know that the size requires a diet that can support it, and larger dogs need a certain amount of room to move safely and live comfortably. It is an important characteristic to know.

The second important thing to know is coat quality. You might not care if a dog has a long or short coat, but it will make an impact on the cleanness of your home. More precisely, the amount of shedding you can expect. Both German Shepherds and Siberian Huskies shed a lot; Huskies especially. They have thick double coats that had to protect them from extreme Siberian weather, so the shedding season with Huskies is absolute chaos of loose hair. Gerberian Shepsky crossbreed will probably be a heavy shedder. You should prepare grooming tools and make sure you have enough time to take care of their heavy-shedding coats.

There is another relatively popular Husky mix. Check out this article - Goberian, a Golden Husky mix.

What kind of a pet is the Gerberian Shepsky?

All dogs are amazing and capable of being your best friend. However, pureblooded dogs have a significant advantage - they have a known set of characteristics that pass from generation to generation. If you get a pureblooded German Shepherd, you can be pretty sure you will get an intelligent dog with a good amount of energy. The main issue with crossbreeds like the Gerberian Shepsky is you can never know what characteristics your dog will inherit.

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Genes are unpredictable, and while the idea behind Gerberian Shepskies is to pass the best characteristics to these mixed puppies, unfortunately, no one can guarantee that will happen. There are far too many possible combinations that can come to life, and you can end up with a puppy that got the worst of both breeds. However, if the parents are healthy, stable dogs, there is no reason to expect a sickly, unstable puppy. Based on what we can notice about the Gerberian Shepskies produced so far, here are some of the dominant traits these dogs exhibit;

Alertness and protectiveness

Many Gerberian Shepskies inherit the alert nature of the Siberian Husky and the protective nature of the German Shepherd. They are keenly aware of their surroundings, and if trained, they can make excellent watchdogs.

Intelligence

Many crossbreeds, Gerberian Shepsky included, come from intelligent dog breeds and inherit that trait. Some German Shepherd Husky mixes work in law enforcement and detection. GSDs are known as the best working breed, so it is not unreasonable to expect they can produce intelligent offspring.

Stubbornness

This is primarily a trait Siberian Huskies have. They can be challenging to train, and if you don’t know what you are doing, you can end up with a problematic dog. Some German Shepherd Husky mixes end up with a stubborn character they inherited from their Husky parents.

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Playfulness

The good news is that Huskies are very playful. They have an abundance of energy and can keep up with a fast playing pace for several hours. Gerberian Shepskies are expected to be playful, especially with their family members.

Health issues

Some breeders and online sources claim crossbreeds are healthier than pureblooded dogs. However, that is not even remotely true. The only way to produce healthy puppies is to breed healthy parents. If you breed two healthy dogs, you can expect healthy puppies, but if you breed dogs with questionable health, you can expect puppies with poor health. The problem is that the Gerberian Shepsky is not a registered breed, and they don’t have pedigrees that can prove they come from a healthy bloodline.

Many crossbreed breeders use questionable dogs for breeding, and they produce puppies with questionable health. German Shepherd Husky mix can be prone to diseases from both sides of the family, and some of the most common problems vets noticed with this crossbreed are;

• Hip dysplasia
• Epilepsy
• Hearing issues
• Patellar luxation
• Progressive retinal atrophy
• Corneal dystrophy
• Cataracts

If the Gerberian Shepsky dog is healthy, they have a life expectancy of 10 - 14 years.

Getting a Gerberian Shepsky puppy

The Gerberian Shepsky is not the most popular crossbreed in the world. That means you might have some issues finding a breeder and an available puppy. However, even if you find them, we would advise you against buying a crossbred puppy. It would be better to look in German Shepherd rescues and look for this particular mix. We are against buying a crossbreed like the Gerberian Shepsky because it is impossible to know and check their bloodlines. If you are adamant about buying a Gerberian Shepsky puppy, you should know that the average price is $350 - $850.

Keep in mind, when it comes to crossbreeds - adopt, don’t shop!

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World Dog Finder team