Quick Links: Table of Contents
- Doberman Pinscher Breed Overview
- History of the Doberman Pinscher Breed. Where Doberman Pinschers came from
- What the Doberman Pinscher Looks Like
- How Much is the Doberman Pinscher Puppy?
- Best Doberman Pinscher Breeders
- Adopting or Rescuing the Doberman Pinscher
- Doberman Pinscher Growth
- What Colors do Doberman Pinschers Have?
- The Temperament of the Doberman Pinscher
- How Long Doberman Pinschers Live
- Doberman Pinscher Litter Size
- How Fast Doberman Pinschers Can Run
- Good Names for Doberman Pinschers
- How Intelligent are Doberman Pinschers?
- How Popular are Doberman Pinschers with New Dog Owners?
- Health Problems in Doberman Pinschers and How to Prevent Them
- How to Take Care of Doberman Pinscher
- Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Doberman Pinschers
- Other Things to Know About Doberman Pinschers
Doberman Pinscher Breed Overview
The Doberman Pinscher is a large-sized dog.
The adult Doberman Pinscher stands 24 to 28 inches tall at the shoulder.
The Doberman Pinscher belongs to the Working Dogs group.
Dogs in the Working Dogs group, like the Doberman Pinscher, were developed to assist humans in some capacity – including pulling sleds and carts, guarding flocks, guarding homes, and protecting their families.
Breeds in the Working Group are known for their imposing stature, strength, intelligence, and fearless.
Because of their size and strength, working dogs require a structured home life and firm, fair, consistent training by someone who can provide leadership without resorting to anger or physical force.
The fact that the Doberman Pinscher belongs to the Working Dogs group is one of the reasons why Doberman Pinschers have the personality and temperament that they have.
The temperament of the Doberman Pinscher is generally described as:
- Alert
- Confident
- Energetic
- Fearless
- Intelligent
- Loyal
- Obedient
History of the Doberman Pinscher Breed. Where Doberman Pinschers came from
The Doberman Pinscher, which is relatively new in breed, was bred in Germany in the 1890s.
Karl Friedrich Louis Dobermann was the original founder of this breed.
He was a tax collector and dogcatcher who created this intelligent canine to help him with his work.
Dobermann was searching for the ideal personal protection dog.
He wanted one who was loyal, intelligent, brave, and trustworthy.
He didn`t keep detailed records of which dogs he used and many breeds weren`t known about the dogs he used to make his guard dogs.
We don`t know the names of all the dogs involved in the Doberman Pinscher`s creation.
However, we do know that there were a few dogs that could have been his ancestors.
These included the Thueringen breed, Thueringen shepherd, German Pinschers, local sheepdogs and butchers dogs, as well as Black and Tan Terriers and German Pinschers.
These dogs have been exemplary guard dogs, police dogs and military dogs since their inception.
They also played key roles in World War II as sendries, messengers and scouts.
Dobies played a key role in supporting the military during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945.
A memorial statue of a Doberman is located in Guam to honor the 25 marine war dog veterans who gave their lives for freedom.
These brave canines can also have a soft side.
They can be loving, affectionate pets and loyal friends to their owners.
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What the Doberman Pinscher Looks Like
The attractive medium-large dog is elegant and athletic.
It has short, shiny, glossy fur that highlights their strong build.
Their heads are well balanced and wedge-shaped, with a flatter skull that most breeds.
Their eyes are almond-shaped and have a strong jaw.
Although the Doberman`s iconic look is triangular ears, which are held erectly and have a stub tail, these dogs actually have long tails that tend to curl up and hang ears.
The pup is usually still very young and occurs between seven and twelve weeks of age.
While the American Kennel Club considers the cropped appearance the breed standard, there are many reasons why some Dobie owners may prefer to keep their dog`s ears and tail intact.
Doberman Pinschers can be found in four colors: red, blue and fawn.
All of these dogs have distinctive rust-colored markings around their chests, faces, legs, and chests.
Rarely, one of these dogs might be born albino.
This is a light cream color that can be called white or all black without any tan markings.
Albino and white dogs can be more susceptible to other diseases and disorders.
However, sunburn should not be an issue for melanistic (all-black) dogs.
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How Much is the Doberman Pinscher Puppy?
The average price of a Doberman Pinscher puppy is $1910. The price of a Doberman Pinscher puppy ranges from $1100 to $2500.
A lot of factors determine the price of the Doberman Pinscher. These factors include what health records the Doberman Pinscher puppy has, the lineage of the Doberman Pinscher puppy, the US state the breeder is located in, etc.
To estimate how much you can expect to pay for a puppy Doberman Pinscher based on the many factors that determine the price of the Doberman Pinscher puppy, check out our calculator that lets you estimate how much you should expect to pay for the Doberman Pinscher puppy based on what you want in the puppy.
When looking to buy a puppy, look at buying a puppy only from well-established breeders that breed puppies primarily for the love of the Doberman Pinscher breed, and secondarily for profit. Do not buy a puppy from a puppy mill. Puppy mills mass-produce puppies in bad living conditions for maximum profit.
You may also consider adopting instead of buying a puppy. Adoption costs are very low compared to the price of a puppy.
Best Doberman Pinscher Breeders
We have researched reputable Doberman Pinscher breeders that you can buy a puppy.
Go to this page for our complete list of reputable Doberman Pinscher breeders in various states in the United States.
On this page, you will see how much these breeders sell their puppies for, and how many puppies they have available.
A few of these breeders are listed below.
Rocky Mountain Dobermans
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Eli King
Puppy Price: $1800
Duarte kennels
Puppy Price: $2,500
Northstar Dobermans
Puppy Price: $1300.00
River Run Dobermans
Puppy Price: Check with breeder
Adopting or Rescuing the Doberman Pinscher
You may consider adopting a dog instead of buying a puppy. Many dogs, Doberman Pinschers included, are currently available for adoption in your local dog shelters.
These helpless but adorable dogs are waiting in dog shelters hoping that someday someone will rescue them. Dog adoption costs are lesser than the cost of a new puppy. Dog adoption costs are usually around $300 or even less.
In addition to your local dog shelter, another good place to find dogs that are available for adoption is petfinder.com.
Below is an adorable Male Doberman Pinscher named Dobbie* that is currently available for adoption on Petfinder.com. You can find other lovely Doberman Pinschers like Dobbie* on pefinder.com.
Turbo is the name of another Doberman Pinscher (Male) on petfinder.com that is looking for a new forever home.
You can find more Doberman Pinschers that are available for adoption on petfinder.
Doberman Pinscher Growth
New Doberman Pinscher owners need to know about the growth of their Doberman Pinschers. This will help them plan their living spaces accordingly.
Also, knowing the typical growth pattern of the Doberman Pinscher will help new owners catch the abnormal growth of their Doberman Pinscher early.
See our calculator for predicting how big your Doberman Pinscher puppy will get. You will also learn about the typical weight of the Doberman Pinscher at different ages and how to catch abnormal growth in your Doberman Pinscher
What Colors do Doberman Pinschers Have?
Doberman Pinschers come in the following beautiful primary colors:
- Black
- Bicolor
- Red / Chestnut / Orange
- Brown / Chocolate
- Merle (Blue)
- Gray / Blue / Silver
- Yellow / Tan / Blond / Fawn
- Tricolor (Brown, Black, & White)
- White / Cream
Doberman Pinschers come in the following lovely secondary colors in addition to their primary colors:
- Brown / Chocolate
- Yellow / Tan / Blond / Fawn
- Black
- Red / Chestnut / Orange
- Bicolor
The Temperament of the Doberman Pinscher
The temperament of the Doberman Pinscher based can be summarized as in the table below.
The table shows the scores of the Doberman Pinscher for 13 important dog behavioral factors.
We obtained these scores by analyzing raw data from the C-BARQ dog personality survey tool. The higher the score of a dog for a factor, the worse the temperament of the dog regarding that factor.
The C-BARQ tool was developed by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, and it is a scientific tool that is used worldwide for reliably measuring the temperament of dog breeds.
See our complete analysis of the temperament of the Doberman Pinscher here.
| Factor | Score |
|---|---|
| Attachment Attention Seeking | 72.3 percent |
| Energy Level | 70.7 percent |
| Prey Drive | 64.5 percent |
| Owner Directed Aggression | 6.7 percent |
| Stranger Directed Aggression | 49.8 percent |
| Dog Directed Aggression | 49.5 percent |
| Excitability | 43.8 percent |
| Dog Rivalry | 33.1 percent |
| Separation Related Behavior | 29.4 percent |
| Dog Directed Fear | 27.7 percent |
| Stranger Directed Fear | 27.3 percent |
| Touch Sensitivity | 19.4 percent |
| Stubbornness | 17.1 percent |
| Nonsocial Fear | 14.9 percent |
How Long Doberman Pinschers Live
The lifespan of the Doberman Pinscher is typically from 10 to 13 years.
Moreover, a few years back, veterinarian researchers performed a scientific study to determine the lifespan of the Doberman Pinscher. In this study, the scientists collected data on how long 100 pet Doberman Pinschers lived.
From the study, it was found that Doberman Pinschers have an average lifespan of 10.5 years. Furthermore, the study found that it is not uncommon for Doberman Pinschers to live as long as 16.5 years.
Note that you need to put in some effort if you want your Doberman Pinscher to live long.
Doberman Pinschers live long if they eat well, drink well, exercise well, and visit the veterinarian regularly.
There are also dog supplements that you can give your Doberman Pinscher to improve your Doberman Pinscher`s quality of their life.
Click here to learn more about how to make your Doberman Pinscher live long.
Doberman Pinscher Litter Size
Researchers from the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science did a study where they counted the numbers of puppies in 45 different Doberman Pinscher birth litters.
From this study, the researchers found that the average number of puppies that Doberman Pinschers can have is 7 puppies. Also, the Doberman Pinscher can have as few as 1 puppies per litter and as many as 13 puppies per litter.
The number of puppies that the Doberman Pinscher will have depends on factors such as the age of the Doberman Pinscher, the method of pregnancy, etc.
Click here to see our calculator for predicting how many puppies your Doberman Pinscher will have and how the litter size of the Doberman Pinscher compares to the litter size of other dog breeds.
How Fast Doberman Pinschers Can Run
How fast a dog breed can run is a good measure of how athletic the dog breed is.
The American Kennel Club (AKC) regularly conducts dog running competitions. The AKC records the running speed of competing dogs in these competitions. These competitions are open to all dog breeds.
Based on our analysis of the speeds of 680 different Doberman Pinschers, the average speed of the Doberman Pinscher is 24.0 mph (38.7 kmph).
The fastest speed on AKC record that the Doberman Pinscher ran in a race is 31.18 mph (50.2 kmph) and the minimum speed on record in a race for a Doberman Pinscher is 5.14 mph (8.3 kmph).
Click here to see how the speed of the Doberman Pinscher compares to the speed of other dogs and other mammals such as cats, horses, humans, etc.
Good Names for Doberman Pinschers
Here are some really good names that are typical for the Doberman Pinscher ranked by popularity:
- Dog
- Luca
- Loki
- Flash
- Mario
- Murrey
- Otto
- Eddie
- Kobe
- Rufus
How Intelligent are Doberman Pinschers?
| Doberman Pinscher | |
|---|---|
| Intelligence Rank | 5 out of 130 dog breeds |
| Trainability | Tend To Learn New Commands After Fewer Than 5 Repetitions |
According to Prof. Stanley Coren, a Canadian psychology professor/dog trainer, the total intelligence that a dog demonstrates is the addition of three types of intelligence. These intelligence types are:
- Instinctive Intelligence: This is the natural intelligence that comes from instinct. For example, dog breeds that have been historically bred to be guard dogs will have a high `guarding` intelligence compared to dogs that were not bred for guarding.
- Adaptive Intelligence (learning and problem-solving ability): This indicates what a dog can learn to do for himself or herself. Adaptive intelligence is specific to each dog, and not breed specific. You can improve your dog`s adaptive intelligence by investing time to train your dog.
- Working/Obedience Intelligence: This type of intelligence is breed-specific. Certain dog breeds tend to have higher working/obedience intelligence than some other breeds. This intelligence is the closest to what we might call school-learning ability and it is based upon what the dog can learn to do when instructed by humans. This type of intelligence can be measured for each dog breed and compared to that of other dog breeds.
Professor Stanley Coren measured and ranked the working intelligence of about 130 different dog breeds.
Prof. Coren found that the Doberman Pinscher has an obedience intelligence rank of 5 out of 130 dog breeds. Thus, Prof. Coren put Doberman Pinschers in the `Brightest Dogs` category.
This means that Doberman Pinschers tend to learn new commands after fewer than 5 repetitions.
However, we should mention that a dog should not be judged based on its intelligence alone. There are other important factors you need to consider when deciding on which dog breed to get. These other factors include sociability, adorability, and compatibility of the dog breed with your lifestyle.
See the intelligence ranking of some other dog breeds below:
| Breed | Intelligence Rank |
|---|---|
| Shetland Sheepdog | 6 |
| Australian Cattle Dog | 10 |
| Pembroke Welsh Corgi | 11 |
| Belgian Tervuren | 14 |
| Belgian Sheepdog | 15 |
| Weimaraner | 21 |
| Belgian Malinois | 22 |
| Cardigan Welsh Corgi | 26 |
| Chesapeake Bay Retriever | 27 |
| Affenpinscher | 37 |
| Scottish Deerhound | 47 |
| Alaskan Malamute | 50 |
| Chinese Shar-Pei | 51 |
| Ibizan Hound | 53 |
| Akita | 54 |
| Norfolk Terrier | 56 |
| Old English Sheepdog | 63 |
| Pekingese | 73 |
| Borzoi | 75 |
| Afghan Hound | 79 |
How Popular are Doberman Pinschers with New Dog Owners?
Every year, the American Kennel Club (AKC) publishes information on how popular a dog breed is in that particular year. The AKC gets the popularity information of a breed from how many dogs of that breed the owners register with the AKC every year. The AKC collects this data for about 200 dog breeds.
The graph below shows the popularity trend of the Doberman Pinscher.
The popularity of the Doberman Pinscher averaged over the years is Number 15 out of about 200 dog breeds.
Do not get a dog breed just because it is a popular dog breed. And do not reject a dog breed just because it is an unpopular breed.
Health Problems in Doberman Pinschers and How to Prevent Them
Every dog breed has its own set of health problems that it tends to develop. There is nothing like a perfect dog breed.
The Doberman Pinscher is prone to certain genetic health conditions. The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) is an organization that keeps track of genetic health problems in dog breeds.
From the extensive records that the OFA keeps, the OFA knows what health problems each dog breed is naturally prone to develop.
Hence, the OFA recommends which health screening breeders should perform on a dog breed to make sure that the breeders won`t breed `defective` dog parents that can pass down defective genes to their puppy offspring.
If you want a Doberman Pinscher puppy that will grow up to be healthy, make sure that your Doberman Pinscher breeder screens your puppy or your puppy`s parents for the health problems that the OFA recommends for your puppy`s breed. This will increase the chances that your puppy is free from genetic defects.
The following are the health tests that Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (OFA) recommends that breeders should screen Doberman Pinschers for:
You can find out more about OFA`s recommended tests for Doberman Pinschers here.
How to Take Care of Doberman Pinscher
To take good care of your Doberman Pinscher, you need to make sure that you groom your Doberman Pinscher regularly.
Secondly, you need to find a veterinarian in your area that will routinely check the health status of your Doberman Pinscher regularly, and give you appropriate recommendations on your Doberman Pinscher`s preventative care.
Thirdly, you need to commit some time to exercise your Doberman Pinscher daily. Regular exercise helps improve the health and quality of life of your Doberman Pinscher.
Also, you need to feed your Doberman Pinscher high-quality dog food, and the food should be of the right amount to prevent your Doberman Pinscher from getting overweight or underweight.
See our recommendations on what to feed the Doberman Pinscher and how much food to feed the Doberman Pinscher at different life stages.
Finally, you need to make sure that your Doberman Pinscher has access to clean water all the time. See our recommendations on how much water your Doberman Pinscher needs to drink at different ages.
Dog Breeds That Are Similar to Doberman Pinschers
If you have not made up your mind on which dog breed to get, you may also want to consider some other dogs similar to the Doberman Pinscher.
We crunched the numbers and found that the following dog breeds that have similar behavior and temperament as the Doberman Pinscher:
- Rottweiler (68 percent match with Doberman Pinscher). Learn more about the Rottweiler here.
- Boxer (65 percent match with Doberman Pinscher). Learn more about the Boxer here.
- Schnoodle (67 percent match with Doberman Pinscher). Learn more about the Schnoodle here.
- Neapolitan Mastiff (67 percent match with Doberman Pinscher). Learn more about the Neapolitan Mastiff here.
Other Things to Know About Doberman Pinschers
Here are some of the very important characteristics of the Doberman Pinscher that you need to know about the Doberman Pinscher breed: