German Shepherd care calendar

Year-round routine

What a German Shepherd needs on a repeating cadence, whatever the month.

• GroomingBrush coat2-3 times a week, daily during the moult

  Undercoat rake first, slicker second. Pay attention to the trousers and the ruff, where the undercoat packs densest.

• GroomingBathEvery 8-10 weeks

  Less often than most breeds — frequent washing strips oils and worsens the dry, flaky skin the breed already tends toward.

• GroomingNail trimEvery 3-4 weeks

  Long nails alter hind-limb loading, which matters more in a breed with an angulated rear.

• GroomingCheck ears and paw padsWeekly

  Erect ears drain well and get infected less, but they collect debris. Check pads for cracks after hard-surface work.

• ParasitesHeartworm preventiveMonthly, year-round

  The American Heartworm Society recommends year-round prevention rather than a seasonal course, because a missed shoulder month is how most infections get in. Give it on the same date each month.

• ParasitesFlea and tick preventiveMonthly, year-round

  Peak exposure runs spring through late autumn, but fleas overwinter indoors and ticks stay active above about 4 °C, so most vets now advise dosing through the winter as well.

• DentalBrush teethDaily, or at minimum three times a week

  Only pet toothpaste — xylitol and fluoride in human paste are not safe to swallow. Plaque mineralises into tartar in two to three days, which is why twice a week is the floor rather than the target.

• DentalCheck gums and back teethMonthly

  Lift the lip and look at the upper carnassials and the gum line. Red margins, a brown band, or breath that changed recently are the signs worth a call.

• DentalProfessional dental assessmentAt the annual exam

  Your vet grades tartar and gingivitis at the yearly visit and advises when a scale under anaesthetic is due. Most dogs need one somewhere between years three and five.

• WellnessAnnual wellness examYearly

  Book it in the same month each year so it does not drift. Twice yearly from about age seven, when changes move faster than a twelve-month gap can catch.

• WellnessCore vaccinations reviewedYearly review, boosters on your vet's schedule

  Rabies interval is set by local law; distemper/parvo combinations are commonly three-yearly after the initial series. Lifestyle vaccines — leptospirosis, Lyme, kennel cough — depend on where you walk and whether you board.

• WellnessWeigh and body-condition scoreMonthly at home

  You should feel the ribs easily under a thin layer, and see a waist from above. Weight creeping up is the single most common thing an owner can fix without a prescription.

• WellnessNail length checkEvery 2 weeks

  If you hear the nails on a hard floor they are long. Overlong nails change how the foot loads and, over years, how the joints above it are loaded too.

• WellnessWatch for bloat signs — know the emergency planOngoing

  A restless dog with a hard, swelling abdomen, retching without producing anything, and drooling has gastric dilatation-volvulus until proven otherwise. Know your nearest 24-hour clinic before you need it. Ask your vet about a preventive gastropexy at neutering.

• WellnessJoint and neurological checkAt each wellness exam, twice yearly from age 7

  Degenerative myelopathy typically starts as scuffed hind nails and a wobble rather than pain — a DNA test exists for the associated variant.

Month by month

The dates that move. Shedding, parasite season and the annual checks worth booking in a particular month.