MILESTONE

Anticipated Results

The Shakira di Casa Caputi × Urso v.d. Zenteiche pairing is a proven, intentional breeding selected for balance, mental soundness, and repeatable outcomes rather than novelty or exaggeration. Puppies from this combination are expected to be environmentally resilient, clear-headed, and thoughtful, showing confidence without unnecessary sharpness and engagement without frantic or indiscriminate social behavior. Shakira contributes strong maternal influence, discernment, and natural protectiveness, while Urso adds steady nerves, emotional consistency, and predictability, resulting in dogs that tolerate pressure well and recover easily. Drive levels are moderate and usable, making the litter well-suited for sport foundations, active companion homes, or dual-purpose lifestyles, with an emphasis on dogs that can work when asked and settle calmly in the home. Structurally, the pairing aims to adhere closely to FCI Standard #166, producing consistent, functional type with balanced proportions, masculine but not heavy males, and refined, elegant females. Overall, this pairing consistently produces highly livable, intuitive German Shepherd Dogs for thoughtful homes that value temperament, clarity, and function over hype.

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Shakira Health Testing Summary: Shakira has a completed SV Breed Survey confirming correct anatomy and structure, a strong Character Assessment showing stable, confident temperament, and a clear Embark genetic panel. Embark tests for over 200 conditions across all breeds, but only a small handful are actually relevant to the German Shepherd Dog; the rest are breed-specific conditions GSDs cannot genetically express. Shakira is clear for all conditions that apply to the GSD- including Degenerative Myelopathy (DM)-  as well as clear for the many conditions that do not apply to the breed. She has passing hips and elbows graded Fast Normal/Normal in the strict German SV system, and her HD Rating is 91 (HD = Hip Dysplasia), with lower values indicating better genetic likelihood of producing strong hips. Anything under 100 is considered desirable.

Links: Breed Survey | Character Assessment | Embark Panel

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Urso Health Testing Summary: Urso also has an SV Breed Survey and Character Assessment, and passing hips and elbows graded Normal/Normal. His HD Rating is an excellent 83, and his official SV documents include a 59% X-ray Ratio, which is an internal SV measurement included in their hip evaluation system. This percentage refers to Urso’s direct offspring- meaning 59% of the puppies he has produced have gone on to be officially X-rayed and scored through the SV. This is a meaningful number because the more offspring that are evaluated, the more reliable and trustworthy the father’s HD Rating becomes. A dog can have a good personal hip score, but when a high percentage of his offspring also undergo X-ray evaluation, it gives breeders far more confidence in the consistency of what he produces. So a 59% X-ray Ratio tells us that over half of Urso’s direct puppies have been X-rayed, which strengthens the validity of his HD 83 score and demonstrates transparency and proven hip quality across his production.

Links: Breed Survey | Character Assessment 

Litter: Health Outlook, Repeat Litter Results & What Families Receive
This is a repeat breeding between Shakira and Urso, and the results from their previous litter give us additional insight into what this pairing consistently produces. Their daughter Zambiah received Normal/Normal hips. Their son from the same litter Zastor came back Fast Normal/Normal. Having offspring from the same pairing already receiving strong hip ratings indicates a reliable genetic pattern, reinforcing that both parents pass on stable, healthy hip structure.

Also worth mentioning is that both of Urso’s parents have Normal/Normal hips, and both of Shakira’s parents have Normal/Normal hips as well. This means that all four grandparents of the puppaies have the highest passing hip rating in the SV system, which further strengthens the genetic foundation behind this litter

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Genetically, the projected HD litter value is 85, which falls directly in the ideal 70s–80s target range and well below the 100 threshold breeders aim for when lowering the risk of hip dysplasia. With both parents having passing hips and elbows, excellent HD values, clear DM status, strong SV surveys, and clean Embark results for all breed-relevant conditions-  supported now by proven offspring-  this pairing is exceptionally well-matched from a health standpoint and expected to produce structurally sound, healthy puppies.