It all depends on the breeder and the line you buy. I had two growing up. They were great dogs, but the drawbacks that I observed were that they are highly suspicious of strangers by nature, and this is normal for the breed, since they are valued for that characteristic. My German Shepherds would take several hours of seeing that the family accepted a guest into the house before they'd relax with strangers in the house, i.e., they tend to decide on their own if someone's OK, and don't readily take cues to that effect from their human owners. They are also prone to hip dysplasia. Only one of ours developed that.
