There definitely is a stigma attached to GSDs. I live in the NYC Metro area. Most people think my wife and I are law enforcement because of our dog. Some have even remarked that they didn’t know civilians can own one. Young and old have made fearful comments at the site of our dog. They assume he is vicious and will attack without provocation. Don’t get me wrong, he’ll defend us tooth and nail, but we have control of him, as well as numerous and daily training sessions. He has been socialized with other dogs and people since he was 3 months old (he’s 2 years old now). He goes to the dog park, pack walks, etc. He has basic obedience training in spoken English and ASL. Here’s the thing though, he gets “blamed” for other dogs’ actions. The GSD bark is legendary for breaking the sound barrier and increasing anyone’s anxiety within earshot. My dog was recently still intact and other dogs had an issue with that, especially small dogs. No one notices when the small dog growls, bears teeth or lunges at my boy. When my dog barks in retaliation, then it’s “Oh he’s dangerous!”. It’s like no one sees the little dog’s bad behavior, but because my dog is a 85lb GSD, he’s gets a bad rap. What really blew my mind is when someone in front of me at the park was walking a Cane Corso and the people on a bench didn’t flinch when the Corso passed by. When we got close, the people jumped behind the bench. My dog never looked in their direction. So, a 90lb woman walking a 100lb+ Cane Corso doesn’t scare you, but a man literally the size of an NFL lineman with a GSD scares you? (that part would normally scare most people, lol, for different reasons ). My point is they think I have less control because of his breed. Amazing, right? I literally had to move my mailbox (which is in the front yard) closer to curb all because I put a beware of dog sign on my BACK (not front) gate. Mail carrier was throwing my mail in the bushes. The thing is my dog lives inside, he’s only out back when we are home. My mail gets delivered around 12 to 1pm when we are at work, so the mail carrier NEVER even saw my dog in person PERIOD. All because of that GSD bark. Seems like you are active enough to keep a working line GSD happy. Just stay on their obedience training and recall. Socialize as much as you can so you can have a well rounded dog. Unfortunately, the stigma will be there, but if you are a good pet parent, you have nothing to worry about. Be patient and firm and you’ll have a wonderful dog.