In your opinion, is adopting from a rescue/shelter or buying from a reputable breeder better?

Well, if you're asking anyone's opinion, I would say breeder. If you want a pure-bred. I'm actually going to be getting a German Shepherd puppy in a couple days, and I went to a breeder. If you're looking for just a friendly dog that maybe looks like a German Shepherd but acts differently, then I guess you could consider going to a shelter. The only problem with shelters is that you don't know what you're getting or where their previouse enviroment was, so I agree that breeder is best.