History of the German Shepherd Dog

One of the most popular Dogs in the world, the German Shepherd Dog has been bred into an intelligent and able animal who serves in a variety of ways.

The most common phenotype in the wolf ArE Q occurred frequently in dogs. (Braend and Anderson 1987) On the other hand, ArE W and ArE D found in wolves were rare in dogs, but ArE D occurred commonly in German Shepherd Dogs. Evidence perhaps,  of common ancestry.

The Shepherd Dog ancestors are the old herding and farm dogs of  Germany, dating back to the 7th century and possibly as early as the Bronze Age. By the late 19th century in Germany there existed  various types of working Sheepdogs, (with or without wolf blood) which could be grouped under the   heading of German Sheepdog.

After 1899 the German Sheepdog became known as the German Shepherd Dog
According to Von Stephanitz (1923) the dogs from Thuringia and Frankonia were generally wiry and coarse, small and stocky with the prized qualities  of  erect ears, and wolf-grey colour. In contrast Warttenberg dogs were larger, heavier boned, had better movement, as well as superior tail carriage

In 1899 the Verein fur Deutsche Schaferhunde (SV) held it's first specialty show at Frankfurt-am-Main and from that time the Sieger and Siegerin titles were started The Sieger of 1900 and 1901 was Hektor v Schwaben SZ13 who was the son of Horand v Grafrath, out of the bitch Mores Plieningen SZ159. She was a bitch born in 1894, and according to Horowitz (1924) had wolf ancestry. He cited Otto Rahm of the Wohlen Kennels in Switzerland as claiming that this bitch was the result of mating a male wolf to a Shepherd bitch. A record of a litter born in February 1901 by Woofram v Grafrath out of Wolfi v Wolfnest. Wolfi was the inbred Granddaughter of a dog called Wolf (presumably for reasons of colour, rather than ancestry). Her maternal Grandam was Zamba-Saar which the Zuchlbuch records as a She-Wolf. (We can presume that wolves being refereed to in these records are European Wolves.)

Mores Plieningen had enormous influence on the breed and is the ancestor (many times over) of every German Shepherd Dog in the world today. If it is true that she descended from a Wolf, some 100 years ago, there is Wolf   blood in the breed. The Dutch Geneticist Hagedoorn (1950), who believed in the Wolf ancestry theory, argued that many of the excellent qualities of the breed, such as it's "unquestioned obedience, and it's exemplary master of self, stemmed from the Wolf." The fact that the breed may have had some Wolf  blood a century ago is probably of no great harm, and possibly of some value. However since organized registration began, future opportunities for Wolf mixture have ceased.

In 1892 the Phylax Society was formed devoted to the development of the German Shepherd Dog. It was disbanded in 1894. The seeds had been sown and on April 22nd 1899 the Verein fur Schaferhunde (or SV) was formed.

The SV a typically German Society was dominated by Von Stephanitz, As President he selected the Siegers.He wrote the so-called Bible of the breed, (Von Stephanitz, 1923) and made the major decisions.

All the SV Presidents from Stephanitz to the SV Presidents of present day expressed their opinions of what the German Shepherd Dog breed standard should be, and throughout the years have added to or changed the previous opinions of past SV Presidents. Breeders of German Shepherd Dogs should do their research as well as breed to the standard to develop qualities for the total German Shepherd Dog.

People like to talk about their Importations. The fortunate few and discriminating obtain the best the Germans are able to turn out, but many assume that any dog Imported is a good one, and then become disillusioned.

It should be noted that Americans have put out as good or better dogs than they could ever import. This was done without the strict regulations that are applied by the SV. As in the past both Germans and Americans have had their share of problems with the breed, but overall to date we are seeing better and better dogs. Dedicated American breeders have the freedom to pursue the avenues needed for the betterment of the breed. Both hobbyist and professional may choose to breed for a specific purpose such as sport, show, or working ability. In order to maintain the Nobility of the German Shepherd Dog that we all treasure, the priority should be to breed for the total well balanced  Dog

THAT IS OUR GOAL

    references;The German Shepherd Dog, A Genetic History- Malcom B. Willis, P.H.D.

Dog Facts- Joan Palmer
  The Complete German Shepherd- Milo G. Denlinger

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