The German Shepherd dog is a very popular
breed. They can be trained to attack on command and is thus a very
effective guard dog. German Shepherds are very intelligent and are
used widely as working dogs for search and rescues and as military
and police dogs. They are also great guide dogs for children and
the blind. Originally bred in Germany, they are now found in all
parts of the world, in different shapes and sizes, and serving
different types of roles.History
German Shepherd dogs came from the line of
the sheep dogs that served the purpose of herding sheep and
helping the shepherd. In the late 19th century, Captain Max von
Stephanitz saw the potential of breeding an all-purpose working
dog when he came upon admiring a beautiful and intelligent
landrace herding dog. The sheep dog, Horand v. Grafrath was
registered as the first German Shepherd dog. With the onset of
industrialization, herding became less and less relevant so he saw
the potential for other uses. He created an official governing
body to control and develop the breed. This body created a trial
as a breed test for the German Shepherd dogs. It also prohibited
the breeding of any dog which did not pass the standards. This led
to the rapid development of the breed's abilities.
After World War 1, British and American
Soldier were so impressed by the German Shepherd dogs that they
brought some home. This began the proliferation of the breed
worldwide and its standards are still being maintained up to this
day.
Breed line
There is a wide variety of German Shepherd
dogs but their general qualities still remain: large, strong, and
good-looking. They are usually double-coated and their fur can be
long or short. Most German Shepherd dogs are cream and tan but
there are variations of black and white. Some even have tri-color
hair that includes white with brown or red. These dogs are called
sables.
There are three major breed lines depending
on their ability and appearance and behavior. The international
working lines are bred more for their working ability as specified
by their training rather than their appearance. International show
lines are bred for appearance for the purpose of joining dog
shows. Standards here can be very limiting so more or less their
appearance remain the same. The North American show lines are bred
also for their appearance but are markedly different from the
world standards because of their sloped back and sharp angulation
of the hock joint. Standards for the ideal look of the German
Shepherd vary from place to place and country to country.
