A Brief History Of The German Shepherd Dog

On April 3rd, 1899, a German cavalry officer called Max Von Stephanitz attended one of the earliest dog shows ever held in Germany. The show was for all breeds of dog. Von Stephanitz was accompanied by his friend Artur Meyer. It was during that day that Von Stephanitz purchased a herding dog he had seen at the show. Von Stephanitz named the dog Horand von Grafrath. Von Stephanitz and Meyer felt that there should be a standard set of characteristics for all German sheepdogs. They made it their aim to establish this standard and they started a Society which became known as Verein Fur Deutsche Schaferhunde, SV (Club for German Shepherd Dogs). Von Stephanitz was elected as the President of the society and he held that position until his death in 1936.

Horand von Grafrath, the dog Von Stephanitz had purchased, was chosen by the Verein as the prototype for setting the breed standard. Horand had a short coat, erect ears and a dark colouring. He was the first GSD registered in the stud book of the Verein and was given the designation of S.Z.1. At the same time as it started the stud book, the Verein began to circulate a semi monthly newsletter. It also started annual dog shows.

At these shows, one dog and one bitch were selected as the best examples at the show. These best examples were given the titles of "Sieger" (Champion Male) and "Siegerin" (Champion Female)

Von Stephanitz and the Verein kept very control over the GSD breeding in Germany. It was the Verein that governed which bitches could be bred and even which dogs they could breed with. They even controlled how many puppies could be kept from each litter as well as placing age limitations on breeding stock.

Von Stephanitz had a motto that was the basis for many of the rules controlling breeding.

"Utility and Intelligence."

Although the GSD's main use was herding, it was quickly recognised that the breed's usefulness could be expanded into other areas. Von Stephanitz eventually persuaded the German Government to use GSD's in areas such as police work and the military.

As we can still see today, the GSD excelled in these areas and is still the primary choice of breed for this work. This preference is due to the characteristics that we have now come to expect of a GSD. They include versatility, agility and loyalty as well as a fearless nature. The GSD can and will defend it's owner/handler with it's own life if the situation dictates and there are frequent examples of this courage throughout history.

The Verein continued tirelessly with the development of the Breed and progress was steady but showed results. GSD's became more popular as they spread around the world and more people learned about them. During the World Wars, the German Shepherd lost much of it's favour in the United States of America (possibly due to it's origins). It was also used during each of the wars as a military dog by the German Army which will not have helped it's popularity in the United States. After each of the wars however it regained some of it's popularity when soldiers returned home from Europe often with fine examples of the breed.

A little known fact is that the famous "Rin Tin Tin", was actually a dog that had been taken to America after WW1 by a soldier called Larry Baker.

It was also a German Shepherd Dog that became the first ever Guide Dog for the Blind in New Jersey.

The Verein is still a driving force in the canine world and at the time I am writing this site, it is still the largest breed club in the world today.

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