German Shepherd | Dog Breed | Information and Pictures

The German Shepherd is a breed of medium to large-sized working dog that originated in Germany. The breed's officially recognized name is German Shepherd Dog in the English language.The breed was once known as the Alsatian in Britain and Ireland.The German Shepherd is a relatively new breed of dog, with their origin dating to 1899. As part of the Herding Group, German Shepherds are working dogs developed originally for herding sheep. Since that time however, because of their strength, intelligence, trainability, and obedience, German Shepherds around the world are often the preferred breed for many types of work, including disability assistance, search-and-rescue, police and military roles, and even acting.The German Shepherd is the second-most registered breed by the American Kennel Club and seventh-most registered breed by The Kennel Club in the United Kingdom.

Description
German Shepherds are medium to large-sized dogs. The breed standard height at the withers is 60–65 cm (24–26 in) for males, and 55–60 cm (22–24 in) for females.German Shepherds are longer than tall, with an ideal proportion of 10 to 8 1/2. The AKC official breed standard does not set a standard weight range.They have a domed forehead, a long square-cut muzzle with strong jaws and a black nose. The eyes are medium-sized and brown with a lively, intelligent and self-assured look. The ears are large and stand erect, open at the front and parallel, but they often are pulled back during movement. A German Shepherd has a long neck, which is raised when excited and lowered when moving at a fast pace. The tail is bushy and reaches to the hock.
German Shepherds have a two-layer coat which is close and dense with a thick undercoat. The coat is accepted in two variants; medium and long. The long-hair gene is recessive, making the long-hair variety rarer. Treatment of the long-hair variation differs across standards; they are accepted but not competed with standard coated dogs under the German and UK Kennel Clubs while they can compete with standard coated dogs but are considered a fault in the American Kennel Club.The FCI accepted the long-haired type in 2010, listing it as the variety b—while short-haired type is listed as the variety a.Most commonly, German Shepherds are either tan/black or red/black. Most colour varieties have black masks and black body markings which can range from a classic "saddle" to an over-all "blanket." Rarer colour variations include the sable, pure-black, pure-white, liver and blue varieties. The all-black and sable varieties are acceptable according to most standards; however, the blue and liver are considered to be serious faults and the all-white is grounds for instant disqualification from showing in conformation at All Breed and Specialty Shows.


Intelligence 
German Shepherds were bred specifically for their intelligence,a trait for which they are now famous. In the book The Intelligence of Dogs, author Stanley Coren ranked the breed third for intelligence, behind Border Collies and Poodles.He found that they had the ability to learn simple tasks after only five repetitions and obeyed the first command given 95% of the time.Coupled with their strength, this trait makes the breed desirable as police, guard and search and rescue dogs, as they are able to quickly learn various tasks and interpret instructions better than other breeds.

Temperament 
German Shepherds are well renowned for their protectiveness over family members German Shepherds are moderately active dogs and are described in breed standards as self-assured.The breed is marked by a willingness to learn and an eagerness to have a purpose. They are curious, which makes them excellent guard dogs and suitable for search missions. They can become over-protective of their family and territory, especially if not socialized correctly.They are not inclined to become immediate friends with strangers.German Shepherds are highly intelligent and obedient, as well as being protective of their owners.

Aggression and Biting
While an Australian report from 1999 provides statistics showing that German Shepherds are the breed third most likely to attack a person in some Australian locales,once their popularity is taken into account, the percentages of GSD attacks drops to 38th.
According to the National Geographic Channel television show Dangerous Encounters, the bite of a German Shepherd has a force of over 1,060 newtons (238 lbf) (compared with that of a Rottweiler, over 1,180–1,460 newtons (265–328 lbf), a Pit bull, 1,050 newtons (235 lbf), a Labrador Retriever, of approximately 1,000 newtons (230 lbf), or a human, of approximately 380 newtons (86 lbf)).

Modern breed
The modern German Shepherd breed is criticized by some for straying away from Max von Stephanitz's original ideology that German Shepherds should be bred primarily as working dogs and that breeding should be strictly controlled to eliminate defects quickly.He believed that, above all else, German Shepherds should be bred for intelligence and working ability.

In 2018, a genetic study found that just prior to 1859 a broadly distributed European herding dog had given rise to the German Shepherd, the French Berger Picard, and the five Italian herding breeds: Bergamasco Shepherd, Cane Paratore, Lupino del Gigante, Pastore d'Oropa, and the it:Cane da pastore della Lessinia e del Lagorai.
In the 1800s northwest Europe the most common dog used to herd sheep and protect the homes was the so-called "continental shepherd dog". These dogs all looked very similar at that time, and it was around 1890 that the three breeds went their separate ways. Of those breeds, the Dutch shepherd looks closest to the continental shepherd of that time.
During the 1850s, attempts were being made to standardize dog breeds.Dogs were being bred to preserve traits that assisted in their job of herding sheep and protecting their flocks from predators.In Germany this was practiced within local communities, where shepherds selected and bred dogs. It was recognized that the breed had the necessary skills for herding sheep, such as intelligence, speed, strength and keen senses of smell.The results were dogs that were able to do such things, but that differed significantly, both in appearance and ability, from one locality to another.
To combat these differences, the Phylax Society was formed in 1891 with the intention of creating standardised development plans for native dog breeds in Germany.The society disbanded after only three years due to ongoing internal conflicts regarding the traits in dogs that the society should promote;some members believed dogs should be bred solely for working purposes, while others believed dogs should be bred also for appearance.While unsuccessful in their goal, the Phylax Society had inspired people to pursue standardising dog breeds independently.
With the rise of large, industrialized cities in Germany, the predator population began to decline, rendering sheepdogs unnecessary.At the same time, the awareness of sheepdogs as a versatile, intelligent class of canine began to rise.Max von Stephanitz, an ex-cavalry captain and former student of the Berlin Veterinary College, was an ex-member of the Phylax Society who firmly believed dogs should be bred for working.He admired the intelligence, strength and ability of Germany's native sheepdogs, but could not find any one single breed that satisfied him as the perfect working dog.

In 1899, Von Stephanitz was attending a dog show when he was shown a dog named Hektor Linksrhein.Hektor was the product of few generations of selective breeding and completely fulfilled what Von Stephanitz believed a working dog should be. He was pleased with the strength of the dog and was so taken by the animal's intelligence, loyalty and beauty, that he purchased him immediately.After purchasing the dog he changed his name to Horand von Grafrath and Von Stephanitz founded the Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde.Horand was declared to be the first German Shepherd Dog and was the first dog added to the society's breed register.
Horand became the centre-point of the breeding programs and was bred with dogs belonging to other society members that displayed desirable traits and with dogs from Thuringia, Franconia and Wurttemberg.Fathering many pups, Horand's most successful was Hektor von Schwaben.Hektor was inbred with another of Horand's offspring and produced Heinz von Starkenburg, Beowulf and Pilot, who later fathered a total of eighty-four pups, mostly through being inbred with Hektor's other offspring.This inbreeding was deemed necessary in order to fix the traits being sought in the breedIn the original German Shepherd studbook, Zuchtbuch für Deutsche Schäferhunde (SZ), within the two pages of entries from SZ No. 41 to SZ No. 76, there are four Wolf Crosses.Beowulf's progeny also were inbred and it is from these pups that all German Shepherds draw a genetic link. It is believed the society accomplished its goal mostly due to Von Stephanitz's strong, uncompromising leadership and he is therefore credited with being the creator of the German Shepherd Dog.



Etymology 
German Shepherd Dogs. Female (left), male (right). The breed was named Deutscher Schäferhund by von Stephanitz, literally translating to "German Shepherd Dog". The breed was so named due to its original purpose of assisting shepherds in herding and protecting sheep. At the time, all other herding dogs in Germany were referred to by this name; they thus became known as Altdeutsche Schäferhunde, or Old German Shepherd Dogs. 
The direct translation of the name was adopted for use in the official breed registry; however, at the conclusion of World War I, it was believed that the inclusion of the word "German" would harm the breed's popularity,due to the anti-German sentiment of the era.The breed was officially renamed by the UK Kennel Club to "Alsatian Wolf Dog",after the French region of Alsace bordering Germany.This name was also adopted by many other international kennel clubs.
Eventually, the appendage "wolf dog" was dropped,after numerous campaigns by breeders who were worried that becoming known as a wolf-dog hybrid would affect the breed's popularity and legality.The name Alsatian remained for five decades,until 1977, when successful campaigns by dog enthusiasts pressured the British kennel clubs to allow the breed to be registered again as German Shepherds.The word "Alsatian" still appeared in parentheses as part of the formal breed name and was only removed in 2010.

Popularity 
German Shepherd When the UK Kennel accepted registrations in 1919, 54 German Shepherds were registered. By 1926 this number had grown to over 8,000.The breed gained international recognition after the end of World War I. Returning soldiers spoke highly of the breed and animal actors Rin Tin Tin and Strongheart popularised the breed further.The first German Shepherd Dog registered in the United States was Queen of Switzerland. Her offspring suffered from defects as the result of poor breeding, which caused the breed to suffer a decline in popularity during the late 1920s.
Popularity increased again after the German Shepherd Sieger Pfeffer von Bern became the 1937 and 1938 Grand Victor in American Kennel club dog shows, only to suffer another decline at the conclusion of World War II, due to anti-German sentiment.Popularity increased gradually until 1993, when they became the third most popular breed in the United States. As of 2016, the German Shepherd is the second most popular breed in the US.Additionally, the breed is typically among the most popular in other registries.The German Shepherd Dog's physique is very well suited to competing in shows and competitions, such as agility trials. 



Health 
A nine-week-old German Shepherd puppy Many common ailments of the German Shepherd are a result of the inbreeding practiced early in the breed's life.One such common ailment is hip and elbow dysplasia which may cause the dog to experience pain later on in life and may cause arthritis.A study conducted by the University of Zurich found that 45% of the police working dogs were affected by degenerative spinal stenosis, although a small sample size was used.The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals found that 19.1% of German Shepherd are affected by hip dysplasia.There are however ways to help prevent hip dysplasia. They include making sure you get them from a good breeder, keeping them on a healthy diet, and limiting the amount of jumping or rough play. Due to the large and open nature of their ears, German Shepherds are not prone to ear infections because there is no hair in the outer ear canal to hold debris or moisture.[citation needed] According to a recent survey in the UK, the median life span of German Shepherds is 10.95 years,which is normal for a dog of their size. 
Degenerative myelopathy, a neurological disease, occurs with enough regularity specifically in the breed to suggest that the breed is predisposed to it. A very inexpensive DNA saliva test is now available to screen for degenerative myelopathy. The test screens for the mutated gene that has been seen in dogs with degenerative myelopathy. A small study in the UK showed 16% of young asymptomatic GSDs to be homozygous for the mutation, with a further 38% being carriers.Now that a test is available the disease can be bred out of breeds with a high preponderance. The test is only recommended for predisposed breeds, but can be performed on DNA samples from any dog, collected through swabbing the inside of the animal's cheek with a sterile cotton swab. Prospective German Shepherd buyers can now request the test from the breeder or buy from a breeder that is known to test their dogs.
Additionally, German Shepherds have a higher than normal incidence of Von Willebrand disease, a common inherited bleeding disorder,and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI), a degenerative disease of the pancreas. It is estimated that 1% of the UK GSD population suffers from this disease.Treatment is usually in the form of pancreatic supplements taken with food.

In Popular Culture
German Shepherds have been featured in a wide range of media.In 1921 Strongheart became one of the earliest canine film stars, and was followed in 1922 by Rin Tin Tin, who is considered the most famous German Shepherd. Both have stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.German Shepherds were used in the popular Canadian series
 Batman's dog Ace the Bat-Hound appeared in the Batman comic books, initially in 1955,through 1964.Between 1964 and 2007, his appearances were sporadic. A German Shepherd called Inspector Rex is the star of Austrian Police procedural drama program, which won many awards, where German Shepherd Rex assists the Vienna Kriminalpolizei homicide unit.The show was aired in many languages.



Source: Wiki