Anything For Animals

posted by admin on Jul 9

A Black & Tan Long-Haired Large Dog that tops the polls!

German Shepherd Dogs are one of the most-registered breeds of dog across the US and Europe due to their loyalty, intelligence and ease of training - as well as their unique appearance.

And for this exact same reason - they are a favourite breed for the armed forces and security trades to use for protection and defence.

The History Of The Breed:
Quite a recent herding breed, the German Shepherd (or GSD) grew in popularity in Germany and throughout Europe around the turn of the 20th century.

Although sometimes called the German Shepard, Berger Allemand, Deutscher Schaferhund or Alsatian - they are one and the same breed and the history of the latter no longer applies so is not a preferred term of breeders and show people alike!

Hekto Linksrhein was a working dog that was found at a show by a dog enthusiast looking for the perfect working dog.  This man was Max von Stephanitz, and he went on to intensively breed from this dogs progeny and started the genetic base for the German Shepherd we know today - and all today’s Shepherds can draw a genetic link to his puppies!

The prefix of ‘German’ has hampered the breed in the past due to the 2 World Wars, however, this goes to show the popularity of the breed has remained.  By registrations is is the 3rd most popular breed in the US at the moment, 3rd in Canada, 4th in the UK and 2nd in Australia - beating the Australian Shepherd on home turf!

Problems With The Breed:
Unfortunately, the breed was originally designed to be a working dog - as were many herding dogs we have as pets today.

This leads to a whole host of problems, as looks and temperament start to dominate breeding rather than health and internal structure.  Breed judges might say that they need to have a longer nose or a more sloping back - purely for human satisfaction - rather than for the benefit of the dog!

As a result of all the human demands - German Shepherds now suffer from a huge list of genetic problems - in reality these sometimes painful and life-shortening traits are being bred into the puppies so that the adults can ‘win’ in shows.

Hip dysplasia, elbow dysplasia, chronic digestive conditions, liver shunt, monorchidism and many more common ailments are well known across the breed - but afflicted animals are still bred from - as these problems are not always visible in young dogs - so can still be entered into shows!

Problems With The Owners:
There are tests available for the discerning buyer who wants a healthy - disease free pet - but many buyers just buy their dogs because they are a German Shepherd rather than a healthy German Shepherd. 

Unfortunately, it is more common for the latter of the 2 buyers to not neuter their pets therefore passing on these ‘bad genes’ to the next generation of casual buyers.

If people stopped buying German Shepherd puppies that had these illnesses (or no proof that their parents didn’t have these illnesses), then breeders would have to stop breeding them - and focus on healthier individuals to make a living.  It’s like selling faulty household goods or furniture.

Why buy a dog for several hundred dollars that is going to be in pain, get ill or have to have an operation and cost you hundreds more in vets bills - when you could buy the exact same dog and have it live it’s whole life healthy and pain-free?

Do your research before you buy - and have yourself a happy German Shepherd for the next 10 years…..