| To understand the history of the German Shepherd, | | | | to the original. He then took those puppies and inbred |
| dog you must first look at the man who created the | | | | them to help consolidate the German Shepherd line. It |
| breed. He was Max von Stephanitz, a career cavalry | | | | is from this inbreeding that the characteristics of the |
| officer who then later in his career spent much of his | | | | breed became solidified, both positive and negative. |
| time at the Veterinary College in Berlin. It was also | | | | To help counter these undesirable traits, von |
| during this time that his interests in dogs and breeding | | | | Stephanitz inserted other unrelated herding dogs into |
| became tempered with the latest knowledge of his | | | | the German Shepherd breed. |
| era. He became more and more interested in breed | | | | However, during this time Germany was becoming |
| standardization. He began to feel more and more | | | | more and more industrialized and the pastures where |
| passionate that dogs should be bred for work and | | | | the dog was for were disappearing. Hoping to |
| not to be pets. | | | | preserve the breed by finding them new work, von |
| It was in 1898 that von Stephanitz would find his | | | | Stephanitz became to contact police agencies for the |
| chance. While attending a dog show, he fell in love | | | | dog. The German Shepherd was a natural fit. This |
| with a dog named, "Hektor Linkrshein." He was | | | | began the Schutzhund training trials that are used to |
| everything that von Stephanitz found desirable in a | | | | trained German Shepherds for police work. |
| dog. Intelligence to understand, learn, and make | | | | By 1922 von Stephanitz was becoming more and |
| independent decisions. Strength to fulfill the tasks | | | | more concerned that oversized boxy dogs were |
| required. The loyalty to always remain true to his | | | | becoming the predominant choice. The breed's |
| master. von Stephanitz bought the dog instantly and | | | | qualities were diminishing. The temperament was |
| renamed him, "Horand von Grafrath" and founded the | | | | becoming more wild and the dogs' teeth were |
| "Verein fur Deutsche Schaeferhunde", or the Society | | | | developing numerous faults. In a drastic action, he |
| for the German Shepherd Dog. | | | | selected the dog, Klodo von Boxberg, to be the |
| He had a long road ahead of him. To help promote | | | | representative of what shepherds should be. Nine |
| the breed from one dog, Von Stephanitz bred the | | | | years after this correction, he passed away. |
| dog with others who shared other strong similarities | | | | |