This schematisation was done by Major Max E. E. Stephanitz. After such "schematisation", which we’ll call from now on standard, the German Shepherd continued on to the road of genetic improvement that brought into our era the species that mirrored those characteristics that were determined in the standard. But this doesn’t mean that since then the German Shepherd has not mutated, rather, we have to say that the German Shepherd has changed a lot but its nature and the fundamental rules fixed by our dear friend Max have remained unchanged as a valid point of reference for the breeders, like a lighthouse in the tempestuous sea of the years. In Germany around 1880 different sheepdog breeds lived, despite not being purebred, they had assumed some definite characteristics. Such characteristics were induced by a spontaneous artificial selection due to the difficulty in the displacements, which obviously put the shepherds in the condition of breeding by taking advantage of the most easily available material.

The principal breeds were the sheepdogs of Svevia, Turingia and Wuttemberg. The Svevia dogs had dark and curly coat with light bone structure but a shorthaired variety also existed.

The Svevia dogs had dark and curly coat with light bone structure but a shorthaired variety also existed. The Turingia dogs were small and strong, tawny-grey usually with straight ears, of which existed a variety with short hair and another with long hair. The Wuttemberg dogs were large and less dynamic with drooping ears and had a good tail posture. There existed a variety with short hair and another with long hair. Beginning 1900 the progress stemming from technological innovations brought with it the desire to produce a sheepdog that could adapt more easily to the new way of living, that is, a dog that is less rough and heavy and also aesthetically pleasing to look at. The popular imagination pointed to an ideal dog with a semi-long coat, straight ears, long tail carried in line with the hip and not rolled up or with anti-esthetical deviations. Many breeders worked towards this direction and obtained some dogs which at that period were able to satisfy the aforementioned esthetical necessities. The German Shepherd model that we have today is that of a dog which, besides presenting itself with determined morphological characteristics, has to maintain unchanged its own temperament as a working dog and it is because of this that today we see it as a untiring worker in airports, train stations, customs check on borders, in avalanche cases, among rubbles, following the trail of lost persons or criminals risking its own life for its master or for a poor victim. How many times have we seen a German Shepherd with a white breastband and two red crosses on the side suppress its own emotions in order to pursues its work?

The German Shepherd is all of this. Today our job as breeders must have as objective that of preserving and improving (if possible) the characteristics of this spectacular breed always continuing the job undertaken by our dear friend, Max one hundred years ago! Besides determining the standard of the breed, Max Von Stephanitz founded the SV (Schaferhund Verein) on 22 April 1899 which is an organisation for the development, growth, training of the German Shepherd. The founding members were 13, which soon became 1,215 seven years later, and today has reached more than 100,000. These members came from very diverse levels of the society, from noblemen to shepherds, all united by the common passion for a national breed which at that time existed only in their dreams. With the SV founded, they began redirecting a rudimental book on the origins of the dogs in which all births were noted down, that is, births by dogs that merited to be registered because they represented in every sense the standard of the breed. The family tree of the new organisation, that is, the SV, registered Horand Von Grafath as the first dog, born 1 January 1895, from the litter of Kastor and Lane . The birth of Horand filled Max Von Stephanitz with enthusiasm who apart from appreciating its morphological qualities, appreciated and valued its wonderful character that is docile, vibrant, attentive, faithful, sure and at the same time a vigilant defender of its own master. And so the newly formed breed began to have points of reference both concretely and idealistically. It must be noted that in nearby France they were also working for the selection of a dog having these characteristics but it is without shadow of a doubt that the in Germany the most strict and rigorous controls set up by the president Von Stephanitz brought higher zootechnical value. In 1907 a monthly newsletter began publication which informed its members of the progresses made, of the shows and of the contests. A factor that should never be neglected, according to Stephanitz, was the character of the dogs, so much so that he imposed tests for young pups that measured their temper and temperament. The character factor had to follow the morphological evolution step by step. The German Shepherd that Von Stephanitz wanted was medium-sized dog, robust and in harmony with a height between 60 to 65 cm. With strong bone structure and powerful muscles, an untiring walker that is able to cover at normal gait 40-50 km. a day. It is interesting to observe that head had to be expressive and important, but not heavy since it would tire the dog easily for journeys and without shadow of a doubt a head that is too heavy would generate an impressive bite that would have damaged the sheep. The teeth had to be strong and robust and the bites performed delicately on the fleece of the sheep -only for those who need to be disciplined- must not damage the fleece, the reason for which the teeth must not be formed like pincers but rather like scissors. The best dogs already had erect ears in order to catch every noise. There is a reason, in fact, for the German Shepherd being born as a sheepdog so as to perform that tiring work of extreme and careful vigilance that included as well the herding of the sheep from morning to evening under the gaze of the shepherd. In the life of a German Shepherd, it must be observed that the constant devotion it has towards its master, following the master everywhere and awaiting his/her return anxiously, is of fundamental importance in training the dog for the most diverse tasks.

nly a great love for man can bring such complex versatility in the training. The darkest period for the breed, without doubt, was during the First World War in which the best German Shepherds were used, sacrificing them and so causing a serious zootechnical impoverishment. At war the dogs were used to send messages, transport ammunitions, aid and find the wounded. When the war ceased, the breed had to be reconstructed fighting against the hardships of food scarcity as well as the impoverishment in the breeding of dogs with strong characters that were all used up during the war. It was then indispensable because of this (in order to have new guarantees of strong character) to proclaim Sieger in 1920, Erich von Grafenwerth, a dog that brilliantly passed the working tests. Such a decision, taken in part by the SV, came from the fact that in order to continue developing the breed, the morphological profile must necessarily be valued but the character side must not be neglected.