German Shepherd

GERMAN SHEPHERD  Origin:Germany  Particular uses: Companion dog, guide dog, guard dog  Life expectancy: 10 years  Male height: 60 - 65 cm.  Male weight: 30 - 34 kg approx.  Female height: 55 - 60 cm.  Female weight: 26 - 30 kg approx.  FCI-Standard: No. 166 - Group 1

Historical Summary of the Breed
The origin of the German Shepherd breed takes us back to the year 1899, the year in which the German shepherd dog club began.  The breed was developed by crossing shepherd dogs from different regions of Germany.  To this day, the breed standard has changed little since its inception.

There is a saying about German Shepherds, "it's not the best dog for anything, but it's the second best dog for everything."  This saying could have come about during the two World Wars, because the German Shepherd was greatly useful when they used it to transport medical kits, search for the wounded, act as a messenger...

There is no other breed with such a high level of versatility nor capable of fulfilling so well all the functions it is capable of filling as a German Shepherd.

General Appearance
The German Shepherd breed is a medium-size, strong breed with excellent musculature and a slightly elongated body.  The group must have a slope relative to the dorsal line, with an approximately 30º angle.  Its head is wedge-shaped and proportionate with the size of the dog.

The tail has bushy, thick fur.  When the dog is calm, it forms a smooth curve; but when the dog is excited, the curve is accentuated and the tail goes up.  It has medium-sized, almond-shaped, dark eyes, similar to the nose, which is also black.  The ears, pointed with the curve pointing forward, are stiff and open forward.

Temperament and Behavior
With a flexible temperament, though lively and rather dominating, the German Shepherd breed is still easy to educate if it has only one master.  It is a brave, intelligent, obedient and faithful dog to an incredible degree.  It will not hesitate to defend its family even if it has not been educated to do so.  It has an incredible sense of smell (among the finer in the canine species).  They are loving, sweet, protective and very patient with kids.  But we can also entrust them with a herd.

The jobs given to them in our society today are innumerable.  Whether as a police dog, guard dog, avalanche dog, guide dog, etc., and all these they fulfill with extraordinary efficiency.  The German Shepherd is a naturally gentle dog and it adjusts well to life in the city, as long as it can have a romp in the park every day.