- Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde
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The Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde (Society for the German Shepherd Dog), commonly abbreviated SV, is the German Shepherd dog club founded by Max von Stephanitz in 1899, as the successor of the Phylax Society. The society set forward the standards of the breed and were responsible for the creation of the modern German Shepherd Dog.
Contents
History
After the disestablishment of the Phylax Society in 1894, many members still harboured the desire to create a well-rounded dog by selectively breeding local German dog breeds. One such member was Max von Stephanitz, a cavalry officer and former student of the Berlin Veterinary College. Von Stephanitz harboured the belief that dogs should be bred for working purposes rather than for show, and in 1899, while attending a show, he was shown a dog by the name of Hektor Linksrhein. Von Stephanitz was so impressed by the strength and intelligence of the dog that he purchased it, changed its name to Horand von Grafrath and founded the Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde[1] on April 22, 1899 and instated himself as the first president.[2][3] The group was formed along with Von Stephanitz's colleague, Artur Meyer, and nine other members.[4]
Pioneering the German Shepherd
After the club's establishment, Von Stephanitz's dog, Horand von Grafrath was named the first German Shepherd Dog and was the first dog added to the organization's breed registry.[5] From that point onward Grafrath was used by the club as the basis for what qualities the breed should exhibit.
Overcoming old disputes
Von Stephanitz believed strongly that a dog's working ability was of the utmost importance and aesthetics should be ignored. Thus, in order to avoid the arguments which lead to the disestablishment of the Phylax Society, the society's first breed standard, which Stephanitz wrote himself, read "A pleasing appearance is desirable, but it can not put the dog's working ability into question ... German Shepherd breeding is working dog breeding, or it is not German Shepherd breeding".[6][7]
Present day
The society is now the national German Shepherd Club of Germany and coordinates breeding, dog shows and titles.
References
- ^ Conan, Michel. The German Shepherd Handbook. Barron's Educational Series. p. 154. ISBN 0764113321.
- ^ "Max von Stephanitz". German Shepherd US. http://www.german-shepherd-us.com/max-von-stephanitz.html. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ^ "Die Bundespressestelle des SV" (in German). Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde. http://www.schaeferhunde.de/site/index.php?id=237. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
- ^ "About the Breed". German Shepherd Dog Club of Victoria Inc.. Archived from the original on 2008-07-20. http://web.archive.org/web/20080720040054/http://www.gsdcv.org.au/articles/breed/about_the_breed.htm. Retrieved 2008-08-07. "They were joined by 9 other Co-founders ..."
- ^ Hutchinson, Robert. For the Love of Rottweilers. Browntrout Publishers. p. 99. ISBN 1563139006.
- ^ Harder, Aimee. "GSD vs. WGSD - It's not a black or white issue!". White German Shepherd Dog Club of America. http://www.wgsdca.org/thebreed/gsdvswgsd.asp. Retrieved 2008-07-20.
- ^ von Stephanitz, Max; Schwabacher, Joseph (1994). The German Shepherd Dog in Word and Picture. Hoflin Publishing Ltd. p. 12. ISBN 9789993280057.
External links
Categories:- Breeder organizations
- History of the German Shepherd Dog
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