The German Shepherd Dog also known as an Alsatian comes literally from the German Deutscher Schäferhund. The German Shepherd is a relatively new breed of large-sized dog that dates from the late 19th century. Originally a herding dog, particularly for sheep.
Often employed by the military and police for their obedience and intelligence. The Alsatian is also one of the most popular breeds around the world.
The original dog was named Hektor Linksrhein. Hecktor so stunned Von Stephanitz that he bought it and changed the dogs name to Horand von Grafrath and founded the Society for the Alsatian Dogs.
Horand von Grafrath became the focus of the society’s breeding programs and was mated with many other society member dogs.
The German Shepherds popularity has grown rapidly throughout the 20th Century, though it had some problems in popularity in the early days due to genetic health issues from poor inbreeding and after the world wars with anti German feelings. This caused the UK Kennel Club to rename it to “Alsatian Wolf Dog”, a while later the wolf dog appendage was dropped and in 1977, the Alsatian Dog was back as the official name, though it is still often known as the Alsatian. The Alsatian popularity was fuelled by animal actors such as Rin Tin Tin and Strongheart. Now it is globally the third most popular dog breed.
They are a large dog of around sixty centimetres (around 24 in) at the withers and weigh around 30 kilograms (60 lb).
The Alsatian’s face has a long square cut muzzle, a doomed forehead, a long neck, powerful jaws, big erect ears (that are often pulled back when on the move), black nose and brown, medium-sized eyes. With a bushy tail.
Alsatians come in a variety of colours, the most common being the red/black and tan/black versions with black masks and saddles. Rarer variations include the sable, all-black, all-white, liver and blue types, which may not fit country breed standards. Alsatians have a double coat. A thick close dense outer coat, which sheds continually and a thick undercoat. The long-hair variety is rarer.
The German Shepherd, like many working dogs is very intelligent, and are ranked as the third most intelligent breed of dog by Stanley Coren in his reference study and book “The Intelligence of Dogs”. This attribute combined with their power makes the German Shepherd sought after as guard, police, search and rescue dogs, the German Shepherd rapid learning ability and ability to interpret instructions are better than other large dog types.
Alsatians have a reputation for aggression and have been banned in areas as a result. Statistically, in the United States, the German Shepherd is responsible for more unprovoked indiscriminate bites than any other dog breed, and have a known tendency to attack smaller breeds of dogs.
Additionally studies have shown that Alsatians are the breed third most likely to attack a person and in a different study, German Shepherds accounted for around half of the dog bites that required medical attention, versus a more normal 20% of bites requiring medical treatment, not surprising with their powerful jaws and sharp canine teeth.
The problem is not with the dog, but the owners. As with all bright energetic dog (or child), if they are not regularly active and kept busy, they can become difficult. Good dog training and dog socialisation are crucial for a dog like the Alsatian. The German Shepherd is different from the collie, which a lot of its aggressiveness has been breed out from show strains, the Alsatian does not seem to have lost this character.
They can bond very well with their family, however they can become over-protective of their family and territory. Due to this they may appear a bit aloof.
Alsatians are rapid learners and are highly obedient and not easily sidetracked, but due to their tough character, you need to be very forceful with them.
The Alsatian must have two good walks a day. They are not a dog for a busy family who cannot give them the time and attention. For this reason, busy couples often ask dog walkers to help out by walking them for several hours a day.
Poor breeding has led to common genetic health issues, hip and elbow joint problems (dysplasia) which is painful for the dog and may cause arthritis. The German Shepherd also suffers from monorchidism (one testicle), weakness of temperament, and missing teeth, as well as folded or bent ears which never fully turn up when reaching adulthood. Due to the large and open nature of their ears, Shepherds also are prone to ear infections.
Alsatians, like many deep chested dogs are prone to bloat, this is a very dangerous and often rapidly fatal problem, so if you think this may be a problem, go straight to the vet. This is a gas build up in the stomach, caused by a number of different causes. The symptoms of distress for no apparent reason, a firm distension of the abdomen, general weakness, depression, problems breathing, hypersalivation, and retching without vomiting. A large percentage of dogs with bloat have cardiac arrhythmias (around forty percent), loss of appetite, vomiting and weight loss.
The Alsatian also suffers from Degenerative Myelopathy, or DM is a neurological disease and are predisposed to Von Willebrand Disease, a common inherited bleeding disorder, which shows in differing degrees of bleeding tendency, usually in the form of easy bruising, nosebleeds and bleeding gums. .
In spite of these problems, the Alsatian is sturdy with simple dog care and the average lifespan of a German Shepherd is 7 – 10 years, which is typical for a dog of this size.
The German Shepherd has a great nose so is one of the most widely-used breeds in a wide variety of scent-work roles, including cadaver searching, search and rescue, explosives detection, narcotics detection and mine detection.
So the Alsatian is a wonderful clever dog that will bond well with you, if you have the time and dedication for him. Not advised for busy working families.
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