A Quote I Found . . . .

[Katelynn & Gang]

"Take this trouble for me:

Make sure my shepherd dog remains a working dog, for I have struggled all my life long for that aim ." -- Rittmeister Capt. Max von Stephanitz (1864-1936)

 

I read this quote today and found it heart warming that one man cared so much for one breed (GSDs), for one aim.

 

But came to tears afterwards, thinking of what has came of his breed and how it is today, knowing how much time, love, and effort he put into the breed.

 

People are reckless with the breeds that mean so much to some of us.

 

Thought I'd vent and share.

 

Katelynn

[juliepoudrier]

Kate,

All is not lost for von Stephanitz' dream. I believe the German bred German shepherds probably still would meet his standards. But his sentiment is surely one that the working border collie folks share....

 

J.

[paddyCA]

Stephanitz had a lot of wisdom towards working dogs- I've been trying to get my hands on a book he wrote back in the twenties on the German shepherd, not much luck. Certainly most of what he has to say can be applied to Border collies. Loving both of the breeds I can easily see that they share the same plight with preserving the true working dog. A lot of damage has been done to the GSD and it is an image of what the Border collie will face in the years to come due to the AKC and stupid breeders.

 

Julie is correct, the German lines of the GSD still aim to produce true working dogs although not all of them. In Germany they have their own "show dog" group also that are the antithesis of the breed, just not as extreme as the American show dog. They even have a "working" trial as part of their annual Sieger show for their show dogs but the trial is greatly warped to disguise the dogs who can no longer work as great workers. Only breeders who strive to produce Stephanitz's ideals are the worthy ones. It's utterly disgusting what the AKC has done to the GSD, literally crippling it (physically and mentally) in their idea of "beauty". Fortunately the Border collie hasn't suffered to this extent but is well on its way.

 

There are many many GSDs in this country and around the world who still embody Stephanitz's vision and their advocates are just as loyal as the working Border collies'. (This is a touchy topic for me! Thanks for posting that quote Kate.)

 

"The breeding of Shepherd Dogs is the breeding of Working Dogs, and this must always be the aim, or we shall cease to produce Shepherd Dogs." v Stephanitz

 

"We cannot tell from the exterior what value a dog has for breeding purposes, either from his expression, his body-build, or from his achievements." v Stephanitz

 

Truer words never spoken.

[Sue R]

So, to paraphrase - The breeding of Border Collies is the breeding of working dogs, and this must always be the aim, or we shall cease to produce Border Collies.

[J.E.S]

I always had GSDs until I got my first Border Collie. My last GSD who unfortunately died last year, was from German and Czech lines. Both parents were imports and working police dogs. I bought him as a puppy from a working police dog trainer. My dog was not registered as his parents were registered in their respective countries and never registered here. After I got my first Border Collie my GSD was around 6 yrs old. He jumped the fence while I was trying to work a young dog and being a novice handler I panicked thinking he would kill my sheep. Instead he went around them, pulled them off the fence and fetched them to me. He was very one-sided and I never worked him much also due to his age, but he showed very strong herding instincts and if I had a recalcitrant sheep I would go get him to help me put it up. He would have been laughed out of the conformation ring but he was a very beautiful and sound dog. I sure do miss him.

 

Joan