Evaluate Breeding Values By DNA & Performance Tests

German Shepherd Dog Breeding Goal

Performance & DNA Tests Should Be a Must For Ethical Dog Breeding Practice

In an attempt to spread an awareness of ethical practice for dog breeding, Aringsburg German Shepherd Dog Bloggers seek to bring in this chapter that talks about how DNA tests can contribute in evaluating breeding values. Not only owners, but aspiring dog breeders should be benefited from this chapter and may be more inclined towards setting a breeding goal, aiming towards scientifically eliminating genetic defects – both mental and physical.

Breeding Value for a Dog: So what is this? Breeding value for a specific dog is the set of genetically governed qualities that helps you decide whether to breed him/her or not. Since breeding goal should be development of the breed by eliminating defects and carriers of defective traits, a dog is considered to have a higher breeding value if it genetically close to the standard, insofar psychological, physiological and physical traits are concerned and is capable to pass on the strong traits to its progenitors, which in turn contributes to the breed development. Dog breeding values can be effectively evaluated by understanding the degree of contribution a dog (dam or sire or both) can genetically make. Passing on the traits (desirable or undesirable) to progenitors is simply quite natural. 

Evaluating the statistical estimation of breeding value can be done through:

 

1) Testing the performance of direct parents, close relatives and their progenitors

2) Testing the DNA of direct parents, their offspring, close relatives and their progenitors

Performance Test to Evaluate Breeding Value: Dog breeders should adopt the practice of evaluating breeding value, and clubs and canine organizations have to encourage breeders to keep closer eye their dogs’ overall performance with respect to behavior, temperament, traits, gait, and other physical and psychological features. Success can be achieved only through testing 100% of the offspring and it should be an ongoing and consistent process. In an article appeared in GKF Info 26 Dec. 2007, pages 13-19, Gesellschaft zur Förderung Kynologischer Forschung e.V., Bonn, Germany, Dr. Helga Eichelberg said it right: “breed clubs must look after the prerequisite, which is to find ways to increase the rate of performance testing and making the data available.” (Translated in English by Joe Schmutz)

DNA Tests to Evaluate Breeding Value: DNA tests for dogs are not yet available everywhere, which is an excuse for overwhelmingly growing numbers of backyard breeders for not getting a chance to effectively determining the breeding value of their dogs. Implementing the practice of DNA tests in dog breeding will efficiently filter out the genetic defects, which should be the one most important breeding goal. Through DNA tests more and more complicated traits can be determined to contribute to the evaluation process of breeding value. Proper DNA tests will help filtering out the defects and undesirable traits and characteristics and also effectively filter out the carriers of defective psychological, physiological and physical characteristics. 

DNA tests are important to evaluate the actual genetic characteristics of a dog. Even if a dog has a rich bloodline with all desirable traits, still more complex and subtle undesirable traits may not be noticeable without an appropriate DNA trait. A seemingly close to perfect dog when combined with a very good female with apparently high heritable qualities may still produce unreliable progenitors with subtle or pronounced defects. Very nice dogs may still have siblings that many educated and ethical breeders may consider as unreliable and non-breedable. DNA tests help to effective determine all strengths and weaknesses of a dog which helps a breeder to make valuable decision when it comes to breeding his dogs.

 

Takeaways From This Chapter:

Dog breeding is a serious activity that demands a responsible approach that should be backed with scientific knowledge and an inclination towards breed development, and not just making money. Emotional approach in breeding dog is bound to make mess.

Great Related Read On GSD: True type German Shepherds have typical basic instincts that should be retained while breeding.  FCI - Fédération Cynologique Internationale has drafted German Shepherd standard which need to be kept in the forefront of your mind while breeding GSD. Check out FCI GSD Standard. GSD breeders should draft an effective and scientific breeding goal to eliminate of defects

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German Shepherd Dog History Time Map

German Shepherd Dog History - Years of Special Occurrences, which has been considered as Time Map of GSD History in this post.

Here is the detailed time map in the history of German Shepherd Dog breed since the start

1891 - Phylax Society was formed. With very short life span, this dog club was a precursor to the Verein fur Deutsche Schaferhunde (S.V), which was later created by Max von Stephanitz, the originator of GSD breed.

1894 - The Phylax Society (that was formed in 1891) was disbanded. Many members of the Phylax Society continued to exhibit the ideologies and concepts formulated by the society. One of those eminent members was "Captain Max von Stephanitz", the man who has been credited with the honor of being the father of German Shepherd Dog breed.

1895 - Hektor Linkshrein - later renamed as Horand von Grafrath was born on January 1st

1899 - Verein fur Deutsche Schaferhunde (S.V.) was initiated.

1899 - On April 3rd in the same year of the formation of the Verein für deutsche Schäferhunde (SV) - world's first All-Breed German Dog show was held in Karleruube Rhineland. Captain Stephanitz, and his friend, Arthur Meyer were present in the show looking for a perfect dog to create a really superb herder. Captain Stephanitz fell in love with a dog called Hektor Linkshrein and purchased the dog right at the spot with 200 deutsche mark and this turned out to be the major turning point in the History of German Shepherd Dog evolution.

1901 - The world's first Schutzhund (also used to be known as IPO and presently know as IGP) trial was held in Germany in the year 1901. The dogs were for abilities in tracking, obedience and protection. The Schutzhund sport was developed in Germany as a suitability test for the GSD breed, but later included other breeds. 

1906 - First German Shepherd Dog that was believed to have set paws upon North America. The name of the dog was Queen of Switzerland. However, most of her progenies came up with defects due to wrong breeding. This impacted the breed's popularity adversely during the late 1920s in America.

1907 - The first German Shepherd Dog ever exhibited in America.

1908 - The first German Shepherd registered with the American Kennel Club (AKC).

1908 - German Shepherd Dog first arrived in Great Britain in the early part of the century during this phase of time.

1913 - Benjamin Throop and Anne Tracy formed the German Shepherd Dog Club of America with 26 charter members.

1913 - The first championships had been awarded to German Shepherd Dogs.

1914 - Since this phase of time till the decline of WW I, the heroic German Shepherd Dogs served in World War I and had played a salient role in the war.

1915 - The first specialty show of the German Shepherd Dog Club of America was held at Greenwich, Connecticut.

1917 - When America entered World War I, all things related to Germany became tabu. The American Kennel Club (AKC) changed the name of the GSD breed to the "Shepherd Dog". thus the German Shepherd Dog Club of America (GSDCA) became the "Shepherd Dog Club of America". In England, the breed had been renamed to "Alsatian". Read out the history of German Shepherd name.

1918 - Rin-Tin-Tin (Rin Tin Tin, Rinty) was born on September 10, as a Dark Grey male baby. He was sired by Fritz de la Chasse royale, who had been traced to the first Registered German Shepherd Dog, Horand. Rinty's mother was Betty des Flandreswho had also been traced to the first Registered German Shepherd Dog, Horand. Rinty was owned by Lee Duncan an american Serviceman.

1919 - The English Kennel Club (UK Kennel Club) gave the GSD breed a separate register with 54 dogs being included. By 1926 the count had swelled to 8,058. Such was the exceptional success of the German Shepherd Dog.

1920's - The "Alsatian League" and the "Alsatian Wolf Dog Club" united in the early 1920's under the name of the Alsatian League and Club of Great Britain and started bringing out some order to the GSD

1921 - "Strongheart" - the German Shepherd Dog became the first canine movie GSD star in silent movie, although there were a few canine stars (apart from GSD) had appeared before Strongheart. In 1921 strong acted in his first movie named "The Silent Call". Strongheart became the favorite star and had been well acclaimed by moviegoers of all ages. He used to travel by train from one part to the other of the country and huge mobs of people were on hand to see this marvellous animal at almost all stations.

1921 - Adolf Hitler adopted a female German Shepherd Dog - named "Prinz", during his years of poverty. Hitler was forced to keep Prinz elsewhere, but she escaped and ran back to Hitler. Hitler liked the breed's loyalty and started developing very strong liking for GSD.

1922 - Strongheart starred in the movie called "Brawn of the North". 1924 - Strongheart starred in the movie called "The Love Master".

1923 - The Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde declared that the organization has a ground breaking number of 50,000 paid members in more than 500 branches in Germany alone.

1923 - German Shepherd Rin Tin Tin becomes a canine film star.

1923 - Shepherd Dog Club of New England founded, publishing the Shepherd Dog Review.

1925 - Strongheart starred in the movies called "White Fang" and "North Star".

1925 - The titles of Grand Victor and Grand Victrix are established as the titles for the winners of the GSDCA National.

1927 - Strongheart starred in the movies called "The Return of Boston Blackie"

1928 - Buddy, a German Shepherd Dog, becomes the first Seeing Eye dog among other service dogs to follow in the GSD timeline.

1932 - Rin Tin Tin (lovingly called "Rinty") died on August 10, at the age of 14 years in Los Angeles in the arms of the famous actress Jean Harlow. Rinty's owner had arranged to have Rinty's dead body returned to his birth land - Lorraine, France for his burial in the Cimetière des Chiens, the famous pet cemetery in the Parisian suburb of Asnières-sur-Seine. "Rin Tin Tin" was honored with a star on the "Hollywood Walk of Fame" at 1623 Vine St. in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA, that serves as an entertainment museum.

1936 - Max von Stephanitz, the founder of the German Shepherd Dog breed, died.

1937-38 - The German Shepherd named Pfeffer von Bern (SGR 1937/8GV CH (US)) won as Grand Victor the 1937 American Kennel club dog show. This resulted as huge boost in the GSD breed's popularity in the USA, that was badly declined due to defective progenies (breeding defects) of Queen of Switzerland (the first dog to land in the US in 1906)

1941 - Adolf Hitler was gifted the second girl German Shepherd by Martin Bormann (German Nazi Party official and head of the Nazi Party Chancellery). Hitler was very fond of Blondi and kept her even after he moved into the Führerbunker located underneath the Reich Chancellery garden.

1945 - Adolf Hitler German Shepherd, Blondi died on April 30. Hitler wanted to check the potency of the cyanide capsules given by Heinrich Himmler. He tested on Blondi, as a result Blondi expired.

1967 - On June 23, 1967, Air Force Headquarters directed that Nemo, the 85 pound, black and tan German Shepherd, was the first hero of his kind to return from the Vietnam War. He returned to the United States with honors, as the first sentry dog to be officially retired from active service.

1977 - This year the British Kennel Club (being pressured by strong campaign by GSD enthusiasts) registered the breed back to it's name  "German Shepherd Dog". But the breed was registered as the German shepherd Dog "Alsatian". The name "Alsatian" appeared within parenthesis till 2010.

Spanning back to the related history, after the WW I it was believed that because of the anti-German sentiment of the time, the word "German" being included in the breed's name might result the popularity of the breed to suffer a fall. Hence the breed was renamed as "Alsatian Wolf Dog" by the British Kennel Club. This name was kept after the border region area of “ALSACE -- LORRAINE”. However, it was again feared the presence of the appendage "wolf dog" could also impact the breed's popularity, as people might "wrongly" think that there's direct wolf's gene in this breed that would make the breed dangerously aggressive. Hence, the appendage "wolf dog" was eliminated and the breed was renamed as "Alsatian" and remained as Alsatian until the year 1977.

History of the name and GSD breed

2010 - This year was also a vital year in the history of this breed. The final renaming of the breed from (German Shepherd Dog "Alsatian") to just (German Shepherd Dog) was officially declared in 2010. This means as the full name, the word "Alsatian" within the parenthesis that used to be mentioned since 1977 after German shepherd Dog was finally removed the breed was renamed as German Shepherd Dog in 2010.

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How To Keep Your German Shepherd Thin, Fit and Healthy

German Shepherd Dog Exercise Tips

Is your German Shepherd Dog too thin or too fatty? In this context, GSD specialists usually point three categories - Ideal Condition, Too Thin, Obese, and you can understand which of these categories does your German Shepherd currently fall into.

Ideal Condition

Can you feel the ribs, but they are not pronouncedly visible? Can you see the waist when viewed from the top and the belly slightly tucked in when viewed from the side? If your answer s to both the quest is “YES”, then you are lucky, but you need to be very cautious so that you don’t end up enlisting you name in the two groups below.

Under-nutrition - Too thin

Are your dog’s ribs prominently visible? Can you see the vertebrae prominently?

Keeping your dog thin, fit and healthy is important. Overly thin dog is not a healthy dog. There may be several reasons for your GSD to become too thin and seemingly underfed. While the commonest reason is malnutrition or under feeding, but there are other reasons as well when your German Shepherd may be getting thinner and thinner, despite feeding him an appropriate quantity of food. Even if you are feeding him adequate quantity, you may have to spare a thought over the quality of food. How much you are feeding your dog is important; What you are feeding him is equally important! Our German Shepherd Diet Management section will help you know more about the diet and nutrition management for your German Shepherd.

Overly Fed – Over weight and Obese

Can’t you see your dog’s waist when viewed from the top? Does his belly seem rounded and little bulged out when viewed sideways? If your dog is overweight you are not alone… rather you are among the huge mass of unfortunate pet owners who tend keep their eyes close to this issue. While feline holds the largest share of obesity graph with around 57.6 percent, according to 2013 pet obesity survey record 43.8 million dogs only in the US have been marked overweight or obese. Understanding the root of obesity in dogs is very important. German Shepherds, alike other breeds, gets exposed to the risk serious health conditions on becoming obese and overweight. Hence, it is primarily significant to keep your dog thin and fit - not underweight. Well-planned weight maintenance for your dog helps maintain a healthy blood pressure, perfect heart condition and desirable blood sugar, and promotes a longer, healthier life.

How to Keep your German Shepherd Dog Thin, Fit and Healthy

Proper exercise accompanied with balanced diet is the key to success story. Best strategies to fight obesity and keeping dog healthy and thin include a perfect blend of three things:

a) Controlling of portion - Keep control over food. Overfeeding is as dangerous as underfeeding.

b) Balanced diets – A diet can be considered balanced if it contains correct proportion of Proteins, Fats, Carbohydrates, Vitamins (A, C D, E, K & B complex vitamins) and Minerals. However for any obese and/ or old dogs these components may not be the same as for dogs having ideal health and young.

c) Correct type and amount of exercise – German Shepherd Dogs needs adequate exercise to be mentally content and physically fit.

Type and Amount of Exercise for Your German Shepherd

Remember the type and amount of exercise for all breed and age are not same. A multitude of factors have to be considered when it comes to exercising your GSD.

Is your GSD already overweight? If so, you just cannot afford to put him to extensive exercise session all on a sudden. Start off with light heeling, followed by slight trotting and then swimming. The time span for each exercise type may be set based on the health condition. Hydrotherapy is the great option to combat obesity in conjunction with vet's recommended diet chart.

Is your GSD still young? For GSD a mistaken concept that has been prevailing for years is that a young pup must be having plenty of exercise. GSD is a fast growing breed. Over exercise may end up with irreparable skeletal damage. Strains on joints and ligaments for a growing GSD can be desperately detrimental and will show several issues in the adulthood. A young (less than 12-18 months of age) GSD should not be give prolonged trotting or other form of extensive exercises. The general grammar of exercising your young shepherd is not plenty but adequate. For a young GSD puppy the exercise must be very limited and restricted only to heel to medium trot for limited span of time, and not brisk and prolonged exercise. "Natural Free Running At Its Sweet will (off leash) or Chasing a Ball" is a best form exercise you your young German Shepherd puppy. Once the puppy grows older than 12 months the briskness and time span may be increased gradually, followed by swimming.

Is your GSD nearing 18 months or above? Even after 12 months the exercise type and amount have to be moderated based on the health condition. If the joints are not yet completely matured you cannot afford to stress him out. You should still be slow and careful. Usually a young GSD of around 12 to 18 months of age should be matured enough to start off with a prolonged trotting. Balanced food and planned exercise will help a matured GSD to become absolutely able to trot long distances with consistency and stamina – not with speed. Remember, for a breed like German Shepherd Dog ‘stamina’ comes not only with balanced food and proper exercise, but the dog’s built or construction is another significant component that contributes to the prolonged trotting stamina. Correct angulation, size, and proportion are immensely important. Check out the world GSD Standard and FCI GSD Standard

Food (quantity and quality) has the most important roles to play here for a GSD to keep in great shape with adequate exercise.

'Plenty' vs 'Adequate' For Feeding and Exercising Your GSD

This holds equally good for both food and exercises. German Shepherd is a working breed and thrives well with right blend of food and exercise. Over feeding and over exercising is as detrimental as under feeding and under exercising your dog. Many novice owners thinks plenty of food and plenty of exercise can promote a good health. The fact is not this. Adequate food and exercise is what he needs and the moderation is important based on health, age and condition – be it a companion dog, show dog, trailing or agility dog! Plenty is Myth – Adequate is Grammar, be it for feeding or exercising your German Shepherds

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