[Freestep]

To expound on a recent thread, there was a discussion about GSDs being bred for service. There is a new poster/breeder here who is trying to do just that, I'm guessing by using WGSL (though he/she has been quite secretive about the actual pedigrees/bloodlines used, so I'm not sure). The question has been posed, is there anyone out there who is having success with breeding a line of GSDs strictly for service work?

I know many breeders have had their pups go on to become service dogs, but they weren't breeding specifically FOR that--just for sound, healthy dogs with working temperament.

Furthermore, is anyone accomplishing that goal by crossing showlines with working lines? Our new friend is pretty sure that no one has done it, but I bet that someone, somewhere, has been crossing show x work (or as our friend calls it, "interracial breeding") and getting pups that are suited for service work. I have heard that such crossing is being done in Switzerland, and that they are having some success with doing so over many generations.

Can anyone expound on this? If you are a breeder and have produced a number of service dogs, what bloodlines are you using? Has anyone here ever done a breeding with the specific intent to produce service dogs?

I know there are organizations that are breeding GSDs as guide dogs, with their own breeding program, but I do not know what bloodlines are being used. I do remember reading (this was many years ago) that one organization was using a line of heavily inbred dogs--most of them were black--and they were having pretty good success with that line.

Does anyone else have good information to offer on service dog breeding programs? Both historically, and currently?