Quote:
Originally Posted by DixieGSD
I was wondering what is the difference between the Czech/German shepherds. Somebody told me they are 2 different dogs. I know Czech is used for border patrol, but aren't they still considered German shepherds? I am totally new to this, but this same person told me that only Czech shepherds are dark/black sable and german shepherds can not be. And I know color is not important, but I want a black sable they are just so gorgeous  Just wondering if there was any truth to that. I have been trying to look up some threads on here on the subject, but can't seem to really find anything  . Any info would be greatly appreciated  |
The former Czechoslovakia has always had a large German population or people of German origin. Hence, it is no surprise that German shepherds have been around and been bred in that region even before World War II. However, GSDs are always GSDs if their ancestry can be traced to the German breed books from the start of the 20th century. For example, GSDs have been bred here in the US since before World War I but they are still GSDs no matter how many generations have been born in the US - there is no American shepherd.
When World War II ended, the former Czechoslovakia fell under the aegis of the Soviet bloc. So free commerce, including the breeding of dogs became a lot more restricted. To prevent ordinary citizens from escaping to the West, Czechoslovakia and East Germany (DDR) closed their borders and part of their tools was the GSD. So in fact, the GSD was unfortunately used as a tool for oppression. Of course, dogs have no sense of human morals and can be used by any government good or bad.
This emphasis on a particular job emphasized civil and sharp dogs in general. Understandably they wanted a dog that would bite a human without a second thought and could track through the forests. The closed borders meant that for 40 years (about 8 dog generations), Czechoslovakian bloodlines evolved differently from the rest of the world except for some influential studs brought in from East Germany. Not all the GSDs in Czechoslovakia were from the border patrol kennels. Individual citizens, private breeders, farmers, etc. owned GSDs as well.
The Iron Curtain fell in 1989, and the former Czechoslovakia devolved into two separate countries soon after. The dogs whose ancestry or part of their ancestry can be traced to bloodlines from these countries before 1989 are what we today refer to as "Czech type" German Shepherds. They are considered part of the larger working line population of GSDs (although there are also showline GSDs of Czech origin). Since then a lot of these bloodlines have been combined with West German working lines to produce a sportier dog more suitable for schutzhund and more manageable by the average American dog owner. The majority of GSDs imported to North America today to work as MWDs or police dogs are Czech or Slovakian.
Yes, most Czech GSDs come in sable but all the other GSd colors can also be found in those lines.