What I noticed about working lines... - Page 2

Hey There Germanshepherd!

I am by no means an "expert" on the GSD and I am not a breeder.  I prefer to think of myself as a student of the breed and, as such, I am your peer rather than your mentor in looking into the complex subject of the German Shepherd Dog.  Your question pertaining to crossing show and working lines and the various sub-categories under each heading is a very worthwhile question.  In short, yes it is done.  I know that there are some breeders who are active on this forum, both showline and working, who have recently 'crossed the aisle" in recent breeding that they have done.  As it seems everything aspect involved with this breed is controversial, so is the notion of cross-breeding.  If you spend quite a bit of time examining pedigrees and familiarizing yourself with the various types and names you will see out-crossing done with a certain regularity.  As I am sure you have already discovered the world of German Shepherds is FULL of HYPE.  It can be very difficult to get past the hype and partitions to begin to develop a reasonable understanding.  Here is an interesting article concerning some of the delineations of the breed:

 http://www.shawlein.com/The_Standard/13_Breed_Type/Breed_Types.html

If you poke around at her website you can find very much good information about the breed.  Linda Shaw is truly a kind and generous person to have made so much information freely available.

Well, good luck in OUR quest.  I am sure we will BOTH need it!!!

Peace,

Steve
Oklahoma USA

@Germanshepherd

I don't know if you are still involved with this thread, but in the event that you are I came upon a pretty nice article written by forum member Daryl Ehret.  It deals with the concepts of linebreeding and out-crossing and provides a very good introduction into what is involved and some of the potential affects to be considered.  Read it here:

http://www.ddrlegends.com/breedingtype.html

Thank you so much Steve Schuler for those great articles.

It helped bunches!

:)

Here's a website with some good information:  http://allaboutgermanshepherddogs.com/

IMPO, there are no such things as showlines or workinglines, just the same breed of animal with different characteristics that have been overemphasized at the expense of the overall dog and the terms (SL & WL)  are used mostly for marketing purposes.

Look if you will at dogs like VA Cäsar von der Malmannsheide or Frei von der Gugge, those are "bloodline" dogs that you will find in both workingline and showline dogs.
 

@Charlie 319


Thanks for the link to "All about German Shepherds" website!

When my browser first opened the homepage my initial thought was something like, "Great, more typical superfiscial GSD Hype and BS..."  But as I scrolled down and looked through the article titles, I soon realized that you had turned me (us) on to something really good.  The author of the articles has really quite an amazing background and level of knowledge and experience with the breed that is very rare.  His overt appreciation for the most critical consideration in breeding (TEMPERAMENT) and it's dilution in recent times is very much to be commended.  I would definitely put this website, and the articles available therein, on the required reading list for anyone interested in gaining some very valuable knowledge of German Shepherds.

Thanks again for a very valuable resource!!!

SteveO
Oklahoma USA

You're welcome Steve.  I've always said that very few people can be geniuses who know it all, but a smart person is the one that knows how to do research to expand their knowledge.  I have no problem acknowledging my ignorance on any given subject, but if you give me some time, I'll get you an answer with supporting reasoning or facts.
 
I ran into "All about German Shepherds" when I was doing research on my 2 yr old male and what would be the best to maintain his type and improve on his drives (he's fairly low prey and big defense) going forward.  I found out that just like buying into a particular breed ensures certain traits, breeding into a particular bloodline increases the likelihood of certain traits being passed on.  Mind you that you still have to look at the whole pedigree to ensure that you also reduce the likelihood of an unwanted trait appearing in your litter.   You also have to pay attention to the females on your pedigree as they can often contribute a lot to the dog's temperament.

Dennis Fisher has another website caled http://www.freedogadvice.com It is just as interesting and should be required reading for the novice and not so novice (it is amazing how much of what we "learn" we forget). 

Hey Charlie!

Thanks for that link as well!  I definitely will be spending some quality time at that site.  Also a tremendous reference source to have access to.  Yeah, if I remembered everyting I thought I once knew I would definitely know more than I actually do.....  Furthermore, if I understood everything I think I know, my understanding might surpass my knowledge.  But then again, my brother has observed that my wit surpasses my intelligence, which isn't saying much.  Go figure....

Thanks Again

SteveO