Golden Shepherd

Lord Tweedmouth, a Scottish nobleman who raised animals of all kinds, is often credited with developing the Golden Retriever to be the excellent helpmate and companion we now know. Thankfully, he kept detailed records regarding his breeding program. He enjoyed waterfowl hunting, and, according to his notes, he wanted to develop a superior retrieving dog. His goal was to obtain a dog with a keen nose in addition to the propensity for staying attuned to his human hunting companion. Loyalty and a great personality were two other traits that Tweedmouth was aiming for. To achieve this, Tweedmouth bred his dog Nous to a Tweed Water Spaniel, a dog known for being extremely calm and loyal in addition to being an excellent retriever. The result was the direct ancestor of the Golden Retriever of today. The German Shepherd finds its origins in Germany near the end of the nineteenth century. A Captain Max Stephanitz decided to create his own breed by interbreeding a variety of German dogs. Stephanitz had studied British breeding techniques, and chose the dogs he wanted to interbreed by visiting dog shows across Germany. In 1899, Stephanitz found what he thought was the perfect dog to begin his breeding program. The dog is described as “wolfish” looking. Stephanitz interbred this dog with sheep herding dogs. When sheep herding began to become less common, Stephanitz introduced his breed to police work and to the military for service. The German government listened, and used the breed during World War II. Because of this, some United States soldiers were able to obtain German Shepherd puppies, and the German Shepherd was brought to America, where he remains a popular service dog and family pet.