Why are solid black German Shepherds, and / or sable ones not seen in the show ring?

Dear Frank,

Occasionally they are. The biggest problem with black dogs is that there are so few of them. Compare them to Black & Tans, of which only one out of every 80 or so bred are ever shown, and even less are good enough to breed. In contrast there are more sables and we see them in the ring more often. Unfortunately, most are only bred by specialist Sport Dog Breeders who do not seem to care about quality, which means that most end up near the back. And nobody is going to keep showing a looser.

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I’m a breeder with the Federation and I am constantly called by people that there vets will bad mouth Breeders. They at occasions scan the dogs hips and tell the owners that their dogs have bad hips, or when some males have one tactical, they will convince them to remove the one because it will cause cancer. How can the Federation help or protect the Breeders from vets that will just bad mouth Breeders?

Dear Bertram,

Not all vets fall in this category and one should be careful to generalise. Many Federation members have excellent relationships with their vets and some of South Africa’s best veterinarians are actively supportive of the Federations and its Breeders. The bottom line is that it is essential for every breeder to have a good relationship with a competent vet.

Unfortunately, there are Breeders, in the Federation as well as in the KUSA, which fully deserved to be “bad-mouthed”. The problem, however, is when some vets generalise; and this is an old problem. These vets just don’t seem to realise that it is Breeders that produce most of their clients. No competent businessman (and vet is after all running a business), will ever dream of bad-mouthing the source of a large chunk of his clients!
The best way to deal with this problem is to ask your puppy buyer to get what the vet said in writing. Ask the puppy owner to tell the vet he wants to take action against you through the Federation. It is amazing to see how quickly and decisively these bad-mouthing vets will back-track! Do this once or twice and you will not hear from that vet anymore.

The testicle issue is a little more delicate. Vet’s are taught in veterinary school to remove retained testicles and to change this is not easy. The fact is that the chances of a German Shepherd Dog dying under anaesthesia while the testicle is being removed is much greater than the chance that that dog will develop cancer if the testicle is not removed. We are, however, trying to do something about this, only it will take time. For the meantime, do your best to educate buyers when they buy the puppy that surgical removal of the retained testicle is not necessary.  

Here is a suggestion: Perhaps it is time to run a public list of “Approved Vets”. If all Breeders worked together and identified vets that do it “right”, perhaps other vets will follow suit. We are after all the clients and have the right to choose who we support. If enough Federation members could send us details of vets, both the good ones and the bad ones, perhaps we could run a list on the website of which vets to support.

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I do not know if this particular question was raised but I would like to know why our  national champions are not participating in the German Sieger show.  I can only talk of myself in that I am always wondering how our dogs would compare to the dogs in the ‘motherland ‘ after all they are the yardstick. Breeders , I am sure, put a lot of time , effort and money into there dogs. Exposing them to international competitions can only make our product a better one, don’t  you think. There is the thought of expense , our breeders spends millions of rands with the various dog food companies so why can they not give back in the form of sponsorship. Why don’t the federation put incentives in place when we have local and national shows ? We have some brilliant dogs as the last show in Cape Town showed , I was there and what a show it was. I take my hat off to Elna Marrin and her colleagues at  the Good Hope GSD club. What about rewarding the best local put together show ? Your thoughts please.

Dear Ebrahim,,

Some of our national champions or Siegers have competed:

Natz vom Huitze Hindonk before coming to SA V6;
Fimo vom Erimittenklause V12 before coming to SA and V27 when he went back a year later;
Xavier von der Kahler Heide V17 when he went back,
Ferro von Messebau V68 when he went back and
Thomsebo Nimbus was withdrawn after being called out in the last ring at +- V180.

These places are behind the VA's. There has never been a German VA male in South Africa.

The costs are prohibitive at +- R50,000 airfare per dog not counting the expenses of the owner(s). Also the logistics are huge: transport, kennelling, accommodation etc. It takes 6 people to effectively handle a dog in the Sieger Show: The handler, 1 person to water the dog and 4 people to call as the stadium is large and it is not possible to run around the ring.

It is already a problem getting sponsorship for the Federation, let alone for individual dogs to go to Germany. Dog food companies are in it for the profit and they have very little to gain by sponsoring a dog to go and compete in Germany.

As for rewarding the "best local put together show": I don’t think it is feasible as it would be too difficult to evaluate. It would certainly take a better man than me to evaluate it!

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Why do some people cut the longer hair at the tip of a pup's tail?

Dear Frank,

At certain stages the puppy’s tail may grow too long and touch the ground. This tickles and causes the puppy to curl its tail; which may result in a permanently curled or skew tail. Trimming the hair can prevent this.

The FCI has finally agreed and the breeding and showing with Long-coats will be officially implemented from
1 January 2011. Details

“Show Lines” vs. “Working Lines”

Ettienne Bester

I am looking for a working line German Shepherd puppy but I only see Showline Dogs advertised and breeders when I go to check their websites.  Are there working line German Shepherd Breeders registered with the Federation? I do know of one in my area Port Elizabeth but he does not have any pups at the moment.  I am however prepared to go outside my area to find a pup I like.  The problem is where do I find them? Are they registered with the Federation or is there some other place I have to look for them.

I have only seen 2 Adverts on the Pedigree Data Base websites for puppies or dogs for sale.  One of them was the breeder in Port Elizabeth.  I have tried looking up pedigrees of dogs who was for sale by their names I was interested in and they do could not be found.  Would it not be wise for Breeders to be encouraged to place their dogs pedigrees on the Data Base for potential buyers like me to be able to make a more informed decision after being able to view the pedigrees of the animals. (Edited)

Dear Ettienne,

All German Shepherd Dogs are working dogs and there are no such things as “working line” and “show line” German Shepherd Dogs. There are, however, some breeders who breed dogs especially for SchH sport and then promote these as “working” dogs while it would be more accurate to refer to them as “Sport” dogs. In my opinion dogs bred for sport and then passed off as special working dogs is simply fraudulent. I personally have extensive experience in using German Shepherd Dogs for working and found dogs specially bred for sport singularly unsuitable as real working dogs.

The truth is that the dogs best suited for real work as opposed to sport stem from ancestors that also did well in the show-ring. However, bear in mind that the show-ring is only one of the selection tools that need to be considered.

Pedigrees are only a record of ancestors and (sometimes) their qualifications; and only provide a very rough guide of what can be expected from a puppy. Add to this that only very few registering authorities (the Federation is one) issue pedigrees that are certified correct. For example, the Kennel Union of Southern Africa (KUSA) does not and the supplementary pedigrees issued by breeders are notoriously unreliable and often downright fraudulent.

Furthermore, unless you personally know each dog in a pedigree and what the strong points and weak points are that each dog produces, the pedigree will not be of much use to you. You would be better off visiting different breeders and evaluating the parents and each available puppy for yourself. Each dog has its own personality and temperament and some make better working dogs than others.

Each puppy should be individually selected with its eventual purpose in mind.

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It has intrigued me for a number of years why the modern German Shepherd Dog has such a sloping back and weak hindquarters. Knowing the very high incidence of HD in German Shepherd Dog’s I cant help wondering if this problem (sloping backs and weak hindquarters) has come about as a result of HD or is it the other way around. I have a friend who bought a highly priced, highly pedigreed HD free puppy but it all ended in huge disappointment. The poor dog had 2 operations but was crippled for the rest of his life. In contrast I bought a German Shepherd Dog x Timber wolf (12%) for R600 from a non registered breeder. He big and strong, fearless, with a very straight level back, powerful hindquarters and wonderful temperament. He is going on 9 years and still in good health, why should I not go back to the same breeder?

I know for a fact that the modern sloping backe’d whippety German Shepherd Dog is totally unsuitable for police work. ( I have researched this with the relevant authorities) and many have turned to the Belgian Shepard (Malenois) (sic). Why? Is the sloping back just for show purposes (looks) or what? Please tell.

Dear Rob,

Your mail consists of the type of misinformed perceptions that I can only shake my head at.

The German Shepherd Dog does not have weak hindquarters, and back problems are almost unheard of. The insinuation that the German Shepherd Dog is particularly susceptible to Hip Dysplasia (HD) is also complete nonsense. For independent proof of this you are referred to the website of the American Orthopedic Foundation for Animals http://www.offa.org/hipstatbreed.html  which monitors 157 breeds of dogs for HD. The German Shepherd Dog ranks at position No 40, much better than the hybrids, which include your wolf crosses, and which comes in at No 31. (Dogs of different breeds are crosses, not hybrids).

It is significant that all the 39 breeds of dogs that are worse off than the German Shepherd Dog does not have what you call “sloping” sloping backs and do not have the hind angulations of the German Shepherd Dog that you are criticizing.

Of further significance is that how a dog (almost any breed) is reared and what it is fed during its growth phase has the greatest effect on weather a dog will have HD or not. Just because you have “a” friend which has a German Shepherd Dog with an HD problem does not mean the whole breed has a problem. It is most probable that your “friend” created the problem himself with incorrect feeding and rearing.

That the modern German Shepherd Dog is unsuitable for Police work is also rubbish, and how you can know this “for a fact” I don’t know. Perhaps you can inform me who the relevant authorities are with which you have researched it? And who the persons were that gave you this information together with their qualifications? My own qualifications you can find at http://www.grehenheim.co.za/aboutus.html. Speaking to a few ill informed individuals that have no knowledge of a quality German Shepherd Dog is certainly no basis upon which to do research!

I get the feeling that you do not really want to know the truth about the German Shepherd Dog breed, but that you only want to promote your own ideas and the wolf cross, at the expense of the German Shepherd Dog. Breeding wolf hybrids is a failed breeding strategy that has been discredited the world over and I am not going to debate the issue here.

Unless you have a genuine desire to learn about quality German Shepherds and have an open mind thereto, my advice to you is to find another breed which may appeal more to your ideas.

The German Shepherd Dog is undisputedly the world’s most successful dog breed, and this is not by accident. After all, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

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To: All Federation Members

Many of you had perhaps wondered what has been happening between the Kennel Union of Southern Africa (KUSA) and the Federation.

The following correspondence exposes the KUSA president’s hidden agenda and the untruths he
keeps disseminating:

1. A letter from the World Union of German Shepherd Dog Associations (WUSV) to the KUSA,

2. Their reply thereto and

3. A letter sent to the President of KUSA detailing our response and which explains it all.

The correspondence proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is the KUSA that is responsible for the continued impasse between the Federation and the KUSA.

The reason we are making this correspondence public, is because of Mr Eva’s continued persistence to falsely portray the current state of affairs between the two organizations.

Kind regards, Frikkie van Kraayenburg

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I sent a letter to the Federation on 07th June (attached) informing you about a problem I have with one of your members. I just want to know if there is anything you can do as a Federation regarding that type of your members?  Is there any help or support I can get from Federation?

Maybe I am not only one, maybe there is some more people with same problem. What to do in that case and to avoid to go to the court?

Dear Branko,

The Federation is a dog registration authority and we control how German Shepherd Dogs are bred, trained and shown.  If a member breaks any of our rules in this regard there is a disciplinary procedure to follow which is described in Schedule I of our constitution.

Unfortunately we are not able to enforce private commercial agreements between members, or between members and their clients. While we have sympathy with you problem, it is therefore not within our jurisdiction to deal with your complaint.

Because of the relatively small amount involved, we suggest you deal with the matter through the Small Claims Court. The procedure is fast and can be conducted at virtually no cost to yourself. Enquire through your local Magistrate’s Court for more details.

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Why are white shepherds disqualified?

Dear Regina,

The Breed Standard of the German Shepherd Dog has excluded white dogs since 1933. Not a single white German Shepherd puppy has been born from registered parents In South Africa or Germany for at least 30 years. It is thus clear that any genetics resulting in white coat colour has disappeared from the breed.

The white GSD-like dogs found in South Africa today are not German Shepherds. In Switzerland, Canada and the USA, various groups have been establishing a white coated breed similar to the German Shepherd known as the White Swiss Shepherd Dog. This is a new breed and is not yet universally recognized: While accepted by the Kennel Union of South Africa (KUSA), the FCI list’s the breed as “Provisionally Accepted” in the Sheep Dog Group. Click here for more information about the Breed.

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Can a pup be registered if it was a mother to son breeding?

Dear Mark,

A Mother to son mating is a (1:2) inbreeding. This inbreeding is allowed in the GSD Federation only in very special circumstances and permission to breed such a litter must be obtained before such a mating may take place. A committee of three then investigates the possibility that problems may arise from such a litter on a Scientific basis and only grants approval in circumstances where there are unlikely to be problems.

Such litters born from matings were prior approval was not granted have not been registered.

The full rules and regulations are contained in the Federation's Breed Ordinance Section 3.5, which is available on the Federation's Web Site.

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I would like to know why there is a difference in various lists. If I go to the GSD FEd website and then look for breeders there are some breeders not found. However if I go directly to gsdfederation.co.za/menus/breeders-body then they are there.

Dear Karin,

The Federation website has one section where every breeder can be listed for a small fee and another where a link to his website can be posted on condition that he reciprocates by placing the Federation's website link on his own website. It is the responsibility of the individual breeder to see that he is listed and that his details are up to date. So, if a breeder does not place his listing on the site and maintain it, he won't be listed there.

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I am in the process of acquiring a German Shepherd puppy from a Cape Town Kennel that has parents with a long pedigree - to replace my 12 year old German Shepherd companion (without a pedigree). I have no idea as to what all the acronyms stands for: eg. VA(SA), SchH1, Körkl 1. I prefer to be informed, but find myself out of my depth here…Can you refer me to some literature - or is there a simple answer?

Dear Gideon,

Breeding in the German Shepherd Dog Federation of South Africa is based on compulsory minimum standards. The acronyms you are asking about are examples of qualifications and titles awarded to dogs. There are normally listed as part of a dog's name. The qualifications all available on our website:

• Go to our website by clicking the Federation logo in the top right of this page;
• Click op the main logo to go into the site;
• Click on "Administration" in the menu on the left hand side of the page,
• Click again on "Constitution" in the new menu that appears

Now you should see the link to the Constitution as well as to the various manuals and ordinances of the Federation:

• The Breed Survey Manual has all the information you need on "Körkl 1";
• The Show Ordinance (Section 6.5) has everything about Show Gradings;
• The Training Ordinance details the various Working Titles and
• The Breed Ordinance details all our rules on breeding.

For a full explanation of the SchH (Schutzhund or Protection Dog test) rules in English, click here

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As a South African now residing in New Zealand and an avid dog lover (specially GSD's), I note that the ongoing feud between your organization and the Kennel Union of South Africa does not appeared to have diminished over the years. Why is this and what was the original dispute all about? Surely one unified national body would be in the interest of all concerned. I realize that the Federation is concerned with GSD's only, whilst KUSA embraces all breeds, but surely this can be resolved!!

Dear Kevin,

The matter was solved some years ago, or so we thought ….!

In essence there was an agreement of recognition between the KUSA and ourselves and each could enter each other's events. A key element of the agreement was inter alia that the parties recognized each other's disciplinary actions. Recently the Federation banned some of its members for offences that included inter alia fraud and theft. Unfortunately, instead of upholding the sentences imposed by the Federation, the KUSA management saw what they thought was an opportunity to cripple the Federation: Apparently the KUSA was convinced by the banned persons that, if the KUSA accepted them as members, most of the Federation's members would leave the Federation and follow them (the banned persons), into the KUSA, causing the Federation to collapse; which of course did not happen.

In order to accommodate the banned persons, the KUSA unlawfully cancelled the agreement. They have since "withdrawn" their "cancellation", but have unfortunately steadfastly refused to recognize the bannings and to remedy the other unlawful actions they took in order to accommodate the banned persons, citing totally absurd legal reasoning to justify their actions and their continued support for, and acceptance of, these banned persons. Besides being unethical, this has caused numerous practical problems and hence the current dispute. Full details are available on the Federation's website.

The original reasons for the founding of the Federation were complex, but in essence were based on two main principles: the German Shepherd people wanted to implement the German SV (i.e. that of the mother country) way of doing things and wanted German Shepherd people to control German Shepherd Dog affairs. Both these concepts are totally incompatible with the All Breed / Kennel Club way of doing things and there was no alternative but to form a specialist organization, the Federation, which is today the only organization for German Shepherds in South Africa recognized by the SV and the World Union of German Shepherd Associations (WUSV).

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I was recently researching some rules regarding breed shows as my email below indicates. You once told me I had a working dog that was capable of getting a V grading. Since then I have entered him in a few shows only to get told that he can get the grading but he needs a working qualification first. Can you please tell me why this is the case if a breed show is judging dogs on construction and not their titles?

I find it a bit discriminatory to expect "working" dogs to have qualifications for breed shows when "breed" dogs do not. Do we all not own GSD's? As colour is not a fault so why the difference?

Dear Christine,

The so-called "working dogs" you are referring to are specialist bred dogs intended for Schutzhund sport. They are thus "(Schutzhund) sport-dogs", not "working dogs". Accordingly, I would never have said you had a "working dog".

Unfortunately, most sport-dogs are anatomically very poorly constructed, which is why they almost always end up at the back of the class with low gradings. Other factors that contribute to their bad performance in the show-ring are bad training, inadequate preparation and indifferent handling. No sport-dog is ever given a lower grading just because it is a sport-dog or because of its colour.

There are significant indications that the poor anatomical construction of these dogs result in physical weaknesses; hence the high injury rate in the sport. Furthermore, their temperaments are often unstable and thus many of these dogs are unsuitable as pets for the average household; where most of the puppies end up.

To try and improve this unhealthy situation, the SV Breed Supervisor, Herr Reinhardt Meyer, has started promoting the better specimens amongst the sport-dogs by placing them higher in the ring, and awarding them better gradings and Breed Survey ratings than they truly deserve. In this year's Sieger Show the National German SchH Trial winner was placed high in the first ring, about 100 places better than his anatomy deserves, thus recognising the positive influence the superior abilities that he does have could have in breeding. This policy, while controversial amongst the uninformed, is proving to be successful and there has been a significant improvement in the anatomical quality of sport-dogs over the last three years.

This giving of preferential treatment to dogs with special talents and attributes is nothing new and is an integral part of the German system. As far as back as 15 years ago a German Judge gave our National SchH Trial winner Körkl 1 purely because of his SchH sport performance. Based purely on his anatomy, he should have been graded Körkl 2. I and other judges have been doing the same ever since.

In South Africa the situation is even worse. Federation figures show that of the more than 2,000 specialist sports-bred puppies that have been registered over the last 10 years, less than 50 (2.5%) have qualified SchH1. Many of these dogs are simply too badly constructed to even pass a SchH, and yet their breeders continue to pass them off as superior "working dogs".

In line with what is happening in Germany, our judges have also been awarding higher gradings and Breed Survey ratings to the better-quality sport-dogs than they actually deserve. However, in Germany, dogs (including sport-dogs) must obtain a SchH qualification before they may receive a V grading, which is not necessary in South Africa.

Accordingly, before your dog will qualify for this preferential treatment, it must show that it can do what it was supposedly bred for: at the very least pass a SchH. Talk is cheap, money buys the whisky.

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I have been training for obedience for 14 years and 6 years ago started to show Pembroke Corgis in the conformation breed ring. I have always heard stories and rumours about KUSA and the federation not seeing eye-to-eye, but it never really mattered to me.

I am now established in the breed ring and want to work more closely in obedience. My fiancé has his heart set on getting a GSD to train and to be 'his' dog. I stared doing research to look for a suitable breeder as I want to show the dog in the breed ring as well, but I don't like the dogs that are there at the moment, they are to my opinion not of the quality/type of most of the dogs I see around the obedience ring.

Now it seems like I have to choose breed or obedience, as no members of the GSD federation are allowed to be members of KUSA or to register litters. Have I got it all wrong, what can I do if I want a top quality obedience puppy from imported champion stock to show?

Dear Maryka,

The Federation is the only International and German SV recognised specialist organisation for GSD's in South Africa. KUSA is an All Breed organisation and, typically of All Breed organisations, do not care to develop and breed German Shepherd Dogs as prescribed by the mother country (the German SV) and the World Union of German Shepherd Associations (WUSV).

Unfortunately the KUSA has also not dealt ethically with the Federation and has failed to uphold agreements related to inter alia banned persons when it suited them. Accordingly, certain sanctions were introduced against KUSA and the full details thereof are available on the Federation's website.

Many Federation members also own other breeds of dogs, and show and register these breeds with the KUSA and are therefore also members of the KUSA. There is no problem with this. What is cast in stone, and which is non-negotiable, is for Federation members to breed and register their GSD's with the KUSA or to allow their stud dogs to be used on KUSA bitches.

Although frowned upon and actively discouraged, it is allowed for ordinary Federation members to show their GSD's in the KUSA. Federation officials, however, are forbidden to participate in any GSD breed related activity within the KUSA.

Obedience, as done in the various Kennel Clubs, is unfortunately not a test recommended for German Shepherd Dogs by the mother organisation, the German SV; which is why the Federation does not offer the test.

The quality/type of GSD's shown in Federation breed shows is as prescribed by the SV and the WUSV and considered to be very high by international standards. It would certainly be disastrous if quality/type were left to relatively uninformed individual taste.

If you want a top quality German Shepherd puppy you would have to transfer your loyalties to the Federation, at least with regard to German Shepherd Dogs. No self respecting breeder of GSD's will sell a top puppy if that puppy was to be "lost" to KUSA.

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To Maryka,

The obedience tests offered by the KUSA are not unsuitable for German Shepherds. It is merely a different type of test which any good German Shepherd can quite easily obtain. The breed is a working breed after all. Although you would be requested to register as a member of the GSD Federation and register any litters with them as part of their organisation should you breed, nothing should prevent you from registering your federation dog with the KUSA for purposes of participating in obedience.

As for showing your German Shepherd, Federation shows are much more interesting than KUSA although a lot of effort is required. If you willing to put in the hard work, it's worth it.

President's Comment:

I beg to differ. Just because a GSD is capable of pulling a sledge does not mean that sledge dog trials are suitable for German Shepherds. The Obedience Tests offered by the KUSA were never designed for German Shepherds and do not suit their temperaments and (correct) body structure; hence these tests are not offered or recognised by the SV or the Federation.

Christine is also wrong about registering your dog with the KUSA for obedience as the KUSA does not require anyone to register with them for trials or obedience tests, or even to become a member. In the KUSA you are only required to become a member and to register your dog if you want to breed under their umbrella; i.e. to register your puppies with them.

Therefore, Federation members may participate in KUSA trials and obedience within the parameters previously referred to and set out on the Federation's website.

It is not allowed for Federation members to register their German Shepherds with the KUSA.

I would like to know in the show ring after the dogs has done individuals and gun shots the judge calls out the dogs he has picked, I know the VA's get to be called out first. Is it then normal to start with survey dogs to be called out before dogs with out survey 2nd question , everybody that shows there dogs and work hard and spend time and money to sacrifice to have their dogs qualify for survey or BH or AD if that does not help the dogs in the ring should we just leave our dogs and just breed from them. I thought that the dog without survey should then work harder in the ring to catch up and pass the survey dogs if they are quality dogs that deserve to be placed in to positions.

Dear Bertram,

Shows are firstly about anatomical conformation. Secondly we like to ensure that the winning dogs have an acceptable temperament.

There is no rule that the VA(SA)'s have to be brought out first, they usually are simply because they are the best dogs.

The Breed Survey is only taken into account when judging the top group of dogs, which is normally the first three of four. In small shows the top group may even be smaller, perhaps only the first dog. The rule of thumb is that a judge will not bring a dog up more than three places because of it having a breed survey. Therefore, if there are no Breed Surveyed dogs in the best three or four dogs as judges on anatomical merit, it could well be that the Breed Survey will not be taken into account at all. A dog will never beat an obviously vastly anatomically superior dog simply because of it having a survey.

The bottom line is that dogs that cannot pass a Breed Survey are usually dogs that cannot pass the man-work, and such dogs will never place high in the open classes at the National Shows.

For more details, read the "Judges Directives" on the Federation's website.

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My 20 month old sable male has only one testicle and the vet has suggested that he be operated on to remove the receded testicle and the healthy one as soon as possible to avoid testicular cancer and said that he will be more prone to stomach torsion with this Cryptorchidism situation.

Some people have said that I should just leave it and others have said that I should have the receded one removed and some say that if he is neutered he might lose his drive.

I am aware that I cannot get a breed survey or a grading on him but that is not important to me. I do Schutzhund training with him and that is all.

Dear Bev,

In the 25 years the Federation has been in existence, not one single case of testicular cancer has been reported as a result of a retained testicle. Dr Kurt de Kramer, a specialist in this field, estimates the probability of a German Shepherd Dog with a retained testicle developing a tumour (cancer) to be about 100th of a percent more than a normal dog, which is negligible. Your dog has a much higher probability of dying under the anaesthetic or developing serious complications while removing the retained testicle than developing testicular cancer by leaving matters as is.

The contention that the dog will be more prone to stomach torsion is a new one and is simply absurd: there is no connection between the digestive and reproductive systems other than perhaps fertility as a result of diet.

Why on earth would your vet want to remove the healthy testicle? Removing the healthy testicle in a young dog may seriously affect the dog's temperament, and render him quite useless for Schutzhund. If you want to sterilize the dog without negative consequences, vasectomise the dog, don't castrate him.

In conclusion, dogs with one descended testicle are as fertile, and for all practical purposes also as healthy, as normal dogs. However, as you correctly imply, they may not be bred from.

For more information on missing testicles, please refer to our book "Breeding German Shepherd Dogs", page 86.

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Please could you advise if the Federation has any objection to dual club membership?

Dear Bev,

Federation members may belong to more than one club provided the clubs involved allow it. Federation members who belong to more than on club must, however, nominate which club is their "First Club" and may only serve on the committee of their nominated First Club.

For more details, refer also to par 6.1.6 and par 9.6.1(b) of the main constitution as well as Section 10 of Schedule II and par 10.2 of Schedule III of the constitution.

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I have read a lot about the G S D and would just like to know: If I buy the puppies (male & female) as registered and as they grow up their might be a Hip or Elbow disorder ( It seems to me that is very common to happen ) and if I can't breed or showing with them, what should happen then and if I can't use them for what I bought them for, can I claim from the Breeder of the puppies. What is the procedures to follow then?

Dear Elma,

Canine Hip Dysplasia (CHD) and Elbow Dysplasia (ED) are problems that affects almost all breeds of dogs. The German Shepherd is by no means the worst affected and the American Orthopedic Foundation for Animals lists 39 breeds of dogs that are worse affected by CHD than German Shepherds. ED is even more rare in German Shepherds. Compounded hereto is the fact that there are many environmental factors that cause these problems: for example feeding and the amount and type of exercise a puppy is allowed.

More often than not it is the owner of the puppy that causes the condition to develop.

Some breeders will replace a dog that fails the Federation's Hip Dysplasia scheme under certain circumstances, but are by no means obliged to do so. It will all depend on the agreement you made with the breeder when you bought the puppies.

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As a new member, it is difficult to establish what exactly is expected of a dog (or more specifically, a puppy) at a "Breed Show". Resources on the internet are limited, in terms of the exact "procedure" at a show, and how pups specifically are judged.

Trials are no problem - the dog is expected to complete a pre-defined routine, as he was trained to do. Does the same apply to Breed Shows? Could we have a basic idea of what happens at a Breed Show, and what is expected of puppies in the 6 - 9 month class, for example? Do they need to be stacked? Do they need to gait? If there is a guide like this online somewhere, please point me in the right direction!

Dear Eleni,

A whole book can be written in answer to this question and then you still will not be able to show dogs successfully. It is very much like asking someone how to play Rugby! Your best bet is to join a Federation club that specialises in breed show activities which would be able to assist to.

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I am a breeder and have lately had a few orders for puppies that I'm not really sure how to deal with or where the GSDFSA stands regarding this matter:

If we want to sell a puppy to someone outside SA's borders (specifically Tanzania, Namibia and Lesotho in this case), where does that leave the new owner in regards to having a SA Federation registered GSD?

Dear Monique,

In the whole of Africa, only Zimbabwe, Namibia and Kenya has a formal dog breeding and showing structure. Namibia registers all their dogs via the Kennel Union of South Africa while Zimbabwe and Kenya are independent. Zimbabwe recently cancelled their membership of the World Union of German Shepherd Associations (WUSV) while Kenya was granted provisional membership two years ago. They will probably get permanent WUSV membership in September this year.

Is the GSDFSA recognized in those countries?

The GSDF is recognised by all bodies recognised by the German SV and the FCI.

Can people outside SA become SA Federation members? Breed GSDFSA registered puppies themselves (if they comply with the minimum breeding standards of course)?

Yes. See the GSDF Constitution Par 6.7: International Members and Schedule V: Foreign and Non-Member Competitors.

Will I need to supply them with any additional documentation to accompany the puppy (such as a vet travel book, passport, etc?) Are the new owners likely to encounter any difficulty bringing their dogs back into SA occasionally in order to show them under a judge here?

Nothing the GSDF requires. However, all import/export and international pet transport regulations will have to be complied for. Contact your nearest state vet for details.

I would also like to hear from other breeders / persons who have had experience in a situation like this. Have you experienced sending puppies to outside the country to be more trouble that it's worth or have you had a more or less acceptable amount of hassle?

Most African counties have no Animal Rights culture or Animal Welfare societies. One needs to research the destination of the dogs very carefully. Have other breeders any thoughts on the matter?

What form of travel would you recommend (by air or by vehicle?).

Vehicle if the owner of someone trustworthy is transporting the dog, otherwise by air. Never by rail!

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I'm a vet in Paarl and was recently presented with a GSD pup of about 8 months with a slight kink in the tail about 2 thirds down. The owner (who got the pup from a local breeder told me that they could have bumped the dog with their car some time before, but wasn't worried because he had just kept on playing afterwards.

The owner wants to show the pup later, and brought him to my clinic for examination and X-rays. I couldn't find anything wrong and put it down to an injury, with some damage to the ligaments between the tail vertebrae.

Because the owner is concerned that the pup may be discriminated against at future shows, he asked me to find out if GSDs can be born with a genetic tail-kink.

Dear dr Du Plessis,

Kinks in the lower third of the tails of German Shepherd Dogs are common. There is definitely a genetic link, but environment also plays a role.

On of the most common environmental causes is believed to be a too long tail during the growing phase of a puppy: when the tails touches the ground, it tickles and the puppy curves the tail and pulls it sideways to avoid the tail-tip touching the ground. Eventually the kink becomes permanent. Keeping the hair on the tail tip as short as possible during the growing phase of the pup can go a long way to preventing a kinked tail resulting from this problem.

Kinks due to injury are usually confined to one joint in the tail vertebra only and the bend is localised in this area.

Some owners try to straiten a curved or kinked tail by bending it manually in the opposite direction. Sometimes this works and sometimes not, but always leaves some injury in the tail vertebrae as a result. Dead lifeless tails hanging straight down are often indicative of such treatment.

In the show-ring, tails with kinks are not heavily faulted: perhaps with two dogs of similar quality the one with the kink will be placed behind the one with a correct tail. However, a very long tail with a pronounced curve leaning sideways affects the balance of the dog and subsequently its movement. A dog with such a tail can be faulted two to four places depending on the quality of the competition and the number of dogs in the ring.

In the final analysis though, dogs are not often discriminated against and/or faulted due to a single fault unless the fault is a disqualifying fault. It is always the overall quality of the dog that matters the most. No dog will be awarded a lesser grading as a result of a kinked tail.

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I have a long haired German Shepherd and have also been a member of the federation for a number of years. At this stage I am considering whether or not I still need to be a member as there are hardly any events which cater for my long haired dog. I never seem to find anything on the website and the office does not seem to have any information on shows in the Gauteng area. Is the long haired Shepherd not really a federation event?

Dear Caroline,

The Deutsche Schäferhunde Verein (SV), which as the mother country for German Shepherds has the responsibility to maintain the Breed Standard for German Shepherd Dogs, has forwarded a revised Breed Standard to the FCI which will probably become effective from July 2010.

According to the revision, German Shepherds with long coats with undercoats may be graded, breed surveyed, bred and shown, provided they are shown in separate classes from normal coats. They may, however, not be mated to normal coated dogs. In short, a long coat with undercoat will therefore no longer be a disqualifying fault.

Long-haired or long-coated German Shepherds have up to now been disqualified from breeding and may not have been be awarded a breed grading or a Breed Survey qualification. According to current Federating rules, special classes for long-coats may be included in shows where a local judge officiates, and are for competition only.

Because they may not get a breed grading, the showing of long-coats is somewhat controversial and because of this, some clubs avoid presenting long-coat classes at their shows while other clubs do so with enthusiasm.

There is no restriction on long-coats training at Federation clubs and entering, competing and being awarded training qualifications such as BH, SchH or FH.

There is no restriction on long-coats training at Federation clubs and entering, competing and being awarded training qualifications such as BH, SchH or FH.

A long coat without undercoat (a very rare occurrence) will however, still be a disqualifying fault.

It is due to a technicality that the FCI has not as yet concluded the implementation of the new Breed Standard, and thus delayed the implementation hereof. I will give further information as soon as available.

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I love dogs and want to get more involved and turn my love and passion into an hobby, how do I go about getting involved in GSD breeding in a small scale?

Get involved through a Federation club. The contact details of all Federation clubs are listed, or have links to their websites, on the Federation's website. Click the link in the top right-hand corner of this page to go there.

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I am in the process of purchasing a GSD from (name withheld), I would like to confirm if their dogs' bloodline line is in order.

It is not incumbent of me as President to make pronouncements on specific breeders or their dogs in this column. However, consider the following:

"Bloodlines" is a layman's concept that has no genetic basis. For example, two full brothers may be very different in quality and thus be very different genetically, but has the same "bloodline". It is more correct to consider "mother-lines" and "father-lines"; i.e. using specific dogs as a reference and considering what every individual has achieved in its own right and what it produces.

The German Shepherd Dog Federation has compulsory minimum standards for breeding and every breeder has to adhere thereto. If certain dogs give problems, the system identifies them and the dogs are either stopped from breeding or the breeder is advised on how to prevent problems.

Further to this, it is all about information: investigate what the parents have achieved in their own right and make your decision accordingly.

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Please let me know if I as a Federation member may attend the seminar that Bernhard Flinks is presenting (hosted by "Rotek". This is due to be held in May.

Dear Christina,

It is not illegal for a Federation member to attend this seminar. However, as you and almost everyone else knows by now, the Federation has asked its members not to support any activity held by the KUSA affiliated "Rotek" Club.

This club was unlawfully accepted by the KUSA contrary to its agreement with the Federation. It is run by Mr John Swartz, a person barred from the Federation, full details of which are set out on the Federation's web site under "Administration / Disciplinary Cases".

The real questions, which you have to answer to yourself; are questions of loyalty and morality. Federation members that know the back-ground to this "club" and still participate there, will definitely raise questions about their loyalty to the Federation and its ideals.

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I have over the past 2 years tried to solve the mystery of the Bay Training Group not being listed on the GSDFSA website, unsuccessfully! It seems that our little training group is excluded from any listing. My questions are-

• Do I need to pay to have it displayed under the clubs section?
• If so, why am I bothering to pay an affiliation out of my own pocket?
  

I really do need to know an answer to the above, so that I can cut expenses. (We are not a wealthy high level-flourishing group).

Dear Koos,

No, you do not have to pay. However, you have not once contacted the National Administrator about this matter, which is the route to follow if you have a problem that the office staff is not handling to your satisfaction. Send the National Administrator an e-mail requesting her to look into the matter and I am sure your problem will be solved. A word of advice though, if you adopt the same snotty attitude as displayed in your query to me, you are unlikely to receive much sympathy.

I also do not know why you are "bothering" to pay your affiliation fees out of your own pocket: certainly not to be listed on the web site, as this is not the primary intention of a training group. Furthermore, such fees should be paid by the group. If after two years you are still only a "little" group, and "not a wealthy high level-flourishing group" at that, perhaps you should consider disbanding the group as you are certainly not fulfilling the basic intentions of a Training Group, i.e. to grow into a fully fledged club.

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I only asked you a question after exhausting all avenues. Several phone calls were made. Some to Sonia, some to the webmaster, and I have people that can verify the matter. Certainly no "snottyness" was intended. I am shocked that you think this was my intent, and I apologize if it came across like that. We are a small and happy group of dog sport people wishing no harm to anyone, the last intention was to cause any insult to you and the staff of the head office. I will now give up and rest with your decision that we need to dissolve.

Dear Koos,

No, you had not exhausted all the avenues before you choose to take the matter public. Most importantly, you had not e-mailed or written to the National Administrator, which is the correct procedure if you have a problem the office staff are not attending to.

The National Administrator also cannot recall a phone call from you in this regard. If you had phoned her, she would have requested you to e-mail her, which is her standard response when members make telephonic requests. We have more than 1,000 members and Sonia often handles as many as 60 calls per day - there is no way she can remember all verbal requests.
Finally, I had not made any "decision" in this regard. Any decision at this stage to dissolve is purely your own, please do not lay it at my door.

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I'm a out of Province Member of this Training Group / Club and I don't understand what the issue is here, as u maybe know that I lived for some time in PE, I can recall that Koos asked the Fed office and the web administrator to assist in this matter and that is already some time ago. There were several phone calls done in my presence!!! I'm sure if Koos would have been asked to send an E-mail in this matter, he would have 100% done it!!! All The Bay Training Group is asking is to be named, small or big ,who ever contributes towards the German Shepherd and to the Sport deserves to be named. So please let that decision be positive.

Dear Angela,

The issue here is a member that has used a public debating forum to air a grievance without having used the correct procedure to solve that grievance in the first place. Now you are further escalating the matter by publicly implying that the National Administrator is a liar when you state that you are "sure if Koos would have been asked to send an E-mail in this matter, he would have 100% done it!!!" (sic).

Fact is, you cannot be "sure" as you were never party to any possible conversation between Koos and the National Administrator regarding this matter. If such a conversation had indeed taken place, the request to send an e-mail would have been Sonia's standard response, as it has been for years when members request something verbally, whether in person or telephonically. The balance of probability is that if Koos had indeed telephoned her, that's exactly what she would have told him.

Which decision should be positive? This is a debating forum and not a route to solve personal or individual problems. If you or Koos are having a problem regarding your group's listing on the web site, please e-mail the National Administrator in this regard directly.

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Please note this is an observation and opinion and is not meant to offend anybody.

It appears that the "ask the president" button is the manner in which to contact the President of the Federation in response to queries which can not be answered by the Federation Administration. After having read the response of the President to some queries I found myself wondering if it was necessary to "attack" and "undermine" people who seem to genuinely only want to ask questions and receive answers. I found many of the comments unnecessary and definitely not within the best interest of the people involved or the GSD. I find the matters handled unprofessionally and with a certain amount of disrespect considering that the possibility of such questions arising should have been thought of.

I therefore ask is this button helpful when it seems to be chasing valuable members away from the federation based on what seems to be one mans opinion of the direction things should follow. This button is supposed to be a medium for discussion, not a place where, for example, training groups are suggested to close shop.

Dear Christine,

In any organisation or business there is a certain protocol to follow in order to solve individual queries. If you have an account problem, you do not contact the CEO of the company through a newspaper or a public website, and make all sorts of unsubstantiated accusations, before you have taken your problem to the head of the accounts department.

A big problem in the Federation is that of members airing grievances in public before having followed the basic steps to correct said problem or to establish the correct facts. A second problem is the usual threat that often accompanies a "query"; e.g. "if I don't get my way I will disband the training group", or "I'll go to KUSA" etc. Our stock answer is "don't threaten, go for it!" And this is not one man's opinion, it is the strategy agreed upon by the full executive. A third problem is the seeming obsession to make the Admin look bad when very often it is the member's own fault. This unnecessarily lowers morale amongst the people that are most deserving of our gratitude.

You yourself start you e-mail benignly enough, but cannot seem to avoid getting rather personal. Perhaps you can let me know which valuable members have been "attacked and undermined" or "chased away"? What exactly do you mean by "one man's opinion of the direction things should follow"?

I don't know what is so difficult to understand: this is a discussion forum to debate issues of wide concern, not an avenue to address problems that can easily be solved through the correct channel - an e-mail to the National Administrator. If any member has a genuine personal problem after having exhausted the correct channels, contact me privately and get a private answer. My private e-mail address and cell phone number are widely published.

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Hi Mr President, As a Founder Life Member I am amazed and astounded that we as the GSDFSA are even talking to KUSA about our breed. Is it not time that we stop the bus and simply carry on with breeding, showing and owning our breed??? When we started the GSDFSA there where basic rules that where laid down. What can I say.

I know that the life members will say the same if any ordinary member does not abide by the rules that are written down: Well we as the GSDFSA MUST say Goodbye to them and there dogs.

Dear Judith,

In some ways I could not agree with you more.

All German Shepherd Dog breeding should take place in the Federation under rules and regulations compatible
with the directives of the World Union of German Shepherd Dog Associations (WUSA) and the mother country, the Deutsche Schäferhunde Verein (SV).

That the avenue exists where our rogue members who are disciplined can, contrary to our agreement with the KUSA, simply jump ship and join the KUSA where uncontrolled breeding flourishes and members are allowed to breed exactly as they please, without minimum standards, is a serious problem for our breed and the public who buy their puppies; and this needs to be dealt with. We therefore have to talk the KUSA, whether we like to or not.

The Federation has no objection to being part of the greater dog scene. However, at the last Council meeting is was unanimously decided that it could never be in our breed's interests to encourage or assist the breeding of German Shepherds within the KUSA.

Accordingly, it was decided to impose certain sanctions to force the KUSA to negotiate a system that would be in the interests of the German Shepherd in line with the directives of the WUSV and the SV.

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Hi, my name is craig danford, im looking at buying a german shepherd dog, female. Not to breed but as family dog. Could you please recommend good breeders in the cape town area. Need some honest help, getting to many different stories here, about who to deal with, please help. What should we be paying for a good dog? Is (Name Withheld) a good breeder, as he has been recommended?

Dear Craig,

The Federation is the only registering authority in South Africa that enforces compulsory minimum standards and ensures that breeders abide thereby. A Federation bred puppy is therefore always a lower risk. Unfortunately it is not incumbent of me as President to recommend or comment on specific breeders. You may find various breeders and clubs listed on the Federation's web site. Visit as many as possible and make an informed choice. Click on the logo at the top right hand corner of this page.

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