Figure 1.--World War I created great interest in the breed among Anericans and an appreciation for its characteristics. American soldiers had come to admire the breed. Many returned with desire to own one. Others actually brought shepherds home with them. The intelligence and nobel appearance of the breed caught the imagination of the dog owning public. And they were even chosen to become movie stars--Rin-Tin-Tin and Strongheart. Some Americans called them police dogs. What had been a rather rare breed in America became one of the most popular breeds. Here we see an American boy with his shepherd. Put your cursor on the iomage for a closeup.

We do not have a lot of information about what happened to the war dogs after World War I in Europe. Of course many were killed or wounded during the War and had to be put down. Large numbers survived the War. The Germans in particular had huge numbers of dogs. We think many German dogs also had to be euthenized because of the difficult economic conditions. We are not sure about France. The British had fewer dogs. One chnge in Britain was that the name of the German shepherd was changed to Alsatian because of the anti-German sentiment, the same sentiment that forced the Royal Family to change their name. The situation in America was different. There were very few German shepherds in America before World War I. They are virtually absent from the photographic record. This changed after the War. The American German shepherd dog club was not founded until just before the War (1913). The War created great interest in the breed among Anericans and an appreciation for its characteristics. American soldiers had come to admire the breed. Many returned with desire to own one. Others actually brought shepherds home with them. The intelligence and nobel appearance of the breed caught the imagination of the dog owning public. And they were even chosen to become movie stars--Rin-Tin-Tin and Strongheart. My mom recalls her shepherd in the 1930s with great affection. These movies were churned out with the various interations of the "boy and his dog" theme. Some Americans called them police dogs. What had been a rather rare breed in America became one of the most popular breeds. The American Army, however, did not institute a dog training program.

America

The situation in America was different. There were very few German shepherds in America before World War I. They are virtually absent from the photographic record. This changed after the War. The American German shepherd dog club was not founded until just before the War (1913). The War created great interest in the breed among Anericans and an appreciation for its characteristics. American soldiers had come to admire the breed. Many returned with desire to own one. Others actually brought shepherds home with them. The intelligence and nobel appearance of the breed caught the imagination of the dog owning public. And they were even chosen to become movie stars--Rin-Tin-Tin and Strongheart. My mom recalls her shepherd in the 1930s with great affection. These movies were churned out with the various interations of the "boy and his dog" theme. Some Americans called them police dogs. What had been a rather rare breed in America became one of the most popular breeds. The American Army, however, did not institute a dog training program.

Britain

The British had fewer dogs. One chnge in Britain was that the name of the German shepherd was changed to Alsatian because of the anti-German sentiment, the same sentiment that forced the Royal Family to change their name.

France

We are not sure about France.

Germany

The Germans in particular had huge numbers of dogs during World War I. There were large numbers of these dogs produced during the War. Most were shepards. We think many German dogs also had to be euthenized because of the difficult economic conditions. We are not sure what German Army policy was toward the dogs. Presumably many of the handlers wanted to bring their dogs home. One would think that might be difficult if they lived in cramped city aprtments. Nor are we sure to what extent war dogs could become docile family pets. We do no yet have complete details on what happened. We do know that in the last year of the war, shortages developed on the home front leading to a collapse of civilian morale. Germany at the time of World War I was not self sufficentv in food production and the Allied naval blockade cut off food imports. Even so, the Government did not implemebt an effective rationing program or take steps to excuse agricultural workers from cinscription. As a result, domestic harvests declined. Some authors describe a famine. That may be an over-statement, but there were severe shortages and many people experienced real deprivations. Some children appear to have starved or at least sucumbed to illness because they were famished. In such aituations, many people could not keep their pets. Some dogs starved, others were eaten by their owners. Dog experts report that many war dogs were sterile or gave birth to high numbers of stillborn pups. This may have been the result of massive Army breeding programs. Postwar veterinary care and access to canine medicine was very limited. Canine diseases as aesult ran rampant. German shepherd breeders in Germany worked to restore the breed. We do know that as Germany became to rearm in the 1930s, the Wehrmacht instituted and even larger dog program.

Created: 5:26 AM 6/20/2011
Last updated: 5:26 AM 6/20/2011