Are the working line German Shepherds really that much better?

In this article we will discuss similarities and differences between the working line German Shepherd puppy versus the show lines. We will seek to answer the question of whether the working lines are actually better the show lines— or is this whole conversation just clickbait? And that’s a question worth asking. Let’s face it. Well-bred German Shepherd puppies cost a pretty penny. So it makes sense to sort through the noise when trying to figure out what kind of German Shepherd Dog (GSD) makes the most sense for your family.

With the speed of modern technology, trying to find the perfect German Shepherd puppy can be overwhelming. Many of the families that call us here at Czech Working line have recently lost a part of their family. After eleven or twelve years that dog you lost can often leave quite the hole. Big shoes to fill! How does one go about replacing a dog that truly was part of one’s family. Sadly, many dog’s aren’t making it to old age. Cancer and joint issues are common causes of early death. Not long ago one of our customers up in the Wichita, Kansas area shared how her dog’s joints were blown out by four years of age. The vet gave her an option of amputating the  one leg that was in the worst condition. But the other joints were already so far gone that he estimated this would only give her another six months, and these no such good ones. That’s a super tough situation. Sadly, with the extreme roach back in so many GSD lines, failing joints is becoming more common. So, let’s get into it.

Reason 1: Working line German Shepherds have much straighter (natural) backs than the extreme roach back of show line dogs.

The roach back of the show lines are a huge reason to stay away from the show lines. Why anyone would intentionally work to produce dogs with the kind of exaggerated roach back we see in the modern show lines makes absolutely no sense. No, one does not need to be a biologist to be able to define a woman. And no, a person does not need a veterinary degree to see the problem with intentionally producing dogs with an exaggerated roach topline. My wife works in the hospital with newborn babies. In humans this would be called a birth defect. It’s the same in dogs. Imagine you were building a fort for your grandkids. You don’t have any trees close by. So, you dig holes and set four posts in concrete. But rather than setting the posts straight up in the air, the posts are all leaning inwards. Initially, since the posts are new and the wood is in good shape, the floor would be fairly stable. Those big metal screws would grip the new posts. But in time, the weight of the play house would begin to break down the integrity of that joint. Eventually, that joint would fail. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand this is the same sort of thing that occurs in dogs where the extreme roach back changes the angle of the hip socket. There is a reason we never see wolves or coyotes in the wild looking like this. The animals with bad joints simply die early and their lines get replaced by their counterparts that are healthier. That topline (the shape of the back) we see in a Timber Wolf is by far a healthier picture of what we want to see in a German Shepherd. Fun fact. If you look at Captain Emil Stephanitz’s development of the GSD, four wolves were mixed in with the dogs that eventually became the German Shepherd breed. That same topline we see in Timber Wolves for half a century was what all German Shepherds looked like. It’s what our boy Querro looks like today. If for no other reason than a healthy topline, stay away from the show lines with a ten foot pole. This roach back is a clear reason to never, ever, ever mix the show line GSDs with a well-bred working line German Shepherd. We don’t ever do this!

Reason 2: Titled working line German Shepherds are tested against objective standard.

So that’s a big claim. Is it true? Here at Czech Working Line German Shepherds we only use Schutzhund, IGP titled stud dogs. All our breeding stock are from titled pedigrees where nearly every dog in the pedigree is IGP titled. So are we just German Shepherd blue blood snobs? Or is this something that really matters? Such an excellent question! The short answer. AKC championships are little more than glorified beauty contests. They tell you very, very little about a dog’s temperament or its ability to do the things German Shepherds were bred to do— obedience, tracking and protection work. And I should know. As a third generation dog breeder I was raised in a home where multiple generations in my family have championed show dogs. My grandparents did this. My parents have done the same. And so have I-along with multiple of my siblings. So I speak from first hand experience. Dogs in the show ring are trotted out for judge to see their movement and body conformation. Kind of feels like a swimsuit competition for dogs… Having championed multiple dogs myself, I know this personally. A dog can have a rotten temperament and yet win a championship. It might be stubborn and very difficult to train. Makes very little difference when it comes to winning a show champion certificate. Now the Schutzhund, IGP title is a totally different ball of wax.

Passing an IGP exam has virtually nothing in common with AKC show championships. In the show ring, there is always a winner. The winner is not chosen based on its temperament or ability in obedience, tracking or protection— the things GSDs were bred to do. Show dog champions are nearly entirely chosen for looks and movement. IGP titles in contrast are the result of dogs passing objective exams. Dogs are required to pass exams that prove their capacity to thrive in high level obedience, tracking and protection work. Compare this to the show ring where all the judge gets to see is the dog’s movement and conformation. That’s not much information to determine whether a specific German Shepherd has what it takes to perform as an exemplary working dog. In fact, we could go farther and just be honest. There is no way anyone can determine whether a particular dog actually meets the breed standard with this little information. Not if we are talking about a German Shepherd, a dog bred to work.

Reason 3: Litters from titled pedigrees have the gene pool to produce highly trainable puppies.

IGP isn’t the only means of testing working line German Shepherds. Here in the USA, Protection Sports Association (PSA) is an alternative testing means, as is the French Ring Sport. Whether competing in IGP, PSA or the French Ring sport, such activity is proving your dog’s trainability. How does your GSD respond to obedience and protection training at a high level. Dogs not able to thrive in these high stress situations are washed out and are not able to be titled. In PSA, only about 25% of German Shepherds that attempt a title are even able to complete. And this doesn’t even take into consideration the dogs that don’t even get that far. Often breeders will start training their dogs, but recognize as they are going through the process that their dog simply does not have what it takes. The same is true for IGP exam work. Many dog’s that start training for IGP simply don’t have the ability to finish. Washing these dogs out of the titling process is a great way to improve a bloodline. When breeders choose their lines from dogs where most dogs are titled, they are ensuring that the inherited, instinctual obedience and protection instincts are as high as can be. Think about it this way. If you were wanting to pick a future basketball star, without seeing the children, would you want to pick that future prospect from the children from a family where both parents were professional basketball stars on a national level, or children from third generation math professors. True, there would be no guarantee that the children from the pro basketball parents would necessarily inherit genetics better suited to performing at a high level in competitive sports. But the odds are high that one family would statistically be better than the other. In a similar way, when breeders selectively choose from generations of proven genetics where dog after dog in a pedigree has been titled, the breeder shores up the genetic potential of a dog. With that said, a brief disclaimer ought to be noted. Every puppy from titled parents from titled pedigrees is not guarantee that all puppies born to these parents will be superstars. Lots of professional athletes have children not gifted athletically. The same is true with titled, working line German Shepherds. You can do your best in searching for working line German Shepherd puppies for sale to only choose from world class pedigrees, and still end up with a so/so performing. That happens! But, beyond a shadow of a doubt, you are stacking the deck in your favor by choosing from working line German Shepherd puppies for sale when you choose from a litter that is born to dogs where a majority of dogs in that pedigree have passed working line titles. One of our favorite stud dogs in recent years is 2 x WUSV winner (world champion protection dog) Gero z Berounsky Basty. We one of his daughters. Like her father, she is titled. And wow, the apple has stayed close to the tree! Her pups are high drive working puppies and thrive in protection work. Absolutely our kind of GSDs.

And this is why we only breed working line German Shepherds— never show lines!

Health, longevity and ability to perform are why we here at Czech Working Line only breed the working lines. Rest easy knowing we only offer litters of working line German Shepherd puppies for sale. And on top of this, our dogs are always from world class titled pedigrees where nearly all dogs in the pedigree are from titled parentage. As you will have seen from our conversation above, this is not snobbery. At least we hope not. And we hope it’s clear our intention is not just so we can brag about owning the equivalent of a brand name Guicci handbag. In fact we’d urge you not to leave this article thinking you ought to limit your google search to “working line German Shepherd puppies for sale” for bragging rights. Yes, you should end up with a Rolex of a German Shepherd. But it ought not be about bragging rights as much as it should be about furthering the breed and developing your dog as a true working dog. So if longevity, health and the ability to train your dog for protection or tracking is on your list of things that matter to you, then the choice should be clear. For our family, the choice was easy. Even though we were raised with show line dogs and grew up in this world, our mindset has done a firm 180. If we can help you on this path, we’d love to be part of this process. We are not commercial breeders. We are producing to see how we can improve our own lines. We are actively working to improve our own skills as trainers of trained guard dogs. But we can’t keep everything. So if you are searching for “working line German Shepherd puppies for sale” but all means give us a call. We’ll be happy to talk with you about upcoming litters and will see that we can find something that might be a good fit for your family.