# Need some help???



## MattG (Sep 15, 2010)

I have some questions that hopefully you can help me with. First off, what technically makes a GSD a pedigree? What does it take? Does it just have to be registered through the AKC? Does it have to be proven as a Schutzhund? Also, why does it seem all the dogs that compete in Schutzhund have "VON" somewhere in its name? I'm just trying to figure all this out.

Thanks in advance
Matt

I hope this post is in the right spot.


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## Zoeys mom (Jan 23, 2010)

The Von in the names of dogs is part of the kennel name as in where they were bred and their line. If your going to breed yes your dogs should be registered with the AKC since you live in America. If your going to be breeding working line dogs then yes again they need to be titled in a sport to prove their pedigree to your future buyers. Same with show line dogs you want want titles in show and conformation, or a sport. Breeding is taken REALLY seriously around here and there are hundreds of threads on what makes a dog breed worthy


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## Whiteshepherds (Aug 21, 2010)

MattG said:


> I have some questions that hopefully you can help me with. First off, *what technically makes a GSD a pedigree*? What does it take? Does it just have to be registered through the AKC? Does it have to be pr oven as a Schutzhund?


The GSD isn't a pedigree, a pedigree is a family tree for dogs, tracing their ancestors.  (mother, father, maternal & paternal grandparents etc.)

Any dog can have a written pedigree if the owner has the information to create one, but they're usually used as a source of reference for breeders. The pedigree, if the dogs are registered with the AKC, SV or other reputable organizations helps to verify that the dogs are purebred.


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## MaggieRoseLee (Aug 17, 2001)

MattG said:


> I have some questions that hopefully you can help me with. First off, what technically makes a GSD a pedigree? What does it take? Does it just have to be registered through the AKC? Does it have to be proven as a Schutzhund? Also, why does it seem all the dogs that compete in Schutzhund have "VON" somewhere in its name? I'm just trying to figure all this out.
> 
> Thanks in advance
> Matt
> ...


A About Dogs - What is a Pedigree? Purebred Dogs and Lineage just is a list of a dog's lineage. All the dogs it's related to. MEANINGLESS unless you also have knowledge about the dogs listed. Otherwise I can breed my blind, ugly, dog with hip dysplasia to your bow legged, floppy eared, dog with a heart problem and as long as both those parent dogs were registered with a pedigree then VOILA!!!!!!!!!!! I could register all the puppies and sell the adorable things to the unsuspecting public.

When it's time to register, any name can be used but GSD people tend to use vom or von (when they are teeny puppies and with no titles) because the name after that will come back to the breeder. So if you see my Bretta vom Wildhaus you'd know she came from (Working German Shepherd Breeder in Michigan, by Wildhaus Kennels ) and can research the dogs. All this breeders puppies are named before they are sold, with the Wildhaus as part of the name. So if you like the dogs you know where to go. And if you do not then you know what to avoid. There's alot of history behind all those names.

The reason many Sch (most?) use this way to name their dogs is because they WANT to know about the dogs. All the dogs going back as far as they can. Temperment and health is so important when in the same day (to get your Sch title) you need to pass in Obedience, Tracking, and Protection. The better the parents of your dog were in those skills, and THEIR parents, and so on , the better chance you will have of getting a healthy great dog that will also do well.

If you look at a Pedigree, the more titles show the better the dog is and more serious the OWNERS were in assuring they had a wonderful dog who would pass on the best genetics.

(Ernst vom Weinbergblick Litter, by Wildhaus Kennels )

With so many ok dogs out there already, (many in shelters and rescues and euthanized every year) the USA certainly doesn't need more that are just 'ok' or a fluke. Not when there are great Responsible Breeders out there putting the time in to educate themselves to make their dogs the best that they can be.

You get to read this yet? http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/choosing-breeder/137533-things-look-responsible-breeder.html


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

Every dog has a pedigree, even my rescue mutt, just like every person has a genealogy. A GSD might come with a known pedigree but nothing makes a GSD "a pedigree". I personally am suspicious of dogs that are marketed as being "pedigreed" because, again, all dogs have a pedigree. Just because a dog has an official one printed out is no indication of the quality of the dog or the breeding.

The "von" is just part of the kennel name, using the typical German syntax. Von/vom/von der = "from", or "of the".


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## MattG (Sep 15, 2010)

Ok, thanks for all the information. That's what I suspected about the pedigree title, but I wasn't completely sure.


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