40 Years of Closed Breeding

DDR Dogs ? What is this ? Another New Breed ?

The popularity of the German Shepherd Dog (GSD) has been growing in numbers since their origin by founder Rittmeister Max von Stephanitz. Little did anyone know what an impact both World Wars would impart on the German Shepherd breed. The German Shepherd was much sought after by the military for their profound working abilities, loyalty , trainability, and their dedication to their owners or handlers. One of the greatest impacts to astound the working dog world and the German Shepherd breed was the onset of the Cold War.

Before the onset of the Cold War, Germany was one nation. Great Britain, France, The Soviet Union, and the USA were allies during World War II. As World War II was coming to an end, all 4 Allies occupied Berlin. At the end of World War II, the city was split into 4 sectors.A large dispute arose over the boundaries. Thus began the Cold War with the Soviet Union closing borders; hence the two nations for Germany were formed, West Germany and East Germany ( Deutsches Demokratische Republik the DDR ).

Many of us remember what communist controlled countries were like. They were not allowed free trade or contact with the outside world and were dominated by their government over decisions most of us take for granted everyday. So was it also for the breeding kennels in East Germany. With the border and Berlin Wall up, closed breeding within the DDR kennels kept the dogs at their standards without outside influence.

Germany now divided became a satellite state of the communist regime on October 7th, 1949, East Germany is now officially the Deutsches Demokratische Republik - DDR. It didnt take long for The Partei to quickly confiscate and gain control of the German Shepherd pedigree registration and financial administration offices. With the governments hand and control over breeding and registration, strong criteria and tests were set forth as many of the dogs would be used for their military purposes.

Consequently only the best of the best would be suitable for their new duties. Strong bones were needed for the great distances of walking they would endure, exposure to the most ruthless of harsh elements also played a part in the development of structure. Thus they were very athletic with straight lines and a large intimidating look with large heads, broad shoulders and large chests. Other breeding criteria that differed from West Germany was the DDR dogs could only be bred if they were completely free of HD. Dogs that had fast normal hips or lesser could not be bred. Dams had to appear with her whole litter for an inspection of teeth, ear set, temperament, coat, total overall appearance and males naturally had to have both testicles descended by I year of age.

Major differences in the working abilities skills tests included a straight wall of 1.5 meters and 1.8 meters instead of the inclined wall now used. They also had to go walk a balance beam, 10 blinds to search instead of 6, the tracking tests include more corners and angles; the FH 3 contained 16!

The Border Patrol Dogs

In 1946, the Soviet Union formed the Grenzschutz Polizei or Border Police. They were in charge of guarding 1,378 kilometers of East German Border and also responsible for patrolling 165 kilometers of the Berlin Wall. At the end of their first year of forming there were over 3,000 soldiers comprising the entire unit. In 1951, their name changes

to Deutsches Grenz Polizei. And again in 1974 the name is changed to Grenztruppen or border troops. Usually 100-160 dogs were assigned to each Grenztruppen battalion.

The Diensthundefuehrer ( Dog Team Leader ) was in charge of the overall care and training for the border patrol dogs and their handlers. 50% of their training was spent during the night for night maneuver exercises. The K9 leader had to have basic veterinary knowledge and background in animal handling. They were also non-commissioned officers. The handlers had 3 different skill levels. Level -1 the highest and level-3 being a basic skilled handler. They wore qualification badges or patches on their uniforms.

The Grenztruppen and their dogs watched over minefields, border fences; many people will remember Check Point Charlie and the watch towers. Many dog runs or fenced pens also were set up throughout the border. These runs or pens measured about 5 kilometers. Dog runs covered 97 kilometers of the border deploying approximately 1,000 sentry dogs. The area fluctuated between 90- 120 kilometers. 200-250 dog runs or pens were in Berlin alone! The dog run comprised of dogs being

leashed to a suspended line. The dogs in the runs or pens were fed only once in a 10 day period to retain their ferociousness.

More than just a sentry dog, they served as tracking dogs, and attack dogs. The border patrol also deployed a special dog pack to find deserters of their cause in large area searches such as buildings, timber / woods, or fields.

The end of the Communist Regime

In 1989, the border was opened. Germany begins its initial stages of becoming a unified nation once more. No longer needed, many of the DDR border patrol dogs were sold, put to sleep, and many abandoned. The Grenztruppen were officially disbanded on July1,1990.

There are only a handful of DDR breeders left in the world today. It would be a shame to see this incredible breed of the working German Shepherd Dogs disappear. With the closed breeding, it has given us the opportunity to preserve the DDR GSDs in its most closest form to the standards set forth by the GSD founding father; with their natural defense drive, tracking abilities, temperament and structure. The DDR border patrol dogs no longer exists, but their great courage, loyalty, working abilities, and devotion to their owner or handler survive throughout their lineage.

We at ddrledends.com, seek to preserve this magnificent animal. We hope more people would follow suit, as they are a dying breed; and one we can not afford to lose.

Pam Cyrene