# Schutzhund History Update



## Jim Engel (Nov 14, 2007)

This is an interesting reference:
http://www.dvgamerica.com/dvghist.html

These are my introductory comments from the working text:

Among the earliest trial systems was that devised by the founders of the German Shepherd Dog, that is, the Schutzhund (protection dog) trial. Although police trials and certifications began very early, and Schutzhund titles gradually become more common on prominent German Shepherds in the 1920s the evolution of Schutzhund as we know it today would not completely coalesce for almost half a century, that is until the post WW II era. Schutzhund specifically is a national German sport under the VDH, that is, the German national organization comparable in scope to the AKC. IPO is the international version directly under FCI auspices, and over the years there were at times significant variation in the rules. In the first decade of the twenty first century IPO and Schutzhund rules were gradually consolidated and international annual events under the IPO banner became the most prestigious venues. On January 1, 2012 IPO became the universal standard and Schutzhund as a distinct entity passed into history, although the term is still used to some extent in Germany in reference to the IPO program.
Although there are common references to "Schutzhund" being invented in 1901 this cannot be taken too literally. Schutzhund means protection dog in German and in this generic sense there arose a wide variety of tests and trials under varying rules and procedures. But the term "Schutzhund" does not appear in the seminal von Stephanitz book of 1925 and early German Shepherd pedigrees often have a PH or police dog title indicated. As an example, the 1902 GSD Sieger Peter von Pritschen is listed in old documents as "SZ 148, KrH PH, Champion 1902" which in modern terms means his registration number was 148 and that he held the KrH which was some sort of character title, the PH was a police ("Police Hund") title and he was the 1902 Sieger.
The emergence of the Nazi regime in Germany and the increasingly intrusive control of the party and bureaucrats into canine affairs, especially those concerning potential police and military applications, greatly disrupted breeding programs and the ongoing operation of existing organizations. The overall result was a "dark age" that did not abate until the reemergence of breeding and organizations in the late 1940's. It was at this time that Schutzhund as we know it today began to emerge in terms of rules, organizations and procedures. Schutzhund titles as breeding prerequisites and as requirements for advanced conformation placements increasingly came into existence in this era. The DVG, the largest of about five important non breed specific German Schutzhund organizations, came into existence at this time, being essentially a new beginning for several organizations dating back to the 1903 era. (Patterson & Beckmann, 1988)


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## Jim Engel (Nov 14, 2007)

That link is:

http://www.dvgamerica.com/dvghist.html

Not sure why it does not work, but very interesting
I hope this works!


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## Terrasita Cuffie (Jun 8, 2008)

Sch is listed in von Stephanitz's book--8th revised editiion 1932; English translation copyright 1950. PH is not the police dog title. KrH is not some sort of character title. According to the 1950 English translation.

Terrasita


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