White Swiss Shepherd

The White Swiss Shepherd has its roots in the development of the German Shepherd. In 1899, the first German Shepherd was registered in the stud book of the German Shepherd Club (SV). It is known that the grandfather of this dog named Horand von Grafath was a white herding dog called Greif. In 1913, the first white shepherd was registered in the stud book of the German Shepherds. From 1933, the German breed club excluded white color from the German Shepherd standard, for fear that this pigmentation, close to albinism, was linked to infirmities. From then on, the white German Shepherd was banned from breeding and exhibition. Most white puppies were killed immediately after birth. The white German Shepherd was able to survive thanks to North Americans who continued to breed it. It was in 1964 that the first white shepherd club was formed in California, in order to defend and preserve the breed. In 1967, Mrs. Agatha Burch imported the first dog from the United States: Lobo White Burch was born on March 5, 1966 before the American Kennel Club (AKC) removed the white German Shepherd from its breed book. For this reason, it was able to be registered in the Swiss Stud Book (LOS) of the Swiss Kennel Society (SCS) under the name "white German Shepherd". With this male, as well as Dixi White Pearl and Leika. With the English female White Lilac of Blinkbonny, Mrs. Burch had a litter that could still be registered in the LOS appendix. Subsequently, the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) closed all descendant books to white German Shepherds worldwide. Two additional litters from Mrs. Burch's Shangrila's kennel could therefore not be registered. In November 2002, the FCI provisionally accepted the Swiss Shepherd under the name "White Swiss Shepherd". Since 2003, the Société Centrale Canine (SCC) finally recognizes the breed under the name White Swiss Shepherd. It can obtain its registration in the French Stud Book (LOF). In 2011, the SCC federation distinguishes two separate breeds: the Long-haired WBS, and the medium-haired WBS, these two breeds will from then on be judged separately at dog shows.