Welcome to Eastern European Shepherd
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In November of 2009 my wife and I visited Moscow Russia to receive a special therapy. Months back I contacted a friend and student of mine from karate that lives in Canada. My good friend named Slava, knew of my interest to obtain a German Shepherd dog. Then he talked to me about the history of the East European Shepherd dogs of Russia and East Europe, developed by Russia in the beginning of last century. He explained to me that in East Europe these magnificent shepherds are used for the Armed Forces. They train them to detect explosives, drugs, etc. He also told me that they are also magnified company dogs, as well as extremely loyal guardian dogs to its owners. When my decision was taken to own one dog of this breed, we dedicated ourselves to the task of looking around for the best exponents of all Russia. With the aid of my great friends Slava and Natalia (the vice-president of the international famous Monchere Versai Kennel of Russia for this breed).We managed to locate a puppy of magnificent qualities: the son of the youthful champion of Moscow named Warren. Now Warren has won the title of adult champion of Moscow and of all Russia and East Europe. He is considered one of the best exponents of this breed. My wife had not had dogs and she confessed to me that she felt fear by this breed of dog that are big. I needed much patience and love to convince her of the idea to bring King (our first puppy) home, who would be her first dog. Now she is, completely in love with our dogs and she goes out at night at any hour in our farm with no fear, due to the protection that our dogs offer to her. Hana (our second female puppy) chose my wife as her owner and King chose me. This is a natural selection. They demonstrate it with their behavior. They settle down a rank of hierarchy to their owners. They do it when they are in the pack. Also they establish their own hierarchy within the canine group. In this case King has settled down as the head of the group and Hana and Jade (our third puppy) do not begin to eat until he does. It is extremely interesting to understand the meaning of the different barks from them. As time goes by, all owners of these shepherds, become familiar with these sounds and will be able to identify the alerts of danger and the ones that corresponds to the different moods from these shepherds. In Miami, we made the necessary adjustments, so that after I finished my month of therapy in Moscow we could return to the Unites States with the puppy son of Warren; to which we baptized with the name of King (this was the name of my very beloved German Shepherd 40 years back). King is, probably, the best quality East European Shepherd in the United States. Months later we imported Hana (flower in Japanese language) and Jade (precious stone) from Russia, two females of the same breed and also of excellent qualities. After having King, Hana and Jade for almost two years living with us, I am convinced that I made the right decision when choosing this breed for my present guardian dogs. The three are extremely affectionate and faithful. They are always alert to the minor of the noises responding with an amazing agility. In addition the single physical presence to these dogs is sufficient to discourage to any thief or malefactor who comes near to the house. Although at first these dogs are very similar to German shepherd, their look and size differentiates them from such. If you decide to have a dog of this breed you must be conscious that where ever you go with them they are going to call the attention of ever body. Whenever I leave with mine to the park or other public places, many people stop to admire and to ask me about them. Also when I take my dogs for a walk on the sidewalk the cars that are around stop to comment out of admiration. I invite you to see the photos that are in this Web page. Thank you very much for your time.
General Description
The East-European Shepherd, often called the Russian German shepherd, is a Soviet dog variation of the German Shepherd. This Russian dog breed is larger and heavier built than its German ancestor. It has a powerful and muscular frame, a massive head with dark, oval shaped eyes, and long, vertical ears. Its medium length double coat is more dense to allow this Russian dog withstand cold winters. The usual coat colors are black, black and tan, black and red, brown, gray and red, sable, sometimes with a dark facial mask.
With its Russian name Vostochnoevropejskaya Ovcharka (sheep dog in Russian), the East-European Shepherd remains one of the most popular watch and guard dogs in its native country.
Outside Russia it is still not widely recognized and considered to be a rare dog breed.
The East-European Shepherd originated in 1920s-1930s as the result of crossbreeding German Shepherds with such Russian dog breeds as Caucasian dog, Central Asian dog and Laikas. The Soviet military, impressed by the German Shepherd’s working abilities, wanted to create a similar Russian dog more suited for the climate, with stronger body and bite. The development of this Russian German shepherd started in the Byelorussian region, and the breed was initially called the Byelorussian Owtcharka.
After the WWII the careful and systematic breeding was resumed, resulting in a new Soviet dog breed, the East European Shepherd, distinctly different from the German Shepherd. Its first standard was approved in 1964, while the new Russian dog became the main military and the KGB service breed.
The East European Shepherd is probably the most intelligent of the Russian guard dogs (Caucasian dog, Central Asian dog, Russian Sheepdog, Russian Terrier, and Moscow dog). It has not only an honorable protective instinct but also a very well-balanced character. This Russian German shepherd is resistant and aggressive to strangers as well as fiercely loyal and affectionate to its family. It is very devoted and will protect its master at all costs.
When on guarding duty, the East European Shepherd usually keeps silence, which makes it a perfect watch dog. It is very trainable and obedient, making this breed a favorite of many professional dog trainers. This Russian dog doesn’t have major health concerns. Its life span is 10-14 years.
Owning the East European Shepherd doesn’t create big problems for an experienced owner. Anyway, this Russian guard dog should be socialized early and is not recommended to apartment families with very small children. It is rather a very good companion for active people, especially in a rural environment.
The East-European Shepherd is a working duty dog. For this reason education and training is a priority for its master. The breed is successfully trainable according to the European training systems like BH and IPO. There is a possibility to demonstrate the excellence of one's dog in numerous local and international exhibitions.
SIZE WEIGHT
FEMALE: 24 – 28 inches 66-110 pounds
MALE: 26 – 30 inches 77-130 pounds
General Health
There are no reported health concerns or issues for the East-European Shepherd.
History
The East-European Shepherd was created in 1930. This highly adaptable breed was developed for the purpose of working in the Army. In order to produce the East-European Shepherd, German Shepherds were crossed with local northern breeds and molossers, along with some other breeds.
In 1964, the first standard for this breed was approved by the Cynologic Council of the Ministry of Agriculture of the USSR.
* The East European Shepherd breed was developed from the German Shepherds bought to Russia at the beginning of the century.
Starting from 1904 the breed was used as a police and nursing dog. By 1941 in the USSR already existed several types of the German Shepherd. After the war the breed was subject to careful and systematic work. The whole family lines were restored and new breed families were created.
Breeding was characterized by absolute lack of contacts with foreign specialists. In Russia, the breed was given the formal name of East-European Shepherd. As a result of intensive and extended work a new type of the German Shepherd was developed. This type was characterized by being larger, harmoniously built, strong, dry and well-defined muscles, sturdy bone structure and well-balanced character with a confident demeanor.
The German and East-European Shepherds have common origin, yet feature different exterior and behavioral traits. The East-European Shepherd is rather silent while on duty, which makes this breed perfect as a guard or watch dog. Modern pedigree East-European Shepherd has never become yet another fashionable, decorating breed due to the fact that breeders strongly appreciate this dog for its unique working qualities.
Numerous professional dog trainers and dog-breeders prefer the East-European Shepherd breed for its reliability, loyalty and intelligence. Being perfect jumpers, the shepherd dogs are fond of barriers and obstacles. The training exercise is probably the most entertaining task for them. Thus during the training this breed demonstrates a keen interest, is far from being stubborn, trying to execute all the commands to please the master.
Maintenance
Long haired variations of this breed may need to be brushed at least once a week.
IDEAL ENVRINOMENT
The pastor of Eastern Europe is content to live in a small house or apartment if given sufficient daily exercise. This breed can easily adjust to a wide variety of climates, including extreme cold weather. Because they are a working breed that need lots of physical activity on a frequent basis.
E.E.S.
Although the creation of the East-European Shepherd started at the beginning of the 20th century in Russian Empire, the complete development of this bread happened in 1930 in the USSR.
One of the main organization, responsible for the development of the East-European Shepherd in the USSR was DOSAAF [(Russian: ДОСААФ); the full name is a Volunteer Society for Cooperation with the Army, Aviation, and Fleet]. Typically, "voluntary" actually meant "obligatory" in the Soviet Union.
DOSAAF was a paramilitary sport organization in the USSR, concerned mainly with weapons, automobiles and aviation. The stated goal of this society was "patriotic upbringing of the population and preparation of it to the defense of the Motherland." Among the means to achieve this was the development of paramilitary sports.
One of goals of DOSAAF was the creation of a shepherd, which is, compared to the German shepherd, can be adapted for the service in the army and police as a guard and a sniffer dog in various climatic conditions, because the USSR had five climatic zones, compared to Germany which lies in one, cool/temperate, climatic zone.
However, not only DOSAAF performed the research and development of the East-European bread of shepherds, but also another government organization – the KGB (The Committee of State Security).
Specifically, the breeders from the kennel, The Red Star (Russian: Красная звезда), were creating East-European Shepherds under the strict supervision of KGB.
The first standard which has formed the breed type of East-European Shepherd was approved in 1964 by the Cynological Council of the Ministry of Agriculture of the USSR.
Although the East-European shepherd has its origin from the German shepherd, this breed, however, has different external and psychological signs. Specifically, the East-European shepherds are taller, have bigger muscles, and possess better barrier function of their skin cover because of the well developed hypodermic tissue.
The following table and photographs illustrate the differences in exterior of both German and East-European shepherd:
Compared to the German shepherds, which have been typically kept in the enclosures for dogs, East-European shepherds have been living in close contact with the human beings, and, therefore, they have a broader spectrum of behaviour responses, which makes
East-European shepherds intelligent dogs.
Most breeders would agree that German shepherds now have an overloaded psychophysiological type. Specifically, they are able to perform perfectly the stereotypical set of skills, and, moreover, German shepherds do not have the same physical and psychological endurance, compared to the East-European counterparts. In other words, German shepherds now are ideal only for sportsmen.
In contrast, East-European shepherds work balance and prudently, and they possess the ability to perform, with interest, various integral long-term programmes at any complex situation.
Specifically, East-European shepherds can evaluate themselves as an element of the whole system, such as, for example: the dog – the leader – the opponent – the distracting factors, and so on, which makes East-European shepherd extremely valuable for the army, the police, the Special Forces, and the security companies.
Furthermore, compared to East-European shepherds, the German shepherds are noisier and have a choleric temper. East-European shepherds, however, are more serious and psychologically more stable dogs.
Today, in Russian Army, police, Special Forces, the Intelligent Service (former KGB) the preference is given to East-European Shepherds. However, the German shepherds in Russia are better represented on various dog-shows,exibitions, and competitions.
Clearly, if you live in a tiny apartment and need a nice and loyal companion-dog, which you want to train for competitions, the compact, energetic German shepherd is ideal for you. However, if you goal is a serious powerful dog, perfectly adopted to any climatic zone, able, without unnecessary demonstration of aggression, protect you, your family members, your house, and your belongings, take a closer look to the East-European shepherd.
In addition, East-European shepherds are very good with children.
They adore playing with them. East-European shepherds are loyal to your children and protect them by all cost.
Moreover, East-European shepherds, typically, do not have conflicts with other pets, because these shepherds are very intelligent and possess a sense of justice: they won’t waste their time and efforts for quarrels with other family pets.
Finally, East-European shepherd is widely spread and popular now not only in Russia and in the former countries of the Soviet Union, such as Ukraine, Belorussia, Moldova, and so on, but also in the former countries of the Eastern Bloc, such as Poland, Check Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, former Yugoslavia, and Hungary. At the present moment, the breed is recognized by the following international kennel organizations, such as UCI (United Clubs International) and IKU (International Kennel Union).
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