German Shepherds have
always played a big role in Indian Dog Show Scenario.
Today the German Shepherd as a breed in India is very
popular among the dog lovers, breeders as well as show
enthusiasts. Before independence, keeping a German Shepherd
in the house used to be luxury and only the elite class
of people like Royals, Landlords or English Officers were
privileged to keep them. Post
Independence, one could see them only in rich and royal
families. It is really interesting to know that the
German Shepherd Dog then an un recognized breed known
as D.S.H IN ITS FATHERLAND (GERMANY) was registered
for the first time in India in 1910 ,by Mr. H. Triefflich
who imported dogs from Germany. Till 1919 there was
no evidence or registration, but royals and canine lovers
kept on importing and the dog was then known as Alsatian
the wolf dog, in the year 1919, captain P. Banerjee
imported a dog named FOCH who was bred by Mr. Wright
of U.K, and got registered with the INDIAN KENNEL ASSOCIATION,
this is the first German Shepherd which was shown in
Indian soil, at the 14th championship show in CALCUTTA
(KOLKATA) on February 1921.
His highness the maharaja of
Jind got fascinated with the breed and brought a pair
bred by Mrs. E.M Cross, these dogs were born in 1920,from
the same litter Mr. A.A.L Parson got a male named VIKING,
all the three dogs were shown at the 7th Mussoorie show
held on 23rd September ,1921.
At the same time flt. lt. bouverie brine had two bred-in-india
dogs.
In 1923 Mr. Frank Colinwood
imported a bitch from U.K. during this time a lady named
Mrs. Normandy Rodwell imported AIRMANS CHAUKE and AIRMANS
THALIA from the U.K.
AIRMANS CHAUKE became India�s
first GSD (then Alsatian) champion in 1925.
The breed was admired and loved
in this time. People like MRS. C. CH. VAN DE GRAFF,
HIS HIGHNESS RAJA OF POONCH, PRINCE BAHADUR SHUMSHARE,
CAPT. HEM SHUMSHARE JUNG BAHADUR RANA, AND HIS HIGHNESS
MAHARAJA OF PATIALA PATRONISED THE BREED.
In 1924 H.H The Maharaja of Patiala imported from Germany
Alf von Eiswerdier and Asta Vom Franzosenfoch. Also
in 1927, he imported MAX V.D SECRETAINERIE , BIANKA
V.D SECRETAINERIE, AND ALSO THE FAMOUS GERMAN CHAMPION
FRIDO V.D SECRETAINERIE, AND KORA AUS DER KATCHENSTADT.
ALL THESE DOGS WERE BRED BY THEN FAMOUS BREEDER FROM
GERMANY MR, SCHWABER who later moved to England.
In 1926 h.h maharaja of Jind imported BALDO V.D SECRETAINERIE,
THEN people like Raja Bahadur of Bhadri, Major J.W.
Goldsmith, flying officer M. D. Ommanney, Mrs. f.e.g
Godfrey, lt. col. Appleby and Mrs. G. Corlly smith took
keen interest in development of the breed in India.
These eminent people decided form an association and
founded the Alsatian club of India in 1928, and the
office �bearers were: President-G.E.G.JAMESSON,
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE �MRS LYN CARLISELE,
MRS. CULLEY, MR. C. A. HARDBOARD, PRINCE BAHADUR SHUMSHERE,
FLT.LT.M.D.OMMANEY, HON. SECRETARY AND TREASURER-MRS,M.D.OMMANEY.
THIS CLUB PRESENTED cup for
the best Alsatian, also Frido V.D SECRETAINERIE, challenge
cup for the best Alsatian born in India and many other
trophies and awards from 1930- 33 in the Indian kennel
association championship shows. During this period apart
from the above mentioned ladies and gentlemen, people
like Mr. M.A.K Fraser from south Mrs. W. Knox Chick
from north, Mrs. E. H. Fido, Dr. L. C. Smith and Miss.
K. H. Wheatley took up the breed seriously to popularize
the breed in India. Mr. J. W. Goldsmith became the first
breeder to breed a Indian�bred
champion.
Due to some uncertain reasons
the Alsatian club of India of 1928, ceased to function
in the early part of 1934,
Again due to efforts of some
earlier members and patrons, in 1934 February, there
was a meeting at the Bombay show and Mrs. Lyn Carlisle
was appointed hon. secretary and treasurer, capt. H.
Harrison became the president, members present were,
Dr. L. C. Smith, Mrs. H. C. Captain.
Mrs. Lyn Carlisle issued the
first pamphlet of the club in March 1934, due to some
reason, Mrs. Lyn Carlisle was un willing, Dr. L. C.
Smith took over from her and published the first magazine
of the club in July 1934. Then the kennel club of India
(successor to the Indian kennel association) was approached
for the registration and affiliation, on 4t October
1934, K.C.I gave recognition to the new club. Both Capt.
Harrison and Dr. L. C. Smith put their efforts to make
the club asucess story and tried to popularize the breed.
Monthly meetings, discussions and seminars were conducted
for members, breeders and fanciers of the breed. Workshop
on the breed standard, training, health related issues
were conducted by experts like Capt. Harrison, Mr. Grove,
and Mr. N. C. Bose. Even Capt. Harrison in one occasion
described the anatomical difference between a wolf and
a Alsatian (gsd), by getting a live wolf in the seminar.
Training and obedience classes were a regular feature
at the Calcutta maiden.
The first championship show of the club was conducted
on the 23rd august of 1936,at Calcutta (Kolkata), there
were around 54 exhibits present in the show and Capt.
Harrison judged the show. In the mean time the bred
was getting very popular in Bengal. When Mrs. Corley
smith left India most of her dogs were brought b V.D
SECRETAINERIE y Mr. G. N Dey and Mr. N. C. bose. Mr.
G. N. Dey acquired the great stud dog Ch. Lipper Von
Grafenstein, and Thea Vom Hain.
And was a great advocate of
the breed with passion, his sudden demise lost a ardent
supporter of the breed according to his last wish Dey
memorial trophies were created.
Mr.n.c bose aquried golden
eagle of maresquel, Ella vom Grunnensteg,Basko Von Raventhalshof,Donner
vom Billhoff,mr.bose bred very good gsds, and produced
many show stunners.he definitely contributed for the
upliftment of the breed in India.
Mr. s.g.goho was another fancier who imported FERRO
V.D SECRETAINERIE,QUANDEL V.D, SECRETAINERIE, ELLA VON
HUMMELLACHE,ERLE VON HUMMELLACHE RFROM GERMANY.AND AVENGER
STRATHSHAW OF ESEE FROM AUSTRALIA.
A FEW OTHER personalities who
took great intreast in the breed and club were raja
bahadur of rajnagar,patet saheb of dhenkanal,mrs.gardiner,
capt dina nath,mrs n.d.monte,the raja saheb of rampura,
and mrs hillwood of concord kennel.
In august 1937 a committee meeting of the club was held
to change the breed name from Alsatian to Alsatian(german
shepherd dog), and also to change the name of the club
from Alsatian club of india to Alsatian (g.s.d) club
of India,the proposals were approved by the committee
and was forwarded to the kennel club of India,the kennel
club of India on the advise of kennel club of London
granted the changes on October ,1937.
With the beginning of second
world war office bearers and many member from the forces
went for their active service duty, it was not possible
take out the club magazine and much activities from
1941.
But notably some members like
Mr. a.k.bose,mrs g.wicker-sham,mr.r.p.mitter,mrs d.f.morton,Mr.
ashoke mukherjee,mr.b.n.ghose,mrs Chadbourn,mrs p.dendrino,seth
hari kishore,Mr. h.inwood,lt.col.d.k.oldrini,Dr.l.c.smith,
mrs taylor,capt m.z.khan continued to breed and show.
In 1945 mr.harrison returned,
and the club started activity,Mr. r.p.mitter took over
the charge of secretaryship from mrs.I.M.ROSETTI.
MR. mitter ran the club till
1948,then he handed over the club to capt.j.m.banerjee
.the club members and office bearers put their efforts
and time to make it a success.with more than two hundread
members the club magazine was very successful with informative
writting by Mr. Harrison,.
In the year 1952 the club got affiliated to the Alsatian
league and club of great Britain,and in liu of its affiliation
received as a present ---�bontfield
challenge cup�for the best bred
in India out of sire and dam imported from great Britain.and
also a trophy for the best Alsatian imported from u.k.,on
attaining championship .the club regularly sponsored
tropheys and prizes, in dog shows all over India.
In the mean time there was ban on importing dogs due
to foreign exchange regulation act.
In 1954 ,the club obtained import licence from the government,and
six dogs were imported to help the members.
In 1955 the club revised its
constitution and rules,.
The glorious landmark in the history of the club under
the able stewardship of r.p.mitter was on the 11 th
December ,1960, when the great german authority on the
breed ,herr Heinz roper, came and judged the 21st club
show at Calcutta.the way in which he judged the german
shepherds, and demonstrated to the exibitiors and Indian
judges, the qualities to look for in a german shepherd
as a working dog.
The silver jubilee show of
the Alsatian(gsd)club of India was held at calcutta,in
1963 at that time the country was under national emergency
rule.how-ever the show became very successful ,with
mrs,g.m.barrington as the judge,she is probably one
of the worlds greatest living authorities of the breed
at that point of time.
For the success of this show letter of congratulation
were received from raja saheb of bhadri,cdr Harrison,herr
wener funk ,james .y.baldwin,german shepherd dog club
of America inc,
When cdr Harrison left India
to settle in Australia became the patron of german shepherd
club of Australia.
. In the late 60s, German Shepherds
from England and Germany came to India. People like
Nawab Ahmed Hussain, Nawab Nazeer Yar Jung, R. P. Mitter,
Ashok Mukherjee, Rajasaheb Bhadri, Maharaja of Baria,
L. C. Smith, contributed a lot to the growth and popularity
of the German Shepherds in the country. Especially,
Mr. L. C. Smith from Bangalore produced top class dogs
under the prefix �Sydenberg�,
blending bloodlines from Ramacon Swas Buckler and Ajax
von haus Dexel. Nawab Nazeer Yar Jung from Hyderabad,
with his Prefix �Paighas�
imported lot of quality German Shepherds from Germany,
England and Australia and bred many obedience and show
champions. Ch. Brando of Blue Blood, Ch. Nara von der
Kahlerheide, Paighas Jung, Iccra Talismann were some
of the dogs owned by them.
Then, a German Shepherd enthusiast
from southern India, Mr. M. J.Krishna Mohan, owned a
beautiful specimen Ch. Meridanes Dick. The dog won laurels
in the show rings and created interest and love for
the breed among the GSD fanciers. Mr. Krishna Mohan
also imported some quality German Shepherds from top
kennels from Germany, but his untimely demise was a
great loss to the breed in India.
In the meanwhile, German Shepherd
as a breed has become very popular for the Indian dog
show ring as well as pet lovers. Mr. D. Krishnamurthy
(Kingsway), Mrs. Y. Hemchandra (Yashbans), Mr. S. P.
Mishra (Shivas), Capt. Pupala Ashok (Tanfield), Mr.
A. Venkateshan (Sansburg), Karlstad kennel from Kolkata,
Mr. Bharat Bhushan Beri form Kolkata, Chanchal Sarkar,
Kolkata, Iqbal Singh Dhillon (Rising Star), Amritsar,
Amar Iqbal Singh Bhinder (Super Star), Mr. C. V. Sudarsan
(Chennai), contributed a lot to the steady rise in popularity
of the GSD as a show and pet dog in India. In early
80s Mr. S. P. Mishra from Hyderabad imported many dogs
from Germany and produced some good stock, viz., Ch.
Shivas Zambo. An NRI from the US, Mr. Puri registered
a kennel in the name of �Bronx
Shepherds� and imported some American
champions; Pride vom Cypress, a top American winner
Avalon�s Hot Shot created interest
and hype for Shepherds in Northern India.
Mr. M. C. Sharma of Jhajjar
Shepherds came into the picture with one of Indian bred
top winning Avalon�s Hot Shot son;
he later imported German Shepherds from various top
show winning lines in Germany and contributed to the
gene-pool of North India with dogs like Till vom haus
Beck, Nicos von der Wanasse, Zender van Noort.
At that time Mrs. Y. Hemchandra
(Yashbans) imported lot of German dogs combining the
herding and show lines. One of her famous imported female
was Gilka vom Kirschental. She had got a very beautiful,
darkly pigmented male nick named �Kai�
who produced some good offsprings.
This was a time when India
saw a large number of German imports in the show rings;
the craze for German bloodlines grew among breeders
as well as owners of Shepherds. A gentleman named Mr.
Venkateshan with the prefix �Sansburg�,
who was into Dobermans earlier, got into German Shepherds;
he imported many German dogs and bitches in whelp from
famous show lines of that time, viz., Norbert van Noort,
Ajax van Noort, Cagney von Grahenheim (Uran son proved
to be a top producer), Zambos von der Kahlerheide, Beta
von der Kahlerheide, Lana vom haus Mohn, Woyna von der
Kahlerheide, Gera van Noort and widened the gene-pool
in the country. He won two titles of the Dog of the
Year with his top winning female, Ch. Tussy von der
Kahlerheide and with his dog Ch. Norbert van Noort.
His kennel produced some top dogs and bitches like Sansburg
Mark, Sansburg Zito, Sansburg Fiona,sansburg dino. His
last German import Fox vom Wildsteigerland is still
contributing to the German Shepherd gene pool in India.
Mr. Venkateshan was instrumental in forming the German
Shepherd Dog Club of India along with Mrs. Rajlaxmi
Reguraj and Mr. C. V. Sudarsan and became the Secretary
of the German Shepherd Dog Club of India. Latter on
the club was affiliated to w.u.s.v germany.
At the same time, a young businessman
from Pune, Mr. Sanjay Desai got involved in German Shepherd
showing and breeding; he got success in shows with his
Shepherd, Ch. Ago vom Kirschental (Reserve Dog of the
Year) in partnership with Mrs. Y. Hemchandra. Later,
he started showing and breeding under the prefix �Dogmatix�.
He imported many quality German imports. He brought
some of the finest Weinerau bloodline in the country.
His famous winners were Orfano Blue Iris, Berny Blue
Iris, Ferris Blue Iris, Fia Blue Iris, India Blue Iris,
Odessa Fidelius, Stobuko Yohanessberg (one of the top
producers form Germany), Uro vom Hambachtal, Dasty von
der Weinerau, Uras von Blue Rose, Ful di casa Nobili
(presently one of the top producers in the country),
Vigor drei Birckenzwinger,2009 german v-9-igor von der
rommelsh bach. Mr. Desai�s dog
Hero von haus Mohn won the Dog of the Year award; he
produced numerous champions like Nash of Dogmatix, Urla
of Dogmatix, Quant of Dogmatix, Fan of Dogmatix, Chikey
of Dogmatix, Tasha of Dogmatix and continues to breed
quality Shepherds.he is the first breeder from India
whose breeding is now being shown in germany. He is
the present Secretary of the German Shepherd Dog Club
of India.
Mr. Amar Iqbal Singh Bhinder
from Amritsar, who is very knowledgeable in German Shepherds,
bred some of the finest females in the country. He had
a beautiful German import bitch called Senta von der
Aliusburg, who was a Quino Arminius daughter. From his
kennel, a bitch named Nathalie of Superstar became a
showstopper and won many Best in Show lineups.
In Bangalore, late Mrs. Rajlaxmi
Reguraj was a great ambassador for the breed. She joined
the GSD movement by importing quality dogs and bitches.
A dog owned by her �Ch. Kora�,
became the first German Shepherd to be The Dog of the
Year. From her kennel �Fleetwood
and Artegal� came a finest female,
Artegal�s Will of Fire and many
others. Her son Mr. Nagendran Reguraj, who was an All
Breed Judge and very knowledgeable in German Shepherds,
handled all her dogs to glory and top positions. Mrs.
Reguraj played a vital role in forming the German Shepherd
Dog Club of India and was the first President of the
Club.the g.s.d fraternity lost afriend at the untimely
demise of Mr. nagindiran reguraj.
Mr. Amar Iqbal Singh Dhillon,
an Ex Member of Parliament, entered the German Shepherd
scene with his American import Darengo Leonhaus Journey
and got some success in the show ring; he later shifted
to German bloodlines. Under his kennel prefix �Rising
Star�, he produced a lot of champions.
The significance of his breeding is that he uses all
the best import males available in the country. One
of the top female produced at his kennel is �Ch.
Kelly of Rising Star�. In his late
80s, he is still an active participant and makes it
a point to be present in major dog shows and specialty
shows.
In Delhi, Karwinder Singh and his sister Nina Anand,
bred some quality dogs under the prefix �Fienberg�,
with their German stock from Fidelius. They had a very
beautiful Quando Arminius daughter, Gina von der Burg
Reihnstein.
Mr. C. Ramaswamy from Coimbatore,
under prefix �Goldwins�
bred some excellent specimen, like Goldwin�s
Marko and Goldwin�s Olimbus and
many others from his German imports Sony von der Romerau,
Dango von der Kahlerheide.
The mid 90s saw a young breeder
from Bangalore, Mr. K. E. Ramesh join the group; under
the prefix �Atensberg�,
he imported a few bitches and dogs combining the bloodline
of Quando Bohawald and Gorbi von Badboll and produced
more than 50 champions of correct size and expression
to everybody�s surprise. Atensberg
Pinto and Atensberg Max were very popular show dogs.
Late Mr. Vijay Singh of Patiala
was a great enthusiast and had a great passion for the
breed. His kennel �Aye Vee�,
produced very good specimens. He imported some of the
famous winners like Videx Kimo, Videx Tula, Videx Nathalie,
Fipssi vom Sultzblick, Rocky von haus Tepferd, Fedor
von Steinwaypark. He was the Past President of the German
Shepherd Dog Club of India. His untimely demise was
a great loss to the German Shepherd Breed in India.
In mid 80s Mr. Bharat Bhushan
Beri from Calcutta imported some quality German Shepherds
from kennel �Estherlager�
of Holland, owned by respected SV Judge J. G. Hann.
His dog Goya von Estherlager won multi Best in Show
lineups. Mr. Beri imported a beautiful female �Tina
van dan Alheides Hoeve� and later
imported an Ulk Arlett son �Yupp
von Estherlager�; he imported many
dogs from famous kennel �Bedwin�
and contributed to the gene pool of the eastern part
of the country. Mr. Chanchal Sarkar, from Calcutta imported
a pair �Shooterways Xargas and
Shooterways Yana�. This pair produced
some excellent dogs and bitches from every
litter.
In south, Mr. Vijay Varghese,
imported many good dogs like Xero vom Saverland, Wastly
von Arlett, Jock von Restrauch, Verena vom Bewei, Tell
von Winnloh and many bitches. He sold Xero vom Saverland
and Wastly von Arlett to an experienced breeder from
Pune, named Mr.Azim Farooqui. He produced some excellent
specimens out of these two dogs, under his prefix �Fags�.
He is regularly importing dogs from top German Lines
like; Igor de Brunskilltal, Hulk aus Agrigento, Eros
vom Nindorfer Haus for his breeding program.and his
his home breds like fags fanny,and now fags nash are
top specimen.
Another passionate enthusiast,
Mr. Pradeep Kumar Ghosh from Calcutta imported manys
from Germany and Bedwin kennel of England contributing
a lot to the gene pool of the east. His famous winning
dogs were Ciricho of Titenhof, Ch. Fando of Dogmatix
who did lot of winning in eastern show circuit.
In early 90s Mr. S. Pathy from
Coimbatore, owner of famous �Sanscraintes�
kennel, took interest in German Shepherds and imported
top class German Shepherds from Australia, England and
Germany. He bred quality stock to improve the breed;
his import Wadcre Dexi won numerous Best in Show lineups.
Mr. Guruprasad from Chennai
who has a very good eye for German Shepherds, imported
a glamorous dog called Yasso von der Urbecke. Yasso
won a lot in Indian show circuit. Mr. Guruprasad bred
some outstanding specimensout of Yasso and his import
female, Gora de Grupeto and later on imported dogs like
Flyn von Sanmarko,
Cent von der Urbecke to contribute to the development
of the breed in southern India.now is a committee member
of german shepherd dog club of India.
In the meanwhile, a lady from
Chennai, Mrs. Kala Krishna under prefix �Vinmin�
imported a dog from Australia, Ch. Augnadow Cruister
Classic; he was a deeply pigmented, masculine dog of
good proportions. Later, she imported quality dogs from
Germany,viz., Farinja von der Kahlerheide, Fanti vom
Murrtal, Nita vom Murrtal, Quartz vom Murrtal. Quartz
vom Murrtal proved to be an outstanding producer of
many champions of her kennel.still she breeds quality
dogs with her imports.
The year 2001 saw a new beginning,
when a young man of Afghan origin named Abdullah Noori,
got fascinated by GSDs. India saw a top winning and
producing dog, V 10 � Quando von
Nordlandzwinger a VA Scott v Deodatus son. Before that,
in the year 2000, Mr. Noori�s import
SG 34 � Karly vom Murrtal (Litter
brother to VA Kevin) had become Dog of the Year in India.
But Quando impressed the Indian show ring and created
hype and enthusiasm among GSD lovers. With his ring
presence, anatomy and movement, he became Dog of the
Year for three consecutive years and also was crowned
twice as the Indian Sieger. Quando produced a lot of
top show winning progeny. Mr. Noori imported lot of
winning dogs like; V 7 Fedor Steinway Park, SG 11 Rocky
vom Haus Tepferd, V 11 Bob von der Grafenburg, and 1st
VA bitch Hannie vom Team Fiemereck to contribute to
the gene pool in India.
At present, a young breeder
named Vishwas Raj (Bangalore - Wolfenhaus), has been
very successful with his imports as well as his home
breds. His imports, Xavier von der Urbecke, Delfa von
der Urbecke, Yossy von der Urbecke, Lutzi von Stefanopertal
have been very successful in the show ring.
Mr. Kapil Krishnamurthy from
Coimbatore under the prefix �Kingsway�,
has imported some very good shepherds from Germany.
He has a quality Nero Nobachtal son and double sieger
Yasko vom Farbenspeil son, Rascos von Messebau. He also
has some top quality bitches in his kennel and is producing
some good specimens out of them.his home bred kings
way mika became a sensation we he clinched the vice
sieger tittle in open class male category, in 11th Indian
sieger show at coimbatore.
A young man named p.nityananda
with his kennel prefix kingsland,from south a passionate
breeder ,produced many champions by using the top producing
sire eros frost-krammer,kingsland presented a progeny
group by eros, in 2009 indian sieger show .and his home
bred dogs are continiously winnining in all breed and
speciality shows.
Apart from the above, Late
Mr. Rajinder Malhotra, Mr. Mukul Vaid, Mr. Jagteshwar
Singh, Sheriff Dayan,Mr. vivek jaychandran, Mr. Amar
Parekh, Mr. Subhash Patil, Mr. Ajit Mathew, Mr. Vijay
Ramakrishna, Mr. Pradeep Kumar, Mrs. Sashikala Giri,
Mr. Saibal Chakrabarty, Mr. Somnath Ghosh, Mr. Avijoy
Mukherjee, Mr. S. R. Prusti, Ms. Gauri Nargolkar, Mr.
Ajmer Singh Dadhwal, Mr. vishal sudam, Mr. Peter Moses,
Mr. Satish Shukla, Mr.
Aniruddh Singh, Mr. Sunny Dhaliwal, Mr. Abhai Kaul,
Mr. P. A. Suresh, Mr. Jaskirat Singh Sethi, Mr. Sukhbir
Singh Paintal, Mr. Harchand Singh, Mr. N. Santhosh,
Mr. Ramabhadran, Mr. Jagdeeshwaran, Mr. T. P. Roy, Mr.
I. Dhanashekhar, Mr. M. Mothes, Late Mr. Manuben Joshuaraj
have contributed immensely to the GSD movement and development
in the country. |