Working Dogs: An Attempt To Produce A Strain Of German Shepherds Which Combines Working Aability And Beauty Of Conformation

Learn about early research on canine genetics and behavior.
Before there was Scott and Fuller s Genetic and Social Behavior of the Dog or Clarence Pfaffenberger s New Knowledge of Dog Behavior, there was this book. Working Dogs is the story of a pioneering study undertaken in the 1920s and 30s to selectively breed dogs that were not only physically sound but also behaviorally stable. Realizing the potential for dogs to help mankind in a variety of ways as police dogs, herding dogs, guide dogs for the blind, and search and rescue dogs the researchers wanted to improve the success rate of breeding that were able to work over an extended period of time with the minimum of fatigue and still fit into a family setting.
This ambitious project, named Fortunate Fields, was begun in 1924 on a farm in Switzerland. Conceived of and managed by Mrs. Harrison Eustis, who provided some of the original breeding stock, every step in the breeding, rearing and training of these working dogs was carefully planned, measured, recorded and analyzed. Working Dogs tells a story as fascinating as a novel, of how the intelligent application of scientific principles could produce more and more standard results and better working dogs.

Of special interest to
Dog Breeders
Dog Behaviorists
Service dog programs
History buffs
German Shepherd fanciers