The History of the Dutch Shepherd in World War 2 (OSS)

During World War II, the Dutch Shepherd breed was almost wiped out due to a combination of factors: 

• Modern farming

  The Dutch Shepherd was originally bred as a sheep herding dog, but modern farming techniques reduced the need for the breed. 

  
  

• Breeding

  Breeding of most dog breeds in the Netherlands stopped during the war, and many dogs died from starvation or were taken to Germany by the German military. 

  
  

• Bloodlines

  Many Dutch Shepherd bloodlines became extinct as a result of these factors. 

  
  

After the war, enthusiasts began breeding programs again, but the Dutch Shepherd is still considered a rare breed today. The Dutch Breed Club tried to resurrect the breed by adding new blood to the gene pool through crossbreeding with the Malinois, but eventually stopped this practice. 

Above from online sources and below are my thoughts: Jennifer Sparkman 💯

As FCI Dutch Shepherd breeders we have kept our FCI genetics pure and to the original FCI Standards and in our bloodlines you will not find a Malinois cross or a fawn Dutch we produce all brindle Dutchs, dark striped and golden some with silver stripes. Our Dutch’s are much bigger in size then the American standards. Ours can stand over 24 inches tall and are very wide muscular stature and weigh from 60-95 pounds depending on the pairings. We have used a very careful and thought out breeding plan to pair our Dutch’s to produce the most workable and solid Dutch Shepherd always raised in our family environment always well socialized and rounded! We can now produce a Dutch for working and non working homes , even our tier1 working Dutch’s can live in family homes with children and other animals. We get several calls from clients looking for a safe family dog with a possibility for protection work. We are always proud to say yes we absolutely will have a excellent candidate for you! We place Dutch’s from each litter into different jobs meaning each go to a different type of home depending on their aptitude testing results. So two may go be family companions, two may be psa sport dogs, and two may be police working dogs and we may even pull a PTSD service dog for our veterans. These FCI lineages we produce have excellent calm downs and shut offs making it obvious why the military was enjoying using them during the 2nd World War and continue to today!

Although the Dutch Shepherd has been in the United States for 40 years, not all lineages are the same . The FCI Dutch Shepherd, last I researched, was around 2000 worldwide and around 1,500 in the United States this number I researched a few years back . With AKC now collecting DNA for AKC FSS with the Dutch Shepherd our personal fears are that the Dutch would become like the German shepherd and degrade due to poor breeding and over breeding! This is why we refuse to go with any American registry and stick only to the FCI standards. We pour everything we have into these amazing animals and do everything possible to protect this breed and to place these wonderful animals with amazing people and families!

The Dutch Shepherd is such a rare yet phenomenal dog breed that’s been used for anything they can be trained to do when bred right they are the perfect addition to any family, organization and you will never see more in depth loyalty and love then that of a Dutch Shepherd!