Where does Dobermann (dog breed) come from?
The Dobermann comes from Apolda, a small town in Thuringia, central Germany. It is the only German breed named after its original breeder, Friedrich Louis Dobermann, who in the late 1800s set out to breed a sharp, fearless dog to protect him.
A tax collector's guard dog
Louis Dobermann was born in Apolda in 1834 and died there in 1894. He is described as a tax collector who also worked as a knacker and part-time dog catcher, legally allowed to catch stray dogs, and he ran the local dog pound. With dogs of many breeds at hand, he chose the sharpest and bravest of them to breed from. His aim was a dog with stamina, strength and intelligence that would be ideal for protecting him.
A mix of local dogs
Exactly which dogs went into the breed is uncertain. The breed standard says 'butcher's dogs', an early type of Rottweiler, played the most important role, mixed with a Thuringian shepherd dog that was black with rust-red markings. A crossing with the Greyhound and the Manchester Terrier is documented. Sources disagree on when the mixing began: the breed standard says the 1870s, other accounts the 1880s or around 1890. After Dobermann's death the breeder Otto Goeller refined the dogs in the 1890s.
Police dogs and a lost 'n'
The new dogs made alert, protective watchdogs and were soon used as guard and police dogs, which earned them the nickname 'gendarme dog'. By the beginning of the 20th century they were officially recognised as police dogs. After their breeder's death, Germans named the breed Dobermann-pinscher in his honour. Half a century later they dropped 'pinscher', the German word for a terrier type, and Britain followed. Only the United States and Canada still say Doberman Pinscher, spelled with one 'n'.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org ↗ · fci.be ↗ · de.wikipedia.org › Friedrich Louis Dobermann ↗ · de.wikipedia.org › Dobermann ↗
