In the early days, many of the shepherd dogs were of unknown ancestry, but those with appropriate breed characteristics were bred and recorded, even though their pedigrees were partially unknown.
Auparavant, on ne connaissait pas la généalogie de la plupart des bergers allemands, mais on fit se reproduire ceux qui présentaient les particularités souhaitées pour la race et on les enregistra, même si leur pedigree n'était que partiellement établi.