History of the Belgian Shepherd Dog in Belgium

In the late 1800's in Belgium, Professor Adolphe Reul, of the Cureghem Veterinary Medical School, set out to catalogue and categorise the range of native Belgian sheep herding dogs of the time. On the 15th of November 1891, a gathering of shepherds and their 117 dogs took place on the outskirts of Brussels. Prof. Reul concluded that in addition to the 'foreign' herders on display, there appeared to be a native type among them. This dog was relatively consistent with a square shape, medium size and small triangular ears. However, these dogs differed greatly in their coat colour, length and texture. Coats came in a variety of colours such as black, brown, brindle, fawn and grey. There were also long- and short-coated individuals. Additionally, there was a rough-coated version of the same type of dog.

The breed was officially born between 1891 and 1897. Prof. Reul, who established the Club du Chien de Berger Belge (Belgian Shepherd Dog Club) on the 29th September 1891, applied to the Sociéte Royale Saint Hubert, Belgium's national kennel club for official breed status and recognition. It was declined. Shepherding dogs were considered too common and lacking in uniformity for official recognition.

Efforts were then made to fix the type of the Belgian shepherding dogs. The first standard written by Prof. Reul in early April 1892 described it as one single breed with three coat colours and varieties as 'variegated coat: black, almost black, brown, brindled brown, greyish, earth colour, etc'.

The origins of these varieties are attributed to specific Belgian individuals after whose hometowns the varieties are named. The black, longhaired Groenendael is named after the Chateau de Groenendael (meaning 'green valley' in Flemish) and its breeder M. Nicholas Rose.
 
The fawn, longhaired Tervuren is named after the eponymous town where M. F Corbeel, a brewer, was resident. The fawn, short-coated Malinois was named for the town of Mechelen (in French Malines), where M. L Huyghebaert lived and finally the fawn, rough-coated Laekenois, from the Chateau de Laeken, where Queen Marie-Henriette named them her favourite; was developed by the shepherd Janssens The latter variety almost didn't survive, due to what is now thought to be an error of judgement on behalf of Prof. Reul. The most common and by far the most homogenous group of fawn, rough-haired dogs bred by M. Janssens from Laeken were rejected in favour of an ash-grey variation. This was despite the fact that there were only two subjects (owned by M. A Claessens) existing at the time. M. Claessens was an avid and active member of the club, whilst M. Janssens was a humble, Flemish speaking shepherd.

In the early days of fixing breed type, inter-variety breeding was commonplace. For this reason, a number of 'foundation' dogs appear in the original genealogies of different types. Also for this reason, it is common to find Tervueren pups (i.e. fawn coloured, long haired) in Groenendael litters and vice versa. A number of the same dogs also appear in the Malinois and Laekenois lines.

Duc de Groenendael (out of the famous Picard and Petite, selected by Prof. Reul as the foundation pair in 1898, but owned by Nicholas Rose) was responsible for creating the black, long-coated Groenendael, and when mated to Miss, produced Milsart who is described, as having had a deep charcoal-fawn coat, became the foundation stud for the Terveren type.

The occasional white flash on the chest, which many Groenendaels today still display, is attributed to Picard.

The table below shows the origins of the Groenendael and Tervueren lines

Click here to see Vanistica Stowaway at Shelair "Spenser's" pedigree traced back to the
Foundation Groenendael Dog

By 1898, it became more pressing to decide on a list of acceptable colours. Mr Van Hertsen, a veterinary surgeon, and member of the club stated that 'black is a sign of strength and intelligence. Pale colours betray the degeneracy'. This type of comment epitomises the reasons for the conflict, which ensued between factions of breeders in Belgium. The Club du Chien de Berger Belge aimed to fix type based on colour and conformation. While those involved with the actual working dogs (represented by the Berger Belge Club, founded 1898) were more interested in breeding for functionality and working ability. Hence, presumably, the marked variation in colour and coat type which Prof. Reul originally observed at that first gathering. It was for this reason that the breed standard included specific revisions relating to colour by 1899.

However, Prof. Reul's Club du Chien de Berger Belge eventually lost the debate and the Berger Belge Club took over. Shepherd Janssens' fawn rough-coated dogs remain the originating types for the Laekenois.

In 1901, ten years after the initial gathering in Brussels, the Belgian Shepherd Dog was registered with the Royal Saint-Hubert Society Stud Book (L.O.S.H.). The first and second world wars were disastrous for the Belgian Shepherds. If the breeding dogs were not killed, they were stolen and taken to Germany. Fortunately some were spared and could insure the continuity of their bloodline. Kennels like 'du Mont-Sara' and 'de l'infernal' contributed to the restoration of the breed. With lots of patience, inbreeding and the right selection, the Belgian shepherds were revived. By 1910, the type and temperament of the Belgian Shepherd had been established and is officially recognised by the FCI (Fédération Cynologique Internationale) based co-incidentally in Belgium. Visit the FCI Website for the Breed Standard:
http://www.fci.be/nomenclatures.asp?lang=en&sel=0


The Belgian's History in Ireland

The first Belgian Shepherd Dog, a Groenendael, was imported to Ireland in 1969. The Tervueren arrived in 1985 and the first Malinois in 1986. There are currently less than 200 Belgians registered in the country, making them a relatively uncommon breed, with only a few breeders. The Groenendael is the most popular breed at present, followed by the Tervueren and the Malinois. The Laekenois was first officially recognised in 2003 by the Irish Kennel Club, when two were registered for showing purposes. There are at present, no resident Laekenois in Ireland.

Excerpts reproduced with permission of Sharon Donohoe

Email: shelair.groen@oceanfree.net

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