The German Shepherd Dog was originated in Germany in the late 1800s by Captain Max von Stephanitz, a former German Army Captain who hoped to breed an all-purpose working dog. He created the schutzhund trial, a breed test, and any dog that failed the trial was prohibited from breeding. These strict guidelines led to the rapid development of the breed's abilities and intelligence.

After World War I, American soldiers, impressed by the German Shepherd's intelligence and trainability, brought the breed to the United States where it quickly became a popular pet as well as working dog. Today, German Shepherds are often trained as police dogs, guide dogs, guard dogs, and of course sheepdogs.

They're considered the third smartest breed of dog, behind only the Border Collie and Poodle. To be placed in the top tier of intelligence, breeds must understand a new command after only five repetitions and follow the first command given to them 95 percent of the time.

At the conclusion of World War I, it was believed that the inclusion of the word "German" would harm the breed's popularity due to the anti-German sentiment of the era. The UK Kennel Club officially changed the breed's name to "Alsatian Wolf Dog", after the French region of Alsace bordering Germany. The name remained for five decades, until 1977, when successful campaigns by dog enthusiasts pressured the British kennel clubs to allow the breed to be registered again as German Shepherds.

On June 19, 2009, a German shepherd named Daz Lightning broke the Guinness world record for the loudest bark ever with a woof of 108 decibels.

Most commonly, German Shepherds are either tan/black or red/black. Rarer color variations include the sable, pure-black, pure-white, liver, silver, blue, and panda varieties. The all-black and sable varieties are acceptable according to most standards, but the blue and liver are considered to be serious faults, and the all-white is grounds for instant disqualification from showing in conformation at All Breed and Specialty Shows.

After being rescued from a World War I battlefield by American soldier Lee Duncan, Rin Tin Tin caught the eye of a talent scout by reportedly jumping 12 feet at a dog show. He went on to become a huge box-office success and, along with the earlier canine film star Strongheart, was responsible for greatly increasing the popularity of German Shepherd dogs as family pets.

In 1929, the Australian Federal Government classified German Shepherds as "dangerous" and banned the import of this breed. The prohibition remained in effect for decades, during which time record numbers of German Shepherds were smuggled into the country. The ban was finally lifted in 1976.

The history of The Seeing Eye began in Vevey, Switzerland in the 1920s when Dorothy Harrison Eustis set up a breeding and training facility for German shepherds. In 1928, Buddy the German Shepherd became the first seeing eye dog to Morris Frank, a 19-year-old blind man from Nashville, Tennessee who wanted to regain his independence. Frank named all his future Seeing Eye dogs (he had six in total) Buddy. The name is now retired by The Seeing Eye.

The Orthopedic Foundation for Animals found that 19.1% of German Shepherd are affected by hip dysplasia. There are, however, ways to help prevent hip dysplasia, including getting a pup from a good breeder, keeping it on a healthy diet, and limiting the amount of jumping or rough play.