The Great Ones – Ch. Ferry von Rauhfelsen & Ch. Jessy von der Sonnenhöhe

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162 – June, 2022

By Kerrin Winter-Churchill

Jessy, Ferry and the Rest

American dog fanciers owe a great debt of gratitude to the visionary men and women in Europe during the two World Wars. These people often put their safety on the line–sometimes sacrificing their very lives for the sake of the breeds they held so dear. Their dedication and serious determination to create something good and lasting when the world as they knew it crumbled at their feet should be an example to us all, reminding us just how precious our human right to breed dogs really is.

Those who walked before us would surely tell us to study bloodlines deeply and to never forget that we are in this for the dogs. This story is dedicated to those dog breeders of long ago. Their spirit lives on in our dogs today. May we never forget.

The Brewing Storm

‘Breathtaking,’ said some. ‘Striking,’ said others, while a few used the superlative description, ‘In a class by themselves.’ Whatever adjective or phrase the early 20th-century fancier ascribed to the sleek and sexy Doberman Pinscher, the breed at first recognition was seized upon by some very important players in the American game called purebred dogs.

This was a time when modern industrialization and mass-produced abundance created a fertile garden of opportunity in America, and families with seed money, impeccable timing and a little luck found themselves with fortunes beyond their wildest dreams. Now the ‘new rich’ found time to pursue their personal interests, and a handful of these privileged characters turned their pursuits to dog breeding.

While much has changed in our world since the early 20th century, the very best breeders of Doberman Pinschers today have an awful lot in common with the best of that old and gilded period. Modern Doberman breeders are a competitive group, keen to prove the merits of their dogs and bloodlines, but their minds and opinions are formed from the age-old practice of studying their breed’s history and origin. The best among them can call out important names in a pedigree, easily harking back 50 years or more, regardless of whether or not they themselves were yet born when these immortals walked the earth.

This has always been the way with the best Doberman Pinscher breeders. They carry with them a sense of pride in not just their dogs but in their breed, and it is always sitting on their sleeve, ready to ignite with flames of passion when an earnest student comes along asking for the way and the truth of Dobermans.

The Beginning of the Story

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162 – June, 2022

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