ANALYSIS OF SKIN PATTERNS OF GERMAN SHEPHERD’S RHINARIUM IN COMPARATIVE ASPECT

The popularity of the German Shepherd breed and its use in many areas of human life creates the need to search for new identification methods to establish ownership. The identification methods available, such as chipping and marking, have several disadvantages. The method of dogs’ identification by rhinarium’s imprint is comparatively cheap and reliable. Papillary patterns reflected on rhinarium’s imprint are relatively constant, and have common and particular signs of difference, which make it possible to distinguish the impression of one dog from another. Dogs of the same breed have a standardized exterior, that is, similarity in external characters, which suggests that there are similarities between common and particular characteristics within the same breed. It is found that imprints of the rhinarium of German shepherd breed dogs, obtained from dogs of different origin, housing and feeding conditions, have common features of papillary patterns peculiar to the given breed. The presented results of the comparison of skin patterns of the rhinarium show that this breed is characterized by a straight, straight round-pointed and V-shaped forms of the nose symmetry line, the majority of the representatives of the breed have prints heavily spotted with lines and, as a rule, have 2 branches of the line of symmetry, which proves the presence of breed characteristics and allows for the use of prints in forensic and forensic veterinary identification of dogs.