White was a colour found in the german shepherd since the breed was put together in the 1880s and until 1933 when it was turned into a disqualification in the german standard. It is said that it was changed due to health issues connected to the colour but there is no proof of this. The colour quickly disappeared in Europe, but there were remaining white shepherd breeders in for instance USA and Canada. It is the canadian standard that forms the basis of the swiss one (which is used within the FCI). White became a disqualified colour in german shepherds in 1968 in the USA, and many of the dogs were exported to Europe, where several kennels were started. Today most west-european countries have white shepherd clubs, including Germany. Many consider it to be a companion breed, but in Germany the breed is expected to have the same type of working qualities as the german shepherd. The breed was recognized by the FCI in 2003.

The white shepherd resembles the german shepherd as it looked in the mid 1900s. It should have a medium length body, elegant with flowing lines. The head should be wedge-shaped, powerful and dry, forehead and top of muzzle parallell. The nose is preferred as dark as possible. The eyes are almond-shaped, the ears set high. The chest is deep but not too broad, as high as half the height at the withers. The topline should be horizontal. The tail is set low and sable-shaped.