Throughout nineteenth century Europe, unofficial groups had been operating to selectively breed dogs with profound qualities.
Early in the group's history there was constant bickering regarding the desired traits of what would become the German Shepherd Dog.
This argument was never settled and after numerous attempts to breed the German Shepherd dog failed by producing dogs with little to no utility, many of the members left; resulting in the Phylax Society disbanding in 1894, only four years after its establishment.
[2][3][4][5] Although the Phylax Society had disbanded, many former members continued in attempts to breed a dog with superior qualities.
It was due to the original formation of the Phylax Society that Max von Stephanitz was inspired to form the Verein für Deutsche Schäferhunde (Society for the German Shepherd Dog) in 1899, which ultimately led to the creation of the modern German Shepherd Dog breed.