Origin. In 2018, a genetic study found that just prior to 1859 a broadly distributed European herding dog had given rise to the German Shepherd Dog, the French Berger Picard, and the five Italian herding breeds: the Bergamasco Shepherd, Cane Paratore, Lupino del Gigante, Pastore d'Oropa, and the Pastore della Lessinia e del Lagorai.. The Pastore della Lessinia e del Lagorai has been ...