Pure Dog Talk

Legends part 2: What NOT to do, Too Many Dog Shows and More

Today’s episode is a continuation of the conversation at the Pure Dog Talk Friday Night Forum at Del Monte Kennel Club in July 2017. Our panel includes Pat Trotter, Dorothy Macdonald and Kimberly Meredith. The conversation continues with questions from social media via live stream and the live audience.

Topics covered include:

* Thoughts on realignment/expansion of groups – realignment to FCI

Kim – hope it never passes – 10 groups in a big cluster would be very difficult – time and costs would be prohibitive

Dorothy – no need to follow fci

* Uncropped dogs in cropped breeds

Kim – doesn’t affect me – don’t pull ears up on uncropped Great Danes.

Dorothy – don’t mind which way they go, just judge them as they are, would prefer no cropping, but have never faulted in judging

Pat – defer to breeder judge – Vince Mulligan

* Decline in entry numbers, too many shows in one weekend… ideas to rein in # of shows &/or bring in more participants

Kim – horse is out of the barn. 200 miles is nothing. AKC approved Too many shows, too close together. It’s a dilemma. Now what do you do? Damage has been done. Show in Chile… FCI subsidizes. AKC approved all the shows… should they supplement these clubs?

Dorothy – the barn door got left open, has evolved… akc will have to rescind licensing. Only solution. They made the mistake, they should bear the solution.

Pat – I think the most innovative person I’ve seen is Kim… what she’s done w/ Woofstock …. Requires more than 2 shows to get the entry up.

* Is the dog that wins BIS the best dog in the show

Kim – whoever’s judging BIS thinks it is

Dorothy – put up the one they thought was best, others might not agree, there are as many opinions as people watching. There are no redos….

Pat – more than one bis when the dog I thought would beat me, didn’t get there.

* Faux pas for exhibitors/what not to do

Kim – very little that irritates me. Except being late. Be there, be prepared, certain breeds are notorious… even if I don’t enjoy them, I enjoy their dogs

Dorothy – excessive roughness from the handler. Pay attention. Keep dog in the shade

Pat – abuse of bait vs use of bait … trying to look at dog’s mouth, shoving bait in its mouth…. Throwing bait… start handling dogs when it stops handling itself… grandstanding… I want to see the dog, not the handler… tendency for handlers to overstretch the dogs… let the judge & steward know if you have multiple dogs & have to change.

Standards: Reading, Interpreting and Understanding the Blueprint

Nannette Newbury, judges education coordinator for United States Australian Shepherd Association, breaks down breed standards.

Newbury’s presentation will help you understand: What are the parts of the standard, what’s a good and bad breed standard, what’s open to interpretation and what isn’t.

Breeders use the standard one way, judges have to use it another way, Newbury noted.

“That judge had to weigh a lot more than soundness,” Newbury said. “What good is it if a dog looks like a coyote and it’s sound. Judges can only go by what’s in the breed standard.”

How to apply the breed standard

Understanding the essence of the breed has to be a priority for judge or breeder, Newbury observed.

When dog shows began, folks had to come up with a way to compare and contrast dogs. The breed standard has to distinguish one breed from another.

“Our breeds came first and then we wrote standards,” Newbury said. “In order to read, interpret and apply a breed standard, you have to have a knowledge of canine anatomy, physiology, structure. It takes time to learn.”

Flaws, faults, implied faults

The breed standard is not a list of negative aspects, Newbury opined, rather it describes ideal.

Hallmarks of a breed are what make it distinct from all others and should be part of a good breed standard.

“If all dogs were perfect, judging would be easy. In the real world, deciding which quality or fault is more or less important and awarding accordingly is the quintessential job of the judge,” Newbury said. “As breeders, you pick your poison. Markings or fronts or whatever, you pick your poison. Judges do the same thing.”

Anything that deviates from the standard is a fault, Newbury noted, while the degree of deviation determines the severity of the fault.

“Go through (your breed) standard and list virtues and ideals.  If the virtue affects original function of the dog, consider those more important,” Newbury said.

“Anybody can find a fault. The hardest thing to do when evaluating a dog is to look at a dog, even one that is of poor quality, and find something good to say about it. It is a gift to be able to find the virtues in a dog.”

There’s always more to learn! Check out previous episodes…

Pat Trotter, Dorothy Macdonald and Kim Meredith Speak at Forum

Today’s episode is part one of a Pure Dog Talk Friday Night Forum at Del Monte Kennel Club in 2017. The panel features Pat Trotter, Dorothy Macdonald and Kim Meredith addressing the topic of the “Judge-Exhibitor Relationship.” Learn about the background and priorities of these legends in the sport.

This Forum was originally available as a livestream video. We’re now bringing everyone all of the information in a three-part series on the podcast.

Topics in this section of the forum include background of the judges, what the judges want to see in the ring, how to ask judges about a dog, the judges’ opinions of the National Owner Handled Series and withholding ribbons.

Learn From the Source

In a current moment that features social media commentary pages on which exhibitors “report” on the judges, often with great vitriol, the value of hearing directly from the judges and what matters to them cannot be overstated.

A highlight of the conversation is Dorothy Macdonald’s description of coming to the US with her family in 1941 and bringing the dogs they could with them, including a Kerry Blue Terrier rescued from Dunkirk.

Macdonald is noted as one of a handful of judges who judge both conformation and field trials.

“I judged field trials as many years as dog shows,” Macdonald said. “I put up the first English setter running in the field that was a show champion.”

“As long as you’re more interested in the dogs than the people, there will never be a split (between exhibitors and judges),” Macdonald said. “I want an exhibitor to be happy in the ring. I’m interested in the dog, not the exhibitor’s ability. Just need them to control the dog. It’s the dog I want to see.”

“We all had a first time in the ring,” Trotter said. “I do want them to have a dog that’s somewhat prepared for the event. I want to have a dog we can go through the process … see the bite, see the dog move.”

“I’m always happy to talk about the dogs I’ve judged,” Meredith said. “Attitude and how the question is approached are everything.”

Dogs Just Want to Have Fun: Increasing Focus in Performance Dogs

Dr. Paige Pierce, veterinary behaviorist, speaks to the topic of increasing focus in overly social dogs during performance events. This presentation was sponsored by the Clumber Spaniel Health Foundation at the 2018 Clumber Spaniel Club of America National Specialty.

Owners and exhibitors of the social butterflies in the dog world, understand the frustration of competing in performance events with a dog who wants to visit with the course setter or bird planter instead of continuing their task.

Dr. Pierce provides outstanding insight in to understanding the dog’s mindset in these situations.

“When the dog is overly excited, he literally can’t hear the command,” Pierce said.

Once she rules out a medical condition, she wants to identify a trigger and then use the environment to *benefit* the dog instead of distracting them.

Managing the dog’s environment so it doesn’t “use up” impulse control or so it is well conditioned to the chaos, depends on the dog. This requires the owner to find the “best level of arousal for that individual for that sport.”

PAIGE PIERCE, MS, DVM

Dr. Pierce graduated with a BS in Zoology from Michigan State University, and moved to College Station, TX, to pursue graduate work in animal behavior and genetics. Upon completing her Master’s degree, she moved to Oregon – not because she had a job lined up, but because she knew this was where she wanted to live. She worked for Oregon Fish and Wildlife for a few years, met her future husband there, and then made a slight shift in career path. She attended OSU’s School of Veterinary Medicine, and has been providing medical care for dogs and cats in Portland since 1997.

In general practice, she’s found that her ongoing fascination with animal cognition, communication and emotional health allows her to help clients with pets who have anxieties and/or concerning behaviors. Her particular areas of interest are reducing the stress and fear that so many dogs and cats experience with vet visits, and trouble-shooting issues that crop up for performance dogs. Dr. Pierce joined the Animal Behavior Clinic as a part-time clinician in 2017.

https://animalbehaviorclinic.net/about/

Veterinary Voice: Brachycephalic Breeds’ Health and Legislation

Dr. Marty Greer visits with host Laura Reeves about the health and recent international legislation impacting Brachycephalic breeds.

Pugs In Holland

Recently the Dutch Pug Club announced, with immediate effect, that the breeding of any pug with a nose less than a third of the length of the skull has been banned.

The following information regarding the breeding of Brachycephalic dogs in Holland is gleaned from several Dutch websites using Google translate:

It has been against the law in Holland since 2014 to breed flat-faced dogs but the government has recently announced they will now be checking dogs, which has triggered this change.

The ban affects popular dog breeds. In the very short term, according to the Dutch legislation, the muzzle of the following dog breeds must be adjusted:  French Bulldog, Pug, Boston Terrier, English Bulldog, Shih Tzu and Pekingese. In the longer term, targeted breeds also include the Boxer, Bordeaux Dog, Bullmastiff, Chihuahua, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel  and the  Yorkshire Terrier .

“It has actually been forbidden since 2014 to keep breeding short snouts, but the ministry has now announced that they will actually check it,” according to Milo Laureij of Dier & Recht. Dier & Recht is a lobbying group that advocates against purebred dogs, insists that wrinkles and flat faces are “harmful” to dogs and “Requires breeders to prevent hereditary disorders.”

Muzzle length

According to the new criteria from the Dutch Pug Club, the muzzle of a dog must be at least a third of the head. That means the end of the pug as it is now being bred in Holland, but also, for example, of the popular English and French Bulldogs and twenty other breeds.

End of breeding

For Commedia, the Dutch association of breeders of Pugs, the new policy is a reason to stop breeding immediately – before enforcement has come into effect. “Since the Ministry believes that breeding dogs with harmful external characteristics has been banned since the entry into force of the Decree on Holders of Animals  (2014), we must also conclude that our internal regulations were in part in conflict with and this decision,” the breed club writes on its website.

New breeding program

“Together with the Expertise Center for Genetics Companion Animals, we are now going to put together a breeding program to find out how we can make the pug meet the requirements of the legislator within a number of generations,” said chairman Arjan Sterk. According to him, the breeders reacted differently to Commedia’s decision. “They all understand, but there is always anger and disappointment. But I have not heard that people drop out.”

Traffic light system

The ministry uses a traffic light system with the colors red, orange and green. Red applies to dogs with a snout length shorter than a third of the skull, such as the pug and English and French bulldog. Breeding with these dogs is prohibited immediately. Orange applies to dogs with a muzzle length of a third to half the skull. With this, breeding is only allowed if they meet other criteria that are set for breeding. ‘Green’ dogs have a snout that is at least half the size of the skull. You can breed with this.

Shock waves in U.S.

Greer noted that National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA) is actively working to encourage awareness by breeders and purebred dog enthusiasts in the U.S. and elsewhere about this type of animal rights extremism and its looming potential impact here.

Pugs are an ancient breed from China, the appearance of which has changed little in 150 years.

From the

Coloring the Future: Artist Creates Purebred Dog Designs

Sandy Mesmer is an artist, Silky Terrier breeder and purebred dog enthusiast who has designed and published the first of a planned series of coloring books for each group.

“Color Me Canine: a Coloring Book for Dog Lovers of All Ages!” is Mesmer’s debut book in the series, this one covering the toy group.

Mesmer provides great insight about Silky Terriers in addition to her discussion of the coloring book, responsible breeders, taking back the conversation on purebred dogs and so much more.

“This book is a celebration of purebred dogs,” Mesmer said. “This is a viable alternative to the ‘adopt don’t shop’ message for children.”

“I am planning 7 more volumes of Color Me Canine, one for each AKC Group and Miscellaneous,” Mesmer added. “There are two areas that I could use help with:

* Part of the description I do for each breed is a crowd-sourced “In Three Words”. It can be helpful for someone to hear how the breed is very briefly described, it gives a snapshot of the breed’s temperament. You are very welcome to email me at [email protected]with your “In Three Words” for your breed. After all very breed is “great”. But is it independent? Sweet? Elegant? Feisty? All these adjectives can help a prospective buyer. As a matter of fact, as a thank you I’ll put you on our mailing list (if you’d like) so you can get the latest news about my coloring books.

* I have done over 160 headshots so far, these are the detailed drawings I use to model my coloring pages. They can be seen at the store (sandy-bergstrom-mesmer-designs.myshopify.com). I am working on the remaining 40+ as I work my way through each Group and am open to receiving photos of breeds I haven’t done yet. If I have done your breed, please feel free to check out your Headshot — I try hard to be an expert on each one but I know sometimes a detail slips through the cracks. As I can often easily correct such errors, I welcome experienced advice.”

Mesmer includes in the book, amongst a treasure trove of valuable information, this outstanding description.

What Makes a Responsible Pet Owner? 

My friend and I got on the subject the other day. She volunteers at an animal shelter. We were having coffee. “I gotta tell you what happened.”

“Right before closing, I had this lady at my counter with a small black dog.

‘It’s not my fault,’ the lady told me. ‘This dog is obviously over-bred. I was promised that he wouldn’t shed, but he does – everywhere. And he pees everywhere too.

‘The kids begged and begged for a dog. I gave in but I told them, you’ll have to take care of him yourselves. And of course, they agreed. But did they? Of course not! It all got dumped on me. As usual. Never wanted the stupid thing in the first place.

‘Last night I got up to get a drink of water and stepped straight into a big pile of dog poop. That was the final straw.

‘I’m sure you understand I did all I could. The dog is obviously over-bred. It’s not my fault!”

My friend gave a deep sigh. “The woman so floored me, I couldn’t think of what to say. I came through the counter, took the dog’s leash and led him away. He’s a sweet little boy and no trouble at all. I took a long walk afterward.

“How can people get it so wrong?”

I shook my head. “No one ever tells people how to be a responsible pet owner. Instead they get their ears and eyeballs filled up with stories of Evil Breeders. Victimhood is so much simpler than to stand up and take responsibility.

“It’s way too easy to put a solitary bulls-eye on all breeders as the blanket cause of shelters full of abandoned animals. A good dog breeder is part of the solution, but so is a responsible pet owner.

Jeff Heim: “Dog Shows Are Not Dying” and Other Punditry

Professional handler, Jeff Heim, reflects on 50 years of learning, from cattle judging in FFA to observing handlers and judges at dog shows.

As someone who is always willing to help, talk to a stranger or answer a question, Heim observed there is a fine line in mentoring.

“You need to offer advice in a way people will hear it,” Heim said. He also encourages new exhibitors to watch other handlers to learn.

“Find the handlers who are above average,” Heim said. “Watch them. See what they are doing, take that move home and try it on your dog… not everything works for every dog. Learn what the handler is doing and why, with that particular dog – they’ve done the trial and error to get to that point.”

Heim repeats, for the umpteenth time in a row, the downfall of “drive through dog shows.”

“You cannot come to the dog show, show your dog and go home,” Heim said. “Spend some time. You spent your money. There’s a whole dog show here. Go watch breeds that are similar to yours. Then go watch breeds that aren’t similar. Watch the judges all day.”

“A judge can only judge what you present to them,” Heim noted. “The judges are not going to make up what they want to see, they are going to judge what you show them. The mediocre dog with a great handler is going to beat the great dog with an average handler most of the time. Because the great handler never lets the judge see the dog’s faults.”

Amongst his myth busting thoughts, Heim blows away the idea of “DNS Lists.”

“There is no judge I will not show a dog to. It’s a waste of time. You pay your money and take your chances. But know the type of dog the judge will like,” Heim added.

In his typical bluff fashion, Heim also opined that dog shows are not dying.

“The sport isn’t going to die,” Heim insisted. “This sport was going during wars. These days we have a lot of shows and entries are down because they’re all spread out. Dog shows are not put on for your entertainment. They are for earning championship points. The entertainment is on you. Put together a potluck with your friends. Sit down, talk, learn about each other. Dog people all have varied backgrounds. Put your phones DOWN! Interact with each other. If you aren’t having fun, maybe you need to change your group.”

Shetland Sheepdog – Smart, Versatile, Adaptable

Host Laura Reeves visited the American Shetland Sheepdog Association National specialty for a multi-generational roundtable discussion of Shelties — what makes them good companions, fancy show dogs and fierce competitors in performance events.

The roundtable participants captured the breed beautifully. Shelties are “fancy for their size,” “athletic and eager to please,” “smart, versatile and adaptable.”

A long-lived, healthy breed, these experts said temperament and training impact how much vocalizing an individual dog will do.

While the experts agree that in years past, the quality of the sable color exceeded the others, today, they said, blue merle, tri and bi-black color dogs have improved in quality significantly.

Correct Sheltie expression, head planes and size are imperative to success in the show ring, our panel noted. They added that aspiring exhibitors need to be prepared for a “survival of the fittest” type commitment to the breed. A “young” breed, Shelties can be challenging to produce quality consistently, the panel noted, so new owners of show-potential pups are carefully screened.

According to “Shetland Sheepdog History” by Charlotte McGowan,

The history of the Sheltie is relatively recent and its earliest history is rather undistinguished. The Shetland Islands are remote and sparsely inhabited, although there is evidence of a long history as a stepping stone from Norway in ancient times. The general nature of the Shetland Islands, the windblown climate and somewhat sparse vegetation, have contributed to the miniaturization of livestock there in general. Because of the isolation of the Islands and the difficulty of making a living, animals there had to be very hardy.

The early native dogs were a very mixed lot but were generally very small, often 8-10 inches in height. It has been said that the ancestors of the dogs were Spitz type dogs brought from Scandinavia by early settlers, along with the large white Pomeranian, King Charles Spaniel, and smaller working sheepdogs from Scotland. The native dogs were rather inbred as no one kept more dogs than were needed for work.

The dogs were used to work Shetland Sheep, a small, extremely agile, almost goat-like breed. These original Island dogs were bred solely for utility. Because there are no fences on Shetland, the dogs did not do traditional sheep herding. They were used to drive sheep into rough stone enclosures so they could be dipped or “rooed,” as pulling the wool off them was called. They were also used to drive the rather wild sheep away from the crofter’s meager gardens. Another task was staying with the sheep on the more remote uninhabited islands in the summer. There they needed to be able to protect lambs from birds of prey like eagles, and traverse the seaweed covered rocks. The dog used its vocal abilities to bark at birds and scare them away. Barking was also a way to move sheep away from the croft and to locate the dog.

….

To continue reading this fascinating article, visit: https://www.americanshetlandsheepdogassociation.org/2016/07/08/shetland-sheepdog-history-mcgowen/

Commentary: Fun Matches and Rethinking Rankings

Host Laura Reeves sat down with Lori Wilson-Paust to talk about fun matches, the need for “picnics in the park” that build the sport from the ground up and rethinking the “rankings rat race.”

For more thoughts on the topic, following is a reprint of an article Laura wrote for the online magazine Best in Show Daily a few years ago. Sadly just as applicable today…

As the Wheels Turn

by Laura Reeves, PHA

Rankings Remix

The latest statistics, for the first half of 2015, hit the airwaves today. Everyone from junior handlers to owner handlers to the top dog in the country of any breed is ranked in every possible format.

While I acknowledge the appeal, and certainly am not immune to bragging on the success of the dogs I show, I wonder, along with almost everyone I know, if this system is not a huge part of the problem we are all complaining about in modern AKC Conformation dog shows.

Simultaneously, I received an unexpected gifty from AKC in the form of a Grand Champion certificate for a dog I own. I am terrible about counting GCH points and frankly tell every one of my clients to count themselves or simply wait until the certificate shows up.

At this point in my life, I have a giant file full of certificates I never even look at. So what was special about this one? First, I wasn’t expecting it, even remotely. Second, the dog was shown a *total* of 16 shows (days, not weekends) since finishing his championship in January. He was shown three weekends to earn his championship, all at specialties or supported entries. He also earned a group placement at a large show in January and is still ranked, from that one day, #11 in all-breed competition.

This story isn’t about bragging, but rather about percentages. This dog was shown eight weekends out of 56 (May 2014 – June 2015). As this is a breed and group well outside my norm, in many cases he was entered under judges I had never even heard of, never mind shown to previously. Of the 28 entries, he won points toward his Championship or Grand Championship roughly 50 percent of the time.

Which begs the question — if a dog wins 50 percent of 30 shows, should it be ranked higher than a dog with 20 or 30 wins which was entered in 100 shows (ie only 20 or 30 percent winning average).

This also applies to the concept of stud dog/brood bitch success. For example: Brood Bitch A (an actual case) was successfully bred once. She produced, out of 12 live puppies, a BIS/BISS/DC/AFC/JH/CD (a breed first), a Ch/MH/RN/TD/MX/MXJ, a BISS/CH/group placer and a CH/regional specialty WD/BOW. This bitch, in her breed club, is not eligible for a Register of Merit award as there were not seven titled get, even though the allotted point total is more than sufficient. Brood Bitch B (fictional), who would theoretically qualify for the ROM, is bred four times, makes 32 live puppies, of which six become champions (perhaps by beating four or more of their littermates), three with a Junior Hunter, one with a Companion Dog and one Novice Agility titled dog. So, seven titled get out of 32 live puppies is a 22 percent “success” rate, versus four out of 12 which is 33 percent.

While perhaps a bit belabored, you begin to see the point. Statistics are great fun. Who doesn’t want to be #1? Are they particularly useful in identifying the “best” or most successful dogs being shown or bred? Maybe not so much.

As with anything else, take your month-end stats reports with a grain of salt. Better yet, perhaps AKC or even one of the dog sport mags could invest in the computer programming skills required to create a “percentage-shown” ranking system, which addresses so many of the issues in today’s fancy. All it takes is registration numbers and a good algorithm. The basic information necessary is already utilized in the existing rankings.

In such a system,

Insurance Plans Go to the Dogs 

PetPartners President John Wycoff joins host Laura Reeves to talk about the how’s and why’s of insurance for our dogs.

“Pets can get most of the same treatments people can get,” Wycoff said. “Costs of those treatments can be prohibitive.”

Cost Prohibitive Treatments

From foreign body ingestion surgery to chemotherapy for cancer treatment, these treatments for dogs can run in to the tens of thousands of dollars.

“Having pet insurance allows you to avoid a big financial burden when something happens later in your pet’s life,” Wycoff said.

Share the Risks

“Buying insurance allows you to share the risk of certain conditions that can happen with you, your pet, car, house,” Wycoff said. “You hope you never have these situations, but if they happen, you then have a plan to cover the catastrophic costs.”

Pet insurance is similar to human programs, but with no “networks.” Owners choose the level of coverage, deductibles, add-ons and can use their regular vet. There were 1,828,126 pets insured in the United States in 2017.

And, unlike car insurance, the number of claims submitted doesn’t affect the premium.

“Premiums are based on the coverage you choose, the age of your pet and the current market in your area at the time of policy enrollment/renewal,” Wycoff said.

The AKC Pet Insurance Blog offers the following tips for pet owners shopping for insurance:

Quick Tips

* Know What You Want – Determine the type of coverage you’re interested in purchasing for your pet before you start shopping.

* Do Your Research – Go online to review pet insurance providers and get a feel for how they conduct business. Read customer reviews and speak with anyone you know who has a pet enrolled with a company to get an opinion on ease of use, claim turnaround time, and customer service.

* Compare Providers – Ensure you’re getting the best policy for your pup by comparing the companies with the coverage options you desire.

* Customer Portals – A customer portal provides policyholders with the ability to log in to an account to access policy information, submit claims, and track a claim as it is processed. If you want to be being kept up-to-date on the status of your claims, you may want to choose a company that offers a customer portal.

* Pick Your Plan – Read through the terms and conditions of your potential policy to understand what is and isn’t covered. If you have any questions, give the pet insurance company’s customer service a call. When you’ve found the right plan, enroll your pet.

Wycoff noted that AKC Pet Insurance program provides 30 days of coverage with dog registration. For more information, visit https://www.akcpetinsurance.com/