Dog News The Digest Volume 30, Issue 2
Of American Dogs $5.00
January 16, 2015
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*Breed points, All Systems
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Dog News Contents • January 16, 2015 10 Editorial 14 Irving’s Impressions: A Summary Of The U.K. In 2014
By Ronnie Irving
18 A Thought To Consider: It’s Our Schoolyard By seymour weiss 22 Question Of The Week By Matthew H. Stander 26 Inside The Sport: Starting The New Year By Pat Trotter 30 Netherlands Bull Terrier Show By Desmond J. Murphy 34 Bests Of The Week 38 Ten Questions Asked of David Fitzpatrick 42 Dorothy Johnson, Dog Lover And Artist By Nick Waters 44 Animal Rights Or Animal Welfare: Which Does Our Current Animal Law Support? Part 2 By Angela Chase 48 Remembering Bob Black By Thomas Parrotti 52 The FCI Fiasco, The Rating Systems And More By Matthew H. Stander 56 Off The Leash: Trending In 2015 By Shaun Coen 72 The Gossip Column By Eugene Z. Zaphiris 74 Click: Brooksville Kennel Club By Karen Justin 76 Letters To The Editor 78 Click: Cleveland Crown Classic By JC photography 80 Click: The Way We Were By david sombach 82 handlers directory • 83 subscription rates • 84 classified advertising • 86 advertising rates DOG NEWS (ISSN 0886-2133) is published weekly except the last two weeks in December by Harris Publications, 1115 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10010. Periodical Postage paid at New York. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to DOG NEWS, 1115 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10010 4 Dog News
All advertisements are copyrighted and owned by DOG NEWS, Harris Publications, unless received camera-ready. Permission to reprint must be requested in writing.
TEAM GUS...
First Two Shows of 2015:
Best In Show & Reserve Best In Show! Team Gus thanks Best In Show Judge Mr. James White and Reserve Best In Show Judge Ms. Beverly Capstick for these prestigious wins.
TOP WINNING SWISSY IN AKC HISTORY
H The Number One Swissy, Breed & All Breed H The Number 8 Working Dog *
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Multiple Best In Show, National Specialty Best In Show
GCh. Derby’s Toast With Gusto Owned By: Rick & Sue Copeland Richmond, Texas
Bred By: Kristin Kleeman Robyn & Kenneth Toth *The Dog News Top Ten List
Presented By Scott Sommer Assisted by Connery Cole Dog News 5
PUBLISHER
Dog News Cover Story • January 16, 2015
STANLEY R. HARRIS EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
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Ian Miller 212 462.9624 Contributing Editors Sharon Anderson • Andrew Brace Agnes Buchwald • Patricia Gail Burnham Shaun Coen • Carlotta Cooper Geoff Corish • Michael Faulkner Merry Fitzgerald, DVM • Denise Flaim Geir Flyckt - Pedersen • Allison Foley Yossi Guy • Ronnie Irving • Roz Kramer John Mandeville • Sidney Marx Linda More • Demond J. Murphy M. J. Nelson • Sharon Pflaumer John Shoemaker • Kim Silva Matthew H. Stander Sari Brewster Tietjen • Patricia Trotter Connie Vanacore • Carla Viggiano Nick Waters • Seymour Weiss Minta (Mike) Williquette Dog News Photographers Chet Jezierski • Perry Phillips Kitten Rodwell • Leslie Simis
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DOG NEWS is sent to all AKC approved Conformation Judges with more than one breed every week and have adjudicated at a licensed AKC show within the past three years on a complimentary basis. No part of this publication can be reproduced in any form without written permission from the editor. The opinions expressed by this publication do not necessarily express the opinions of the publisher. The editor reserves the right to edit all copy submitted.
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Editorial As most of you are aware the AKC Web Site reports the Minutes of both the Board and the Delegate Body. In terms of pure length the Delegate Minutes in December ran all of 15 single typed pages while the Board’s Minutes totaled 5 single-spaced larger type more spread out pages. The Delegate Minutes are Court Reported exactly as spoken the Board Minutes are an edited, approved version by the Board individually. Obviously the preference goes to the Delegate Minutes insofar as accuracy and transparency are concerned. Nonetheless these pages are more than willing to concede the need the need for a more selective reporting of the Board Minutes due to the nature of some of the business the Board must attend to as opposed to the Delegates. One of the more interesting facets of the Delegates Minutes were the official three minute speeches given by each Candidate in regard to the coming March Board elections. These speeches are recorded verbatim notwithstanding the attempts of one of the Candidates to change what was originally said. This request was most properly disallowed insofar as these pages are concerned. The morning of the Delegate Meeting at which all 5 candidates answered presubmitted questions sent to Mr. Crowley is not considered an official part of the meeting and so is not recorded. Therefore one must rely on the word of mouth report of those Delegates in attendance and over-whelming the two candidates who received the highest grades for their answers in order of preference Dr. Gregory Paveza and Dr. Thomas Davis. One must question just how transparent anyone in power truly wants these proceedings to really be since neither the questions nor the answers have been made public insofar as these pages can determine. The one unasked question for sure though was that no candidate was asked as to whom they would vote for Chairman in the March election although Mr. Amen certainly tipped his hat when in his speech he indicated a relationship through various meetings with the Staff denied to other Board Member for sure! If there has been one constant though the Kalter years as Chairman has been his refusal to basically permit discussions between Staff and Board on virtually any level except apparently in the case of Mr. Amen who apparently is treated publicly more favorably by Mr. Kalter than most any other Director.
THE BOARD MINUTES VERSUS THE DELEGATE MINUTES
AKC CHF reported (happily from the standpoint of these pages) that it will have raised more than $500,000 in funds from new donors, which is to be matched by AKC. As part of the matching fund commitment the AKC CHF is obligated to have an audit by KPMG to verify the status of those designated donors. The Board unanimously but not so magnanimously agreed to cover the cost of the audit. How magnanimous can the Board be when they never should have made the first fund requirement with which to begin. Now the Memorandum of Understanding between AKC and AKCCHF, which had expired and never reinstated is to be created and hopefully signed. There is to be according to Dr. Butherus the AKC CHF an addendum to the MOU describing a much more activist AKC CHF board with a major focus on fund raising. And of course the Pat Cruz motion to extend the time to both approve the new Judges Approval Proposal as well as to rediscuss many of its provisions could not even gain a second from anyone on the Board. This very controversial and contentious proposal is said by many to be a major factor as how a club will instruct its Delegate to vote. While this is a crucial item and one basic to the sport there are other priorities to consider in electing a Director as well. And while these pages are in basic disagreement with what was proposed in the long run there are oh so many other issues to consider when supporting a Delegate for the Board. Don’t please let one issue be your determining factor--look to the overall needs of the corporation for sure in making your decision and or helping your club in deciding who to support.
SOME CHF BUSINESS
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Well it seems the Board reviewed and then approved a new AKC logo which already was in use. Apparently no one told the Board the new logo was online and in use on social media! While the interpretation that the changed lettering does not involve a change to the Bylaws why go to the Board at all if this new logo was put into affect prior to the meeting. Talk about leaving the barn door open and then looking for the horse what a classic example of certain departments at AKC having total and unchecked authority not only in this so-called artistic area but in areas of hiring and firing of staff personnel as well. In the case of the logo change it is the subject of this WEEK’S QUESTION OF THE WEEK. One would have thought that this matter would better have been the subject of a survey of 70,000 people than say having these same people involved in a Judges Approval Change. Also the Board has somewhat reversed itself on the Salilyn Kennel name retirement if the individual using the name to register dogs agrees to the retirement of the name as well. This was a necessary and good reversal of its original decision not to retire the name.
SOME BOARD MATTER OF NOTE
Two of the finest specimens of exhibits to compete for Top Dog 2014 battled almost to the wire as the PWD and the OES strove to the very end of the year to achieve that honor. Unofficial though the title may be since AKC refuses to take its rightful role and endorse the competition and to establish rules under which it exists the Portuguese Water Dog won out with an incredible year of Bests in Shows. The most satisfactory part of this head-to-head competition was the civility with which the handlers, breeders and owners managed to react publicly and privately to the intensity of what was going on. This was a classic case of basic good sportsmanship on the part of all concerned and should serve as a positive example in the years to come how good competitors should inter-act with each other. Our hats are off to these top exhibits for not only winning the award but in setting an example as to how to conduct oneself during a year of intense and sometime brutal competition. Congratulations to all involved.
THE RATING SYSTEMS RESULT
Thought For The Week
The recording of conversations of meetings such as occurred at the Delegate Meeting in Orlando or private conversations within the rings of competition, which also occurred in Orlando, are to be condemned as improper for sure. The privacy factor cannot be lost in these very technological years and participants be they Delegates or mere participants have the right to show a common decency to everyone involved. If permitted to go unchecked the doors are left open to excesses which will harm if not do away with basic rights long heralded as being part of he great American society in which we live.
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*The Dog News Top Ten List
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By Ronnie Irving
A SUMMARY OF THE UK IN 2014 It may be of interest to readers, as we approach the end of 2014, to see a month by month summary of just a few of the main decisions and events which have affected the world of dogs in the UK during this year.
January ■ The year opens with changes for all members of TKC’s Assured Breeder Program. It is roughly the UK equivalent of the AKC Breeder of Merit Program and creates benchmarks for breeders covering such things as health screening, husbandry, housing, record keeping, and sale contracts, etc. From January 1 members of the Program will have to have their premises, etc. inspected and assessed before they, as Assured Breeders, are allowed to register their puppies at TKC. ■ After the old Kennel Gazette is abandoned from December 2013, the first on-line version of its replacement ‘TKC Journal’ is issued. Readers are not impressed by either its form or its content. ■ The Staffordshire Bull Terrier world goes into uproar after a number of people who had complained to TKC are told that their case has been dropped because of a lack of evidence. The allegations are that at Crufts 2013 a lame exhibit had been awarded Best Bitch and then Best of Breed.
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February ■ Crufts announces its highest entry since 2010 as entries for 2014 come in at 21,614 qualified individual dogs, which is 1,003 more dogs than 2013 – nearly 5% up. ■ TKC Chairman criticises some sections of the canine press for not accurately reflecting the views of TKC Members or of the average dog person. ■ An 11-month-old baby girl tragically dies after being attacked by a dog in Blackburn in the North of England. The baby is taken to hospital after the attack, but sadly dies there. ■ TKC announces that its registration figures for the full year to December 2013 show an overall reduction of 5,460 (2.4%) as compared to 2012. Only the Non Sporting Group sees an increase and is up by 6.5%. The main reason for this increase is that French Bulldogs have increased by a staggering 2,342 dogs (50.4%) and Bulldogs are up over 987 dogs or 20.6%. Continued on page 65
TOSKYDOX I D D E R
F
Our thanks to the Judges who awarded Freddi her many wins in 2014. Freddi was Ranked as the
#1 Smooth
in both Breed and All-Breed throughout the year!
GCH. MARGINNS FREDRICKA V RUF KNABE
Owner: Sharon Lutosky Handler: Lorene Hogan Breeders:
Mark & Ginger Stephenson
*The Dog News Top Ten Lists
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*The Dog News Top Ten List
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AThought To Consider It’s Our Schoolyard Now! by Seymour Weiss
T
he conformation dog sport has always been a magnet for driven, highly competitive individuals to whom the win can be of greater consequence than the winning dog. Like the schoolyard bully who decides to lord it over his/ her peers, individuals will confer upon themselves the divine (?) right to the top of the heap – just because they have decided that’s how it ought to be. It’s not unusual for such an individual to thunder into the dog sport and, by dint of personality, overwhelm many of her competitors. Before too long the self-appointed alpha will gather a loyal following. But one must ask if this self-appointed leader of the pack qualifies to shape the thinking of others and influence their actions. Does this wannabe “numero uno” really possess the knowledge, experience and objectivity to positively impact their peers or those who seek guidance? Plainly put, not always; not often. Typically, this dominant figure will possess the trappings required to advance the alpha image. A snazzy, tricked-out motorhome goes a long way to promote the general sense of awe among potential followers. And, with the fancy rig goes the chance to entertain those who could advance the alpha’s cause on a variety of levels. Nothing draws 18 Dog News
a crowd like a tasty spread; many a puppy has probably been sold over a tray of pinwheel sandwiches and a refreshing beverage. The same inducements could work just as well in closing the deal over a breeding or a wide assortment of other goals. There is no need to list them here. You can formulate your list – if you care to do so. What of the alpha’s dogs? The dogs are, or should be, the primary gauge of the alpha’s right to influence the thoughts or actions of one’s peers. We could ask: did the alpha breed the dogs he/ she is showing? How close to the standard is his/ her breeding? If the dogs were bred by others, what was the source of those dogs? Were they imported? What breeding stands behind those dogs? All these issues should be addressed to determine if the alpha fancier can make a legitimate claim to leadership or is just a narcissistic windbag. Today there is a great deal of serious discussion within the dog fancy about what the future may hold for our community. And there is legitimate reason for us all to be deeply concerned. What we do not need in the current climate is the bellicose purveyor of verbal snake oil telling us how to think or what to do. At one time the word “mentor” was not in common use within our communiContinued on page 64
Joyce Wetzler Whisperwood The name, the look … …a legend in OES
T
hanks, “Mother,” for 50+ years’ devotion to the breed and the sport, and best wishes on your retirement from active campaigning! — Love, all your “children” Dog News 19
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Question of the By Matthew H. Stander
Love & Bob Banghart We
prefer the old logo as it is well recognized throughout the world.
Pam Mandeville
I would’ve answered sooner but it took me this long to stop laughing. I hope they didn’t pay an agency a lot for this “redesign.” I prefer the existing logo... and I would imagine all the ribbon, rosette, trophy makers, printers and everyone else that needs to bear the expense of making the change does, too.
Bambi Madsen Rabe I wonder
what this has cost, and will cost the fancier?
Barbara Call I do prefer the old logo. I find it more interesting and attractive, but many people might prefer the more ordinary and formal looking new one.
Andrew Brace
Certainly the new version has a more modern feel to it, whereas its predecessor looked rather more traditional. They really aren’t that different in essence, so I’m wondering why an update was necessary.
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Judy Walker
First is far better
IMHO.
Candy Way I prefer the old logo. The AKC lettering is more attractive and more classic. The new font looks like it belongs on a government publication.
Karen Fitzpatrick
What was wrong with the old LOGO? I like the old one, traditional and eye catching.
Geri Flyckt Maybe due to the fact that I am one of those immigrants who has no sentimental ties to the old logo I actually like the new version!
Bobbi Davis I don’t think I have a vote but I would like to see red in there somewhere...
Beverly Wyckoff My preference
is for the old logo - the organization has a long history, which is reflected or represented by the type face on the older logo and is more distinct than the new logo. That bold block “AKC” on the new logo has all the character of the “inspected by” tags that show up in the pockets of clothing or the safety certification marks - see “certified organic” as an example. Seems a bit silly of a way to spend money
week
AKC has decided to change its logo - Below are two logos-the first is the existing logo-the second the new logo. Which do you like better? Now this is a topic about which a survey should have been taken for sure!
by AKC at this time - block letters does not “modern organization” make. Was there any reason given for the change, or any budget given to develop and register the new logo, or to estimate the cost to the many member clubs to implement the new logo in all of their materials, plaques and signage for dog shows?
Mindy Maynard, DVM I like the old
Susan LaCroix Hamil I prefer the
Deborah J. Cooper AKC has so many
Chris Walkowicz
logo. The fancier text draws my attention more. While I can read the new one right off the bat I would skip right over it if reading through something. The old one I have to stop and take the time to look at and it draws me to do so.
issues to address: I am surprised to see that they have spent resources on revising their logo with such a minor change. How does this slightly updated logo address so many of the issues that they have before them? Does this revised logo bring with it a modified marketing plan that addresses the participation (or lack thereof) of the general public in dog shows? That being said, I would have to say that I could take or leave this slightly updated logo: it does not begin to address what really needs to be addressed to save our sport.
original; the new one looks very ordinary and generic. Maybe something in between old gothic style letters and the very generic new letters could work better? We have a very proud past and we shouldn’t be too quick/eager to abandon it . I prefer the old logo. It’s different and draws your attention.
Barbara Finch I prefer the old logo. I see no reason for a change.
Michele Federman
I like the new logo. A survey would have been the democratic way of making a change.
Pamela L. Sage I like the old one. Dog News 23
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Bruce
Owners: rd Jan Shivery- Mumfo d an u re nd A Jo y ar and M
Breeders: ti Moore Kim Harper and Dot
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a Lady Dam: Ch. Fanfare Delt
Handler: ero Kimberlie Steele Gam
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ISPORT
nsidE
the
STARTING THE NEW YEAR By Pat Trotter
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Continued questions regarding the judging approval process and the AKC board’s role in it compel me to address that subject later in this article. However, little if anything, can take precedence over the glorious dog shows hosted by the Kennel Club of Palm Springs at the Empire Polo Club the first weekend of this new year2015. While on the subject of the board, three of its esteemed members were present in Palm Springs as well as a long time member/previous chairman. Maybe next year the entire board will come to experience these spectacular events! Like the polo fields of the great Santa Barbara shows through 1974, the beautifullygroomed vast grass natural setting offers an absolutely excellent safe footing for man and beast. After all, no polo player worth his salt would endanger his expensive polo ponies on lumpy grounds. This spacious show site provides ample room for parking thousands of vehicles as well as 30 or more large rings able to showcase large numbers of breed entries at one time. To the student of dogs, it is a “dream come true” where one can easily study, view and evaluate dogs from ringside. This first weekend in January should be a dog show destination must for all lovers of our sport and its best dogs. In addition to the opportunity to get back together with your dog family and friends you haven’t seen in a few weeks, there is a large building stocked with some of dogdom’s best vendors where one can easily finish holiday shopping. There are veterinarians on grounds x-raying dogs and providing other services. The catering crew offers very tasty lunches and munchies. And the Kennel Club of Palm Springs does a superb job of hiring outstanding judges to attract the exhibitors and the best dogs while providing them a pleasant welcoming experience that en-
courages camaraderie amongst all. Cleaning crews are totally on top of emptying trash receptacles and providing any other needs. Such a humungous event works like clockwork only because the club officials have attended to every detail. Under the guidance of Vince and Kathy Grosso assisted by Daryl Vice, the KCPS has truly come of age. If ever the AKC/Eukanuba show would like to come to the West Coast now and then, this venue would be worth considering. On that upbeat note, let us turn our attention to the proposed Judging Approval Process now working its way through the bureaucracy. The board wisely elected in December to review the proposal-especially as it pertains to accountability-before putting its latest plan into effect. The positive parts of this plan certainly make the process far more navigable for aspiring judges, and that’s a good thing. The fancy in general felt the new plan had mostly positive elements in its composition. Most of the feedback received by this column relates to the accountability issue and the possible lack of same that emanated from the original proposal. Such an idea would remove the field representatives from the evaluation of judges and give all a free rein to judge dogs as they saw them-whether properly prepared and capable or not. This concept raised much alarm across the fancy and rightly so. To disregard quality control in the judging process would be a dereliction of duty by the board. So the decision-makers must address the issue of maintaining accountability on the part of judges while keeping peace in the process. Because our current field representatives collectively have vast experiences in dogs to bring to the table, there is widespread agreement they should be kept in the process. The field rep remains
“Obviously breeding quality dogs in a given breed is important, but so is handling quality animals, training and competing in field work and using dogs in their job description important in creating great dogmen and women.”
the stabilizing force in the world of the dog show not only as the “face of AKC” but as the non-partisan individual most able to stimulate better judging for the future. However, there is no denying there have been disagreements between field reps and judges in the past. Reportedly most of those clashes resulted from field reps disagreeing with the placements in given classes. It is my understanding the current regime in Judging Operations counsel field reps not to offer opinions on which dogs should win. The goal will be to discuss breed specific characteristics and how the judge prioritizes their entries and rewards them accordingly. Accountability will be kept in the process by eliminating the judges’ placements from the equation and concentrating on judges’ reasons for their placements. The judge that can validate placements to the field rep or anyone else involved with breed specific explanations is a prize to be treasured and a person much needed in the evaluation of breeding stock. Permit/provisional judges can expect field reps to have conversations with them that ask questions such as: What did you see? How did your winners represent desirable traits for the breed? What can you tell me about the overall quality of the dogs today and how they represent the breed standard? Good conversations between judges and field reps can be a very positive experience. Field reps expect judges’ awards to be in tune with their comments. For example, in a square breed where the judge verbalizes seeking this trait, the rep would not expect the judge to reward dogs that are low and long. In other words, judges’ comments should match their judging. Judges can expect reps to provide an approach of “how can I help?” as the actual placements are not contested. However, judges are expected to get the best dogs up front and the lesser dogs in the rear. If reps offer friendly, constructive criticism aimed at helping a judge improve skills,
judges should be receptive to this process-especially if such comments are kept off the record. Hopefully this will eliminate personality conflicts between individuals. However, if a judge feels they are not being treated fairly, the differences can be resolved by consensus opinions of several reps. American philosopher William James advised: “Whenever you’re in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. That factor is attitude.” It is hoped that the judging community and those officials who monitor it can achieve a meeting of the minds. What our governing body seeks is an era of good will shared by the judging community, club officials, exhibitors and field reps. Furthermore, every judge has the right to appeal if one is not satisfied with resulting feedback. Another area of the new approval process that might need tweaking deals with the components one must achieve to progress as a judge. Although seminars, mentoring, nationals, ownership, kennel visits and other activities all qualify for what is known as CEUs, perhaps other areas need to be rewarded as well. Obviously breeding quality dogs in a given breed is important, but so is handling quality animals, training and competing in field work and using dogs in their job description important in creating great dogmen and women. Versatile dog people who have experienced a wide variety of activities within the world of dogs bring much to our sport. This column will continue to address some of these important issues aimed at protecting the purity of our breeds and our sport. We are good people who love dogs and are collectively trying to get it right!
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Gold GCh. HiTimes What The Infer no Owners: Bonnie Bird and Udomisin Littichaikun Presented By: Curtiss Smith *CC System & The Dog News Top Ten List
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What A Great Start To The New Year! 2014 National Specialty Show Winner America’s Number One Toy & Number One Pom 2014
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Thank You Judge Mr. Edd E. Bivin for Best In Show Thank You Judge Mrs. Houston Clark for Group First
DANNY Dog News 29
Netherlands
Bull Terrier Show & Country Competition November 8th & 9th, 2014 By Desmond J. Murphy
F
or anyone who has an interest in Bull Terriers, this show has to be witnessed to understand the magnitude it truly is. For several years so many of my BT friends kept saying I had to attend this show. Several years ago I blocked out my calendar to not take any assignments for this weekend in 2013. In the spring of 2013, knowing that the hotel where the venue is sells out quickly, I made the hotel reservation and my plane reservations. Upon arriving in Amsterdam early Thursday morning and having a short wait for several other American ladies, off we went in a large van to the Leiden Holiday Inn. Immediately the enthusiasm of everyone was contagious. It was a weekend beyond my expectations. Upon my arrival home I immediately blocked out my judging calendar for this weekend of 2014. So in the spring of this year, I again got the hotel booked and the plane reservations made well in advance. Last year a group of us only had time to spend a day in Amsterdam. This year seven of us moved into Amsterdam Monday after the show to spend a few days there. Some did leave Tuesday, but Jan Dykema and I stayed until Wednesday and David Merriam stayed until Thursday. This year Jan and I did not arrive until early Friday morning. A very gracious young man from Ecuador of-
Continued on page 68
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BESTS WEEK Greater Fredericksburg Kennel Club English Springer Spaniel
Ch. Telltale American Ride Judge Mr. Charles Olvis Owners Beth Fink, Celie Florence, Robin Novack, Kathy & Dave Vanvorst & Delores Streng Handler Robin Novack Clearwater Kennel Club Inverness Kennel Club Pasco Florida Kennel Club Skye Terrier
GCh. Cragsmoor Good Time Charlie Judge Mr. Peter Green Judge Mrs. Arlene Benko Judge Dr. Robert D. Smith Owner Victor Malzoni, Jr. Handler Larry Cornelius Northern Neck Kennel Club of Virginia (Wednesday & Thursday) Portuguese Water Dog
Puyallup Valley Dog Fanciers Toy Poodle
GCh North Well Vivian JP Rose Queen Judge Mrs. Jacqueline Stacy Owners Toni and Martin Sosnoff Handler Tim Brazier Corpus Christi Kennel Club Sunday Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
GCh. Derby’s Toast With Gusto
Judge Mr. James R. White Owned By Rick & Sue Copeland Handler Scott Sommer Kennel Club of Niagara Falls Newfoundland
GCh. Cypress Bays Big Sur Judge Mr. Don Evans Owners Bill and Karen Caesar Handler Sam Mammano
GCh. Claircreek Impression De Matisse
Judge Mr. Robert J. Whitney Judge Mrs. Barbara Dempsey Alderman Owners Milan Lint, Peggy Helming & Donna Gottdenker Handler Michael Scott
To report a AKC All Breed Best In Show or National Specialty Win Call, Fax or Email before 12:00 Noon Tuesday. Fax: 212 675-5994 • Phone: 212 462-9588 Email: dognews@harris-pub.com 34 Dog News
Desert Empire Terrier Club of Southern California - Friday Kennel Club of Palm Springs - Sunday Welsh Terrier
GCh. Andover See-z the Moment
Judge Mrs. Anne Katonah Judge Mr. Bart Miller Owners Jill and Peter See Handler Gabriel Rangel Inland Empire Hound Club of Southern California Saluki
GCh. Starlite’s Made of the Best Stuff on Earth JC, BN, RN Judge Ms. Rosemary Shoreman Owners Tina J. Turley-Kocab & Mark S. Kocab & Sandra Middlebrooks Handler Erin J. Roberts
The Westminster Theatre Benefit Presents
A Gentleman’s Guide To Love & Murder
D L O S Friday Night,
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Dog News
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For Information & Reservations Contact: Ron Menaker, 202 Sonata Drive, Jupiter, Florida 33478-5410 561.203.7577 • email: rmenrmen@aol.com or FAX Dog News: 212.675.5994
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y y l e e d l l a d d r a a r r B BadleyThe Philadelphia BradleWeekend... y e y l d a r B B y y l e e d l l a d d r a a r r B Bradley Bradley Bradley B y e y y l e e d l l a d d r a a r r B B y e y y l e e d dl Bradl Bra B y e e l l d d a y a r e r l d B ra B y e y l a e r d l a d r B ey Bra B y e l d y y a e e r l l d d a Bra B y e l d y a e r l y B e d l B d Bra y e l d r y a e r l y B e Brad B Group First Judge Mr. John Constantine
Group First Judge Mr. Robert Hutton
Group Second Judge Mr. Edd Bivin
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y y e e l l d d a a r r y B le B B y y e e l l a d d r a a r r yB B B y y e e l l d d a a r r y B le BThe Signature B of Success y y e e l l y Brad Brad Bra y y e e l l d d y Bra Bra Bra y y e e d l l a d d r Bey ra dlBey rBa radlBey Br ra B y e y l e d l a d y r e a l r B ad B y y a e e r l l d d y Bra Bra B l d y a e r l y e d l B a d r a r B Signature BradCh.leyAbsolutely y e l d y a e r l d B a r B
y e l d a r B Reserve Best In Show Judge Mrs. Candace Way
Bred & Owned By J.W. Smith & Dana Gabel
Handled By Dana Gabel
Dog News 37
10 QUESTIONS ASKED OF :
DAVID FITZPATRICK 1 In what year did you start showing dogs?
2 What was the Breed and name of your first champion? 3 Other than your own, which breed would you like to own? 4 Which canine person of the opposite sex would you be? 5 Have you ever visited the AKC offices?
6 How many shows do you attend in a year?
7 Who would you like to see on the television show “Dating Naked”? 8 What brings you the greatest joy? 9 What is your best characteristic? 10 What was your biggest regret?
A Chow Chow.
Yes-the ones in NYC.
1970.
Scottish Deerhound.
38 Dog News
Jane Forsyth.
BORN: Wilmington, DE RESIDES: East Berlin, PA MARITAL STATUS: Single ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Leo
Sorry I’ve never heard of the show!
Depends on the yearif heavy campaigning about 150--average year 120.
I do not know that I have any Best ones-I can think of a lot of average ones but nothing outstanding.
The anticipation of and the raising of a new litter.
I probably should have enjoyed life more as a younger man.
Dog News 39
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*CC System **All Systems
40 Dog News
Dog News 41
By Nick Waters
T
hroughout the middle years of the 20th century, Britain was virtually awash with dog artists, most working on a professional or semi-professional basis. Most were working in the provinces and probably never aspired to reach the heights of the likes of Maud Earl, Arthur Wardle, Reuben Ward Binks or others, but they did have a loyal following of breeders and exhibitors who just wanted a reasonable likeness of their dogs, rather than a piece of fine or creative art. One of those artists was Dorothy Alexandra Johnson (19021988), whose work rarely surfaces. Born in Nottingham, she spent all her life there. From early child-
Dog Lover & Artist hood she aspired to be an artist and studied at the Nottingham School of Art from the age of thirteen until she graduated eight years later. At school she studied portraiture under Arthur Spooner, who himself had produced some dog paintings.
42 Dog News
Dorothy She was a dog lover and owner all her life, her favourite breed was the Cocker Spaniel and over the years she kept a number of them as pets. She began to paint dogs exclusively from about 1930 and executed many commissions
while attending major dog shows. It addition to her portrait work she painted banners and designed greetings cards and business cards depicting dog breeds. She exhibited mostly in the Midlands but is also known to have exhibited further afield in London and Paris. Dorothy Johnson’s style was very straightforward, simplistic and two-dimensional, nevertheless she recorded on canvas many important show dogs, four of which I feature. The Pharaoh Hound, Ch. Kilcroney Rekhmire Merymut, was bred by Mrs. G. L’E West Coyne, owned by Miss Monica Still, and born in March 1970. He was by the influential early stud dog, Twinley King Ka’a out of Kilcroney Senjura and soon went back to dogs imported into Britain from Malta. His first CC was won at Crufts in 1975, the first time CCs had been on offer for the breed. The judge was Lionel Hamilton-Renwick, himself one of the early importers of the breed whose Birling Zahara was the first Pharaoh Hound to compete in the
day. Further back, Frederick’s pedigree clearly shows the mix in the early years of the 20th century that went into creating what we know today as the Bullmastiff; Bulldogs, Bulldog/Mastiff crosses and Mastiffs, including the Mastiff, Ch. King Baldur who is equally important as a Mastiff sire. The Basset Hound, Ch. Blaby Hal had the rare distinction of being a champion on the show bench and also having his full hunting certificate. The Albany pack, which used to be under the care of the Basset Hound Club was a purebred pack of Bassets and before the split from the club the Albany used a lot of show bred hounds for their studs, donated to the pack by their owners when they needed outside blood. Very occasionally top winning show hounds were admitted into the pack, Hal, who hunted regularly with the pack, was one such hound and one of the most famous. He was born in 1974, owned and bred by Mrs. Doreen Gilberthorpe and sired by the best in show winning Ch. Lymewoods Howard.
Johnson
group at Crufts, having won through from the Any Other Variety Sporting class in 1971. Rekhmire proceeded to win all the dog CCs that were on offer for the breed in 1975 and became the breed’s first U.K. champion. The Finnish Spitz, Ch. Hammon Irmas, was from a litter of two born in quarantine in November 1934 and was by Hammon Urpo ex Hamman Ary of Tulchan who were both bred by the leading Finnish breeder, Dr. Multamäki. He was bred by Mrs. J.H.B. de la Poer Beresford (who ultimately would be his sole owner) and Lady Kitty Ritson. The breed was first given CCs in 1935 and Irmas won his first at the Kennel Club show the following year under his co-breeder, Lady Ritson, and went on to be one of the breed’s top pre-war winners. Ch. Frederick of Kelwall was whelped in 1971 and owned by Walter and Lyn Pratt, leading breeders of Bullmastiffs in Scotland. He was by Ch. Showell Yibor ex Ebony of Kelwall and a grandson of Ch. Darrell of
Kelwall, who had the distinction of winning best in show at an all-breeds championship show, a rare distinction then for a Bullmastiff. He had many lines going back to Ch. Roger of the Fenns, who is behind every Bullmastiff in the world to-
Dog News 43
With domestic animals it is the owners of the dogs and cats that have the responsibility not to over-breed animals. The animals themselves don’t have that responsibility. This, again, suggests that we aren’t simply another animal in the system of nature. Rather, we are, in a special sense, beyond mere nature. This is why we couldn’t see any “animal rights” activists among animals. There are just animals. So why must humans do it? Why does PETA feel compelled to give human dignity to animals? Why is PETA compelled to diminish human dignity in order to make us simply another member of the animal kingdom? I would argue that this demonstrates a profoundly deficient worldview. PETA also argues that animals should have the same rights as humans because they suffer in the same
way as humans. However, in order to make this argument they must give human qualities to animals and human thoughts and passions to animals. Now I’m not saying that animals don’t experience pain. They do; however, they easily forget the pain after it’s gone. Animals, in other words, cannot reflect upon pain in the way that human beings do. While I agree that animals need to be protected from abuse, they should not have human words put in their mouths in order to achieve such protection. We need to care for the animals and make them comfortable, but do not need to demand that a certain animal has to be treated a certain way because that animal has a right to be treated that way. I do agree for legal action to be taken against cruelty; however, such action needs to be pursued with moderation and the circumstances of the situation need to be taken into account. And this means that people’s feelings need to be left at the door. If the intention of the person is cruelty, then he or she needs to be prosecuted. The context, however, is very important. Where did the action take place? Under what circumstances? Under whose direction? Were there extenuating circumstances that made certain actions inevitable? Most important in this, and most often ignored, is the reason or intention behind an action. For example, let’s consider “tail docking” and the laws that PETA and the HSUS have tried to pass regarding that practice. “Docking” tails is done for a reason: to protect the animal from injury later in life. The tails of puppies are docked at three to five days old when the nerves aren’t fully developed. They can’t feel the pain of the procedure. They scream because someone is touching their tail, and mama doesn’t do that. Momma grabs them by the scruff of the neck not the tail. And they quiet down shortly after the procedure— demonstrating that it’s not excessively painful. Later in life the tail will be protected from being banged up, and might even protect the dog when its master pulls it out of a hole while hunting! This last point is significant. We must remember for what purpose many dogs were originally bred. Terrier owners, for instance, would dock tails to create a handle. By Angela Chase A shorter tail is stronger than a longer tail. So when the master PART TWO would pull the terrier out of a hole he would grab the base of the tail and rescue the dog to safety. This is the same method to get the dogs out of a fight.
We will explore the causes of the animal rights activists and explore whether the animal laws are actually for the well-being of animals or appeasing the animal rights groups.
VERITAS ACADEMY SENIOR THESIS
Animal Rights or Animal Welfare... Which Philosophy Does Our Current Animal Law Support?
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It’s the safest way not to get a hand bitten when a person separates a fight. In Sporting dogs the dogs wag their tails so much that it gets banged up on bushes and tables. Wounds on tails are very hard to heal and when the tail gets too banged up it usually has to be docked. Some vets will even consider amputation when the dogs are older. So why make the puppies go through an amputation later in life when it’s actually much harder on them? Several years ago PETA activists were at a puppy mill, undercover, where a vet was treating a dog. The Dog had a partially severed tail and was in terrible pain. The tail was broken and the nerves in the tail were causing the dog great pain. So the vet ran the tail under running water, and with a pair of tin snips snipped the final tissues that kept the tail attached. He didn’t do the procedure with anesthesia because the vet didn’t think it was necessary (since the dog already had severe nerve damage). The activist created a horrible picture saying that the vet tortured the dog under scalding water (because it was steaming) and said the puppy was being tortured. Unfortunately feelings were not left at the door and the vet had is whole livelihood ruined. This story brings me to my third point. PETA and their partner in crime, HSUS, are not reputable sources for legislators to listen to when they are making dog laws. Animal welfare groups have been around for centuries, but these animal rights groups have only been around since the late 1980’s. The welfare groups, like the local rescues and shelters, are constantly seeking enough money and volunteers to keep their operations functioning. But the animal rights groups, particularly HSUS and PETA, boast multi-million dollar budgets. By itself, this doesn’t prove anything. However, the highly politicized brand of activism they support is much more than locally organized do-gooder-ism. Unfortunately, today a per-
son does not need to be elected in order to rule over others. All the person needs is to show the government—and especially judges—that they have some knowledge and expertise (however questionable that kind of knowledge is) to convince the government to follow their reasoning. Common sense is becoming less and less important. This is a very risky way to make legislation since human nature is very deceiving. Unfortunately, PETA and the HSUS have done that. PETA people rarely have any real knowledge about, or direct experience with, breeding a litter or owning a kennel. All they have are ideological viewpoints and largely exaggerated claims of “inhumane treatment” in kennels. It is not that these things don’t take place, but that their agenda is to outlaw all breeding and all kennels. They are not petitioning for better conditions or care of dogs, but to take away from the population the ability to own animals. The irony, then, is that in trying to give animals rights they need to remove already existing one from human beings. This upside-down picture of justice simply cannot be allowed to take control of our nation’s conscience. The reputation of PETA is also something important to consider. There have been several incidents of PETA representatives doing terribly things at dog shows. Their “terrorist” tactics—using disruption and mayhem—show how misguided they are. At one show they released several dogs from their crates to run loose. This could be dangerous as often times the dogs will fight. Each handler knows which dogs fight and don’t fight. Handlers and breeders use crates at the shows to keep the dogs safe. The dog sees the crate as its house where it can have peace and quiet. Dogs love their crates. So an action intended to make things safer for the dogs is irresponsibly viewed as “torture” for the activist. And yet, the action that supposedly “helps” the dog, could potentially make things much worse. It is important, next, to consider how PETA views animal ownership. Ingrid Newkirk- National Director of PETA says “For one thing we would no longer allow breeding. People could not create different breeds. If people had companion animals in their homes these animals would have to be refugees from the animal shelters and the streets…. But as the surplus of cats
“In 2002 on PETA’s federal tax return it claimed a $9370 write off for the freezer. Most places would use the freezer for meat and dairy but wait, PETA is a vegan company, and they don’t even eat meat or dairy.”
and dogs decline, eventually companion animals would be phased out and we would return to a more symbiotic relationship—enjoyment at a distance.” Ms. Newkirk has made clear that PETA’s goal is to take away the ability to own animals for companionship. She goes on to say that ““Pet ownership is an absolutely abysmal situation brought about by human manipulation.” In citing “manipulation,” her goal is to blame breeders, especially purebred or pedigree dog and cat breeders, for the creation of animal shelters. However, it’s not breeders that are the problem. Rather, it is usually irresponsible people who don’t do their homework and get a dog that doesn’t match their needs (or get one before they’re ready to take on the responsibility). Rather than demonizing breeders as a whole, Ms. Newkirk could praise the thousands of responsible breeders who don’t breed often and are very picky about to whom their puppies go. Responsible breeders do some of the following things: sell puppies for a lot more money to guarantee the health of the puppy; stay basically “on call” to the new owner if they have questions regarding the puppy; sign a contract with the puppy buyers of the agreed price, including such information as how the dog should be taken care of, whether the dog will be shown, or spay/ neutered. Also, most breeders have contracts stipulating that if for some reason the new owner is not able the take care of the dog properly, the dog will come back to the breeder. This ensures that the puppy comes back to the breeder and not into a shelter. PETA, however, seems unable to see beyond their own self-constructed mythology about breeding. • TO BE CONTINUED IN A FUTURE ISSUE.
Dog News 45
Gentleman Sincere Loyal Kind Mentor Organized Focused Respected judge Dapper Dedicated Witty Wicked Funny Best friend Lover Husband
Each of those words alone bring back memories of our dear friend, Robert Black. To those who don’t know me I am Thom Parrotti, long time best friend and known to many as half of the “two wicked sisters’. Just as Robert Thomas is Robert’s life partner of 28 years and the other half of the “2 Roberts”. I know this is a little confusing. Some of you know Robert Black as Bob Black and Robert Thomas as Bob Thomas. As one friend wrote to Bob after his death, “Just who is Robert and who is Bob? As far as I’m concerned…you are one!” And they were. I want to open this remembrance with a few memories I have of Robert. 48 Dog News
Remembering
Bob Black By Thomas Parrotti
Before Robert died, we discussed my doing his remembrance and I was advised by Bobby to be “wicked” as Robert would expect nothing less. As any good friend, there are some special stories that good friends share….and as enticing as some of them are…my love for this man and our friendship forbids me to share. I will have to try harder to be wicked. Robert and Bob met in the spring of 1985 for a very memorable moment under a Beech tree (of course) in a local State Park where all married gay men seem to meet. My first meeting with Robert…although not that kind of memorable, was at an AKC Delegate meeting. From that point our friendship grew. At one meeting, Bruce Schwartz asked me where my partner was, I said on a highway driving to Columbus with a load of horses....his surprised comment was.....“Robert transports horses....” I quickly advised him I was not his partner of many years....I was his ‘Wicked Sister’ and he was definitely too old for me....and from there our friendship grew. For the last 20 some years, I have been their house guest for the Montgomery weekend. Starting with the Hatboro shows, dinners at the Pineville and drinks at The Raven. There were lots of laughs, dog show chatter and wicked conversations. Robert and I were both Delegates to the AKC where for many years he was secretary to the All Breed Committee and several other committee appointments, which he performed with the utmost dedication and pride. And of course he was the Show Chairman for 26 years for the Hatboro Dog Club. This year on his retirement he was appointed Show Chairman Emeritus, which was a very moving moment for him. And during our friendship we both applied for and became judges for the various Terrier breeds and travelled extensively…he more than I… for judging assignments. Robert and I would talk daily regardless if he was in the country or abroad. Oh yes….those long sought after foreign assignments….Canada, Brazil, Australia, Japan, Finland, South Africa, Sweden, Germany and Ireland…where he found the Kerry “Jack”. Even if out of the country we would email…. keeping in touch with the latest gossip and
new and special dogs being shown. There were so many stories; some if I shared even a part, would make Robert hurl a lightning bolt at me. Following the infamous “Light Supper” at the Two Roberts’ house before the Hatboro Show, we would drive slowly through the grounds to insure that all was well and there were no unsolved issues and after drinks at The Raven we would do so again. Robert was a master of details. Bobby wanted to have a surprise 70th Birthday party for Robert. So, his ‘Wicked Sister’ was responsible to get him out of the house early in the morning. Since I never had seen the KENNEL, we were off at 9:30 AM to Peter and Beth’s at the KENNEL….nothing like a 2 ½ hour trip each way to kill time. Robert is not one for lunch but I insisted so we stopped at a pub half way back. Then I wanted to look at antiques but the place I made him stop at was closed….rats. Then insisted on stopping at an auction. Me and my farm animals and farm hands….all he could say Tommy, are we ready to go back….then along the route I wanted white peaches, so we stopped at 3 or 4 farm stands for me to buy more and more white peaches….at that point he is getting a tad annoyed. I still had about 1 ½ hours to kill. I then told Robert I need to take a pee, he refused to stop….so I carried on and told him if he didn’t stop I would have no choice but to pee my pants in his car. He immediately pulled into a Sonic Drive In. I got into the men’s room and called Bobby, reported in and was told he needed at least another hour…. OMG how the hell do I stall …so I planted myself in the men’s room for about 35 minutes. Several people were kept knocking on the door and accelerated the knock to pounding. I exited the men’s room, got into the car and all Robert could say….“Was the trick any good?” Made it home finally, the grounds were full of family and friends and his comment to me as we turned into the driveway….was “you bastard, you and Bobby planned this”…he was overjoyed and beyond surprised. As many of you know Robert and Bob travelled extensively but Robert especially loved the California dessert….in particular Palm Springs. To this day many people only know of his trips to “the desert”…and ask where he stayed. “A nice resort” would be his response. Continued on page 85
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MO R And
e
By Matthew H. Stander photos of the Brooksville Kennel Club by Karen Justin
Just how missed from the AENC competition was the Eukanuba World Challenge Competition event? Two of the more sophisticated world travelling Judges, Messrs. Brace and Murphy, seemed to express surprise in last week’s issue of DOG NEWS about the fact there was so little mention of the EWC at the Orlando six-day event. Indeed I heard not one word mentioned in Orlando about it at all. Let’s face it, while the idea sounded interesting and still does to me the creation and implementation of it used money as its foundation and ultimately and in the long run that’s not the basis for automatic success in the world of showing dogs. Every single competitor’s expenses was paid by Eukanuba Europe if they came to the EWC-this included in some countries’ cases more than one dog, at least one companion too as well, as initially the President of the FCI country the dog represented (this latter expense was reduced to a nice stipend instead of ALL expenses for the Presidents). Additionally elaborate parties were thrown for these competitors and for the foreign press as well. I always thought this was an excessive affair promoted strictly as a gimmick and which quite frankly and with some notable exceptions frequently particularly from certain countries year after year failed to really have top quality dogs in competition. Which to my mind put in 52 Dog News
question the entire matter of the quality of dogs frequently exhibited at FCI shows worldwide. Not that at World Shows lets say in an entry of 20,000 dogs one can not find 10 or 20 dogs that could compete well in non-FCI countries and that there are certain breeds that are strong in FCI countries as well but overall I strongly believe that usually the best quality dogs are bred or found in the USA and the U.K. True Italy and some of the Scandinavian countries can excel in certain breeds, as does Mexico, Argentina and Brazil have stand out breeds but overall the top dogs that competed at EWC from their countries oft times were not up to par as far as I was concerned.
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s far as the FCI Judges were concerned frequently they were as inconsistent as the dogs themselves. That’s one reason it is almost humorous that FCI has permitted the latest brouhaha to come into being when it decided to enforce again today an old long standing outdated and ridiculous rule of its banning judges from non-FCI countries from judging at non-FCI Clubs that exist in an FCI country. For instance China has a bunch of non-FCI clubs as well as one FCI approved club. If you judge at a non-FCI Club there the Southeast Asian area FCI Committee can sop you from judging anywhere else in the world at FCI shows. This rule was implemented at least once before when Brazil was having some kind of problems but AKC was not called into the matter. The three judges affected this time have protested FCI’s stand and asked for some kind of retaliation and/or response from AKC. Well AKC has responded--its letter was in last week’s issue, as was the American judges--now one waits with bated breath (anyhow those who judge at a lot of FCI shows do) for a response. Personally I find FCI to be an overblown Show Giving Organization that serves primarily to ensure that those countries that belong as full Members are assured to provide judging assignments for each country’s inner sanctum of judges. Really at these World Shows the panels are little more than recycled foreign judges except for the bone thrown out of providing assignments for national judges of the host country.
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ast year’s race for top dog was basically from the very beginning between two amazing and beautiful exhibits, the eventual winner the Portie and the OES. This was the first year that AKC reinstated Reserve Winner to BIS and many people including this writer were vehemently opposed to this idea. Indeed to this day I feel that it is an unnecessary award, which of course caused mammoth confusion at the beginning. It was finely resolved how to properly and/or effectively award the prize and today it sadly seems to be an accepted part of the dog show landscape. AKC of course is not involved with the general ALL-Breed Rating Systems except to charge enormous fees for providing it to those publications that use them. When the Phillips system was first introduced all those years back and which is the basis for the Dog News Rating System it was a hand kept filing card type system taken from the Monthly AKC Gazette results. As I recall there was no fee to AKC involved. Now there is a fee to AKC for all of the results, daily or by the minute or the month or pretty soon the hour at the rate shows are going and AKC is providing the figures. Insofar as I know DOG NEWS is the only publication-print or electronic- which includes and rewards the Reserve BIS winner, which makes sense I guess since it is part of the AKC system. AKC however has developed a rating system for the Owner-Handler competition (another competition for which I fail to understand the need) but does not offer a Reserve BIS winner for that! Confusing--I’ll say add further confusion to the matter the OH Competition is implemented it would seem by different shows in different ways and if it were founded to discourage professionalism in the sport
it seems to have resulted in more professionalism than ever before, as people are taking advantage of loop holes in ownership and accepting endorsements from companies that cater to the dog world in order to monetarily gain profit for themselves. AKC seems to ignore these instances pretty blatantly it would seem to me. Within the last several weeks there have been three deaths within the Fancy primarily in the Terrier area which have had more than an impact upon friends and acquaintances but on the sport of the exhibition and competition of the purebred dog specifically. I refer to my lose and yours of three very important terrier personalities Marjorie McTernan, Bob Black and Jack Simms. All of these people I am proud to say were long term friends and acquaintances of mine who in one fashion or another influenced my life in our great sport and those of many others with whom they came in contact. But sadly in these days where quantity is being stressed over quality the very high standards by which these three people operated and ran their dog show lives are being threatened and compromised by individuals more interested in appealing to the masses than in improving the judging standards and breeding practises which our sport and particularly the terrier people have so long endorsed. I loved and interacted with Marjorie, Bob and Jack on all sorts of different levels and agreed and disagreed with them as often as not. But the one thing we never disagreed about was the need to encourage and preserve quality over quantity, which so many of the power people of today seem not to be doing. In their very memory take into consideration their reactions to what AKC is attempting to succeed in doing in the dog show world today and turn those people down. Help preserve and encourage our past and the great traditions from which we all were raised upon and turn down the moves to mediocrity for sure. In the memories at least of Marjorie, Bob and Jack! Dog News 53
The Deadline For The Westminster Kennel Club 2015 issue of
Dog News
The Digest
Of American Dogs
which publishes on Friday, February 13, 2015 will be Friday, February 6, 2015 54 Dog News
Dog News 55
A report published at the end of 2014 by Pet Product News identified areas of predicted growth in 2015 and beyond and by and large they are mostly positive and beneficial in terms of providing better quality care for canines and for protecting breeders and sellers of purebred dogs. However, it’s up to dog owners to uphold these trends because the well-heeled animal rights activists are opposed to some and well positioned to combat them. The report refers to 2015 as a ‘make or break year’ for live animal sales and states that “the pet industry is upping its game in raising awareness and fighting bans against in-store livestock sales.” That’s certainly welcome news to purebred dog breeders, who are facing increasing obstacles, pressure and competition from animal rights groups that are pushing the puppy seeking public to seek out mixed-breed dogs from shelters or purebreds from rescues instead of from hobby or quality commercial breeders. However, there is a vast difference between reputable, educated and experienced breeders who have high-quality standards in animal husbandry and puppy mills that are only concerned with profits. Greater efforts must be made to educate the general public about this differential, as well as the growing “retail rescue” rings and shady shelter businesses that import puppies, many of them in deplorable conditions, from out of state and out of country to areas where dogs are in high demand. These questionable practices continue to thrive while AR extremists seek to control the conversation that all pet store puppies are bad. It’s a conversation that is reaching an audience, as some 50 cities in the United States now enforce pet sale bans. Meanwhile, the well publicized campaign to encourage the general public to adopt from shelters continues, as a Pedigree sponsored prime time television special called World Dog Awards featuring celebrities such as Paris Hilton launched this week on the CW network (Ch. 11 in New York) depicting tales of adopted dogs that have rescued their owners. These feel-good, tailwagging tales are designed to tug at the heartstrings and loosen the purse strings to support shelter adoptions and activities, which come with a cost, not only to dog owners, but to purebred breeders as well. Purebred enthusiasts should be encouraged that the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Committee (PIJAC) and all the major pet associations have pledged to continue to fight for pet stores’ rights to sell pets, as have many retailers with long histories of selling quality animals from trustworthy breeders. The Pet Industry Distributors As56 Dog News
sociation (PIDA) wants to help rewrite the messages perpetuated by organizations such as PETA and the Humane Society of The United States and to enlighten legislators and the general public alike that there are reputable commercial breeders that provide quality animals to pet stores and the public’s right to seek one must be upheld. Ban-
Trending in 2015
f f O e th e lsa h By Shaun Coen
ning the sales of pets in stores will not eradicate unscrupulous breeders. In fact, by eliminating their main source of competition it may provide them with more avenues to dump their wares, such as through online sales, classified ads, retail rescue outlets and out of state trafficking. According to a poll taken by the American Pet Products Association, a vast majority of American adults (over 80 per cent) believe that banning sales of animals entirely at pet stores will not stop puppy mills. More must be done to likewise enlighten lawmakers on this issue. Another major trend that’s been on the rise amongst pet owners is shelling out more money for higher quality food. The tainted chicken jerky treats of recent years may have had something to do with the rise in quality pet food products seeing higher sales numbers and
thankfully this week, PetSmart and Petco finally agreed to stop selling chicken jerky treats manufactured in China. One must wonder what took so long for those decisions to be made (were they waiting to deplete the inventory?) but hopefully more stores will follow suit and more pet owners will realize that these treats are an unnecessary part of their pets’ diets and they should continue to avoid them, as the USDA still hasn’t found the source of contamination in these treats that have killed and sickened an untold number of pets. Sighting the powerful role of the human-animal bond and an increased focus on pet health, pet industry experts Packaged Facts site that the dollar growth in the pet food market has come from more pet owners switching to higher priced foods and that sales in this sector should grow at 3 to 4.5 per cent rates over the next three-year period. This should result in the U.S. retail sales of pet food increasing a total of 16 per cent by 2018, to $33 billion annually. Freeze dried, frozen and refrigerated foods as well as raw pet food sales contributed to sales growth in these areas in the U.S. and in other areas abroad as well. Improvements in technology have helped manufacturers to gain greater control over cooking temperatures, extrusion, sanitation and food production safety, as well as in pin-pointing precise ingredients, with the result being pet foods containing fewer but higher quality ingredients and less additives such as byproducts and fillers, resulting in healthier foods and healthier dogs. Another hot trend in 2015, more businesses have been launched that cater to pet services, from basic necessities like dog walkers and grooming to premium services such as lavish spa treatments to professional dog trainers. One staggering statistic sighted by the U.S. Department of Labor projects that the employment of animal care and service workers and specifically animal trainers will grow 15 per cent from 2012 to 2022, faster than the average for all occupations. These trends have not been lost on the AKC, which has taken to sending email blasts to its constituents hawking its services and wares. According to its December 2014 Board Minutes, entries were down one per cent but events were up by three per cent over the previous year, so the registry has seemingly turned to soliciting sales via email and offering more products for sale on its website, from a Woofipedia Puppy Pack of toys for $45 to its AKC GoodDog! Helpline telephone service for $80 to a DVD on Dog Care and Training for $15. Another trend to look for in 2015 and beyond may be that the non-profit AKC will continue to seek alternative revenue streams such as these to recoup monies lost from fewer registrations and entries.
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*#2 overall, The Dog News Top Ten List - All Breed
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THE WESTMINSTER KENNEL CLUB 138th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show s February 10-11, 2014 s New York
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his is to let you know that the next issue of D — THE DOG NEWS ANNUAL MAGAZINE will be distributed the week before Westminster. The deadline to submit advertisements for this very special publication is January 17, 2015.
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s usual, everything about D—THE DOG NEWS ANNUAL MAGAZINE will contribute to making a lasting and continuing impact on readers, both nationally and internationally. Its distribution at Westminster is unparalleled, and it is the only American magazine to be distributed at Crufts, the FCI World Show and at many other European, Asian and South American dog shows as well. In addition, it will contain the final statistics for all breeds for 2014. From the quality of its design and production values to its editorial content, D—THE DOG NEWS ANNUAL MAGAZINE serves the fancy as a reference to which they go back to again and again. Discounts are available for four pages or more, whilst Handler Sections are available as well. Please contact us for preferred placement rates.
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Continued FROM page 18
ty. Granted, mentoring has always been practiced, often to good effect. But dog people can never have too much of it. There will always be something to learn, old or new, and someone who must learn the lessons of the dog sport on multiple levels. No one ever knows it all, and even the most learned among us can always expand their personal body of knowledge. Paying it forward is the undeclared obligation of every serious dog person who puts the good and future of the dog sport and their breed(s) above themselves. But not everyone is that high-minded. I never cease to be amazed at how often ostensibly sophisticated individuals can be misled by a savvy, manipulative “dogcentric” promoter. There must be something magical in the spiel of such a person that so impresses as to cause an audience of one or many to be sold so totally. How often do we come in contact with an individual who is so completely invested in a personal idol as to make every other dog person they meet of piddling significance? This individual has followed after the siren song of their own alpha to the point where all learning stops. You can recognize her by the frequency she references the actions and pronouncements of her guru; by her glazed expression as she publicly venerates her inspiration. It’s nothing new, but it’s sure as hell scary. Actually, we can all learn from any of our peers. That is NOT to say we can learn to build (or use) that better mousetrap. The development of survival skills comes easily as you watch the chump in front of you go over the cliff. Ouch! There are many highly intelligent participants currently active in the dog sport that enjoy gratifying success in the worlds or business, education, technology and numerous other disciplines. Why is it that these same people will 64 Dog News
AThought To Consider
It’s Our Schoolyard Now! leave their life lessons at the door where the dog sport is involved? Circe wasn’t the only enchantress who could turn men into swine. Anyone aspiring to achieve gratifying success in dogs can probably use the positive and negative examples they see around them. Techniques of husbandry, training and conditioning, feeding: the list is endless. And all these challenges can yield desired results just by trying. If they don’t, one can try something else. We can all experiment, and if something doesn’t work, try something else. Dogs are pretty sturdy and are not likely to break if something you try with them leads down a blind alley. Improvisation is one of the building blocks of the dog fancy. Of course we learn by listening, but we also benefit when we boldly learn by doing. That way the lessons are better retained. So even if the old timer whose dogs seem always to be beating yours appears reluctant to share her skills, you can still find a way to learn the essentials. Eventually, you could take that lady’s measure if you do your homework your way. It’s a proven fact that dog people are typically resourceful; if they can’t find an open door, they will locate a window. Think about that. What I am trying to convey here is that it’s okay to ignore the self-appointed, self-serving hotshot. Listen to what he says, but go along only if, after sufficient study, it makes sense to you. No one has a corner on the dog sport. It’s too good not to share and it’s too good not to try your own ideas. We stand at the infancy of a New Year. What it will bring us we do not yet know. Hopefully 2015 will be a banner year for the dog sport and for we who make it part of our lives; we’ll just have to wait and see. Thank you for reading.
A SUMMARY OF THE UK IN 2014 Continued FROM page 14
March
■ TKC celebrates the fifth anniversary of the founding of its KC Genetics Centre at the Animal Health Trust with a commitment of a further $2.5 (£1.6) million to fund a further five more years of research. ■ Crufts takes place and is declared a great success with record attendances of over 150,000 and with a very popular Best in Show winner - the Standard Poodle ‘Ricky’ - Ch Afterglow Maverick Sabre, owned by Michael Gadsby and Jason Lynn. Ricky was bred in the UK and is handled at Crufts by Jason. ■ The first of two TV documentaries about the rise in the number of dog attacks in the UK causes controversy in the canine world and amongst dog lovers when disturbing scenes are shown. These cause an immediate explosion of comments on Facebook as the programme is still being aired. ■ Pawscars – a charity event devised by Gavin Robertson, handler of the 2012 best in show winner at Crufts, and recognising achievement and celebrating all that is good in the world of dogs - is organised around Crufts Show and is supported by various commercial organisations. Awards go to many people who have contributed to the UK world of dogs in an exceptional way and the proceeds go to children’s and animal charities. ■ Despite general acclaim for the success of Crufts 2014, the Canine Alliance set up in the wake of the Vet Testing fuss at Crufts 2012, says that the show is: “Now something to be endured rather than enjoyed” and that: “A great opportunity has been missed to rectify the errors that have been made by TKC and which have caused so much upset.” ■ The National Terrier Club confirms that the overall entry of Terriers at its 2014 show has held up well and another group society the UK Toydog Society announces a 7.5% increase in the entry for its Championship Show which attracts a total of 1,966 dogs.
April ■ Articles in the national press about dog showing and pedigree dogs are broadly supportive and much more reasonable and less condemning and unflattering than has been the case in many instances in recent years. This is demonstrated by positive articles this month in a number of the quality national newspapers. ■ TKC requests suggestions for projects to benefit from its $3.5 (£2.3) million Legacy Investment Fund available for projects which will cover: dog health, dog welfare, benefits to the dog owning community, or benefits to the dog activity concerned, e.g. agility, field trials, breed/conformation shows, working trials, etc. The
fund has arisen as a result of a property windfall arising from moving its Mayfair location. ■ Procter and Gamble (P&G) announces that it is to sell its North and South American Iams/Eukanuba business to the Mars Corporation for $2.9 billion. Mars and P&G say they expect to complete the pet business sale in the second half of 2014. P & G also says that, though not part of the Mars deal, its European Pet Care business is also up for sale. ■ A number of national newspapers pick up on a study spearheaded by the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) in London which concludes that purebred dogs are no more likely than crossbreds to suffer from the most common canine disorders such as heart murmurs, joints or teeth and gum diseases.
May ■ TKC welcomes the release of a government consultation to review the level of secrecy involved in legislation on scientific experiments on animals. It says that greater transparency is needed to protect animal welfare. ■ The Government approves a new more secure Pets Passport Scheme for dogs coming to the UK to prevent criminals falsifying information. This follows alarm in October 2013 when two puppies contracted rabies in Holland within a week of being imported from Bulgaria. ■ The number of dogs registered at TKC in the first quarter of 2014 is announced as up compared to the same period in 2013 by 1.6%. ■ TKC’s Annual General Meeting decides that Registration Fees are to be increased from £15 to £16 but for Assured Breeders they are to be reduced from £15 to £14. ■ Members of TKC at its Annual General Meeting insist that the printed version of the old Kennel Gazette, which was discontinued on cost grounds from 1 January this year, is to be brought back in a quality format. ■ All eight KC General Committee (Board) Members standing for re-election are returned to office at TKC’s AGM. ■ It is confirmed that the fact that Crufts’ sponsor Eukanuba in Europe is for sale will not affect the staging of Crufts 2015 in any way.
June ■ TKC Chairman says of democracy that it: “Is a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives. At the organisational level it is control of an organisation or group by the majority of its members.” More controversially according to some commentators, he adds: “It is easy to argue that the Continued on page 66
Dog News 65
A SUMMARY OF THE UK IN 2014 Continued FROM page 65
Kennel Club is democratic and meets these definitions.” ■ The Canine Alliance issues a further statement expressing its opposition to vet testing at shows and says that the entire procedure is ‘nonsensical’. Meantime the testing continues and is becoming accepted as routine ■ TKC calls for the help and expertise of breed clubs as it prepares to launch a new survey which will aim to give the most wide-ranging insight into dog breed health to date. The Survey will be sent to 385,000 people who have registered pedigree dogs with TKC in the past 15 years and who have signed up to allow the KC to send them emails.
July ■ Eukanuba Europe announces that its World Challenge will this year be held in the Netherlands in conjunction with the Winners Show in Amsterdam on 13th and 14th December. This move from Florida follows the sale by Procter and Gamble (P&G) of Eukanuba in the USA to the Mars Group. ■ The KC and Procter and Gamble sign a three-year deal to March 2018 for Crufts and other activities which will: “continue their collaboration and expand on their shared goals.” ■ Comments made on Facebook result in the loss of a judging appointment, possibly the first time this has happened in the UK. The comments of the GSD judge had been made earlier in the year on a closed Facebook group. They are deemed to be ‘inappropriate and manifestly unfair’ and would ‘undoubtedly affect entries’. ■ The Government says that scientific procedures on living animals in the UK increased to a total of 4.12 million in 2013. TKC expresses its disappointment that the number of dogs being used in scientific procedures has increased by 11 per cent.
August ■ Nestlé Purina PetCare writes to the major UK championship shows involved in the competition to advise them that the organisation is to withdraw from the PRO PLAN/Dog World Pup of the Year competition as from the end of 2014. ■ The KC announces that it is to ditch its Breeders Competition in 2015 after five years of organising the event. Breeders express surprise that a competition that is so popular in other countries should be regarded as unsuccessful in the UK. ■ Research that could help reduce the incidence of Syringomyelia (SM) in the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and other toy breeds, and inform responsible breeding practices, is published in TKC and BioMed Central’s Canine Ge66 Dog News
netics and Epidemiology journal. ■ In further moves to prevent unscrupulous breeders profiting by duping puppy buyers into buying ‘rare’ colors, TKC takes various steps to help inform the public about which colors indicate a true example of the breed. They are helping the UK Pet Advertising Advisory Group (PAAG) to discourage people from being fooled by bogus colour descriptions. ■ It is revealed that a truck driver who at the end of last year is said to have caused the crash involving Lisa Croft-Elliott, Carrie Russell Smith and Anastasia Egorova, is to stand trial following police investigations. The accident had left four of the couple’s dogs dead, and Lisa and Anastasia badly injured. ■ UK studies show that while they live 1.2 years longer than purebreds, crossbred dogs however have lower occurrences for only three from the top 20 disorders recorded in dogs. Though they do appear to benefit from a hybrid vigour effect for general characteristics such as longevity, they seem to enjoy less advantage when it comes to specific common disorders. ■ It is announced that the overall entry figures for UK championship shows continue the optimistic trend and up to and including the Birmingham City Show at the end of August, the overall numbers are up by 1.1%. ■ TKC chairman Steve Dean speaking at the Welsh Kennel Club Dinner says that anyone with an interest in dogs can and should help with the direction that TKC moves in. He maintains that the world of dogs is in a better place today than it was a few years ago, although some areas still need working on. ■ It is confirmed that the UK Advisory Council on the Welfare Issues of Dog Breeding is to be wound up at the beginning of 2015. Many canine writers have shown a lack of enthusiasm for the Council and will not be sad to see its demise. ■ In a new co-operation among various kennel clubs, the first formal board meeting of the ‘International Partnership for Dogs’ takes place at TKC in London. The partnership is designed to bring together various organisations to share reliable information on canine health issues.
September ■ TKC re-issues and adds to its advice to people using Facebook and other social media platforms. It advises people to take care when posting items to the internet and warns them of the penalties that can follow ill advised public comments. ■ Supporting Pup Aid and its proposed pet shop ban, TKC says that the true cost of buying a puppy in the UK is soaring, with one in five bought from pet shops contracting a po-
tentially deadly disease within six months. That is despite more and more people getting dogs from pet shops, from the internet or through free newspaper ads, all outlets which are often used by puppy farmers and puppy mills. ■ Rob Flello MP leads a debate in parliament intended to be on the subject of clamping down on puppy mills. The debate is inspired by Pup Aid’s e-petition of more than 110,000 signatures to ban the sale of pups and kittens when their mother is not present. Government statements indicate that further legislation is unlikely. ■ At least 43 dogs are confirmed to have died after a suspected arson attack at Manchester Dogs Home in the north of England. More than 20 firefighters battle the blaze that engulfs the building.
October ■ It is announced that P&G has found a buyer for its European Eukanuba business and that it is selling its Iams and Eukanuba brands in Europe to Spectrum Brands, thus shedding the remaining parts of its pet care business. ■ The British Veterinary Association (BVA) says that breeders and vets need to work together to ensure that the health and welfare when breeding dogs is paramount. ■ The announcement is in response to TKC’s request that more vets should report to it the Caesarean sections they perform on bitches. The BVA says that TKC guidelines state that breeders should ‘self report’. ■ Judges for the finals of the Eukanuba World Challenge now to be held in Amsterdam in December are announced as Damir Skok, from Croatia; Leif-Herman Wilberg, Norway; Aramis Lim, Australia and Ronnie Irving, UK. The overall winner will be chosen by Jorgen Hindse from Denmark. ■ The German Kennel Club (VDH) announces that it will organise the second International Dog Health Workshop in Dortmund in February 2015. ■ The UK’s Eukanuba Champion stakes sends the UK representative to the Eukanuba World Challenge each year. This year’s winner from the 29 contestants in the final is the Shetland Sheepdog, Ch Edglonian Singin The Blues. ■ TKC Chairman Steve Dean expresses disappointment at the lack of ideas coming from the wider world of dogs for the use of part of the cash windfall of £12 million, arising from the recent Clarges Street property deal and says that there is a lack of response to the creation of what the KC is calling its ‘Legacy Fund’.
November
December
■ TKC dismisses a complaint about the judging of Shetland Sheepdogs at the Southern Counties Championship show. Kari Järvinen, acknowledged as one of the world’s most experienced judges, had given best bitch to Am Ch Hillstone Hallelujah and a number of exhibitors signed a complaint to the effect that Mr Järvinen had not judged to the British Standard. ■ TKC Show Promotions Working Party on the future of UK dog shows makes announcements on proposed breeds for general championship shows. If their plans are accepted some new all-breed championship shows will be created. ■ TKC’s Discover Dogs (Meet the Breeds) in London says goodbye to Earls Court location. The attendance is announced as 33,500 visitors, just 1.5% less than last year’s record gate. Earls Court will shortly close to be replaced by a housing development. Next year’s Discover Dogs is to be held at London’s ExCel Centre in October. ■ The Government’s Animal Welfare Minister, Lord de Mauley and Angela Smith MP, Opposition Shadow Minister for Animal Welfare, are guest speakers at the launch of TKC’s ‘A Dog’s Life’ Manifesto at Discover Dogs. The manifesto is a guide on what TKC thinks should be done by any future government after next year’s UK elections.
■ Four of the eight Members of the Working Party set up by TKC to organise the return of the hard copy version of the Kennel Gazette resign. The Panel Chairman who is one of those leaving says that TKC’s Board has: “Given the panel no guidelines, no financial parameters, and no meaningful information regarding the past accounts appertaining to the Kennel Gazette.” He says that he and other members of the Panel felt “demotivated, hurt and insulted” by the Board’s response to their plans. ■ The last major show of the year, the Ladies Kennel Association, takes place at the same venue as Crufts and attracts an entry of 10,126 dogs. ■ It is announced that the overall entries for the major championship shows in 2014 have shown an increase of 1.1%. This follows falls of around 2% - 3% per annum over the last few years. ■ A group of Members of Parliament publishes a long list of ways in which it believes dog breeders should be controlled in the future. Commentators say that there is nothing controversial in the list which they say is no more than ‘motherhood and apple pie’. However they also note that the Group has commented that this is: “Just a first stage of a longer term process for its dog strategy, with a second phase of work planned for 2015 where the recommendations will be developed further to provide more detailed approaches for policy-makers, enforcers, and stakeholders.“
Endpiece ■ With that last piece of news may I hope everyone had Happy Holidays and extend every good wish for a successful 2015.
Dog News 67
Netherlands Bull Terrier Show & Country Competition Continued FROM page 31
fered to drive us out to the hotel. So around 9:30 we met this charming young couple who had spent the night at a hotel near the airport. Knowing that there would be four adults and a child I decided I better pack a smaller suitcase than I normally travel with and this took a bit more planning. Thank God as Jan warned me that space might be an issue. My normal suitcase would have taken up more room in the car than was available. Upon arriving at the hotel around 10:30 AM, the lobby was full of the BT folk asking when check in would be available. We did have to wait several hours to get our assigned rooms, but I was able to store my smaller than usual suitcase in Susan Murphy’s room. Jan pointed out the hotel was full of people, but very few dogs were to be seen. Maybe since it was a cold, damp day the BT’s were staying warm in their comfy rooms. The weather did detour me from walking into the lovely little town of Leiden proper. It was not the kind of weather to be enjoying the beautiful scenery the town offers. Midday was spent in the bar enjoying wonderful warm soup and good wine.
O
n Saturday the Miniature Bull Terrier Club also holds a separate specialty of their own. For several months I kept thinking Saturday morning I would be running back and forth from the Mini ring to the BT ring, since I also have a huge interest in Minis. Late Monday, five days before the show, I got an email from Hans Konings, Chairman of N.B.T.C., asking if I would be willing to judge the baby, puppy and junior males in place of Mr. Chris Mellor from the UK. Mr. Mellor had hurt his ankle and would not be able to judge. I immediately answered as fast as my fingers can type. Being under the gun time wise, they had to get someone approved very quickly. I cannot express how flattered I was to be asked to judge the biggest Bull Terrier show in the world. The only thing I could compare it to would be being asked to judge BIS at the likes of Montgomery County, Eukanuba, Westminster, Crufts or Morris & Essex. I have judged dozen of ROM (register of Merit) shows for BT’s, but here so many of the leading authorities on the breed would be watching. As soon as I received the invitation, I immediately reviewed the illustrated standard several times. Also every dog I would judge would get a written critique. In the US at ROM shows we only do critiques on WD, RWD, WB, RWB, BOB and BOS. Friday evening around 6:30 PM, I went to the Ocean Bar and could feel the enthusiasm in the air with so many BT lovers counting the hours until 68 Dog News
the show would start. After a long drink, Jan Dykema, David Merriam and I moved to the very quiet dining room to enjoy the Italian Buffet. This would be the last of having any quiet time over the long, exciting weekend. After dinner I returned back to the bar and by now every serious BT person in the world had arrived. Many, many people from England and other European countries arrive in Holland by car. Promising myself to be in top form to judge, I did not stay at the bar, as I normally would have. Judging started Saturday at 9:00 AM. Not liking to move very quickly I had a wake up call for 6:30 AM, but woke up by 6 and now wished judging would start at 8 AM. On Saturday the very spacious hall had two rings, one for males and one for females. After I would finish the young males, Susan Murphy would judge the adult male classes and champion dogs. Anna Blair, from the UK, would judge the young bitch classes and Norma Smith from Canada judged the adult bitches. Last year the Saturday show did not finish until around 6 PM. With the entry being up this year by over fifty, it was feared the show would go even later. I only had 56 to judge. Susan had 82, Anna 91 and Norma 78. In the Junior Bitch class Anna had 54 in just that one class. I had an entry of 12 in the Baby class. When the class was called about 6 came charging in, but it must have been close to ten minutes before the rest dwindled in. I’m not sure what the later exhibitors were doing, but they appeared to be running from wherever they were coming from. From the moment Sapphire Be Gentle With Love entered the ring, I was suspecting he would win the baby class. Upon examination, I was amazed at just how much this youngster possessed in the way of virtues. This beautifully marked brindle and white is beautiful from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail. I am so looking forward to seeing him next year with a year more
of maturity. I will be shocked if he does not excite me as much next year. By the 2016 show, I am confident he will be a contender as one of the top males competing. Later in the day I was so pleased to learn he is sired by Bigshot Sugar Daddy, who went second in the Champion class. I was also greatly impressed by “Sugar Daddy” who is a “Huntsman” son. Hopefully the baby will be a sire like his father and grandfather. The puppy dog class consisted of an entry of sixteen. Here again, some very promising puppies. Looking at so many of these puppy males, I thought the future of the breed looks to be in good shape. My Junior class had an entry of 28. This class had a lot of depth of quality. Even after the four placing dogs, there were many others of top quality. Many of these dogs could win the points under me at our specialties in the US. When eventual winner was judged, Anivellen Five Minutes to Heaven, I was immediately in heaven. This young white dog because of such great virtues probably blinded me to any shortcomings he might have. Later in the day, I was so pleased to hear from several whose opinions are much more valued than mine, that they felt the same about him. I truly felt in the Challenge for Best Dog, he still looked so good next to the mature Open dog and Champion dog. I also am looking forward to seeing him again next year with more maturity. Having so many less dogs to judge than Anna Blair, I was finished a couple of hours before Anna. However, Susan could not start judging the adult males until Anna finished the young bitches. I was lucky that I was able to see some of the Mini Bull judging in an adjacent room. I got to see a couple of the bitch classes and the Challenge for best bitch was Continued on page 77
Dog News 69
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Dog News 71
The WESTMINSTER THEATRE BENEFIT is sold out. Our thanks to those of you who purchased tickets to attend the benefit. For those of you unable to obtain tickets, you might want to be put on a waitlist, if not there is always next year. The ROCKLAND COUNTY KENNEL CLUB has donated $12,500. for a canine police dog for the Clarkstown Police Department. Heartening to see that some clubs are spending their money instead of banking it.
Travelers KIM & ANGELA BOOTH, CONNIE GERSTNER MILLER, BLAKE & GERI HART and their children AUBREY & KADE, JEFF PEPPER, GLORIA KERR, PLIUS DAVERN and DEBRA TOSCH have unpacked their safari The famous all gear, following a two-week breed judge from Fintrip to Tanzania over the land RAINER VUORINEN holidays. has decided to retire. One of the most respected judges to come from the ranks of FCI, his And baby opinion was held in the highmakes three… est esteem. His retirement is a congratulations are in great loss to the internaorder for the expectant tional judging commuparents, professional nity. handlers LUKE & TAMMY SEIDLITZ.
Congratulations to handlers KRISTYN MCCARTNEY and DAVID STOUT on their recent engagement to be married. Celebrating Birthdays…CAROLYN KOCH, ADAM PETERSON, JOE VERGNETTI, TARA SCHULTZ, EILEEN HACKETT, TAMMY SEIDLITZ, COLLETTE LIVINGSTONKEITH, DORIS MILLER, CHRIS ERICKSON, DEB SHINDLE, CHIP RAYNER, JACKIE RAYNER, DANA MASSEY, JO HUBBS, SHARON PFLEUGER, SHARI MASON and BOB MASON. Christie Smith tied the knot with long time friend Manuel “Manny” Martinez. They reside in Port Ludlow, Washington overlooking the Puget Sound where they enjoy their dogs and sailing.
Smooth Fox Terrier breeder JACK SIMM, who went onto become a professional handler, most notably handling the late PHILLIP & BETY FELL’S Norwich Terriers, has passed away. Predeceased by his wife JENNY, they were longtime residents of Long Island and moved several years ago to Pennsylvania to be closer to JENNY’S family. Following JENNY’S death, he was fortunate to have SUSAN & RICHARD POWELL care for him. He was a man of many talents including getting any two animals bred and making the best shortbread cookies you ever tasted. Following his handling days, ARLYS KIJJACK went on to beOWSKI, breeder of come a judge of the Shih Tzu since the 1970’s, hound and terrier has passed away. She bred groups. under the Jolei prefix. All of us at DOG NEWS send our deepest sympathies to her daughter and son in law professional handlers DIANE & LUKE EHRICHT and family.
the Gossip column By Eugene Z. Zaphiris
72 Dog News
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74 Dog News
Dog News 75
Letters to the Editor A New Fairer System? Rereading an old article about a top handler who never took his big winning dog back to a judge after winning Best in Show, to give the rest a chance, reminded me of a system I thought would be a much fairer one than any, to my knowledge, presently in existence. Simply put (although it would be a bit more difficult to implement, for ranking points), only one win would count under any given judge, the biggest one, of course, during a record year. For example if Dog A won a Group worth 67 points under Judge X and a month later won a Best in Show worth 320 points under Judge X, he would have a total for the year for only 320, not 387. Plus, of course, all the points won under other judges, but only one set of points from each. Further wins under the
same judge might change the total points from a larger show, but they would never be cumulative during a calendar year or record time frame. The wins would count as wins, of course, but the fact that points would not add on might discourage the “following” of judges which is so prevalent today. Rankings of dogs might change considerably between the dog which is Number 2 with 20 wins under 20 different judges and the previous Number 1 with 20 under only a half dozen different adjudicators! How about it? Sally Futh Washington, CT KENNEL CLUB ANNOUNCES NEW RANGE OF PRODUCTS FOR CRUFTS QUALIFIERS IN 2015 The Kennel Club has announced the launch of its new ‘We Qualified for Crufts 2015’ merchandise range, designed for anyone competing at this year’s show. The collection, which is available to buy online, features items with an emphasis on practicality. These include a variety of t-shirts, fleeces and accessories avail-
“YOU KNOW IT’S TIME FOR A NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION TO LOSE WEIGHT WHEN…
Dog News will consider all letters for publication but reserves the right to edit these as required. Letters will not be considered for publication unless full name and contact details are supplied, including telephone number. Letters may be mailed to Dog News 1115 Broadway NY, NY 10010 or emailed to dognews@harris-pub.com.
able to those that have qualified for the world’s biggest dog show. Following the launch of this new collection, another innovative range of Crufts Official Merchandise will be introduced for the show itself. A teaser selection will be released prior to the show with the full range being launched at Crufts 2015 from the Crufts Official Merchandise stand in Hall 1, and available thereafter from the Crufts Official Shop website. Helen Fox, Marketing and Business Development Executive said: “With great design, top-notch quality and wear-ability in mind, these stylish new Crufts merchandise collections will appeal to all dog lovers and fans of the world’s greatest dog show.” To view and buy the ‘We Qualified for Crufts 2015’ collection, and for updates on the new Crufts Official Merchandise launch, please visit www.cruftsofficialshop.com. Laura Quickfall London, England LATE ANSWER TO THIS WEEK’S QUESTION OF THE WEEK:
AKC has decided to change its logo. Which do you like better? Now this is a topic about which a survey should have been taken for sure!
Camille McArdle, DVM …YOU STEP ON A TALKING SCALE AND IT SAYS ‘ONE AT A TIME PLEASE’!”
76 Dog News
The new logo is crisper. But I think upgrading their logo should take a back seat to getting a lot of messages out to the public about the value of purebred dogs and the value of buying from a quality breeder, etc.
Netherlands Bull Terrier Show
& Country Competition
Continued FROM page 68
deep in quality. The class for BOB consisted of some world class Minis. The BOB winning male is full of virtues that the breed is so lacking in certain areas. This dog, hailing from the UK, I am confident will be a dog to beat at Crufts. A very beautiful bitch from Germany was BIS. I had seen her last year and was very impressed even though she was overlooked. With a year’s maturity she is even better than I predicted. When Anna Blair finished the young bitches, the Best Baby in Show would be judged by Anna and me. I believe David Merriam would be the referee if one had to be called. Anna and I agreed that my baby male should be Best Baby in Show. Then we decided which would become Best Puppy in Show. We both agreed it would be her puppy bitch. There was not a run off for Best Junior, since they both competed for the Challenge dog and bitch. For the adult judging I positioned myself between the two rings. I just wish I had more eyes to focus on both rings at the same time. Susan and Norma have to be credited for moving the very large classes along very quickly. The show actually finished around the same time as last year even though the entry was much larger. Susan had some truly great males. Her winning dog, Ch. Cosmo Politan Space Oddity Moonflower, came from the Champion class. Quentinhill Rebelicious became Best Bitch from the Open Class. After a short discussion between Susan and Norma, the bitch was crowned BOB. This world class bitch hailing from the UK, can win anywhere in the world today. The all-rounder judges will appreciate her just as much as breeder judges do. She will be such a great diplomat for the breed as “Yum-Yum” was in the US. After seeing the bitch on Saturday, it was agreed she would be a tremendous boost to the English Team for the Country Competition. After judging and watching
around 310 Bull Terriers and 50 Minis, I was drained around 6:30. However, a quick drink, shower, change of shoes and everyone was headed to the banquet. Last year it could fit in the same room as the entertainment and dancing. This year more than 400 signed up and it required the entire very large main dining room and the dancing in another room. I have never seen so many food stations in my life and the quality of the food was fabulous. Also it makes it nice that you are able to buy a whole bottle or more from the bar. This allows not having to continuously wait in line. Since the Country Competition does not start until 11:00 AM, nobody was in a hurry to retire early. It became a very long night for many. At last call from the Ocean Bar, one was able to stock up on drinks to be enjoyed in the lovely, spacious lobby. On Saturday I was thinking it would be better if the Country Competition started at 10 AM instead of 11 AM because last year it was about 6 PM when it finished. I have to confess Sunday morning I now wished it would not start until 12 PM. This year the Country Competition was judged by the Hon. David Merriam, Gordon Smith of Canada and Mr. Georg Scherzer (D.E.). The Country Competition is the great concept of Hans Konings. Ten years ago, in 2004, he got the idea for this competition to celebrate the 70th anniversary show of the NBTC in 2006. On a trip to the UK, Hans had seen a competition between the different Bull Terrier Clubs of the US. Seeing clubs competing, Hans thought it would be great to see different countries coming together to all compete in one location. We see this in many sports. The Olympics is the perfect example. This became an immediate success. The first year on Saturday they had 175 dogs and 10 countries competed on Sunday. Because of its success, it was decided to become an annual event. The show keeps growing and growing. This year Saturday had 310 entered and Sunday the Coun-
try Competition saw 15 different countries competing. The Bull Terrier Clubs in the US do not have any clubs competing, but at Santa Barbara Kennel Club last year I organized a prize award to the Bull Terrier Club accumulating the most points. Since that entry was even larger for the Country Competition this year, Hans and the committee came up with new ideas to allow the judging to run at a faster pace. It worked well since even with the larger entry the show finished as early as it did last year. This year, again, it was won by the United Kingdom. Each judge places each class one through eleven. There are four classes: Males under 2, Males over 2 and the same for bitches. Each judge’s first place dog receives 12 points and their eleventh place receives one point. The male, Ch. Padhen Hitman, received 12 points from all three judges. The bitch, Quentinhill Rebelicious, who won the entire show on Saturday, also got 12 points from all three judges. With both of these representing the UK, that accounted for 72 points from just these two entries. Several other British dogs scored well also. The runner-up in the Country Competition was the Netherlands, which had a very strong team. Also Best Netherlands bred dog on Saturday was Ch. Bigshot Sugar Daddy, which also was Reserve best male. And again, this dog is the sire of the Baby Anna Blair and I made Best Baby in Show.
S
unday evening several Americans went into Leiden proper to enjoy a wonderful relaxing meal. It was a nice ending to a super weekend. Monday morning seven of us gathered to move to Amsterdam for some great sightseeing adventures. David Merriam has to be credited for planning Tuesday visiting some great historical famous homes that are now museums. The Rembrandt home was especially fascinating. Anyone who has a serious interest in Bull Terriers should someday take the time to witness this great, great show. I cannot express how exciting it is for me. The dates for next year will be November 7th & 8th, 2015. Because of the entry growing each year, even though the classes are limited, it might be that they will judge the baby classes on Friday evening. I am sure Hans and his super committee will continue to refine the mechanics in order to meet the growing entry. Having over 23 countries competing has to make this the most unique show in the world. I have to thank the entire committee, all the exhibitors and especially all the breeders for such a magical weekend. It takes a tremendous amount of energy, finances and great talent for a show like this to be staged. My thanks again for including me. Dog News 77
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Remembering
Bob Black Continued FROM page 49
Well his Wicked Sister knew the details…and no… I will not share them with you. Well, all I can say is he was a preferred guest and garnered many frequent flyer points on his Delta credit card. Speaking of that, Robert would purchase everything on his American Express Delta card. Everything from business expenses for their landscaping business, travel expenses for his judging assignments, dinners out and various other expenses I will not get into with you. And no…he did not bequeath me a single point…..nearly two million miles. As one friend wrote to Bobby, “Wherever he has gone, we know that it is in First Class on Delta.” I truly think he feels he can use those points for a visit to a dog show or a trip to “the desert” from where he now is. There are so many fond memories we shared. I so enjoyed being on the same judging panel with Robert. It was a time for two judges to discuss and in some cases, debate the dogs we examined. We had a standing rule…we had to call each other concluding our assign-
ments and advise…“this is what I did”. On the day he died I had the distinct honor of doing his assignment, the BBE Terrier Group at The AKC Eukanuba Championship show in Florida. And, as always, I called him afterwards and outlined my placements. He sounded tired and I asked how he was. “I’m tired and I am going for a long sleep,” he said. Said I ...“How about a short nap?” “No Thommy…I need a long sleep…and I love you”. I knew then that I would not see him again as I had planned to the next day on my return from Orlando. In keeping with the fond tradition of other great dog men, Robert died during the Terrier Group at this show. No surprise to me the Skye went Best in Show and I knew Robert was guiding that decision from above. This was the life of a great man, a great friend…my Wicked Sister. I will miss him deeply and look to the day when I will join him and other dog fanciers at the big dog show in the sky. A quote from a famous Queen, Queen Elizabeth the Second....sums it up best. “Grief is the price we pay for love.” Dog News 85
AS OF JANUARY 1, 2015
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