[RubyTuesday]

Originally Posted by Chris Wild
Much of it is from discussions on the same or similar topics in the past, claiming that working lines or "SchH dogs" can't be pets, etc.... And it is very often touted on the websites of those breeding the "old fashioned" and "pet line" type dogs. Sometimes they outright state it, but almost always there is some reference to something along the lines of "our dogs don't do SchH/bite people/attack" or "our dogs aren't crazy and high drive" but "unlike those dogs they make great pets". The implications there being obvious; that working lines/SchH dogs are crazy, unsuited to family life, etc...

But some specific examples from this thread (and I can't believe I just wasted a half hour of my life reading through 30+ pages to pull them out):

That GSDs can no longer work (with the implication that attempts to preserve such by those who focus on it are futile), and completely ignoring 2 key facts. One, that many organizations still do consider the GSD as the breed of choice. Two, that there are many, many reasons that have caused some organizations to move away from the GSD that have absolutely nothing to do with GSD working ability. The comments about Mals in military work, which are not entirely true, and comparing the GSD to a Mal, for anyone who knows squat about Mals, indicates GSDs aren't crazy enough.

Chris, thanks for your response. IMO, you’re being more than a little unfair. You originally stated,
According to various comments in this thread, the "SchH breeder":
Is obsessed with size and only wants small dogs.
His dogs can't be family companions.
His dogs aren't good with kids.
His dogs will eat cats, small dogs, livestock or anything else that moves.
His dogs will knock down Granny.

One side claims these dogs are crazy nutjobs, can't live in the house, can't be companions, and are a danger to every living creature (especially kids, cats and Grannies).

Only Doc made a statement here that could be construed as ‘anti SchH dog’ but he also stated here (& elsewhere) that he admires your dogs so I think it’s obvious that wasn’t his intent. Anti-SchH, anti-WL statements made on the board are usually made by new members woefully inexperienced with GS in general, & SchH or WL in particular. To prove a case with their statements is (IMO) making a weak case. Ditto using statements made on some breeders' web sites, some of which are inferences rather than outright remarks. There are numerous web sites for WL breeders which claim only their GS is the *true* GS & make ridiculous & erroneous remarks about companion lines, over sized GS or SL GS. In fact there are numerous erroneous remarks in this thread that again raise the tired & inaccurate assumptions that oversized GS are unhealthy, short lived, especially prone to HD, can’t & don’t work.

The view that SchH GS can’t work is surely a minority view. I don’t believe they’re the only GS capable of working. In some venues, they might not even be the best GS for the task, but I don’t think statements from 1 or 2 members indicate a general dissing of the SchH GS.

Originally Posted by Chris Wild
And the accusation that "SchH breeders" are the ones (and apparently the only ones) who obsess about size. Something completely untrue, and you don't have to take my word for it just look at the dogs and lines those folks have and you will see far more variance in size than in any other subset of the breed and any other competition venue.

IMO, clearly SchH (& to a lesser extent SL) enthusiasts, *are * obsessed with over sized GS. Also white GS & until very recently LC GS. I’ve yet to see any of the many members who prefer oversized GS (or LC or WGS) starting threads to slam & spread misinformation on those GS they don’t prefer.

In this thread it seems that attitudes are softening just a bit, but is that genuinely the case, or have some heavily favored breeders thrown too many outsized pups for it to be otherwise?