The Kennel Club Breeders Face Action

[Samba]

Any word on where The Kennel Club is going with this?

Times Article

[ldw6559]

Thankk goodness someone actually cares a little! This is a travesty in our own time. Whatever happened to the origial GSD as I see nothing that reminds me of the shepherd I grew up with. These animals ( and I'm sorry for those I offend ) look nothing like the animals we have in this part of the country which come from the shepherd of the past and actually LOOK like a GSD.

[khawk]

Ok, first of all, the documentary referred to and the Kennel Club are both British. This means nothing for American show line shepherds and the odds that it will mean anything of significance for American showline dogs are close to nil. Second of all, at least in the United States, no one has to be stuck with an Am line dog if they don't want to be. There are many dogs in rescue from back yard breeders with better working structure than any show dog (and better tempaerament, too) who want and need good homes. There are sport/Schutzhund dogs who are less extremely structured than show dogs and more athletic, available from any number of the posters of this very board. There are 'old-fashioned' dogs, more rare and difficult to come by, also available from a couple of the people on this forum and from a rare scattering of breeders around the country. (They are called old-fashioned because they look much the same as the dogs in the photos from 1910-1960 rather than the show dogs of today.)

Are the show dogs of today a travesty of the breed? In my opinion, yes, they are. You know how to get rid of them? Don't buy them. Don't go to shows. And refuse to swallow their hogwash about the extremes of conformation they have perpetuated. When there is no more demand for show dogs, the show dogs will have to change because no one wants them--or they will become so marginalized that only a few die-hards will continue to show and to breed them. It is the simple law of supply and demand. Shut off the demand and the supply will diminish accordingly. Do your homework. Use the internet. Seek out the kind of German Shepherd you want and then get that kind of dog instead of paying big bucks for German 'high' line dogs or American show line dogs. There is a German Shepherd out there for anyone who wants one. You are not stuck with the kind of dog the show ring puts out if you don't want it.

Nobody is going to change things for you. Not the Kennel Club, not the AKC, and certainly not the national German Shepherd society, which has a vested interest in keeping things the way they are. But you can change it. Turn your back on the showring. Refuse to buy a dog with 'champion' in its pedigree. Get a rescue dog. Buy a sport dog. Get an 'old-fashioned' dog. Support the people who have preserved these dogs against all odds. And then be proud of them. Say, 'my dog is too GOOD to be a show dog,' and believe it. After all, it's true. khawk

[Xeph]

Quote:When there is no more demand for show dogs, the show dogs will have to change because no one wants them

The "problem" is that there will always be people that want them. The dogs that "people remember from their childhood" are often black and tans, and black and tan working lines don't crop up much. And while color should be of the least importance, to many color DOES matter. They do not want a sable or a black or a bi color...they can get the color they want in a show line

[khawk]

There are plenty of black and tan dogs in rescue, and many of those do not have the extreme angulation of show line dogs, and more, among the 'old-fashioned' Shepherds, black and tans predominate, so you do NOT have to tolerate the showline type of conformation in order to get the color you want. It is only in the sport/Schutzhund type of dog that black and tan coloration is rare. So as an excuse to force showline conformation on people, the desire for the black and tan color won't fly.

The very fact that the German Shepherd breed has split into so many different types is proof that people will turn to the type of shepherd they want. People who breed their dogs for real world work and to the original breed standard instead of the debased and corrupt current standard which was created by and for show people do exist. They are NOT backyard breeders because they do not accept the show standard any more than the sport dog people are backyard breeders because they do not accept the show standard. As long as they are taking care to breed structurally sound, healthy dogs with good temperaments they are just as good as any show breeder and maybe better than many. If enough people turn away from the debased show types of Shepherd dog and refuse to believe the claptrap spouted by show people in order to try to excuse what they have done to the breed, or to try to force people to accept their dogs when better alternatives exist, then show people Can be marginalized, and once that happens, an atmosphere in which those show people will at least consider change can be created.

Many people 'remember' a dog that stood up on its feet instead of walking on its hind legs, a dog with a level back because those are the dogs that Stephanitz' standard mandated. He used the very words 'level back' (or at least his translator did) and he specifically stated that the metatarsal bones were to be perpendicular to the ground. He also specifically stated that over-angulation was not only a fault, but a severe fault, and both he and Denlinger considered it a weakness. Carried to the degree that is seen in the show world today they both considered it grounds for disqualification. And this is based upon specific diagrams they provided.

For the last almost fifteen years, I have used a wheelchair aide dog to help me get around and my dogs are seen by large numbers of people. Both of my wheelchair aide dogs were/are sable, and I do not apprehend that people are put off by that. They may prefer the classic black and tan, but it is more important that they are seeing dogs that are strong behind (well they'd have to be to handle a wheelchair well, now wouldn't they?) who can stand up on their feet instead of crouching and bunny hopping around because of their over-angulated hocks and extremely long thighs. Again and again I get the statement that this is what a German Shepherd ought to look like. I have been approached by all breed judges who wanted to know where in the world I got such a wonderful shepherd and had them tell me that this is what they wish they were seeing in the show ring. I have had judges tell me that they don't judge shepherds any more because they can't stand what they have become. One judge asked me how he could reconcile choosing among the 'least appalling' dogs presented to him with his conscience. I didn't have an answer for him. That judge is an 'all-breed' judge and is still active in judging but he avoids having to judge the herding groups whenever possible. I suspect on the rare occasions that he does judge herding dogs, that Shepherds do not do well in group under him.

I do not believe that there are any acceptable excuses for this. The lessons of history are clear. When enough people cease to demand a certain type of dog, that type of dog will eventually become genetically UNviable. Because of the large numbers of show shepherds world-wide, this will be a difficult task. But if enough of us point those who want good shepherds to those dogs who are structurally and temperamentally sound, eventually it can be done. I know that show people don't want to be marginalized for their choices because they don't want to change. They just want to keep on making excuses and do business as ususal. We just need to keep our heads and turn away from those excuses and most of all NEVER buy their dogs. khawk

[cliffson1]

What is example of marginalized?????....Alsation!!!!!

[cliffson1]

What is example of marginalized?????....Alsation!!!!!