Old fashioned? REALLY???

[atravis]

And furthermore, "old fashion" to these people may not mean "old fashion" to the breedists.

"Old fashion" to them IS Rin Tin Tin and Strongheart. And to whoever called those dogs a "fad"... you should be ashamed of yourself. These were WAR dogs, turned movie stars, turned legends to the American people and to the WORLD. The GSDs of today could only hope to be as truly great as those dogs were. How many K9s (or just GSDs in general?) do you know that could take down baddies on the street one day, then act on a set with hundreds of strange people banging and clanging and flashing lights in their face on another, THEN do meet-n-greets with the school kids on yet another? These dogs were the EPITOME of what this breed should be. If they are looked upon as simple "fads", then what a sad, SAD time for this breed.

[LaRen616]

ATRAVIS is correct : )

[Chris Wild]

Originally Posted by atravis

These were WAR dog, turned movie stars, turned legends to the American people and to the WORLD. The GSDs of today could only hope to be as truly great as those dogs were. How many K9s do you know that could take down baddies on the street one day, then act on a set with hundreds of strange people banging and clanging and flashing lights in their face on another, THEN do meet-n-greets with the school kids on yet another?

No, they were not. Strongheart was trained as a police dog, then purchased as a young adult by a couple of Americans and brought to the US and turned into a movie star. The original Rin Tin Tin was found as a pup towards the end of the war by an American serviceman, Lee Duncan, and brought to the US while still a pup, taught a variety of tricks by Duncan which then caught the eye of film producers looking for the next Strongheart, and started his film career. And of course "Rin Tin Tin" was played by a whole range of different dogs over the years, none of whom were "war dogs".

None of these dogs were war dogs or out "taking down baddies on the street" in between film shoots.

Originally Posted by atravis

These dogs were the EPITOME of what this breed should be. If they are looked upon as simple "fads", then what a sad, SAD time for this breed.

Certainly they are legendary, we all love them, and to many they are what instilled a love for the breed in the first place.

But people also need to realize that what they saw of those dogs was not reality anymore than anything on film or television is reality. It was fantasy. Certainly there is a grain of truth to what those dogs were capable of and what they portrayed for our enjoyment, but they were still acting and performing trained manuevers and nothing more.

It does the breed no good when people think they can get any GSD pup and it will grow up to be Rin Tin Tin, or that Collie pup will grow up to be Timmy's constant companion and save him from all those falls in the well, just by virtue of the breed of dog it is and their preconceived notions that some day, with no effort on their part, it will grow up to be some sort of canine superhero. And believe it or not, many of the JQPs do just that, and when it doesn't work out that way off to the shelter the dog goes.

[JeanKBBMMMAAN]

Amen.

People need to be educated that these are not push button machines. They are thinking beings.

[atravis]

Chris-
I'm sorry, but that's not the story I've been told. Yes, Strongheart was a police dog, but Rinty was trained as a war dog while he was still in Germany with Duncan.

Maybe I've heard wrong, but that is how I know it to be.

[Mrs.K]

Originally Posted by LaRen616

ATRAVIS is correct : )

Nope, he's not!
Rin Tin Tin was never a war dog. He was found in France. Chris Wild is actually correct on that one.

And as for this:

The GSDs of today could only hope to be as truly great as those dogs were. How many K9s do you know that could take down baddies on the street one day, then act on a set with hundreds of strange people banging and clanging and flashing lights in their face on another, THEN do meet-n-greets with the school kids on yet another?

There are still working lines out there that make great working dogs who are afraid of nothing and still be family members!

[atravis]

"SHE", thank you.

[Mrs.K]

Originally Posted by atravis

Chris-
I'm sorry, but that's not the story I've been told. Yes, Strongheart was a police dog, but Rinty was trained as a war dog while he was still in Germany with Duncan.

Maybe I've heard wrong, but that is how I know it to be.

Here Rin Tin Tin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I know wikipedia is not the best source but what is on there is actually true.

[atravis]

From Rin Tin Tin's own website:

"Duncan worked with the dogs training them to perform as he had seen the German war dogs perform during the war."

The dogs there are still called "pups", so I'm not exactly sure what that is supposed to mean. To me, a 1 year old is still a "pup", so the level of actual training can be questioned.

[Chris Wild]

Rin Tin Tin was found in a bombed out kennel in Lorraine, France at the end of 1918. His birthdate is listed as September 10, 1918 though that probably isn't entirely accurate, and rather is based on his estimated age (6-8wks old) at the time he was found by Duncan. The war essentially ended with the armistace in November 1918, though the treaty of Versailles wasn't signed until the following year.

So most certainly not a war dog.

And also, Rinty was not a "she".