or far too long the AR people have defined dog fanciers to the general public, and it has not been a pretty picture. They’ve convinced many people that we are cruel users of animal flesh – people who abuse dogs for our own glory and sport. And we’ve been complicit, whether we know it or not, because we tend to be a pretty insular, elite group who carefully monitor the quality of homes/people our puppies are allowed to go.
One Lakeland Terrier expert sent me some opinions on Lakelands especially in comparison with the Wire Fox Terrier and the Welsh Terrier breeds. I found them interesting and helpful and so I am sharing them here.
Like many of you, I spend quite a bit of time on the road driving to one dog show or another. Living in southern New England, a “long drive” for me is an enviable three or four hours, but it’s still enough time that I am constantly buying audio books.
“Rescue is the Best Breed!” proclaimed the sign. Another proclaimed, “Adoption is the Best Option.” Several mixes paraded about with harnesses that read “Adopt Me!” or “Rescue Me!” There was a “Kiss-a-Bull” pit bull rescue kissing booth—-yeah, that’s not a lawsuit waiting to happen. Many families were walking around trying to outdo one another with their rescue’s sad tale with the dogs in question at the end of their leads. We were at the Houston World Series of Dog Shows last week.
Most of us can pretty easily define “kennel blind.” We think of the people who post little snippets of their breed standard along with a photo of their dog who objectively does not meet the description. But, more and more, it seems like there is a trend towards another kind of kennel blindness: those people who will happily tell you what they would like to improve in their own dogs, but are completely incapable of seeing the good in other people’s dogs.
We asked experienced AKC judges two questions about current issues affecting our sport.
Here’s what they had to say…
