Hell’s Kitchen earned its name as a hotbed of crime and vice in the 1850s when a volatile mix of factories, slaughterhouses, tenements, and street gangs sprang up around the Hudson rail yards. That kind of excitement is long gone…
November is the official month of giving thanks. My husband and I thankfully welcomed two new Scottie puppies into the world last week.
I am discussing canine illnesses such as bacteria, parasites or possibly a life-changing virus for your dog. Even the most precautionary, prudent dog show exhibitors like myself have been afflicted.
Communication is truly a lost art form at AKC conformation dog shows. In past ages of our sport, there was considerable respect for the wisdom of our great adjudicators who stood in the show ring
The AKC Canine Health Foundation (CHF) invites all dog-lovers to Canines & Cocktails on Friday, December 14 at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Florida. This event, held on the eve of the AKC National Championship dog show, celebrates our canine companions and the scientific breakthroughs made by CHF-funded researchers in both canine and human […]
Whilst recently preparing to conduct Provisional/Permit assigments in a number of Sporting breeds, the occasion arose to once more thoroughly review their respective standards. Yet again something really stood out like a sore thumb.
The shrinking of certain breeds’ gene pools is not a new topic. It has been widely discussed and debated with countless articles, research papers, and dissertations written on the subject.
The lesson of the story: our sport needs a total revamping to turn it around so we can halt the continuing moral and financial decline, the egregious loss of our children’s participation, and once more, rebrand purebred dog conformation events as a family spectator sport because kids love horses and kids love dogs.
A year ago my breed standard was changed to include the undocked tail. This action was the eventual result of a judge’s excusal of two European dogs because they had natural tails. The standard at that time simply said, “Tail is docked.” The judge obviously had a very strong aversion to undocked tails. To say that the standard change raised hackles would be a gross understatement. We were accused by many of pandering to the Animal Rights’ groups when in fact it was done to accommodate dogs coming in from FCI countries where docking of tails is no longer legal. We were accused of disavowing our terrier heritage when in fact we viewed it as an opportunity to further clarify tail set-on and carriage. Where the old standard said, “…well set on, carried gaily but never over the back,” it now reads, “Tail is set on high. Docked tail preferred. Whether docked or natural, the tail is carried 90º from the back, either straight or with a slight curve forward. Any deviation from this ideal is to be penalized accordingly.” I would note here the European dogs that were excused would meet the criteria of today’s standard…tails were well set and carried with a slight curve forward.
During the last few years we have heard more and more about the Summer night shows in Split, Croatia. All those who have been before seem to have had a great time so we decided to enter as it only meant missing one of the series of UK Summer Championship Shows.
