Showsight January 2017

WITH WILLIAM BROKKEN, LESLIE CANAVAN, TOM COEN, SALLY FUTH, ROXANN HEIT, GAYLE KAYE, MARTHA RAMER, LILY RUSSELL & HARRY SCHULMAN

LILY RUSSELL I live in Keokuk, Iowa and am a semi-retired Medical Tech- nologist. I saw my first Collie at the age of six and continued to ask my parents for a Collie. I was 13 when my dad finally brought home a Collie puppy. I chose my kennel name, Tan- go in honor of my mother and father who would dance the Tango on New Year’s Eve at Midnight. I purchased a Collie for our children the spring of 1985 and I took her to a local dog show in 1987. I also went to handling seminars so that I could handle my own dog in the ring. I joined the Collie Club of America in 1989 and purchased my foundation bitch. I showed sporadically in the 1990s, as our two sons were young. My first judging assignment was the Ozarks Kennel club in November of 2008. I was so nervous, some of the judges who were on the panel that day, knew it was my first assignment and came ringside to watch. After judging they were kind enough to give me some insight and tips on ways to improve my ring procedure. It probably took five judging assignments until I found my rhythm. HARRY SCHULMAN I reside in Louisville, Kentucky. I have multiple hobbies outside of dogs; I am a licensed High School football referee and a member of the Kentucky Football Officials Associa- tion. I enjoy golf, hunting and fishing. My wife and I have four grown children and we frequently visit them and travel to unique places around where they live. I have been in the sport of purebred dogs for 47 years. I started showing my parents’ Collies at age eight in junior showmanship and other breeds by age ten in regular classes. I have been judging now for over 11 years. 1. What five traits do you look for, in order, when judging Collies? What do you consider the ultimate hallmark of the breed? WB: The Collie is a head breed and must have a long, clean head without coarseness or traits suggesting any other breed. The standard emphasizes the importance of evaluating the expression and comparing one animal to another. It should be sweet, rather quizzical and alert. The Collie should not appear under or over-sized and must move freely. TC: Hallmark qualities of the Collie are outline, head, expression and movement. The curvaceous outline reflects the structure that is under the coat. The head should be of good length, inclined to lightness and

should possess finish and detail. The muzzle should be smooth, round and merge smoothly into the backskull. There should be no excessive depth from brow to under- line as this is a sign of commonness. The expression, which should be bright, alert, intelligent and inquisitive is created not only by the head, eyes and ears, but is a reflection of the dog’s character. SF: Symmetry and balance that say Collie! Head type is very important in our breed. The Standard is very specific about the factors which come into play. All are needed to produce true Collie expression. It can only be produced by a combination of eye, round muzzle, slight stop, flat backskull and length of head proportionate to size of the individual. Correct body type for a Collie is the final criterion, the Collie will move lightly, floating down and back and show a level, motionless topline in side view. RH: Expression, correct eye placement, head detail, tem- perament and overall balance. I judge by virtue and not by fault, all dogs have faults. I want to see a regal picture of true balance, the head in proportion to the body. The head is inclined to lightness so I want to see a beautiful soft face with a dark, medium size eye set that is chiseled with a forward outlook and correct head detail. I want to see a Collie with animation that behaves well but not a statue. When a Collie has the correct temperament they are easy to train and show, they are not fearful of new surroundings and adapt easily. I want to see balance where the head fits the body, a Collie that stops naturally square being slightly longer than tall and that moves well. GK:Coat, tt is the crowning glory of the Rough Collie. Amount of coat isn’t always better, it should be well- fitting with proper texture! Beautiful deep coloring and perfect white markings can really enhance a dog’s appearance, but don’t fall into the trap of only looking for those dogs with beautiful coloring. Temperament is another breed hallmark. I don’t mind a Collie acting up or being a brat, as long as he is friendly and stable. A judge only has so much time to look at each dog and if the entry is afraid of his/her own shadow, it’s easy to miss an otherwise good dog. LR: Balance, expression, head detail, side gait and good movement coming and going. The ultimate hallmark of the breed is expression. 2. How has the breed changed since you became involved with it? Do you see any trends you think are moving the breed in the wrong direction? Any traits becoming exaggerated? WB: The top-notch Collies of yesteryear were very similar to the ones currently being shown but the quality has improved greatly. For a while I was worried the Collies

160 • S how S ight M agazine , J anuary 2017

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