Showsight - July 2017

to keep his nose on the trail which should be rewarded rather than penalized in the show ring. There should be no disadvantages if a judge has done their homework on the respective function of these breeds. Over the past half century of my exhibiting I think both sectors share equal reward as show dogs. It goes in waves at times, in the 70s and 80s, the Afghan Hound had an incredible high level of quality and I would estimate for many years 10 of the top 20 hounds were Afghan Hounds—the graph on that today would be greatly different. PS: The Dachshunds have always been strong contenders in the Hound ring. You do not see this as much today as in years past. Scenthounds tend to run strong in different parts of the coutry RS: It should not matter—quality is quality. PT: Most Scenthounds are usually steadier and easier going, especially if they are seasoned show dogs. Yet when judges want to see a stand up show dog after returning from the down and back, that’s not their game. That is when the judge should look for where the legs are placed and how the animal supports itself, not for animation. Some of the best Bassets and Dachshunds of my lifetime never won the BISs they deserved due to the degree of difficulty involved with this process. It just isn’t their nature. Again, their most important competition should be in their breed. 6. How important is type in judging hounds as com- pared to members of other groups? Side movement? Down and back? How much do you consider func- tion in your placements? What aspects in the show ring do you think are most predictive of function in the field? GB: Consideration of type is essential in every breed we judge, otherwise we slide inexorably toward the generic dog, a direction we are unfortunately rapidly heading in. But structure, in addition to being part of type, is essential often to the health and welfare of the dog. In addition to stressing overall type, we need to guard against an excess of type, by which I mean exaggera- tions of certain characteristics, resulting in extremes, such as rear angulation. Regarding movement, when I started breeding in the 70s, I thought the down and back was most important. Then I fell into the side move- ment is everything trap. Older and wiser, I now know that they are both important. Do any of us really know what form best serves what function? We think we do and try to find that when judging, but much of what our Hounds were meant to do cannot be found easily in a few minutes in the show ring. Can we see desire or stamina or instinct? We can see ideal physical structure and we

should reward it when it is presented to us if combined with correct type and shape. EB&JM: Breeders are the heart of our sport, they are the lifeblood that our sport so desperately needs to flour- ish. Without great breeders, dog shows will diminish to an unrecognizable event. It is up to everyone to do everything in our power to promote and support pure bred dogs, if we intend to grow and survive as a sport. Judging always begins with type, the ideal image of each and every breed that you hold in your memory, should serve as your ideal blueprint, by which you judge dogs. Knowing breed characteristics is imperative when judg- ing. For example, when judging a Sighthound, it is not required that they stand like a statue and bait. They are Sighthounds and most of them are not a baiting breed. Baiting is mainly for expression, ear placement and/or carriage, therefore standing like a statue is not necessary. As far as judging dogs in the show ring and looking for function in the field, that is relative only if those aspects are called for in the AKC breed standard. Judges are tested on the AKC breed standard, not the ability of a dog to function in the field. For example, the Bloodhound breed standard is very detailed about the head, eyes, ears, mouth, wrinkle, nostrils, lips, flews and dewlap; taking up nearly one half of the description of the entire Blood- hound breed standard. Why? Because all of those parts of the Bloodhound are critical in enabling him to do his job; the job that he was bred to do in the field. So from that standpoint, yes, it is imperative that you recognize “BREEDERS ARE THE HEART OF OUR SPORT, THEY ARE THE LIFEBLOOD THAT OUR SPORT SO DESPERATELY NEEDS TO FLOURISH. WITHOUT GREAT BREEDERS, DOG SHOWS WILL DIMINISH TO AN UNRECOGNIZABLE EVENT.”

196 • S how S ight M agazine , J uly 2017

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