ShowSight Interviews: Daryl Martin
BY ALLAN REZNIK continued
specialed, Ch. Martin’s Demi’s Huggy Bear, who has produced many champi- ons with a stamp on them, too. I con- sider the last three generations of my dogs to be the best I have ever had; I love the entire litters. They have cook- ie-cutter beautiful faces with good pig- ment; they’re sound with flowing gait; well built, with beautiful tail sets, great coats and gorgeous balance. The cutest personalities, too. Very consistent. 7. Please comment positively on your breed’s present condition and what trends might bear watching. Today we have people breeding dogs with their own perspective of what they think is pretty or cute, but they are not adhering to the breed standard. People are foregoing pure white color, we have enhanced pigment, tail sets are changing and we have longer backs that change the outline. Some coats do not have proper texture naturally, and the coats are not as durable as they used to be. Many exhibitors of all breeds lack knowledge of good structure. 8. The sport has changed greatly since you began as a breeder-exhib- itor. What are your thoughts on the state of the fancy and the declining numbers of breeders? How do we encourage newcomers to join us and remain in the sport? Yes the sport has changed, but so has everything else. There are many factors that account for the decline of our sport. You can start with legislation. Government controls numbers and dic- tates how many dogs you can and can- not have. Veterinarians are not breeder friendly and the price of veterinary care has skyrocketed. Too few vets are animal people; many are more focused on careers and profit. The animal activ- ists are winning; breeders are shunned while rescues and shelters are promot- ed (the new “pet shop” of today with
a different shingle). Family structure is different; we don’t do family things, many families don’t even have dinner together. Any excess money (which practically doesn’t exist) is spent on insurance for all the family vehicles, their phones, their gaming, their fast food, their cars, their designer clothing. Life is more complicated than it used to be. Too many people don’t do any- thing today long term. Plus the attitude of people is so different. Everyone is an instant expert. 9. Where do you see your breed- ing program in the next decade or two? I am confident the future of my breeding is only getting better and better. I have done a few outcrosses recently, so it may take a generation or two to be as consistent as my dogs have been in the past. However, I am going to focus on my breeding which, in the past, sometimes I didn’t have the time to do or needed to postpone due to handling commitments. 10. Finally, tell us a little about Daryl Martin outside of dogs... your hobbies and interests. My entire life has been dedicated to my dogs and my career. However, in the past few years, realizing you have to do other things to have a balanced life, I go out to dinner often with friends. On a regular basis I go to the theater in downtown Chicago with my good friends Jere Marder, Matt Hoaglund and others that we call our “theater group.” We have a great time and have seen many good shows, mostly musicals that usually go on to Broadway in New York. When Jere lived closer we used to go to the movies and have dinner frequently. I also enjoy my park-like backyard while the dogs play during the summer. I real- ly have little time to myself, as I am a slave to my dogs and house.
Ch. Martin’s Chili Bean, was the basis of the Suncrest Maltese. His daughter, BIS Ch. Gemmery’s Citrine Bean, was and probably still is the top-producing Best in Show bitch. She was owned by my client, Blanche Tenerowicz. She also owned BIS Ch. Joanne-Chen’s Mino Maya Dancer, who I used at stud too. He was a very significant stud dog in the breed. Our first good dogs also went back to Ch. Joanne-Chen’s Shikar Dancer, at the time one of the top pro- ducers in the breed. We owned his last champion son, Ch. Joanne-Chen’s Mar- tin Dancer. These dogs I am mentioning were very important dogs for the breed. Ch. Martin’s Yazoo’s Smarty Puff was the sire of Ch. Martin’s Smarty’s Jazoo Puff who produced very well. The dogs back in the pedigrees that people today have no idea about were probably dogs before their time. All were sound and pretty, with beautiful carriage and good pigment. In those days they may have been a little leggier than the average dogs back then but they were elegant. My dogs down through the years still have the beautiful outline. I also had success with dogs that came down from BIS Ch. Sazerac Eye Opener ROMX. But he went back to my dogs for genera- tions. My BIS/SBIS Ch. Martin’s Sazerac Tedi Bear Puff produced a dog I never
186 • S how S ight M agazine , J anuary 2019
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