West Highland White Terrier Q & A
“PERSONALLY I THINK THE WESTIE IS THE BEST BREED. A large dog attitude in a small package. Loving and fun. Clever and usually very easily trainable.”
How I feel about the influx of new judges, specialists and all breed, to our breed? This is a generic question. Some do and some do not understand the breed standard. As judges I think it is impor- tant that they study the breeds they judge and to constantly try to learn more through judging seminars or speaking to breeders that they think have knowledge. Is it an advantage that the breed is recognizable? I just travelled in Italy with one of my dogs. Yes, they are well recognized. Some people wanted to chat which did give me a chance to try and edu- cate them a bit about the breed. It certainly is not a disadvantage. Am I happy with the breeds’ current ranking? Where a breed is in the ranking changes. Breeds go in and out of favoritism. Being in the top 50 is a nice place. There are enough interested in the breed to make it easy for breeders to have good homes for their puppies. Being one of the most popular breeds can be a problem. If everyone wants one there are not enough quality puppies and this encourages puppy mills/back yard breeders to want to breed that specific breed. All breeders should be very cautious of where they sell their puppies so that the pups/dogs never end up in a puppy mill situation. My favorite dog show memory: there are so many. Showing my first dog, showing my second purchased Westie to Best Puppy in Show, winning the breed at Westminster. Watching my dog win his 5th BIS, the first I was there for. A few favorite memories are show- ing to certain judges that are no longer with us. Personally I think the Westie is the best breed. A large dog atti- tude in a small package. Loving and fun. Clever and usually very easily trainable. They excel in many sports from therapy dogs, agil- ity, to scent related challenges. CAROL BLAIN & LORI TUTTLE I moved to the Chicago area about 15 years ago. Originally I am from West Texas (Lubbock area). I have a PhD in Theater arts and had a full career working as a lighting designer, stage manager and all-around theatre person for many years in Texas. My first show dog and Ch. was Ch Lady CM MacBlain (Chewy Monster). Bred by Barbara Nesbit using Betty Williams wonderful dog Doon MacDuff St George. I started showing my own dogs after learning the ropes from CL. I have bred and finished the championships on many dogs under my MacBlain’s prefix over the years, and after moving to Chicago I have been the “other half” of Lori Tuttle’s kennel, Nsase. Together we have finished 25 or 30 dogs and Lori was recently awarded Silver Breeder of Merit status.
I have judged Sweeps several times at specialties. I owe a lot to Denis Springer who brought me a wonderful bitch from England, Valu- cis Surprised By Joy, she hated the show ring but was a fabulous producer, as well as teaching me so much about Westies and how to trim! The secret to a successful breeding program? Health and tem- perament always have to be number one in my opinion. All of the dogs we breed will go on to pet homes (our house is a pet home!) and we want to produce animals that are beautiful and typey of course, but never at the cost of health or temperament. What I feel is the condition of the Westie breed today? I think the breed is generally sound for the average pet owner, but I think that for the true steward of the breed, we have some important issues to consider going forward. First, in the words of several old- time breeders and judges who I respect, “they’re getting too big”! The standard calls for bone and substance in a 10-11 inch package. Too much of the time now we see a 10 inch bitch or an 11 inch dog in the ring and they look like a peanut! I would hate to see us go to the wicket, but that’s what it might take, because the opinion is that those larger dogs have more presence in the group, and it’s hurting the breed. Also, the body jacket should have length and layers (the standard calls for two inches). On a dog with a correct coat, a two inch jacket is glorious, but we rarely see it these days. Now, to follow the trends, people take the jacket to a very short (1/4 in!) to create a “sculpted” look which is easier to make look perfect, but in my opinion is not correct at all. It’s pretty but it’s not a Westie. Finally, I believe that fronts are tending to be very much straighter than I would like. It’s hard to find a dog that truly moves with reach and drive, and the front assembly is often the reason. What I feel breeders need to concentrate on to improve the qual- ity of Westie? The above mentioned points of the standard, and also, to preserve health and temperament, we need to intelligently and thoughtfully and bravely use the information we are now being provided though advancements in DNA testing, to preserve the genetic diversity of the breed. When the studbook closed 100 years ago, we had all the genetic material we are ever going to have in those dogs. Through bottlenecks due to fads, wars, popular-sires, people leaving the breed, etc. we find that we have a lot less genetic diversity than we would like to have to maintain health. As stewards of the breed, we should come together and really work on this, per- haps by means that are not completely comfortable to us, but to do what we can to preserve the diversity our gene pool for the future. Lori and I have just started down this journey in the past few years with really promising results.
S HOW S IGHT M AGAZINE , J UNE 2019 • 273
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