MERRY JEANNE MILLNER, SENDERO BRIARDS
Please comment positively on your breed’s present condition and what trends might bear watching. I am pleased to say that I think the Briard is doing very well and is in good shape. The improvement in our temperaments is phenom- enal. I think we are maintaining our beauti- ful outlines that say, “Briard.” I do worry that we need to watch our tails as we are losing a very important hallmark of the breed, our “J” tail. We will always be fighting the straight shoulders, which can produce a very stilted movement. I think my biggest concern is that our breed is now being trimmed and dyed. While this does not come from mistakes in the whelping box, it is certainly a big mistake for any owner or breeder to either dye and trim, or allow a handler to dye and trim our beautiful breed. The sport has changed greatly since you first began participating. What are your thoughts on the state of the fancy and the declining number of breeders? A real concern is the aging of the breeder base in our breed—and all others for that mat- ter. Just look around and you will see very few young folks developing breeding programs like we did 35 years ago. Clearly, there are exceptions like Justin and Cheslie Smithey in Whippets, and several others, but most of us are in our late 50s and 60s, and we aren’t being replaced. This is so interesting when juxtaposed against the huge demand for dogs that we are witnessing today. In our view, this lack of purpose-bred dogs has opened the door for “doodle mania” to take hold as we have all witnessed. How do we encourage newcomers to join us and remain in the sport? It needs to be multi-faceted as no one silver bullet exists to solve the problem. Breeders need to develop mentorship programs to keep their programs thriving into the future… succession plan- ning, if you will. Bring a young person in the fold, train them, and nurture their develop- ment. AKC needs to massively promote pur- pose-bred dogs and the health testing that goes into these breeding programs. We also need to laud the fun that you can have with a purpose- bred dog, from scent work to agility—and everything in between. We can win this battle! Where do you see your breeding program in the next decade or two? Our goal is clear… to keep breeding beau- tiful, healthy, well-tempered Briards that build on the hard work that we’ve invested in breed- ing to the Briard standard for the last 35 years. Finally, tell us a little about Merry Jeanne outside of dogs... your profession, your hobbies. Tommy is an avid golfer, so he stays very busy in retirement. I am afraid the dogs are my hobby and take up most of my time. I just enjoy being with close friends, sharing life!
Abbado and Siddalee
OUR GOAL IS CLEAR… TO KEEP BREEDING BEAUTIFUL, HEALTHY, WELL-TEMPERED BRIARDS THAT BUILD ON THE HARD WORK THAT WE’VE INVESTED IN BREEDING TO THE BRIARD STANDARD FOR THE LAST 35 YEARS.
UK BIS BISS GCHS Sendero’s Here We Go at Charson (Neyo)
138 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, AUGUST 2021
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