Any AKC Breed Champions with SchH Titles? - Page 4

I have shown to and hired as judges both Dan Smith and Morton Goldfarb. They are dog show judges and both can be political. AKC judges do not have the same information available to them as do SV style judges. They are not supposed to know who the dogs are. And in the classes many do not know, but in specials, everyone knows who is who. SV style judges know pedigrees, breeders etc. Had and interesting experience with a friend's import. This dog had been imported from a very famous German kennel as a pup. He was so ugly he'd make a frieght train take a dirt road. Tall and leggy, front legs out of the same hole and a head with little squinchy eyes and a stop like a boxer. Anyhow another friend was showing him to an SV judge out in the PNW. The judge came up to the handler and said "Oh, this is my friend "so and so's" breeding. My but he is big, and oh my ugly." But when the placements wer announced the big ugly one was VP1 out of a class of ten. SO politics ar4e a part of the dog show game.

Hi Blitz, your post was kewl.. i wasnt responding to your comment at all... lol i will have to go back and look... but i dont think it was your post someone wrote something about the two of them being political or something.. i will go back later and look :) Susan thats the first time i heard that about Dr. Goldfarb...EVER

Oh sorry, Dawnmarie, I thought you were talking about what I said about Smith and Goldfarb. I would add one more AKC GSD breeder judge as one who might be good for an import, Karin Wagner. She bred to Jim and got one or two AKC champions and does not seem to be at all prejudiced against the imports. Not sure if she's ever given a win to any. It does look like politics plays a role with most judges and I sometimes think we're all here because we're not all there LOL. I don't know how many disappointmments and surprises you get at SV shows, but the odds are that unless you have the funds to show every weekend and to hire the likes of Jimmie Moses, you are probably not going to finish any GSD quickly. Not sure if Firethorn would agree with this or not, but IMO, the biggest obstacle for an import at an AKC show would be that arch to the topline on some. That would really stand out in the GSD ring at an AKC show. Judging by photos, many imports aren't that far behind some of the AKC dogs as far as the amount of angulation goes.

Just wanted to thank everyone for remembering my beautiful Ch. MERKEL'S OPIUM SchH1,CD. She was extra special and lived a very long life. Her breeding career wasn't much since she was always busy getting her Championship and training titles. I (Dyan Lynn Merkel) started Opium with a group of people in Dallas who did 'bite work' as there really wasn't much of a schutzhund movement in the US in the early 80's. Opium was then sold to a lovely woman named Inger Olavson who finished her Championship and Schutzhund title. Inger is well known for her dogs including one USA Sieger and other dogs she went to the world team with. Still very active today in the West German dogs. Great lady! In the years of my breeding from American lines I can tell you that I had many many dogs that could compete for their Schutzhund titles. Wish I had had my German connections then...all my Champions would have been dual titled with Schutzhund degrees! More information is available on my site if you are interested www.TexasPets.com/MGSindex.htm Just because there are no more American bred Champions with Schutzhund titles doesn't mean that they can't do it. Not everyone in America is interested in training/working/showing to title their dogs. We also see many German dogs being bred without titles here in America - it's the AKC system that allows all of this to happen. Most people with top VA/V rated dogs have no interest in showing in the AKC shows either. However I will mention that the AKC standard for the German Shepherd is different from the SV standard and therefore the judging of these animals is not the same. Some dogs can compete in both rings...that's what I look for. My American dogs had SG1 ratings too. As far as prices of championships go...I have had about 30 Champions, mostly dual titled...the cheapest one was GV Merkel's Vendetta for under $1500 (but then she had to be specialed alot afterwards - $$$$$). For $3000 you better have a dog of her quality these days. I will cost more like $5000 for a good one and $10,000 for an average dog to finish. Once you finish all you get from AKC is a piece of paper. At least when you send a dog to Germany for it's titles ($5000 and up for a SchH3 and Kor)you have a well trained dog to live with.

Blitzen, I agree that the Roached topline is a big issue against the imports competing in the AKC ring. Unfortunately, in the seventies, both the USA and GErmany seemed to diverge from their standards. The AKC standard does not call for rear ends that are so overdone they appear as they might fall off, The German dogs also developed the banana back that is not called for in their standard. Until that point the imports were well used in the US breeding programs. Lance of Fran-Jo, who changed the look of the American dogs so much was a GV/Sieger Troll von Richterbech (sic) grandson. However, I think the German dogs are producing less of that ugly topline and there are many GSD breeders in the US who are disgusted by the unsoundness of the US dogs' rear assemblies. Several recent German crosses have finished in the breed ring and there are a couple of stud dogs that are earning ROMs. Some of the American breeders are looking to expand our rather narrow gene pool and are trying to bred to the standard. The AKC Standard and the SV standard are not that far apart for the dogs to look that different. There are a number of judges who are looking for correct sound dogs.

Did I hear correctly that Fran-Jo were the first AM dogs to show genetic disposition to Pano?

Lynn, thanks so much on the additional information you provided on your Opium as well as the costs for obtaining a breed championship. Sunny

Points well taken, Firethorn. The next 10 years or so should be very interesting to say the least. Yes, I've read both standards and even posted to this board that they are not really so far apart. After I had my throat ripped out for saying that, I just let it drop LOL. I really enjoy your posts; thanks and keep em coming. Good stuff!

Great information, Lynn, thanks.

Blitz, no need to apologize!!! sometimes my A.D.D. kicks in and am typing too slow for my thinking process or vise versa lol and in regards to Susan, i have learned more about proper structure and function from Firethorn than she has any idea!!! she knows what she is talking bout... ya oughtta take herding classes from her.. patience of a SAINT!! u will not get any thing candy coated, you get 100 percent honesty tastefully expressed about anything you ask of her or anything she shares.. imo