A Heavy Responsibility
A Heavy Responsibility
By M.J. Nelson
There isn’t much disagreement that judging — whether in the show, obedience or agility rings, the field or the herding arena — is a thankless job. It is inevitable that you’ll make decisions that are going to leave people not just unhappy, but fuming.
I spent 15 years judging all three types of hunting tests, so I can speak with some authority and a great deal of sympathy to the thanklessness of being a judge. On the other hand, a number of my dogs have been conformation champions (some with group wins and one good enough for a BIS), with advanced hunt-test titles, so I’ve had the opportunity to view things from both sides.
So it is with some reluctance that I bring up an issue many of us who do both conformation and performance activities have with many conformation judges. The issue is with judges who put dogs up in the show ring based on what’s fashionable rather than the conformation that will allow the dog to effectively do the job the breed was intended to do. In other words, what’s called for in the standard.
It’s certainly true that breeders and owners ultimately have the responsibility to decide whether it’s right for the breed to include dogs that have no instinct, desire or ability to do what the breed was meant to do in the breeding population. But conformation judges are the ones who have to decide whether the whims of fashion are going to change breeds to the point where they are not physically capable of doing the breed’s work or — almost as bad — make it very difficult for a breed to do its historical work or, for that matter, have a long run in any performance activity.
Conformation judges must decide whether the whims of fashion are going to change breeds to the point where they are not physically capable of doing the breed’s work — unlike Bernese Mountain Dog GCh CT Backcountry Xcelsior CD TKA ANDD ABNDD MBDD, a conformation grand champion who is very happy and very capable as a draft dog.
It’s not exactly top secret that for a number of breeds, show-ring fashions have not been positive. As certain aspects of conformation have become fashionable in the show ring, little thought has been given to how these fads can adversely affect the dog’s ability to do any work. For some breeds, the extreme whims of fashion by dog-show people have combined with an almost total disregard for the breed standard by those whose primary interest is field or performance work. When this has occurred, it has created such stark differences between “field” and “show” types that the two barely seem like the same breed.
The end result for many of these split breeds is that getting a conformation championship as well as a championship or even a Master or Excellent title in the field, the herding arena or any performance activity for the same dog has become difficult at best, and at worst, virtually impossible to achieve.
Need examples? Look no further than two of the most popular Sporting breeds.
The last dual-champion Labrador Retriever was in 1984. That’s 40 years ago, and English Springer Spaniel fanciers have not had an American dual champion for close to 90 years. This dearth of dual champions has occurred despite almost total dominance by Labs and Springers in the realm of retriever and spaniel field trials.
All too often, fashion trends influence judges’ decisions. As a result, for Sporting, Hound, Herding and other active breeds, the trend toward straight shoulders and over-angulated rears, as well as excessive hair on many coated breeds, has created serious problems when these dogs are asked work, in particular, doing their historical job — especially if that job requires a lot of running or swimming. The former makes it painful and tiring for the dog to land on that straight front while running in the field, herding stock and doing agility. What’s more, while dogs with straight fronts may look great standing still — as that is the activity this shoulder does best — when these dogs move they must carry their heads unnaturally high to get any length to their strides, and they move with little reach. Straight shoulders and upper arms also leave little room for variability in the placement of the feet when a dog is moving. While this may look great in the show ring, it is a distinct handicap when the dog actually goes to work.
Really watch an agility event with an eye toward the conformation of the dogs like Boston Terrier Ch MACH8 Wagtime Independenz@JoClem RE XF MXG2 MJC2 T2B2 CA ADCh Jch Sch RM GM TM-Bronze, who does a fine job of running the course.
Over-angulation, especially when, as is frequently the case, that flaw is combined with long hocks, simply will not stand up to the rigors of many performance activities, with field, stock work and agility being the most adversely affected. What’s even more serious and costly is that the greatest number of orthopedic procedures in dogs are rear-leg anterior cruciate ligament repairs, and these are a direct result of over or under-angulation.
As for excessive hair, that not only collects burrs but seriously inhibits the dog’s ability to swim and in fact, the weight of the water-logged hair makes it more likely the dog will sink rather than swim. What’s more, a lot of hair can be used to conceal serious conformation flaws.
Conformation judges love tremendous reach and drive at the trot. It is flashy and eye catching. The problem is that the ability to show tremendous reach and drive at the trot is due to excessively stretchy connective tissue in the dog’s joints. While dogs with the most reach and drive may look lovely at a trot, they are slowed down when they run, and this creates problems for Sporting breeds, Hounds and Herding breeds as well as agility dogs of all breeds. It also leads to injuries and dogs unable, physically, to compete in these sports at ages when they should be in their prime.
Check out the conformation of dogs like Pembroke Welsh Corgi DC GCh Sua Mah Beach Boy HXAdsc HXbd HIbd HIAbd HIAsc PT HT HTADIIIs HTADIIId in a herding event.
Professional Sporting dog trainer Craig Klein, who operates Fischers Kennels and Hunt Club and gets quite a large number of show dogs for training, condensed the problem, based on what he sees, to a couple of paragraphs.
“Many of the dogs that look absolutely gorgeous prancing along at a trot fall apart completely when they run,” he says. “We ask retrievers, for example, in field trials, hunt tests and even when hunting, to run out, pick up the bird and run back as quickly as possible, plus they need speed to catch crippled birds, especially on land. All the Sporting breeds have to run to cover a lot of ground, as that’s necessary to find birds. Not only does a ‘sloppy’ run handicap the dog as far as speed and ground-covering ability are concerned, but it leads to unsoundness, because these dogs are putting an unnatural strain on their joints, muscles and tendons.
“This doesn’t apply to just gun dogs,” he adds. “Dog owners across the entire spectrum of breeds have discovered the fun for both themselves and their dogs as well as the physical and mental health benefits for the dogs, of the various dog sports. They want dogs that are sound enough to do those sports for several years. This is true for all breeds’ jobs and all dog sports where the ability to run efficiently is essential. It is disappointing, to say the least, to have a dog that has been judged to be such a good breed specimen that it merited a conformation championship or even group wins and placements and maybe even a BIS or two break down physically at the age of five or six.”
Pro trainer Craig Klein with Chesapeake Bay Retriever Ch. Sprucegrove’s Rippling Waters Pro Bono SH, one of many conformation champions he has trained for field work.
Since it’s unfair to highlight an issue without providing some suggested remedies, here are some things that can help resolve the problem:
First, judges really need to learn the standards for the breeds they judge. For most breeds, the standards were written by people who actually did the sort of work with their dogs that the breed had been developed to do. Hunters, for the most part, were the breeders who also wrote the standards for the gun dogs and hounds. Breeders who were also sheep or cattle owners wrote the standards for the herding breeds; plagued by vermin, farmers and shopkeepers who were also breeders were the ones who wrote the standards for the small terrier breeds, and so on. Those folks knew the kind of conformation that was necessary for a dog to do a certain job and be able to do it for several years. For the most part, these standards have remained unchanged for many years.
Watch what sort of conformation a Sighthound like Afghan Hound DC GCh U-GCh U-BIS, Int’l Ch Suni’s One Time Affair v Mazshalna SC BCAT CGC TKN needs to be a successful lure courser.
Secondly, take the time to go and watch the breeds you are judging do their work. There are, for example, hunt tests almost every weekend during the summer and early fall in most states. There are also frequent barn-hunt events, regular lure-coursing events and virtually every dog show also includes agility. Watch what sort of conformation a Sighthound needs to be a successful lure courser. See how Standard Poodles need to swim when they hunt or run in hunt tests or even participate in dock diving, and then think how being keel-chested would add to the dog’s difficulty to perform that essential part of its job. Check out the conformation of the dogs in a herding event. Really watch an agility event with an eye toward the conformation of the dogs doing a good job of running the course. You may be surprised at what you see and the effect it will have on your judging.
See how Standard Poodles such as Ch. HRCH Lemerle Silk Tye MH MHU CD HPCX UWCX have to swim when they hunt or run in hunt tests or even participate in dock diving, and then think how being keel-chested would add to the dog’s difficulty to perform that essential part of its job.
A few years ago, a very prominent judge remarked that she had undergone an epiphany after watching a sled-dog race. She said watching the Arctic breeds do their work completely changed how she judged them in the show ring. If attending an event where the breeds you judge are doing their historical job is impractical or difficult, at least take advantage of the videos many parent clubs have made and incorporated in their judges’ education programs showing their breeds at work.
Finally, take a few minutes to talk with the folks who have both conformation and performance-titled dogs. A lot of them are quite knowledgeable about conformation and can quickly tell you how something that has become fashionable in the show ring will be a detriment in the dog’s “second career.” You can find some of these folks at virtually every dog show. Just look in the show catalog. A few judges, mostly the old-timers, are or have been hunters, have done herding or participated in other performance events, and they are an excellent source of information.
There are barn hunts in most states where it is possible to see dogs like Welsh Terrier GCh d’Asti’s Bridge Over Barnegat Bay JE RATN RATO CGC do the work the breed was intended to do
Once you know the sort of conformation the breeds you judge need to do their work and have incorporated it in your judging, all you need to do is resist the temptation (and the pressure) to go along with the whims of fashion. And that may be the toughest judging of all.