I agree, Jessica. Probably most on the list do not remember the days before leash laws, when dog were dogs and were allowed to do the things they were instinctively meant to do. In the 40s up until probably the 70s, most dogs were not confined as they are now. They were loose in the neighborhood, got along with the neighbors, and usually stayed in their own yards. They got along with the neighboring dogs as well, seeming to draw a line down the the middle of the street defining their territory. They instinctively knew the difference between the good guys and the bad and acted accordingly. Even in the 70s and 80s, since I lived in a very small town on a very quiet street, my dogs were loose and were never a problem. Even Animal Control admired them and often came by just to visit and pet them. I certainly am not advocating that dogs be allowed to run loose. In today's world that is simply not feasible; however, those of you who live on acreage were your dogs can be free I am sure find your dogs "smarter" than those who live in kennel runs, no matter how large. Carolyn --- On Thu, 11/19/09, Jessica MacMillan <spotted101@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: From: Jessica MacMillan <spotted101@xxxxxxxxxxx> Subject: [ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: Our Breeds in Society To: cherlyngsd@xxxxxxxxx, marcatoshepherds@xxxxxxxxx, showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Date: Thursday, November 19, 2009, 10:03 AM First off, let me say I never said "Modify temperament so we can sell to the average idiot". What I did say was that not all puppy buyers are perfect - no matter how much we teach, train and educate. In this society we live in, we need to have dogs that the average person can make a mistake on and not have to worry about a dog becoming a biter or eating the small dog across the street. Things happen in people's lives and we still need dogs that can fit those roles instead of having to be sent to rescue or worse yet, euthanized. These DOGS need to fit in - no ifs/ands/butts. There is a difference between soft and spooky and hence we had a problem with the definition. A dog can be a spook without being soft - no question about it - fearbiters come to mind - those aren't soft dogs - those are dogs with either genetically poor temperaments or undersocialized.. Soft dogs are dogs that don't have the strong prey drive to chase little dogs and nip kids in the back of the legs. Also, I never said we needed to make breeds SOFTER - what I did say is that dogs need to be modified to fit this society - that doesn't mean turning them into wimps! Dogs that allow for few mistakes and don't turn into explosives. Until people get their heads out of the sand, we are constantly going to fight the problem of dogs being biters and that breeds should be banned and eliminated because people are unwilling to make things FIT.. Its about breeder doing public education too.... Jessica MacMillan Paisley Dals (www.paisleydals.com) & The Shepherd Girls (Simmie, CGC, TDI, TC, HIC & Pepper, HIC) Member of: DCA, GSDCA & GTCDC _________________________________________________________________ Hotmail: Trusted email with powerful SPAM protection. http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/177141665/direct/01/ ===========================================================================POST is Copyrighted 2009. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://showgsd.org NATIONAL BLOG - http://gsdnational.blogspot.com/ =========================================================================== ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2009. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://showgsd.org NATIONAL BLOG - http://gsdnational.blogspot.com/ ============================================================================