The way I look at it, allowing mixed breed to compete could really help our dog sports, AKC, AND Non AKC alike. Agility, Obedience, Flyball, etc....they're ALL hurting for new blood. Honestly, how often do you see juniors competing in these events? I See ONE Junior (Only ONE!) competing in agility here (Green Bay, WI)....and she's from my kennel club! I am the second youngest person running at any given trial (usually) at 21 years of age! Everybody else is pretty....um....well seasoned. Allowing people to compete with their mutts is a GREAT way to get some new blood, and some new YOUNG blood. They'll go to shows and check out all the other cool purebreds, and maybe conformation will catch their eye, or perhaps they'll end up being more drawn to obedience. AKC trials are THE most abundant...it's very hard for people to get "into dogs" if they have a mutt, because UKC, NADAC, and USDAA trials from what I see are few and far between, and they usually require a good deal of travel in order to attend. With AKC, I usually have to travel less than an hour one way in order to get to SEVERAL trials a year. My only concern is that more people will begin breeding the "ultimate agility dog" aka...the Border Jack (Border Collie x Jack Russell...known for small size but TREMENDOUS speed). These crosses are very popular within NADAC circles from what I know...and they are quite the speed demons (I couldn't live with one) - Jackie Marcato Shepherds Where it's about function, not flash ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2007. 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 - www.showgsd.org ============================================================================