[ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: question for Clubs & candidates
- From: "Carolyn Martello" <marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <DestinoGS1@xxxxxxx>, <cherlyngsd@xxxxxxxxx>, "Tish Walker" <TISHW@xxxxxxx>, "Stormy Hope" <Stormy435@xxxxxxx>, <dan-ann@xxxxxxxx>, "The List" <showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 12 Aug 2009 23:23:10 -0700
Yeah...............but..............
If a Club or Organization or group chooses to "insult" any other group of
German Shepherd Dog owner
or exhibitor or competitor whether German Bred, or Rally or "Pet Owner" for
ANY reason.....I would
assume they deserve to fail.
If a Membership Chair responds to an inquiry into a Club as Lyn stated by
screening calls and only
showing interest in "Conformation" dogs or owners.......YOU NEED A NEW
MEMBERSHIP CHAIR!!!
NO Club or Organization or group should put up with that type of elitist
attitude!
A recipe for failure!
Most of the Clubs ARE "Conformation" people.... yes...but lets be fair.....it
is the Conformation people that
are working hard to keep the Shows going and the Clubs afloat. We do need
Conformation, or the Breed
will fade out as a Breed.
Our Club's Board IS Conformation people......including Aussie Conformation
people....<G>......but so far
that IS the workers we get. We're glad to have them and anyone else willing
to help or work..........<G>
Our Club welcomes anyone truly interested in the Breed and the betterment of
the Breed whether through
SchH, Rally, Herding, conformation, competing and training at any level and
just loving pet owners....they
ARE the Breed!
Our GSDC of Sacramento Valley tries very hard to meet the needs and interests
of all. We work hard to
put on Rally and Obedience with our Specialty Shows....and it IS hard. Next
year to keep it going we will
pay helpers as our Obedience people can't do it alone with the entries we get.
This year our Club is working to put on a WDS Trial next year.......hoping it
works as it is a first for us.
We have someone new involved in SchH and we LOVE IT!! We welcome any and
every venue and are
doing all we can to "reach out".
We put on a Herding Trial for years.......until some of the Herding People
decided to "blackball" us because
we didn't hold our Trials where they wanted and utilize the sheep they wanted!
We used the good sheep at
the Ranch where our Trial was held ........so at risk of going bankrupt we
gave up our Herding Trial. Sad that
another group in a Club nearby ( not conformation people ) would try to
undermine another Specialty Club
like that. But ....they did. So sometimes we fail......but not for lack of
our Specialty Club trying in all venues.
We are now trying two shows in one day for us, and two in one day for the
GSDReno Club to help out Reno
We fit it all in one weekend to try to make it work for enough helpers. It is
tiring and hard......but it is working
so far .........as long as exhibitors continue to support our shows. <G>
None of our Conformation people waste time criticizing or insulting "pet" or
"German Style" dogs.....ever.
Any of us with half a brain know that there are many pets in every
litter.....and they are the very base of
any and every Breed. And .......who doesn't love a beautiful red German
dog?? <G>
Lets not condemn one group or Club as it is the individual persons that make or
break a Club..... JMO...
Carolyn marhaven@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.Marhaven.com
----- Original Message -----
From: DestinoGS1@xxxxxxx
Great post. In order to grow, the "specialty club" which means we specialize
in German Shepherd Dogs,
all clubs need to recognize every venue that our breed participates in.
Don't know where you live, but here
in Atlanta you are welcome, no matter what you do. Our club meetings are a
mix. We do AKC obedience,
agility, rally, herding, conformation, and yes schutzhund.
The schutzhund working people have "import" show lines and one is doing it
with an American champion.
A couple of us have both imports and American bred. We respect each other,
the venues that each participates
in, and each others dogs. No division here. We can also show a newcomer how
to "stand" the import for the German style conformation show. It is all
different, but it all works together.
Mary Gattone, 44 yrs. American conformation ring and two Sch H III dogs.
********************************************************************
cherlyngsd@xxxxxxxxx writes:
Stormy,
Your ideas and suggestions are great, however when a club has these people as
members and continues
to insult their "German" dogs or "pet quality" performance dogs or constantly
reminding the membership
that "we are a "Breed" club, people are turned off. When a Specialty club's
board is monopolized by
conformation people who really don't give a hoot about the concerns of the
performance people, they will
leave. A split board works better! When you have a Membership Chair that
screens calls of potential new members and finds they have a non conformation
type dog and states this club is not for you, you are heading
for destruction.
The term "Specialty" as defined by the AKC means breed specific. Not
conformation only. Breed specific
means all types that are registered as that breed, not just the ones that are
shown in the conformation ring.
These people, when they are members, want to be a part of the club, work the
events, take pride in their club,
but they also want equal representation from their board, they want to have
equal say in what happens within
their club and they should! So until this very old mentality has been
buried and a union of all aspects of the
breed becomes welcomed with no prejudice, you will see more and more people
going elsewhere and more Specialty clubs going under. Why are some people like
this? I can't answer for them, however I do know that
when someone feels threatened or paranoid and not comfortable in their own
skin, they will try to control by
any means and that controlling is the road to a dead end.
Are all clubs like this?
No. But I think there are way too many that are or there are too many people
that express these things, be it
ring side or even on the list. If you don't have something positive to say,
then don't say anything. Are people entitled to their opinions? Yes, but
not at the expense of others if they want things to work out as a whole.
This is just myopinion from what I have seen and heard.
Lyn Chernak ~ CherLyn Shepherds ~ Three Generations ~ GSDCA 13 Club ~
Membership
--- On Mon, 8/10/09, Stormy Hope <Stormy435@xxxxxxx> wrote:
More than friendly and fun, is the real need to be innovative with new
programs. We just had a few listers talk
about the many talents the GSD has... yet MOST of the regional clubs stick
with conformation, and
conformation only. If there was true encouragement to the rally, agility,
obedience, herding aficionados,
maybe even invite a schutzhund club to have a demonstration, then be friendly
and welcoming to those
people. If there is some reason for them to join the club, they will. But
if their main interest is rally, agility,
obedience, herding (or schutzhund) and all they hear/see at the club meeting
is conformation, why would
they return? Just a thought. Stormy
On Aug 10, 2009, at 4:45 PM, TISHW@xxxxxxx wrote:
> Sally,>
> This is a really tough one because money is not the answer. The regional
> clubs are basically the only
ones who can help themselves.
The PC can offer suggestions but in the long run the only way the regional
clubs will survive is if they
increase their memberships. That has to be done > on a local> level. Being
friendly to newcomers at
shows and having meetings > which are> fun and interesting help a lot in
getting new people involved.
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