[ SHOWGSD-L ] Re: so many questions
- From: CODAGSD@xxxxxx
- To: showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 16 Jun 2005 14:35:31 EDT
In a message dated 06/15/2005 9:37:18 PM Central Daylight Time,
Showgsd-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
<< These are good points, but the question to ask is, "Is the quality of the
German shepherd better than it was ten years ago?"
Evan>>
I assume you are talking about the tiny portion of GSDs that compete in AKC
conformation shows. So, say that between 3,000 and 4,000 GSDs were registered
with the AKC each month for the last 10 years (4,044 were registered in April,
2005), and that only the best of the best of those few that were registered in
show homes were actually shown. Even then, it depends on the criteria and who
you ask. Do you mean sidegait? Coming and going? Backs? Temperament? Sex
characteristics? Health: hips, elbows, bloat/torsion, DM, mega, etc.? Or do you
mean the overall dog? And is that only in Specialties, or also the numbers
competing/winning at high level AB shows? Depending on each breeder's or
judge's
personal experience during the last ten years and, without numbers generated by
breed-wide studies (that can be verified!) over time, the answer can differ
widely. Anecdotal evidence is interesting, but hardly scientific, and can
actually be harmful.
Some breeders tend to think their own dogs reflect the status of the breed as
a whole (for better or for worse) and some judges, while only judging 3 or 4
times a year, may think the dogs they judge are truly representative. Even our
National suffers from attrition of dogs due to economics, illness, the choice
of judge, etc., although it remains the largest yearly representation of AKC
conformation GSDs. It would be interesting to do a study based on the
percentage of dogs actively being shown during a given year who actually appear
at the
National that year. Anyway, without hard facts, improvement or decline is in
the eye of the beholder and there are few eyes in any field (not just ours)
that are not either jaundiced or sporting rose-colored glasses!
Sharon
CODA GERMAN SHEPHERDS
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