Lakeland Terrier British Isles
Manchester Terrier (two varieties) British Isles
Standard, 12 to 22 pounds
Toy (shown in Toy Group)
Miniature Bull Terrier British Isles
Miniature Schnauzer Germany
Norfolk Terrier British Isles
Norwich Terrier British Isles
Scottish Terrier Scotland
Sealyham Terrier British Isles
Skye Terrier British Isles
Soft-Coated Wheaten Terrier Ireland
Staffordshire Bull Terrier British Isles
Welsh Terrier Wales
West Highland White Terrier British Isles
Group 5: Toys—20 Breeds, 9 Varieties
Affenpinscher Europe
Brussels Griffons (two varieties) Belgium
Long-Coat
Smooth-Coat
Cavalier King Charles Spaniel British Isles
Chihuahua Mexico and Asia?
Chinese Crested China
English Toy Spaniel (two varieties) British Isles
Blenheim and Prince Charles
King Charles and Ruby
Havanese Cuba (and ?)
Italian Greyhound Greece/Turkey/Italy
Japanese Chin Japan
Maltese Malta
Manchester Terrier (two varieties) British Isles
Standard (in Terrier Group)
Toy, not over 12 pounds
Miniature Pinscher Germany
Papillon Spain/Italy
Pekingese China
Pomeranian Iceland/Lapland
Poodle (three varieties) Germany/France?
Miniature (in Nonsporting Group)
Standard (in Nonsporting Group)
Toy, up to 10 inches
Pug China/Netherlands
Shih Tzu China
Silky Terrier Australia
Yorkshire Terrier British Isles
Group 6: Nonsporting Dogs—16 Breeds, 3 Varieties
American Eskimo Dog United States
Bichons Frise Canaries/Spain
Boston Terrier United States
Bulldog British Isles
Chinese Shar-Pei China
Chow Chow China
Dalmatian ?
Finnish Spitz Finland
French Bulldog France
Keeshond Netherlands
Lhasa Apso Tibet
Lowchen Germany
Poodles (three varieties) Spain/France/Germany
Miniature, 10 to 15 inches
Standard, over 15 inches
Toy (in Toy Group)
Schipperke Belgium
Shiba Inu Japan
Tibetan Spaniel Tibet
Tibetan Terrier Tibet
Group 7: Herding Dogs—18 Breeds, 2 Varieties
Anatolian Shepherd Dog Turkey
Australian Cattle Dog Australia
Australian Shepherd United States
Bearded Collie Scotland
Belgian Malinois Belgium
Belgian Sheepdog Belgium
Belgian Tervuren Belgium
Border Collie Scotland
Bouvier des Flandres France
Briard France
Canaan Dog Israel
Collie (two varieties) British Isles
Rough
Smooth
German Shepherd Dog Germany
Old English Sheepdog British Isles
Puli Hungary
Shetland Sheepdog British Isles
Welsh Corgi, Cardigan Wales
Welsh Corgi, Pembroke Wales
Next is judging for Best in Show. This is as good as it gets in the dog-show world, winning the red-white-and-blue BIS ribbon and achieving the top spot of the day, defeating all other show entries. Breeders, owners, and handlers value this award and feel a great sense of accomplishment when their dog is judged to be the finest dog at either an all-breed or a specialty show.
O’er Land and Sea
The interlocking of the dog fancies in the United Kingdom and the United States, something that seems so logical, has remained a lopsided affair at best. The English, Scotch, Irish, and Welsh have created and maintained some of the best breeds and some of the finest individual dogs in the world. They are masters of the craft and extremely enthusiastic. Bloodlines from the British Isles have contributed more to our best dogs than those from any other country. All of the dogs in the Terrier Group, for example, with the exception of the Miniature Schnauzer, were developed in the United Kingdom, then transported here. No fewer than thirteen of the Sporting Dog breeds are listed with the British Isles as their country of origin.
It would make sense for the two countries, the United States and the United Kingdom, to exchange dogs, enter into each other’s most important shows, and cross blood-lines—within the breeds, of course. That is not how it works, however. British breeders and fanciers can send their dogs here anytime they want with nothing more than a forty-eight-hour-old veterinary health certificate, but there it stops. Any dog sent to the United Kingdom from here has to go into a usually dreadful six-month quarantine. Not only are our dogs banned there, but an English owner coming here has to face the same monstrous nonsense when he tries to take his pet back home. Few owners care to do that to their friend, so relatively few dogs get to enter the United Kingdom if they have even set paw in the United States.
The fuss is over rabies, and the British are downright paranoid on the subject. The disease has been eradicated in the United Kingdom, but we still have it here, of course. If dogs are up-to-date on their rabies shots, however, an active infection is extremely unlikely. It is difficult to imagine a Toy Poodle or a Maltese or a Pekingese living in a Park Avenue penthouse being exposed at all. Still, the British have not been just firm on this subject, they have been absolutely rigid, and the wonderful interchange that should exist has never been possible. Just what impact this has all had on the world of purebred dogs here and in the United Kingdom is difficult to imagine. It is clearly a negative when viewed from any angle.
Dog fanciers on this side of the Atlantic have been just as adamant over the matter and have been demanding new regulations. The British government has refused to budge an inch. Now, at the beginning of the twenty-first century, dog lovers in many parts of the world are rejoicing. The quarantine rule is about to be modified. Dogs from some countries will be able to enter the United Kingdom without quarantine. Unfortunately, North America’s show dogs and pets won’t be set free even under the new regulations. The exchange will still be one way when it comes to the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Jill and I have brought two wonderfully bred and cared-for dogs over from England, a Bulldog and a West Highland White Terrier, but when we moved to London for a while in 1965, none of our dogs came with us. Government bureaucracy has once again managed to create an unnecessary glitch in the way people and their dogs live. But then, that is why God invented bureaucrats in the first place. If woman was harvested from man’s body—the ribs—I have a suggestion as to what parts were used to assemble the first bureaucrat. Not here, however. We should be alone for that discussion.
The Miscellaneous Class
Over the years, slowly but surely, the breeds recognized by the AKC have grown in number. There is a simple, entry-level procedure that makes this possible. It is called the Miscellaneous Class. It is a thing apart from the seven regular groups, but it has the same long-range purpose and plan. The number of breeds usually included at any one time awaiting recognition and a chance for their place in the sun is not specified.
The studbook at the AKC is not sitting around wringing its hands waiting for people to come up with ideas for new breeds to fill the niches and columns in the seven groups. Just the opposite is true. There are no niches, as such. In fact, there is considerable resistance to new breeds, particularly when they are cutesy home-grown things like Cockapoos, Peekypoos or Poopypekes and Peekycocks. There are plenty of cute dogs in the appropriate groups already. As random-bred dogs, such critters can be a
nd frequently are sweet and rewarding pets, but they are not needed and have no possible role to play in the world of purebred dogs, particularly among show-quality purebred dogs. They cannot be shown, needless to say. They are very often toy-size creations affectionately known as patio lice. At Thistle Hill Farm half of our dogs are large, but I refer to our smallish herd of small terriers as army ants. Call them what you will, millions of dogs and puppies every year are killed for the want of suitable homes. It is cruel to purposely create more of them. Cute won’t always save a dog’s life down at the pound, sad to report.
The Move from Miscellaneous Class to a
Regular Group and Championship Points
1980: Australian Cattle Dogs * Working Group
1984: Pharaoh Hound Hound Group
Portuguese Water Dog Working Group
Tibetan Spaniel Nonsporting Group
1988: Finnish Spitz Nonsporting Group
1991: Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen Hound Group
Chinese Crested Toy Group
Chinese Shar-Pei Nonsporting Group
1992: Miniature Bull Terrier Terrier Group
1993: Australian Shepherd Dog Herding Group
Shiba Inu Nonsporting Group
1995: American Eskimo Dog Nonsporting Group
Greater Swiss Mountain Dog Working Group
Border Collie Herding Group
1996: Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Toy Group
1997: Canaan Dog Herding Group
1999: Havanese Toy Group
Lowchen Nonsporting Group
Anatolian Shepherd Dog Herding Group
2000: Jack Russell Terrier Terrier Group
Plott Hound Hound Group
To get heretofore unrecognized breeds (in the United States) into the Miscellaneous Class, a group of fanciers (enthusiasts) have to follow the drill. First they have to prove that what they have is indeed a breed unto itself, breeding true. (As far as I know, the number of generations for breeding true is nowhere specified.) They must offer proof that there is substantial and widespread interest in the breed and that there is activity surrounding the proposed breed. There has to be an active club that maintains a breed registry, with the breeding activity expanding over a wide area in the United States.
When the AKC board of directors (collectively, those olde wise men of the hydrant set) decides these conditions have been met, the breed can be admitted to the Miscellaneous Class. It can now participate in AKC obedience trials and even earn obedience titles. These breeds are not eligible for championship points, however, although they are shown without points in some conformance shows. Eventually the AKC board will decide there is enough activity and the new breed will be admitted to one of the seven regular groups. Once the breed is in a group, it will follow the trail all show dogs follow, developing its own great champions and legends. It must be understood that the “new” breed may in fact be hundreds or even thousands of years old in other countries or areas. New, as used here, means new to us, and we are not always the first to know.
A case in point is the PBGV. This Basset-size, fuzzy scent hound is run in hunting packs and has been for an estimated four hundred years in France, Denmark, and the Netherlands. The initials stand for Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen. It is generally referred to as the happy breed. After nearly four centuries of popularity, it became a recognized breed by the Kennel Club in Great Britain. In short order it was recognized in Canada, and after building in popularity there, it was moved out of the Miscellaneous Class into the Hound Group in the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC). That had nothing to do with the AKC, yet. The PBGV is a hound in a terrier coat, with more than a little terrier in its style and outlook on life. We got our two from Canada because they were then so hard to find here. That is rapidly changing. After its success in Canada the PBGV repeated the process in the United States, where it has now moved from the Miscellaneous to the Hound Group. (Having lived with a couple of PBGVs for years, I am convinced that they are every bit as much Terrier as Hound.)
There are mixed feelings about “new” dogs being accorded AKC recognition. There is frequently a horrendous, vituperative battle between club factions, those who want recognition and those who do not. It is often said that recognition leads to rapidly expanding popularity, and that leads to careless breeding practices by puppy mills who supply the pet shops with ghastly, substandard puppies. There is also an inevitable touch of snobbery: keeping a good thing to ourselves. It is generally felt by a great many fanciers that they “don’t need” AKC recognition, that it is beneath them and their dogs. This split in opinion can get nasty at times and may delay a breed’s recognition for years. It is often a very hot issue in the politics of the dog-show world. It has brought more than a few old friendships tumbling down. Think of it as the Blue and the Gray all over again, brother against brother, father against son. Dog people have tight collars (their own, not their dogs’), and it can get a bit on the steamy side when opinions differ.
On the subject of recognition, a lot of dog fanciers are attracted to the concept of ground floor. The thought of being one of the first in the land to own a newly recognized breed or even a not-yet-recognized breed is adventuresome. These are the breeders who will eventually determine the breed’s standards.
As of this writing (1999-2000: close to the start of a new millennium) five new breeds have come on line in just one year. The massive Anatolian Shepherd Dog at 150 pounds is a true giant of the dog world. The Canaan Dog from Israel is unique in that it existed as a herder in ancient times. Feral examples of the breed lived on in the desert and then, from the 1930s on, specimens were recaptured as “wild” dogs and redomesticated. It is the only redomestication we know of. Someday, we can imagine, that could happen with the dingo in Australia.
A lovable companion dog known as the Lowchen will build a solid following in the years ahead, as will the happy little Havanese. The mighty little Jack Russell Terrier, long a very popular breed in this country and a fixture in stables and at horse shows but not heretofore recognized, had official recognition as of April 1, 2000. The Black-and-Tan Coonhound has long been the only one of the Southern coonhounds to have recognition, but the Plott Hound (they are both descended from the Bloodhound) will soon be attracting attention as well.
That leaves only two other breeds in the Miscellaneous Class, just about an all-time low—the Polish Lowland Sheepdog (called the Pons by its friends) and an Italian hunting dog that has been very popular in Europe, the Spin-one Italiano.
If anyone is coming into the world of dogs, it might be fun to do it with a breed that is new to almost everyone. Imagine the thrill of being the first person ever to finish a Spinone Italiano and get it a UD (Utility Dog) obedience title as well. It would take a lot of hard work and it would be a bit of a long shot to get your name into the history books working with Poodles and Beagles, but you very well might do that with the Spinone Italiano or the Havanese or Canaan Dog. But first the breed must appeal to you. If it is a newly recognized or rare breed, so much the better. There is plenty of room for taste as well as a sense of adventure and exploration in the world of dogs. (Finding a major for the Spinone can be slow going!)
Chapter 4
There Is
a Breed
for You
Probably the most important decision would-be dog owners and exhibitors have to make concerns the breed selected: what breed is perfect, or nearly so, for the home they have to offer and the challenges they expect their dog to meet? No question is more important. It is all about building your family and focusing your love, not to mention committing to the considerable expenses involved. Like children, pets are an ongoing responsibility, and some are far more costly to keep than others. Still, love and personal satisfaction matter most. If you pick wisely and well, it almost won’t matter that your friend doesn’t go BIS every weekend.
There is a simple, commonsense process of elimination that can be helpful when deciding on a bre
ed of dog. Three questions have to be answered by anyone seriously interested in having a dog, for show or not.
First, the practical consideration of size: (1) giant, (2) large, (3) medium, (4) small, or (5) wee. A 2- to 5-pound Chihuahua and a 110-pound Scottish Deerhound may just be breeds within a single species (it could be hazardous or at least awkward, but they could be crossbred, perish the thought), but they do have their somewhat obvious differences.
Then, second, is coat care: (1) a great deal, (2) a minimal and reasonable amount, or (3) almost none at all. If the dog is going to be shown, his coat can be a huge consideration because of the attention a judge will pay to it in the ring. In some of the heavily coated breeds, few details matter as much.
A quick check of the standards shows the degree to which coat quality varies in importance. A Brussels Griffon’s coat is worth twenty-five points of the one hundred points needed for perfection. A Lakeland Terrier’s coat counts for fifteen points, a Sealyham Terrier’s for ten. A Boston Terrier’s and a Bulldog’s coat are worth just two points. If you are battling to get your competitive partner as near to one hundred points as possible, it is of some considerable significance that, if you are showing a Brussels Griffon, the little guy’s coat is mathematically worth twelve and a half times as much as it would be if you were showing a Boston Terrier.
Some people love all the primping and fussing that inevitably go with a beautifully coated dog, while others hate it. Taking care of a show coat requires a lot of time, infinite patience, space (many coated-dog owners allocate a special room, including a raised bathtub with a hand shower, to this single task; frequently a family room or garage has to do), some equipment (probably including a portable grooming table that can go to shows with you), and lots of cleaning up once the gussying up is done.
Dogs like the Poodles (Toy and Nonsporting Groups), Keeshond and Norwegian Elkhound (the former a Non-sporting, the latter a Hound—don’t ask me why!), and herding dogs like the Bearded Collie don’t require, they downright demand, constant care. That is a world unto itself. You love it or you hate it, but one way or another you have to provide it or your friend is going to look like a hoopoe’s nest in no time flat. (The hoopoe, Upupa epops, has the dirtiest, messiest nest in just about all of birdom. From the point of view of style, that is easier to accept with U. epops than it is with His Worship the Poodle.) There is no place in the show ring for a bad-hair day. Clearly, coat has to be a factor in picking your breed.
Going for the Blue Page 7
