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THE PACK LEADER
TRIBUTE
In-house Comp.
Sunshine Coast Trial
Murrumba Trial 8th U.D. Peter Mario & Labrador "Winston "- 2nd place - 186pts C.D.X. Monica Krueger & Standard Poodle "Eddy "- 2nd place - 187pts.
Nanango Sweepstakes 30th C.D. Barbara Thomson & Airdale "Otto "- 2nd place - 183pts. It is wonderful to see older dogs so successful in competition. Otto was about four and a half when Barbara started training him with me. She had been having trouble controlling Otto generally, particularly with his fierce dog aggression. Eighteen months later a very amiable and dog friendly Otto scored very nicely in his first sweepstakes. Congratulations Barbara and to a special boy "Australian Show Champion Strongfort Showottoshow ",twice runner in the Brisbane Ecca and soon to be "CD " titled. Tony Collins I might add, also commenced training Beau when he first acquired him at four years of age as an untrained dog. Twelve months later they won the gold medal for obedience in this year ’s National German Shepherd Show. A healthy dog is never too old to train.
Capricorn Coast Dog Obedience Club 25th Anniversary The Cap. Coast Dog Club held an anniversary celebrating its twenty fifth year. The club held a double trial, the first held on Saturday evening the 15th and again the following morning. This trial was judged by two imminent interstate Judges. As Patron of the Club I was delighted to receive an invitation to attend as the Cap. Coast Club is close to my heart. My first introduction to the Club was about 1988.When I joined the club it was down to about five members, and was about to close because they had no one to train anyone above beginners .Fortunately I was able to assist in that regard and the club had a stay of execution.1990 saw me embroiled in a number of personnel issues that took me away from the club for a couple of years. Fortune favoured the club in my absence however, when Wayne & Janet Scott joined the club. Wayne & Janet assisted by their young daughters took the club to heart and the present result is a large healthy dog obedience club The work Wayne, Janet, their two girls and members of the club put in over that weekend was huge and they deserve to be highly praised. It was great for me to catch up with some old students and friends. It was also wonderful to see two of my old mentors - Billy Munster and Noel Smyth still battling on regardless of poor health.
Next in-house Comp. Saturday,the 26th of July at the Beerwah Sports Ground. Security Patrol Dog assessments commencing 1pm.
Cooroy evening classes The Monday evening competition classes at Buderim will cease, and normal classes recommence Cooroy Soccer Ground 7.30pm on the first Monday of September.(4th)
Why buy a German Shepherd? Don Burke not only features critiques on the various dog breeds, he has also been known to be refreshingly forthright and honest in relation to the damage the show breeding industry has caused most breeds of dogs. Don Burke ’s monthly magazine ’s June issue features an article with the above title. The opening paragraph reads and I quote. “German Shepherds are loyal, smart and obedient dogs. Great! But Don Burke says the really good news is that the German Shepherd Dog League is doing a fine job improving the breed, selecting only the healthiest dogs with the best temperaments for its breeding programs.” “Why buy a German Shepherd? Because these are the only breed of pedigreed dogs in Australia that are responsibility bred. The German Shepherds by the German Shepherd Dog League (and only those ones) are safe with the family, cheap to run and lead long and healthy lives.” “Every other dog breed in Australia is faulty. These other breeds are produced by a system that awards points for exhibition characteristics only: colour of coat, angle of ears, angle of tail, etc. No emphasis is put on good temperament, sound bones and general animal welfare issues. The end result of about 100 years of neglecting basic breeding practices is that many purebred dogs don ’t function well as pets any more. They often need expensive surgery to fix their health problems, they are less safe with the kids and in general often lead painful and shortened lives.” “About 30 years ago,some responsible German Shepherd breeders said “enough is enough ”.They formed the German Shepherd Dog League to try to fix their breed, which had degenerated significantly. They set about testing breeding animals with decent hip joints, sound temperament, good teeth and freedom from major genetic diseases.” “How do they do it ” “We spoke to Max Stokes, one of the pioneers of the League. He demonstrated how they have mandatory breed improvement days, where each dog is scored for the critical breed problem areas. There are two important tests. First is the temperament test, where dogs are submitted to milling crowds of strangers, loud noises (starter ’s pistols)etc.to see if the dog reacts fearfully. The second one involves X-rays of hips and elbows to check joints for inherited problems. The League scores each dog on these and other aspects and even publishes a book of all of their dog scores.No secrets here.” “This is responsible dog breeding at its best. The League has been so successful that it has become the biggest exhibitor of a dog breed in Australia. Yet sadly,30 years after the League began, not one other breed in Australia has chosen to follow their lead. Whilst some clubs say that they encourage better breeding, this is not true. They don ’t reward these traits in the show ring nor do they have systems set up like the German Shepherd Dog League. So their breeds continue to decline: bitches that cannot have puppies (for example, Bulldogs. Chihuahuas and others); vicious and unpredictable behaviour (Australian Cattle Dogs, some Labradors, some Cocker Spaniels and others) painful knee joints (most small terriers), and many more.” “Warning ” Not all German Shepherds are part of the German Shepherd Dog League. If you wish to buy a German Shepherd ask if the breeder is part of the League and ask to see their parent dogs certificates from the League. We would strongly advise that you avoid buying any German Shepherds not produced by German Shepherd Dog League members.” Unquote.. It is always refreshing to me to see people like Don Burke tell the dog world as it is. Whilst there are a lot of good people in the dog breeding industry, it is chokers with unscrupulous breeders who have devastated most breeds of dogs, both in the temperament and health areas. I sincerely hope Don continues to produce information calling a spade a spade.
Book review “Training and Working Dogs ”by Scott Lithgow and published by University of Queensland Press. Whilst this book is based on the training of sheep and cattle dogs, what is of particular interest to me is the appendix include by Don Morris. I met Don many years ago at the Central Queensland University where he lectures on animal behaviour. He is without a doubt the best authority on canine behaviour that I have had the pleasure to meet, and I ’m not taking anything away from any of the highly respected people involved in this field. Don ’s knowledge is extraordinary. For those of you who are familiar with my “urination method ”for pulling aggressive dogs into line, the idea originally came to me thanks to Don. The appendix in the back of this book is called, “A Rationale for Rearing Procedures. ”The rationale given in the appendix borrows liberally from a number of theories of brain function and then adapts them and refers to dogs. The appendix is in the format of pen drawings to clearly and simply explain a complex subject, and is developed from the studies from J.P.Scott and M.W.Fox. Quite simply, there are a number of exercises that can be used on baby puppies that develop a better brain, and more relaxed and effective working dog. This research I believe, is important knowledge for anyone in the dog world, and essential knowledge for those involved in breeding. In fact, I would go so far as to state that any breeder not familiar with this work is living in the dark ages.
Dog aggression. Almost without fail the subject of dogs displaying aggression towards other dogs is a common topic at the end of a dog trial. There always seems to be somebody who does not have proper control over their dogs, and dog trials are the forum where dog behaviour is on show. My competitors often raise this issue expressing disgust at the behaviour of aggressive dogs. Worst of all, many of these dogs have obedience titles. Highly respected Judge and competitor Warren Doyle, recently expressed concern to me in this regard stating a desire for all dogs to undergo a pre trial test. A suggestion I totally agree with. However, if the pack structure is in place the dog does not exhibit unwarranted aggression towards other dogs. The ridiculous excuses one hears commonly such as “that dog invaded my dogs space, that dog eye balled my dog or my dog is very protective of me, is complete nonsense. Simply, the handler or owner is not the pack leader. Dogs are born to follow their inherent instincts and if the dog sees us as a weak leader it takes charge.
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