In a "previous life" I bred and showed Akitas in AKC shows. My dogs were not the "fashionable, typy" Akitas. They were what the breed was intended to be..a heavy-boned, well muscled, thick muzzled dog. It was funny to watch the looks on people's faces when I would show up, then win breed, group, then BOS in shows I purposely selected because I knew the judge to prefer the "old style" of dog over what the breed had become after it's acceptance into AKC.
A funny thing is that the tide has changed back to the style I bred and showed now, 15 yrs after I stopped breeding. My final Akita, Yuki has been gone now for 3 years..how I miss having an Akita at my feet...
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From: aylisha@xxxxxxxxxxx To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: RE: [RC] [RC-Digest] Vol: 03.5665 Date: Tue, 22 Jan 2008 02:10:15 +0000
<<<I'm equally appalled at the way many breeds of dogs have gone when
bred only for the show ring. I just pray that one of my favorite
breeds, the Border Collie, is never bred to look cutesy in the show
ring. They are far too intelligent to waste on the show ring, unless
it involves doing their real job. They are, however, very obsessed and
sometimes that's enough to drive a person nuts. I always figure if you
want a Border Collie, you'd better have a real job ready for him to do,
routinely, or he will be a very unhappy dog.>>>
I second that..my first "non-pound" puppy was a border collie. Mainly cause a friend bred her and I fell in love with the puppies (will go through a BC rescue for my next dog as I LOVE BCs, but want to also "save" an animal too :) ). Just after I got her, several other friends were SO excited that BCs are "now being accepted into AKC, so they can now show their dogs...ICK! was all I had to say to that. My girl is ABC registered and will NEVER be AKC registered and I wish AKC had NEVER accepted them. Because now, the breed that comes in every color (brown, black, merles and white mixed in many combos) and all sizes (though no real huge ones) and all different coats (long, med, short) will most likely become one size, all black/white, long flowing coat and no herding ability whatsoever. That will be a sorry day. But they will sell for thousands and be "oh so cute"....sigh..... Nat (who has an excellent horse watching dog that loves to play "Lassie" and tell me about all the things the horses are getting into....yes, they can be neurotic, but if given a job, they are awesome dogs and make GREAT endurance/horse dogs that can run on training rides for miles on end)
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming.... 'Wow! What a ride!' "
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