What direction are we going?

[Elaine]

Was talking to a friend the other day… she’s from England… she mentioned that Pedigree had pulled it’s sponsorship of Crufts. Purportedly Pedigree claims their decision was not related to the bad press pure bred dogs have gotten lately, but one wonders. Crufts will go on as planned, but loosing their major sponsor so close to their show date has to be a blow.

You may have noticed that Pedigree no longer sponsors any purebred events in this country except Westminster… and I wonder how long that association will last. Frankly, I am under-enthused with all the slick glossy shelter dog ads that run during the Westminster telecast. Westminster should be our showcase for purebred dogs, to portray purebred breeders in a positive light. Westminster’s audience is built on the interest J. Q. Public has in pure bred dogs, one that we've worked for decades to generate. Westminster's audience should not be exploited by the AR message of a pet food company sponsor. Let the AR people buy air time and/or sponsor their own event. Pure Bred dog people need our audience to hear a positive messages about purebred dogs.

I think we need to start sending positive messages about our purebred dogs, because we are loosing the AR battle on just about every front.

I look at the DPCA members only list, where Judy and her friends are pushing that we Holter our dogs at 18 months to 2 years of age. JFC, do any of these people think about the message they are sending? The message is that our purebred Doberman is so frail and unhealthy (genetically) that the Dobe needs extremely expensive (medically questionable / unwarranted) testing, from 18 months of age on. Who in their right mind would buy a Dobe or any breed that needs hundreds of dollars of testing each year? Most rational people would run screaming from such a breed. We are shooting ourselves in the foot, for what? Is it all for the sake of profit margin for the people and companies that sell tests and testing? Are we creating the worst possible Public Relations nightmare for breeders and our breed?

I noticed that no one is advocating that we health test the shelter dogs and mixed breeds. Why do you think that is? Do you think that mixed breed dogs have no health problems? Or, do you think that - absent a compelling medically sound reason - people who pay $50 for a dog won’t OFA, vWD, Holter, MRI and god-knows-what-all-else because these tests cost too much and in some instances have questionable benefits? Here's the real kicker, J. Q. Public seems to believe that mix breed dogs are healthier than purebred dogs. Did purebred dog breeders unwittingly help create that illusion?

Did we go way too far in our attempts to produce the perfect animal?

We all should know that there is no such thing as perfection in a living organism. We will never be able to produce perfection. With all our well intended efforts, have we merely helped the AR folks to portray purebred dogs as unhealthy and genetically inferior?

Even if these mix breed owners did a bunch of health tests, what registry would track or store the data? How do we know if a mixed breed dog died of DCM or the side effects of 1001 other health disorders... no one does the autopsies and no one stores the data on mixed breed dogs.

For a variety of reasons, including profit margin, we allow (even embrace) the perception that pure bred dogs are genetically inferior to the mixed breed dogs, and then we wonder why we're loosing the PR battle. Consider, President Elect Obama is almost apologizing that he will have to choose a purebred dog, because one of his daughters is allergic and needs a breed that shreds less (like a Poodle, Schnauzer etc.). Did we all contribute to the public perception that one needs to apologize for choosing a purebred dog?

[Rauschund]

Very good post Elaine. It seems that it is not "politically correct" to go the option of the purebred dog at this time. That is a shame.....I would say that the majority of the mutts in the shelters are from owners unwilling or uncaring enough to spay or neuter, most parent clubs try to get their breed out........must be the bigger money is in the general public and not the breeders as far as pedigree is concerned........don't care for their dogfood, and care for it even less now. Any suggestions on how to correct this situation?

[Elaine]

Any suggestions on how to correct this situation?
Only this… we need to be more sensitive and aware of the messages we are embracing and disseminating. We are rapidly moving toward the ultimate goal of AR folks, which is that we not own or use animals.

[Betty]

Only this… we need to be more sensitive and aware of the messages we are embracing and disseminating. We are rapidly moving toward the ultimate goal of AR folks, which is that we not own or use animals.

You're right Elaine, it is all about the message. Just like politics, we need to package the message. Most people really don't understand purebred dogs. They don't give a darn about perfect bites and level toplines. They want a healthy dog that will perform the duties they have in mind. What we need to do is look at the strengths of individual breeds and promote them accordingly. I think some breeds have done that remarkably well, that is why they are so popular. If you have a young family and like to hunt, most families would immediately think of getting a Lab or Golden... retrievers that are known to be good with children. A mixed breed could not automatically fill that bill. I think what Brenna has done with Tungsten is far more impressive to the public than a conformation title. A successful show career is wonderful and says much about a breeding program, but there are many good years left for these beautiful dogs to get out and impress the public with their individual traits. Traits that are bred in to each breed... traits that people can count on their puppy having if they buy that purebred dog. We need to take control of this message.. be proactive... not wait until it is too late.

[Lou's mom]

good topic. I concur that we should promote purebreds not only as functional dogs at what they were bred for, but also as family companions & fellow athletes (if they are).

One could make the case that purebred known medical problems are like having a family history of heart attack: something to be aware of, not freak out about. I am adopted (human mutt), and my doc bumped me into an older age group for the purposes of routine screenings, precisely because I don't know my genetic family history. Unfortunately the person who won't neuter their dog probably won't have bloodwork done to check thyroid, or even get regular dentals....

I don't get why Obama thinks he can't get a purebred hypo-allergenic from a shelter -- as Rauschund mentioned, breed clubs try to get their breed outta the shelters, but even they can't catch all of their guys. Shelter workers don't always correctly identify breeds, and with Mr. In-Debt surrendering his pets due to the economy there are more purebreds than ever turning up. Just ask Bella!

[Lili]

Brentano, Bella, Brett and I went to Chimney Rock, NC today to see the mountain and get some exercise. We went walking around Lake Lure with the dogs. All the people we met knew they were Doberman's and most asked to pet the dogs. Brentano of course is a wonderful ambassador for our breed and he was sponging up the attention. One mother and her little girl were very impressed with his leaning ability. He was making her daughter laugh and they were suprised at how loving and easy going Brentano and Bella were. We must have talked to at least 275 or more different people. There were several groups from Germany and other countries. Most of them had never had contact with a doberman and were pleasantly surprised at their temperaments. After having Great Danes and helping the public understand the breed it seems I am at it again with Dobermans. I have nothing against mixed breed dogs but I certainly do appreciate a purebred and I feel there is nothing better than watching a dog that is a great example of it's standard. It is a good thing that there are people out there to love all the different breeds of dogs and the mixed ones as well. I don't understand bad publicity by a dog food manufacturer, it would seem purebred or not they all have to eat. It is not good business practice to alienate any group. As in all hobbies and professions there are good people and bad. You have to weed out the bad during your lifetime and that will never change. I am not sure that the public is so easily swayed that they would boycott purebred dogs and there are plenty of purebreds as well as mutts in the animal shelters. The purebreds are still getting adopted faster than the others so it must mean something. We know there are bad breeders, I think it is up to us to be sure people know there are good breeders out there. I personally have had a couple of "not so nice" experiences with a couple of breeders. It is hard to get information so you can avoid it. I learned the hard way and I don't wish it on anyone else. Good breeders out there know what I am talking about. And now that I am sidetracked completely I will shut up.

Lili

PS I don't feed pedigree anyway.

[Elaine]

Lili's post brought to mind these photos she's sent last week of Brentano and Bella "nursing" Lili's mother after her recent eye surgery.

http://i394.photobucket.com/albums/pp21/logresfarm/BrentanowLilismom.jpg


http://i394.photobucket.com/albums/pp21/logresfarm/BrentanowLilismom3.jpg

[Kissntell]

I agree whole heartly with you Elaine.

I also find the Pedigree people to be hypocrites! When I worked the poor houses of helping those less fortunate and myself, guess what...Pedigree would not under any circumstances donate any food for the people out of work with no income ect. towards their dogs. The only thing that the Pedigree folks cared about was "shelter" dogs. Those struggling to feed their families and less so the dogs they cared not! That included feeding the homeless companion dogs. There never was any food in the community food banks for those dogs. It was just tough crap. So we contacted Pedigree and they were not at all interested!

I think Pedigree is burning both ends of the candle. Or a step further, most people in the pure bred dog world do not feed their food so they gave up on us and are not really looking for the show dog business.

I don't know anyone who feeds their food except pet homes who know no better or do not care.

That said:

Most general people don't know jack about their dogs. I guess I make this statement walking my dog twice a day in the neighborhood and noticing how the general public "cares" for their dogs. No wonder they feed pedigree!

There's the poor red doberman male who lives outside all year. After all dogs are not much different then farm animals to some. Why people even own them wonders me. But amazingly this dog is in good coat and happy.

Then the long haired small breeds that are not groomed or clipped. I was amased to hear the breed of dog they were. Why do some people even own a dog?

As to the rescue business. I think somebody must be making money somewhere. Not the dogs in the shelters. But somewhere...dog food? Other things? The pet supply industry? Toys, beds etc. When I'm in places like Petsmart, Petco etc. I'm always amased at the people in there shopping not having an ounce of knowledge. But they spend buko bucks for the poor rescued animals they adopted. They feel sorry for them and thus may be spending many dollars for them. This is just theory.

There is a big push for the shelter dog only idea. Now the President elect is only going to consider a "shelter dog." He's been pressured of course. And...would he want the back lash of getting a fine purebred dog? Not nowdays. It would be entirely too unpopular. It fits the needs of the Country, help the shelter dogs. Funnny...they sure don't really want to help the homeless humans. But it takes away the guilt of not helping humans to help the shelter unwanted animals.

I have rescued many shelter dogs. But everyone came with a major problem. I found that many times people screwed them up and then dumped them.

The animal rights people have long taken over the pet world. But its really buyer beware or adopter beware of the rescue. There's practically no way they really know what the problems that come with may be. I took in dogs myself. Most people do not tell the truth when dropping off dogs. They just say they are moving or some lame excuse. So its not the shelter's fault.

Shelters serve a purpose. If it wern't for them we'd have dogs roaming the streets pregnant and unaltered like in Mexico. Mexico's problem is a real eye opener. But there is a major difference in quality of dogs from pure bred to mixed breed. Lucky is he who finds a real nice mixed breed dog not screwed up. They are nice pets. But they are not healthier.

Which gets me to the next step. Many people have dogs and neglect their care. There is a dog which walks by maybe twice a year now since the newness has worn off. It is often running loose now in fact. But I noticed the long nails and spoke to the owner. She said that she couldn't afford the vet bill to have her dogs nails trimmed.

So maybe these dogs are getting homes. Maybe they initially get all kinds of money spent for toys etc. But most likely when it comes time for the vet...no way they have no money.

I can tell you I have provided way too much of my own doctoring to dogs I didn't own because of this.

This problem is far more vast then what is published out to the public. Whenever, I see a problem like this I always say, "follow the money trail." Someone is profiting and wants to stay quiet in the background. The shelters are not making the money. In fact it is us through tax money that supports them. But what about the other industries? How much do they help in these issues? Or are they profiting? The pet industry as in supplies is one of the biggest out there. And now they are saying that the pet industry will not in any way feel a decrease in Christmas spending unlike the regular retail business.

I also believe that this business of doing the holter etc. is because someone is making money on every dog done. And, I don't think this is the answer to prevention of cardio one bit. It just means that on that day the dog was good. $$$$$ Thank-You!!