Question to anyone who has ever bought or bred a dog.

[Ataro]

^^^^^^Love the maths

Hiya, just wondering whether it might be worth taking a step back and evaluating what chances you have of finding your perfect bitch(as a pup) from a perfect breeder via emails.

Been there, done that, and when I had the opportunity to take a pick of litter from a very well regarded breeder, despite all my research I took the one which looked the dumbest of them all

What I'm getting at is that despite preferences of what our ideal dogs should be, there should be an element of "feeling" towards picking your pup - it's not the same as picking out a highly expensive diamond after all...they're going to be our buddies first and foremost

Hi sammy
I'm not going to be securing a deal over email, but I am using it as a way to weed out the bad breeders and breeders that don't suit me, so that in the end there are just two or three that I can visit. I'm set on a show quality female because I really want to get into showing and I'm not very confident my SA girl would go very far in the European ring (I could be surprised, but I'd be content with putting her high drives to good use in Schutzhund and/or SAR). I am sure that between a small handful of breeders and the suitable pups in their litters that I can find the one that's right for me. As I've heard some breeders match their puppies to their owners by temperament etc. (doesn't seem to be the case in Europe), and things work out, sometimes they don't... it's the same thing when it's your own choice.

 

[Dobs4ever]

What I'm getting at is that despite preferences of what our ideal dogs should be, there should be an element of "feeling" towards picking your pup - it's not the same as picking out a highly expensive diamond after all...they're going to be our buddies first and foremost

All bets are off and everything changes when you are looking for a "show" quality dog or bitch. For pet people it does not matter as much, but if you are going to spend money showing it is critical. It has absoulutely NOTHING to do with loving your dog after you get it. The standard is just higher in what you are looking for and what you want to do after you get it.

It is no wonder our dogs are in trouble all over the world - How could we have such a big rift between the understanding of what showing, breeding, training, is all about and pets???

 

[Ataro]

I also think it'd be pretty hard not to love your dog as a pet once you get it.

 

[Ingrid H]

It is no wonder our dogs are in trouble all over the world - How could we have such a big rift between the understanding of what showing, breeding, training, is all about and pets???

Well, maybe it's because dogs weren't considered to be pets until recently. Most dogs other than lap dogs weren't even allowed in the house. Most breeds were developed for a purpose other than being a pet.
Didn't dog shows start as competitions among neighbors to see whose dogs were better at the tasks they required? Sheep dog trials, sled dog racing, and hunting come instantly to my mind.... I don't know how conformation competitions came to be other than as an off-shoot of trials and races, but I'd bet the winners of the trials set the people's idea of what a dog for a task should look like.

Since the dogs have been let into the house and not required to work, people have been humanizing them like crazy! And it's only getting worse. There's an obsession with "cuteness" going on. Whatever looks young and preferably fluffy has become popular. It's been too long since people in the USA have had to kill their own food. It's now acceptable and even admirable to be squeamish and weak. I'd like to see a teenage girl these days kill and pluck a chicken. No wonder the Dog Whiperer has such a good buisness.

I don't know if I started wandering off topic or ranting, but I'll stop now

 

[Ataro]

Ahahahahaha, I definitely agree with you about killing your own food, Ingrid H . I haven't been hunting but I've had my fair share of farm animal butchering as a young child: my grandparents thought it was educational . It is a little OT, but that's one thing that rubs me the wrong way, especially when it comes to feminism.

 

[Ingrid H]

Ahahahahaha, I definitely agree with you about killing your own food, Ingrid H . I haven't been hunting but I've had my fair share of farm animal butchering as a young child: my grandparents thought it was educational . It is a little OT, but that's one thing that rubs me the wrong way, especially when it comes to feminism.

How do you mean about feminism? I don't understand your post.

 

[Ataro]

Like you said, it's admirable to be squeamish and weak. These days the definition of feminism is being bloody useless while looking cute.

 

[sammy]

All bets are off and everything changes when you are looking for a "show" quality dog or bitch. For pet people it does not matter as much, but if you are going to spend money showing it is critical. It has absoulutely NOTHING to do with loving your dog after you get it. The standard is just higher in what you are looking for and what you want to do after you get it.

It is no wonder our dogs are in trouble all over the world - How could we have such a big rift between the understanding of what showing, breeding, training, is all about and pets???

For example my dobie was a "pet" from a good breeder, and the breeder asked to borrow him to show him on weekends, and he ended up with some titles. No problem there for me, my dog or the breeder. Not sure why you think having a dog as a pet which also conforms to the standard constitutes a " big rift" in understanding ?

I also think it'd be pretty hard not to love your dog as a pet once you get it.

Don't they say this about arranged marriages

Joking aside, wish you the best of luck

 

[Ataro]

Don't they say this about arranged marriages

All litters come from arranged marriages

 

[sammy]

^^^^^^

Nice one

 

[Ingrid H]

Like you said, it's admirable to be squeamish and weak. These days the definition of feminism is being bloody useless while looking cute.

Oh, you mean feminine, not feminist. Now I get it!

 

[Ataro]

Oh, you mean feminine, not feminist. Now I get it!

Well, femininity too, now that you mention it. I was actually referring to this "third wave feminism" BS that's come about recently (sorry, feminist raging here).

 

[Ingrid H]

Well, femininity too, now that you mention it. I was actually referring to this "third wave feminism" BS that's come about recently (sorry, feminist raging here).

Oh no! I'm falling even more behind the times than I thought since I never heard of "third wave feminism". I feel like a fossil sometimes and I'm not even 50 yet. I'm a big feminist as well and put in 25 years as a woman working in the traditionally male-dominated world of carpentry. But to tell the truth, I never had a problem with sexism.

 

[Ataro]

"Third wave feminism" is the term they're using to justify sexual manipulation and being objectified as an acceptable goal, it only came out very recently so don't worry you're not that behind. I first heard about it a couple of years ago, I think that's when the term was being touted a lot more. I think it's just an insult to the real feminists who actually fought for something, and it gives uninformed people yet another reason to bash feminists.

Good for you that you've never experienced sexism, I wish I could say the same. And with the western world's average woman still earning $0.75 to every dollar a man earns... there's still a lot that needs to be done. I could go on a rant about Mexico and what I've discovered since living here, but I'm starting to get the feeling that I've been bashing this country too much recently .