Pure Dog Talk

Jason Hoke: "Just Judge the Dogs & Be Nice to People" Second generation dog breeder Jason Hoke grew up with German Shepherd Dogs. His family acquired Great Danes in the mid ‘80s and he now owns Whippets. “I think when I judge dogs, I’m very much a purist,” Hoke said. “I think handlers revert back to being even harder and more like a breeder judge. Because we were handlers, we know the value of showmanship, but also realize flash and dash doesn’t make a good dog. Jason Hoke judging at Westminster Kennel Club “Just judge the dogs,” Hoke said. “That’s the best thing we can do.” Breeder judges and handler judges "As handlers, we have the opportunity to put our hands on so many more breeds," Hoke said. "To be a successful handler, you have to learn what a good dog is in every breed you show. But at the core, we’re still breeders. We care about the breeds. “I don’t care if it moves on the table, stands like a statue, comes back and does the pose heard round the world, if it’s not a good dog, just being a good sho

Lost dog found… Today host Laura Reeves visits with Allison Foley of Leading Edge Dog Show Academy about some of the important steps to quickly and successfully find a lost dog. The following is a partial reprint of Laura's As the Wheels Turn column originally published in September 2015 for the online magazine Best in Show Daily. Many of us have lived this nightmare. Here are tips on how you can be prepared in case of emergency. Lost Dog Story Ours is a story to which every single dog lover can relate. Either you have lost a dog or you live in perpetual fear of the day it happens to you. TiMI, the light of my life and last year’s #1 GWP, had gone to visit my friend and Spinone client in Carson City, NV in early August to get ready for the fall hunt tests. Since her husband had run TiMI for the first two legs of his JH this spring, it made perfect sense for him to go back there to finish up his title while I was busy running around the country showing dogs. Stacey took TiMI out every weekend to refresh his

Purebred Dogs Get Their Own Super Hero Movie Super Power Dogs producer Daniel Ferguson, with host Laura Reeves. Host Laura Reeves, live at the AKC National Championship brought to you by Royal Canin, visits with Daniel Ferguson, producer of the new super hero IMAX film -- Super Power Dogs. An exciting joint effort with corporate sponsors including Mars Pet Care and Wisdom Panel, Super Power Dogs is a story about the heroic achievements of dogs, Ferguson said. “This movie is like the doggie avengers,” Ferguson said. “If features five breeds with different, specific abilities.” Ferguson said he wanted sort of a “James Bond opening” to the movie. The opening scene of an avalanche shows Henry, the Border Collie, danging from a helicopter on the way to the rescue. Henry is actually the movie’s narrator, Ferguson noted. “It’s the voice of Dog.” An eclectic background in film gives Ferguson perspective and creativity for the project. Ferguson has produced, written and directed films for National Geographic Stu

Winter workouts: Keep your dog fit in January Kristin Sandstede, certified canine conditioning coach. Kristin Sandstede, certified canine conditioning coach, says winter workouts featuring mental stimulation will help keep your dogs sane during dreary weather. Sandstede offers concrete projects you can do to have dogs use their brains, when it is rainy, gray, cold or nasty, without having to brave the winter elements outdoors. Scavenger hunt for dinner Snuffle mats like this one allow owners to hide a dogs entire meal in a "game" that makes them earn their supper. Meal time offers lots of ways to multitask for brain time, Sandstede said. Meal puzzle toys make the dog work for food, she noted. The Boggle ball and buster cube are two options Sandstede recommends. These toys force the dog to push them around to get food. The toys makes a lot of noise, Sandstede said. The upside is she can hear where the dog is in the kitchen and know she is safely occupied. Sandstede said shaping behavior is a great tool, bu

Jackie and Terry Stacy on the Affenpinscher, Breeding and Mentoring Terry Stacy, master breeder and master of many roles in purebred dogs. Jackie and Terry Stacy, of Tamarin Affenpinscher fame, bring a lifetime of experience to the sport. Terry started as a teenager and finished his first Cocker Spaniel in 1955. His career spans the breadth and depth of roles available to purebred dog enthusiasts. From professional handler to superintendent; from AKC vice president, to the head of breeder services for the Mars Corporation, to well-known judge, Terry has literally done it all. Jackie Stacy winning the national specialty with Ch. Yarrow's Lucy in the Sky, the top winning bitch in breed history Today, Jackie is an all-breeds judge. Twenty years ago, she successfully showed their original Affenpinscher, acquired from Beth Sweigart, to multiple Best in Show awards and a national specialty win. Monkey Dogs Often called the monkey dogs for their inquisitive and mischievous expression, Affenpinschers hail from Ge

Suzanne Clothier Talks Relationship Building Suzanne Clothier has developed a training and assessment system built entirely around relationship building with our dogs. “Animals have been my whole life,” Clother said. “It’s a lifelong passion, that has informed a fascinating journey.” Clothier’s seminal book, Bones Would Rain from the Sky, was published in 1998. Her warm, down to earth, compassionate nature shines through as she shares her journey and what she’s learned. Relationship building “If you have a trusting relationship,” Clothier said, “it’s then about what you enjoy doing together.” Training show dogs is a skill like any other, Clothier noted. She added that not all dogs have “the Sandra Dee gene” that makes them enjoy being the center of attention. “We’re like crazy stage moms,” Clothier said, “asking our dogs to be on stage.” For dogs who train well at home but don’t give us the performance we’re expecting at a show, “It’s like singing in the shower,” she noted, “It’s not the same as auditioni

Prostate Problems, Prevention and Solutions Dr. Marty Greer gives us the low down on male dog prostate and reproductive issues. Additional discussion on emergency semen collection, dogs whose semen doesn’t extend well and more. “This is an area that is often misunderstood by the general practitioner vet,” Greer said. Symptoms Symptoms of a prostatic complication include blood in the urine or ejaculate, straining to pass stool, blood dripping from the penis, Greer added. Diagnosis Prostate cancer, benign prostatic hypertrophy, prostatitis are the most common complications. Dogs over five years old are the most commonly affected. Greer advises that neutering is not absolutely necessary for dogs with non-cancerous prostate disease. Dogs with a prostate infection are very sick, typically run a fever and clearly don’t feel well, Greer said. Prostatic cancer manifests in two different forms. Which type the dog has needs to be confirmed with a biopsy. “Both kinds of prostate cancer are quite serious,” Greer said

Elliott Weiss is Looking for the Dog that Makes the Picture Elliott Weiss, BIS judge for the 2018 AKCNC. In 1956, Elliott Weiss attended his very first dog show, Westminster Kennel Club, as part of an art class project. Weiss spent 24 years as a top professional handler from 1969 through 1993. Among his big accomplishments, he handled the Irish Setter, Ch. Meadowlark's Anticipation, to a Sporting Group win at Westminster in 1984. He started judging in 1994 and has judged all over the world. A native New Yorker, he now lives in Eagle, Idaho. His initial breed was Cocker Spaniels. Make the Picture “I want to please my eye,” Weiss said. “The first thing I’m looking for is a picture. I have a picture in my mind of every breed I judge.” Weiss also noted that too many people bait the dog in such a way that their hands are in the way of the judge seeing the dog’s expression. Amateur vs Professional The Owner Handler-Professional Handler battle is nothing new, Weiss observed, it has been a big thing forever. “If y

Commonalities and Differences in Sighthounds LIVE seminar hosted by the Saluki Club of Greater San Francisco Live from the Harvest Moon Cluster, your host Laura Reeves talks sighthounds. The seminar was sponsored by the Saluki Club of Greater San Francisco. Watch and listen to the entire seminar here. Temperament and showmanship are part of breed type. Our job as handlers is to showcase our breed’s character and personality accurately, not make our Wolfhound show like a Doberman. For breeds with less “flash” that might be overlooked in group competition, it is incumbent on us as handlers to provide an engaging, effortless back drop. Pretty Hands Our hands tell a story in the show ring. How and where we place our hands on the dog is part of the presentation. Sighthounds specifically call for soft, quiet, elegant hands. Holding the collar, placing the feet, should be done gracefully. Quietly drawing the judge’s eye to our dog’s finest features while using our hands as a “frame,” we actually can “talk with our

Christmas Dinner and How that Applies to Dog Shows Now that most of us are home for a couple blessed weekends, we can all, even the most diehard of competitors, relax, restore, rest and recharge. The Christmas and New Year’s holidays give us a chance to take stock of the year past and plan for the one upcoming. Christmas and Thanksgiving are my very favorite holidays of the year. To me it is all about the food and the family and friends who become family. Which, of course, includes our dogs, usually a plethora of them underfoot while cooking and eating. We exchange a few small gifts at Christmas, but mostly we hang out and eat good food. JUST like dog shows, the profusion of cable cooking shows, and dog shows, have turned chefs and dog handlers into celebrities, but the reality is, ANYONE can do this!!! Just to give you encouragement in this area, I'll give you a brief tour of my own "cooking history." I have many friends and family who are trained professional chefs. I, on the other hand, learned at the sc

Meet the Researcher Who Discovered the MDR1 Gene Herding dog owners everywhere should know their dogs may be sensitive to ivermectin, the powerful antiparasitic drug common in most worming medication. Now you can hear directly from the researcher who discovered the MDR1 gene mutation that causes this reaction. Dr. Katrina Mealey, Ph.D, DVM, WSU Researcher, who discovered the MDR1 gene mutation. Washington State University’s Dr. Katrina Mealey, Ph.D., DVM discovered the gene literally by serendipity. While studying for her advanced degree, she encountered a journal article from the Netherlands. The article discussed treatment of a routine case of mites in laboratory mice, some of which had been engineered to remove the MDR1 gene. All of the mice who were missing the gene died from the treatment. This caused Mealey to begin research to locate the gene in dogs. From the WSU Foundation: “Mealey had barely graduated from high school when the antiparastic drug ivermectin came on the market, which quickly became

Saturday Symposium: Words of Wisdom from Judges Panel Judges Stacey Davis, Fred Bassett, Darryl Vice and Doug McFarlane joined our panel at the Southern Oregon Kennel Club shows for a PureDogTalk Saturday Symposium discussion on mentoring the future. Each of the judges shared their history in purebred dogs. From Davis who was born into the world of purebred dogs, to McFarlane who began his passion later in life, each laid out their own paths to help exhibitors understand they “weren’t hatched from an egg.” Amongst the topics of discussion on the evening were match shows, 4-6 months puppy competition, junior showmanship and encouraging junior membership in kennel clubs. Other important ideas included: Community outreach to public school students, encouraging exhibitors to consider performance and companion events dog shows that offer a fun atmosphere and variety of participation options Join us for this great, moderated discussion, audience questions and encouragement for the future of the sport.

Hemangiosarcoma Strikes Quickly and With No Warning Canine Health Foundation (CHF) CEO Dr. Diane Brown talks with me about the most current research into hemangiosarcoma. CHF is funding a major initiative dedicated to moving the needle on this deadly disease. Hemangiosarcoma is an aggressive, silent killer, Brown said. This particular cancer is specific to dogs and originates in blood vessels. Primary sites in which hemangio will present are the spleen and heart, Brown noted, owing to the abundance of blood vessels in those organs. "These cancers grow quickly and quietly," Brown said. "Once people know the dog has hemangio, generally the tumor has ruptured and the dogs bleed internally." No definitive genetic connection Removing the cancer doesn’t cure the disease, Brown said. She added that all of the treatments tried over time have not improved overall survival time. Hemangio is a cancer seen often in large breed dogs, but Brown noted veterinarians are seeing it more and more frequently in all sizes and m

Import/export tips and tools for success Marlene Weiss is a “pet escort” who flies with dogs internationally, for a fee, to ensure the dogs' safe transport. This is a listener requested topic on the question of import/export recommendations. Weiss said one of the most important points is to start the import/export process as early as possible. In most cases, the earliest you can transport a dog is four months of age, at which point they need an international (ISO) microchip and a rabies vaccination. “International travel is pricey,” Weiss said. There is no easy way around that. Dogs coming from Europe must have a European “pet passport” which is the equivalent of a shot record. Dogs traveling internationally can go in the cargo hold or in a carrier on the plane, size dependent, just like flying domestically. It will cost twice as much to have Weiss or another “escort” travel with the dog. But the price ensures a designated individual is keeping track of the dog, managing any flight changes, travel delays,

K9 Flu Is Serious Risk Because Dogs Have No Natural Immunity Dr. Marty Greer takes us through the outbreaks of Canine Influenza (K9 Flu) in the United States. She also offers recommended vaccination protocols for adults and puppies. Outbreaks of two different strains of Canine Influenza have left U.S. dog owners struggling with if and when to vaccinate against this virus. Greer advocates strongly for "yes" and "annually." K9 Flu causes pneumonia "No dogs have natural immunity to the disease," Greer said. "Unless vaccinated, dogs are at serious risk. I have my personal dogs on a three-year protocol, but even Dr. Ronald Schultz is advocating that owners vaccinate for influenza in ALL dogs." Greer notes that the 2015 virus outbreak came with Korean meat dog "rescue" imports and spread rapidly. Dogs traveling for competition at the highest risk of contact. Influenza in the dog causes pneumonia, Greer said. The symptoms look like kennel cough to start, but progress rapidly to pneumonia, including a hemorrhagic

Southern Handlers Charity League: It's All in the Family Jill Bell, right, and AKC rep Sue Vroom during the "Butcher the Beard" campaign for SHCL. Jill Bell, former professional handler, now working as a superintendent with Onofrio, joins me to talk about the good work of the Southern Handlers Charity League. Created in 2001 by a group of handlers in response to a death in the dog show family, Southern Handlers Charity League (SHCL) raised money to help with funeral costs. In the intervening 17 years, the non-profit has helped all kinds of people in the purebred dog community, Bell said. Potlucks and raffles Owner handlers, photographers, judges, anyone in the sport, Bell said, have been assisted by the organization. The group raises funds through potlucks, raffles, and creative events like the “Butcher the Beard” contest in which Onofrio’s own Tim James agreed to shave his renowned beard for charity. “If there is a need, we help out,” Bell said. They have donated to hurricane victims from Katrina through H

Human-animal bond will save your life Steve Feldman, Executive Director of HABRI, with his dog. The human-animal bond developed over the course of 30,000 years in which people and dogs co-evolved, according to Steve Feldman, executive director of HABRI. The Pet Effect Campaign, led by HABRI-founder Zoetis, is a multi-pronged campaign aimed to introduce pet owners to the health benefits of the human-animal bond, and to understand how important their veterinarians are for happy, healthy pets. HABRI has assembled scientific evidence that demonstrates how pets improve heart health; alleviate depression; increase well-being; support child health and development; and contribute to healthy aging. In addition, companion animals can assist in the treatment of a broad range of conditions from post-traumatic stress to Alzheimer’s disease to autism spectrum disorder. From therapy dogs for autistic children to service dogs for PTSD veterans, research is proving that dogs lower people’s bad neurochemicals and increase

Public Education school programs reach out to the future Ashley Jacot, recently promoted to Director of Education at the American Kennel Club, joins me to talk about the exciting school programs that AKC has developed in the last year. Jacot, a former school teacher, was hired in 2017 to lead the development of new programs for schools as an outreach to the public. She and her team have developed 10 new programs in 18 months. “We are providing kids with a way to think about dogs,” Jacot said. “We’re giving them an alternative narrative to the “adopt don’t shop” mentality. They are learning the truth about purebred dogs and what we do. We provide facts and give them an amazing experience. They walk away and they have a different feeling about purebred dogs and AKC than they did when they got there.” The Public Education department is continually producing lesson plans for K-12 that are aligned to national curriculum standards. Jacot said that today’s testing requirements mean they have to provide what tea

Sealyham Terrier owner-handler at the 2018 Westminster Kennel Club Olga Forlicz and Leslie Jaseph, Sealyham Terriers breeders, share stories about the international friendships and journeys of a successful breeder owner-handler. Details matter Jaseph shares her experience showing in the hyper competitive East Coast terrier groups, many of which are dominated by top professional handlers. "You have to go in the ring with your dog trained and prepared like any other person in the ring," Jaseph said. "You have to understand preparation and trimming. You can’t make an excuse. You and your dog have to be prepared." No excuses Jaseph's highly successful bitch was entered at Westminster Kennel Club, but she didn't bring her because she wasn't quite back to top condition from her litter of puppies. "You have to have high standards," Jaseph said. "Never bring your dog out unless you feel it can win." US versus Europe Forlicz, who lives in Poland and is the breeder of Jaseph's competitive bitch, compared European and

DNA testing can provide useful information for all breeders Angela Hughes DVM PhD, Veterinary Genetics Research Manager, Wisdom Health Testing our dogs’ DNA provides details on everything from ancestry in mixed breeds to disease mutations and genetic diversity in purebred dogs. Dr. Angela Hughes, Veterinary Genetics Research Manager at Wisdom Health, talks about the different types of DNA genetic testing. “A breed is a specific combination of alleles,” Hughes said. “And 99 percent of the DNA in a Great Dane is the same as a Chihuahua. It’s that one percent that is so important.” DNA Panel tests, Hughes said, test for genetic mutations. The Wisdom Health Optimal Selection panel tests for 180 different specific diseases that are broken out by which are identified and correlated within each breed. Focus on genetic diversity. “Studies show that losing genetic diversity causes loss of reproductive health, increased disease incidence, even decreased hunting ability,” Hughes said. Purebred dog breeders are succe