JUDGING - PUTTING THE FAULTS AND VIRTUES INTO PERSPECTIVE

[amelie111 0]

JUDGING.

PUTTING THE FAULTS AND VIRTUES INTO PERSPECTIVE.





All Dog’s have Faults.

Or at least all judges can find fault’s with any dog, rightly or wrongly.

But how do we as judges define or calculate the under desirable points and put them into Perspective.

The majority of Breeds of Dogs have a standard of practice, in other words a Breed Standard, a code of vital requirements that is considered essential to them and to preserve a Breed for posterity.

Faults and virtues are judged on a degree of what is believed by the judge to be a crucial or serious consideration. Superficial points should not supersede essential points.

Where a breed ( as does the Stafford) has a numerically large number of quality and worthwhile specimens there should be enough breeding pairs, ( Sire and Dam), to eradicate a major fault like an irregular mouth. I have mentioned the mouth, but it could be affiliated to any under-desirable traits in the breed.



It will be imperative for judges to be strict and conscientious in their opinions if any improvements is to be made to what is considered essential to the breed. It is true to say that some judges will fail to see the fault, or maybe will not consider a mouth fault or incorrect bite as a serious discrepancy, and will place the dog highly in the show ring.

Are these judges doing the breed any favors?? (SURELY NOT).

The problem being that the odd one favor gradually becomes the norm.

In our breed mouth faults are considered serious, thankfully, because there is a tendency for judges to be strict in their reasoning about such faults in the Stafford, most breeder’s are vigilant with regard to dentition. Certainly there are very few exhibitors of the breed who would consider showing or breeding from a dog with a bad mouth.



A misplaced tooth would perhaps be considered as superficial, while an incorrect bite- an overshot or undershot- mouth would be considered a major fault. No doubt you have all seen, some excellent constructed and moving dogs rejected or put down the line to lesser quality because of a superficial fault, like a light eye. The essentials of any breed should always out-weigh the superficial. Some faults can be attributed to rearing as can diet. Lack of exercise will effect the movement, but this doesn’t mean the dog is necessarily unsound, although it could be interesting to define the word unsound as this could cover a multitude of discrepancies.

Will it affect the breed in years to come if all judges ignored faults?. The obvious answer is without doubt , YES. A conscientious judge will have a difficult task trying to make a satisfactory job of evaluating good dogs, from the faults and undesirables.



All dogs of any breed can have minor faults which are superficial just one has I have mentioned, i.e. light eye’s, but otherwise has many virtues to pass on for prosperity, which should be recognized and applauded. Positive virtues are an asset to any breed, and something the conscientious judge must consider. One must recognize quality and soundness. Hopefully the best dogs will win in the end.

Faults, and their degree of seriousness in any breed must be kept in Perspective.

The best dog in the class may also have the most noticeable fault. No dog is perfect, they all have faults, but it seems the good ones just carry them better. The whole essence of judging should be the appreciation and rewarding of virtue, yet it is invariably the case that great virtue will also be accompanied by some minor shortcoming.

The Essentials of Temperament, Type, Conformation, Balance, and Soundness Must be a Priority Consideration.



BREED FAULTS MUST BE PUT INTO PERSPECTIVE.




Dave Lee

[Invité]

Très interessant, merci Amélie.

[greg28 0]

c'est possible de mettre ca en francais ?

[hotkingstaff 0]

Vraiment très intéressant mais bon j'avai déjà eu cette discussion avec lui !! Et je partage complètement sa vision des choses !!

[amelie111 0]

on en a discuté souvent aussi , mais je pense interressant de mettre ça sur la place publique
même pour ceux qui ne parlent pas anglais .. et qui feront j'en suis sure un petit effort

[Positive-Staffords 0]

Trés interesant c'est un peu le discourts qu'ont eu Brett et James lorsque j'ai parlé avec eux ou encore Marco.

[amelie111 0]

je pense que tous les "bons" sont de toutes façons d'accord là dessus et ont la même façon de voir les choses

[Smab 0]

On peut donc dire un grand merci aux juges français ... foinch de foinch !