What do they say when you are not in the room?

Dog breeding is both and art and a science, it takes vision and creativity
to see what two dogs will bring to the breed. It takes diligence and science to
turn that art into a living breath creature. Once, the wonderful creatures are
created it takes, time, money and a whole lot of lack of sleep to raise a well-rounded
socialized puppy who is ready to be placed with a new family. When a breeder
sells a puppy (yes, I said sell because we don’t give our hard work away for
free), the breeder is basically making a promise. I promise that I did
everything in my power that this little 8, 10, 12-week bundle of joy has every
chance of living 14+ years as your healthy, happy, beloved companion. Whatever
expectations the breeder set have a very good chance of being met.

What type of breeder do you want to be? What do you want to hear people are saying about you when you are not in the room? Me, personally, I want my puppy buyers and those I help to say, WOW,
Jinnie is always great, she raises great puppies or she did everything she could to help me find the right puppy. That could include contacting other breeders on their behalf or finding clubs or events that could be of help if they want to try a sport or even just going over the rules or equipment they might need.

Sadly, not everyone seems to care what people say when they are not in the
room. In dog sports reputation matters, it matters what people say about you.
Today with the instant access via social media whatever you say is in an
instant in everyone’s ears. Reputation in today’s world is often based on
hearsay, rumor, gossip and innuendo instead of facts. A single comment or
opinion posted on the socials can be instantly taken out of context and forwarded
to others will ill intent. And why does this happen? Because those who do not
have a reputation often try to build one on the shoulders of those who have
them.

Breeders and exhibitors who have great reputations built them by working
hard using both art and science, creativity and vision unlike those who like to
cause mayhem. Those that like to cause mayhem really want people to think they
have a great reputation so they try to steal them from others, they are lazy and
greedy. They are jealous, they carry big chips on their shoulders and they try
to level the playing field by trying to make the reputable look bad so they can
look better. Guess what? it doesn’t work that way, cream rises to the top.

So, all you dog people whose egos are such that everything you breed is show
quality, stop selling so called show dogs to new people who can’t win and will
get discouraged and talk about the experience. All of you “breeders”
who have a dog who can’t win in the show ring, take a look at the why and maybe
don’t breed that dog just because it is what you have, work harder and get a
better dog to bring the breed forward.  Admit that you are just doing it for the
money. And for God sakes, those of you what are producing genetic defects, stop
trying to pass them off as a one-off! If your girl produces a cleft palate* in
one litter and a cryptorchid* in a 2nd, pull her from your breeding program and
stop selling those puppies from those litters as potential breed (show) quality
dogs.  The same goes with any genetic issue.These kinds of things might bring you some cash but they will never enhance your reputation and dog people never really forget. 

New people, we need them, we need them to buy our dogs as pets, as potential
show and/or event dogs. It is our job to help them. Please be a mentor if you
sell a puppy to someone, answer questions or if it is about a sport, you are
not familiar with help hook them up with a mentor in that sport. Don’t sell
them a puppy and disappear, especially if they want to play dog games. Don’t be that breeder that has the reputation of never helping or answering questions.

If you offer to mentor a new person, even if it isn’t from your breeding or
even from your breed, do not expect them to be your bucket b*tch or your minion,
they are your peer and there to learn, it is about helping them succeed, not
about your success. Be the person they talk about in a good way when you are
not around.

New People! You are new, you do not know everything even if
you have learned a lot. Listen to those with experience. You do not have to
agree with everything they say but listen to what they have to say and apply it
to your situation as needed. Appreciate that they probably have done or seen
what you are about to experience and want to help. Don’t be that new person
that experienced people talk about as a know-it-all newbie. (And go read the
rules of the sport you want to play) And if you are a new breeder please ask
for help. Breeding quality is hard and your reputation depends on doing it
right. The first person you should always go to is the breeder of your dog and hopefully they are the right type of breeder who will know their line and know how to help you.

I am obviously writing this post because there are people out there who need
to read it. They are doing all the things mentioned and more. There are some
people who are now weaponizing the new Social Media AKC sportsmanship rule to
cause trouble for people who disagree with them. There are breeders who insist
that every dog they whelp is a potential breed champion and selling them to
uneducated new people with ridiculous contracts and expectation. There are new
people who don’t want to wait for a well-bred puppy so they buy what is
available or import something from somewhere and then try to win in the show
ring and when they don’t, they say it is all political. Then they breed litters
to start their “line” with their ego being more important than moving
the breed forward.

Reputation matters and where you start is just as important as where you end
up. I hope if you were to hear what people were saying about you when you were not in the
room would make you proud, if it doesn’t then you have work to do.

*Cryptorchidism is the medical
term that refers to the failure of one or both testicles (testes)
to descend into the scrotum. The testes develop near the kidneys
within the abdomen and normally descend into the scrotum by two months of age.
In certain dogs, it may occur later, but rarely after six months of age.

*Cleft palate of the lip or hard palate are easy to see, but soft palate
defects can sometimes require sedation or general anesthesia to visualize.
Affected puppies will often have difficulty suckling and swallowing. This is
often seen as coughing, gagging, and milk bubbling from the pup’s nose. In less
severe defects, more subtle signs such as sneezing, snorting, failure to grow,
or sudden onset of breathing difficulty (due to aspiration of milk or food) can
occur.