yer a brave man, catspaw, to take on the dog world! That's exactly what I'm talking about. We have a good friend who just put a championship title on two sibling dogs -- neither of them even met the standard, much less the common sense goal of soundness. They are both "woolies" -- coats WAY too long. That's not a cosmetic flaw. They ice up when they are like that, and cannot handle the trail because of it. Then, as if not meeting the standard isn't enough, the male was just put down (barely 4 yrs old) riddled with cancer (his owners put multiple thousands into treating this last fall). The female of the pair had such a screwed up reproductive system within the first year of life that they nearly lost her. Their dam has diabetes (found at 5 yrs).

Here's the kicker....

The breeder (not the owner) didn't want to breed these two -- no, they DEMANDED that they be bred as per the sale contract. The male (put down at barely 4, remember) now has two generations of progeny on the ground.

The most "reputable" breeder in the breed is now selling dogs under a contract to have their stomachs "tacked" as a condition of sale. Huh?!! Because the breed has so much bloat in it........rather than try to breed it out (that would take time and care -- and demand that some of the cosmetic cuteness be put at risk -- especially in her line that is winning everywhere)........whe wants everyone to "tack" the dogs!!

If it were up to me there would be no champion awarded to dogs less than 4 years of age. It wouldn't sell but that's because the breeders are hoping to break even in an endeavor that is never going to make money. They are judging the value of a pursuit on material gain rather than the intrinsic value of dog breeding.

Delaying the age of a champion would be so slow and only the most serious breeders, with the good of the breed in mind, would pursue it (cause it would just about rule out any financial gain -- as they couldn't breed their one and two year old bitches).

Obedience and Agility (and other trial/perfomance pursuits), the dog can either do it or not -- no subjective judge giving 5 points to the handler and 5 to the dog!

rant off.