Page 88 - ShowSight - February 2020

Becoming
BY JACQUELYN FOGEL
PRESERVATION IBREEDERS—SAVING THEIR WISDOM
time waster, and I am just too busy doing real world stuff to invest a lot of time in the daily dra- mas that unfold on that site. But a few days ago I saw a post that I loved. It was put up by Dan Buch- wald, and it talked about collecting the thoughts and ideas of people who have been in the sport for a long time—he called
them “breed elders”. He suggested the AKC invest in making videos of interviews with people like Wendall Sammett, Joe Gregory and George Alston. These are people who have been extremely impor- tant in their breeds, and what they have to say could be helpful for people who are just getting started in a breed. I could not agree
don’t spend a lot more. I think all of us, in every breed, need to work on preserv- of time on Face- ing what the breed masters have to pass along to succeeding gen- Book anymore— erations. This is especially important right now because it appears I find it’s a huge
that the older breeders who are getting ready to retire are not being replace in equal numbers by young people who want to take up the challenge of breeding quality purebreds in sufficient numbers.
If we assume that trends will continue, within the next ten years about half of all breeders who produce more than one litter every year will retire from breeding. These heritage breeders, or breed elders, have been the keepers of the preservation movement within the AKC. These are the breeders who see value in being mentored by experts, learning through a concerted study of all dog-related literature, and breeding a recognizable line of purebred dogs. They study pedigrees, genetics and health-related issues in addition to constantly improving their base knowledge of the breed characteris- tics important in their breed. They scour the planet to find dogs and pedigrees that will mesh well with their breeding stock, and add something of importance to their bloodline. They prioritize their spending to bring in whatever they need to improve their dogs, and they make tough decisions to cut from their breeding programs all dogs that cannot contribute to improving the breed. >
“I THINK ALL OF US, IN EVERY BREED, NEED TO WORK ON PRESERVING WHAT THE BREED MASTERS HAVE TO PASS ALONG TO SUCCEEDING GENERATIONS.
THIS IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW BECAUSE IT APPEARS THAT THE OLDER BREEDERS WHO ARE GETTING
READY TO RETIRE ARE NOT BEING REPLAC”
E IN EQUAL NUMBERS BY YOUNG PEOPLE WHO WANT
TO TAKE UP THE CHALLENGE OF BREEDING QUALITY PUREBREDS IN SUFFICIENT NUMBERS.
86 • ShowSight Magazine, February 2020