Page 25 - ShowSight Presents - The Beligian Tervuran
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complete absence of black is a serious fault.” “White is permitted on the chest/ sternum only, not to extend more than 3 inches above the prosternum and not to reach either point of shoulder.” Long chest hairs may give the illusion of too much white. If you have a question, look closely at the skin at the base of the haircoat. And always remember that white is permitted on the tips of the toes and is typical as “frost” on the muzzle and chin.
Truly fundamental color issues are called out as Disqualifications for the breed—“solid black, solid liver or any area of white EXCEPT as specified on the chest, tips of the toes, chin and muzzle.
TEMPERAMENT
Our standard is clear that we expect our dogs to “be approachable, standing his ground and showing confidence to meet overtures without himself making them” and goes on to say that “In his relationship with humans he is observant and vigilant with strangers, but not apprehensive. He does not show fear or shyness.”
Herding breeds by their very nature are reactive. They take in the big picture of a flock and its movement and “react” appropriately. As an all-purpose farm dog, they were expected to “react” appropriately to strangers appearing on the property... deciding who should be greeted or who should be deterred. It’s a tightrope walk for a young, “vigilant with strangers” Belgian. So what should you expect in the ring?
First remember this is an owner handled breed. Tervuren are never presented stacked nose to tail like many sporting breeds. Do not expect your Terv entry to stand like statues. These are bright, active, busy dogs who free stack and bait.
Your approach is really important. Be confident. Expect good behavior. Speak to the handler upon approach, put your hand under the dog’s chin and pet them gently on the head as you greet the dog. Then, just get on with your examination. Personally in youngsters I like to examine the dog first, always keeping my hands in contact with the dog’s body or neck. Then I come back to examine the bite as that is the most invasive part of the exam. If you feel you cannot safely examine the dog, please
do not push. Excuse the dog and explain to the handler why. Judging is not a test of courage or macho. Please, do not reward dogs who will not stand for examination without being propped up or held in a death grip by their owner. Do allow pup- pies some reassurance and a bit of stabiliz- ing by their owner handlers. We want our Tervuren Champions deserving in every aspect—Type, Temperament and Move- ment. There are many, many, many Tervu- ren with excellent characters to select from.
MOVEMENT
So, you have selected the best dogs by evaluating type and temperament, next you must find the very best in movement. Since most judges come into the ring already eval- uating movement fairly well, I am address- ing it last. This is NOT a message that movement is unimportant. Au Contraire! Our Tervs are singletrackers with an easy effortless, groundcovering gait. They should be moved on a loose lead and never raced around the ring! A Belgian must be balanced in its movement... “lively and graceful, cov- ering maximum ground with minimum effort.” You know all those faults of crab- bing, padding, hackneying, weaving, etc? Well, they are just as faulty in our Tervs, and ”are to be penalized according to the degree with which they interfere with the ability of the dog to work.”
When making your decisions as to whether a fault is minor, serious or major, our standard asks you to use the follow- ing guide:
1. The extent to which it deviates from the standard.
2. The extent to which such deviation would actually affect the working abil- ity of the dog.
The Judge’s Education Committee of the American Belgian Tervuren Club is ready to assist you in your learning. Contact information and excellent study materials are available at www.abtc.org.
BIO
Sharon Ann Redmer
has owned Tervuren
since 1972 and has bred
them for over 30 years.
More than 150 “Star-
Bright Tervuren” have
earned AKC Champion-
ships with many MACHs, OTChs, HTs and CTs, High in Trials, Group place- ments and National Specialty wins.
Sharon is an AKC judge of the Herding Group, Best in Show, Obedience & Rally, Juniors, Doberman Pinschers & Poodles. She has judged specialties on 4 continents and has judged 8 National Specialties for the Belgians (Tervuren, Groenendael and Malinois) in the US and Canada. She has officiated at 3 AKC National Obedience Invitationals.
Sharon serves as chairperson of the American Belgian Tervuren Club’s Judges Education Committee and is a former AKC Delegate and President for the parent club. She was honored to be awarded the AKC Lifetime Achievement Award for Compan- ion Events for 2013. She is an Honorary Lifetime Member of the Ann Arbor Ken- nel Club and the Ann Arbor Dog Training Club, and is an AKC Breeder of Merit. She and her husband Ed share their home with 5 Tervuren and one boss kitty.
