As I started to walk through the huge, nearly empty arena, I was amazed at the poor turnout! Former shows I attended were packed with hundreds of entries.  Just look at the dogs that were being shown in my last report. This year ARBA only had five Shilohs, and one of those was an ISSR puppy! Maybe they feared my camera? Or maybe they are starting to realize that their dogs are not very good representatives of the breed?

If you compare the top "shilohs" shown above to the King Shepherds--it's no contest! Obviously the King Shepherd group has been adding more GSD blood to their lines and it shows! The young pups I saw this year look very promising!

I spent a lot of time watching the Kings, because I just couldn't stomach the thought of looking at the imposters that were representing my name!! Actually, when I first walked in I saw a young dog that looked almost identical to my Asslyn Von Klammle daughter, Lady Bear!  Someone asked me why I was dressed all in black and I had no problem providing a quick reply, "Because I'm in mourning!"

Then I went out for a smoke and was introduced to a lady (from the dark side) who asked me a few genetic questions because she ran into some problems in her breeding program.  As I was answering her questions, Harley's owner signaled her to walk away so that she could approach me.  Before she reached me I was already talking to other members of my group but she asked me to walk away so she could talk to me about something in private. Ok, we walked up the hill, where she immediately proceded to get extremely "snotty" about the remarks I have posted regarding her dog.  She was also upset over the fact that I tried to get his picture (as the ultimate representative of my breed) removed off the Wiki. So, I tried to point out to her that it's not "personal" -- just FACT--her dog is not a "perfect" representative of MY Breed, Period! In fact, if he was to be expertly evaluated by an honest judge, he would not even qualify as breeding stock! In Europe a good GSD has to pass his Koer rating.  Unfortunately, in America they don't use that system!

This enraged her and she started pointing her finger at me, yelling that she did not care what I think, if he wasn't perfect, he wouldn't be the top dog in ARBA!

So I pointed my finger back in her face and informed her that any fool can buy a title, big deal! It doesn't prove that her dog is a "champion" just that she was dumb enough to spend thousands of dollars for a piece of paper!

I still feel very strongly that dog show venues that encourage "professional" handlers provide an unfair advantage to poor quality dogs and debase the real purpose of exhibiting rare breeds.

That's when she told me that I had no right to "bad mouth" her dog and I replied that what I have said about him was true and now I will just have to do a full report, a lot sooner than I had expected to!

That's when she ran off towards the ARBA office, screaming that she was going to have me thrown out!

What a joke! We paid to get in, and we had as much right to be there as anyone else, whether she liked it or not! Why are these slivers so scared of me?

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the dogs they are showing should be disqualified--if anything! Most of them are under-sized and have horrible faults! Or doesn't anyone even bother to look at the Breed Standard? For judges that may choose to invent their own interpretations, we have provided pictures!

Let's take a moment to inspect the best, top winner they have!

#1.  I don't think that Harley is even tall enough to meet the standard!  Everyone seems to be terrified of asking the judges to put a wicket on him! I would like to see a REAL GSD judge (German preferred) take an honest measurement of this dog! I highly doubt that he is 28 inches tall! I have stood next to Daniel.  He is not a very tall man. I would guess 5'4" to 5'6" at best.  Karen is 5'3" so let's compare these three dogs standing next to a person.

Harley at Cherry Blossom standing next to Daniel.	A young Taz son at Brookville (1999) standing next to Daniel.	Charley--a real 30 inch Shiloh standing next to Karen.

#2.  Let's look at some of his other faults as compared to the Illustrated Breed Standard.

Please take a few minutes to view the drawings in our Illustrated Breed Standard.  Now take a moment to compare him to the German Shepherd Breed Standard. He fails that one too! I have seen long haired GSD's that are more appealing to look at, and I have known many Shilohs that have proven themselves as outstanding producers--so why is this dog rated as the #1 ARBA champion?

It's all about the money!

In other words, it all depends on how much the owner is willing to spend in order to buy awards!

Anyone looking for an ego trip can go to their local shelter, rescue a GSD mix and hire a great handler, then go to all of the ARBA shows for a year and you can beat his record!  Great, eh?

Well, how does that improve the breed? Is there any sense in such foolishness? Who benefits from such games? Certainly not the breed!

Now let's compare two ISSR Shiloh Shepherds.

If you look at these dogs you can clearly see their beauty! Charley finished his championship easily by attending a few local shows! No big name handlers--show circuits, ego trips, etc
Sunny has never been shown; but I am sure that if she enters a few local shows (even handled by her 8 year old playmate) I will guess that she could easily attain her title within 5-10 shows  (with one leg tied behind her back) depending on the number of entries!
Local fun matches only charge about $10 per entry. Bigger shows run about $20.  Even if an owner has to travel hundreds of miles and stay in motels along the way, most will never need to spend over $1000 to get their dog titled.

It is my understanding that it took Harley's owner at least 50 times as much to BUY his! ROTHFLMAO!

I think it's despicable; show organizations should be encouraged to educate the judges and stop promoting "professional" handlers! I would much rather see a young child showing a big gentle Shiloh than a professional handler! Speaking of "gentle" why is this dog always hidden away from the others? Because he is dog aggressive? That's what his owner keeps telling folks.  Instead of walking him among the crowds so people and children can pet him, this dog is tucked away in his secure "Harley" crate! Maybe it should also include a "beware of dog" sign on it? No thanks! I would much rather see dogs like Meg in the ring! Not only can she trot with her tail held in the proper position, but she can be fully trusted with anyone!

This is what a good show should look like.

| 1996 | 1997 | 1998  |  1999 |  2000 |  2001 |  2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 Homecoming Info Center |