History of the Club Split: 

Tina's June '97 Letter to the Membership

Dear Members:

 This past year our club has had to deal with a variety of problems. The most devastating of these consisted of misunderstanding, innuendos, false rumors, etc. I would like to try clearing up some of the misconceptions many of you have been dealing with. Please take the time to read this letter carefully.

 1.       A little background history

 Exclusively since 1962  That line was published in all my ads! I started training dogs for competition several years before I actually set out to “breed the perfect Shepherd.” It’s been a very long road! They say, Experience is the best teacher! I have learned so much during those decades, from so many people that also shared their decades of experience with me! I fully intend to share those memories with anyone that wants to read them via www.shilohshepherds.org! No, the pages are not full yet, but will they will continue to grow, until I feel I have “said it all!”

 2.       Sharing my Vision

 After all of the years of heartbreaks, disappointments, and achievements, I had finally figured out the right “formula!” In 1974 I changed my kennel name to Shiloh Shepherds, because now I had a new (and very powerful) partner! I had vowed at that time to give Him all of the glory, if he would only help me develop the dog of my dreams! Huge size... superior intelligence…beautiful conformation…all this, but most of all….sound hip! For the next 17 years I raised hundreds of litters! I had up to 136 dogs in kennel, 5 full time employees, etc. This was still not enough. I started many “satellite” kennels that were breeding under my full supervision, so that more data on the LMX program could be collected. Unfortunately due to the AKC system, it was difficult to control the future of my progeny. As the popularity of the “Shiloh Shepherds” grew, many breeders insisted on crossing them with their incompatible (GSD) stock. This trend if allowed to continue would assuredly produce such a large number of inferior specimens, as to shed a “bad light” on the real Shilohs!

 3.       Enter the Rare Breed World!

 Despite much opposition from my Satellites, I dropped all AKC papers & started the ISSR format! Many of those that had been breeding “Super Sized” GSD’s, were afraid to venture into this “new territory.” Yet I felt that my “breed” could not retain the qualities I was striving for, if it was constantly “polluted” with unknown genes! I knew that my genepool was wide enough, and strong enough, to expand into my ideal “dream dogs” within this decade! All I needed was a few dozen people that understood my vision and would be willing to help me attain it!

a)       In June of 91, I incorporated the Shiloh Shepherd Dog Club of America, Inc. We had 18 members that wanted to show & breed!

b)       Our “club” continued to grow, and I spent all of my time traveling to every dog show I could get to! I wanted to be there to help all of the newcomers!! Some of the stories I wrote during those years will be published on my homepage, so I will not bore you with them now! During those years I spent thousands of dollars on “the club” without any consideration for my own needs. My desire was to get people involved with breeding these magnificent dogs, so that there would be enough “Shiloh’s” out there for anyone that wanted to own one! There was no way for me to keep up with the demand for puppies all by myself!

c)       By the time 4/92 arrived, “the club” had already faced its first “disaster.” With bills unpaid, and funds missing our “secretary” quit! Mr. Iles offered to help out with “the club.” So I turned all of the “paperwork” over to him, he collected all the renewals, works package funds, etc.  I paid for all the printing, ads, etc.! When I drove to Kentucky, in June of 93, for an accounting, I realized that this situation would not work.  Immediately Mr. Iles set out to “take-over” the club. Some of you may remember the “fight” that went on over the next 7 months. I wasted a lot of money on legal fees, phone bills, printing, etc…etc…but the final outcome was that nearly ALL of the 119 members, at that time, voted to change the constitution and regroup! Wendy was appointed Secretary, new officers were confirmed, and we marched forward in a strong united effort!

d)      In ’94 we were growing by leaps and bounds! During that Homecoming, another take-over attempt was tried by my Vice-President! This time it was shut down immediately, and the group continued to grow! I have a 2 page info sheet listing more details regarding club “history” that will be mailed to your regional directors, in case you have any other questions.

e)       1995 was our best year ever! Demand for the Shilohs continued to increase, as more people were getting introduced to the breed! Even though the prices for show puppies had risen dramatically! People that had a chance to meet them, were totally impressed, and wanted pups! Breeders were “gearing-up” for mass production! It all “looked” good, except…for the fact, that many of these “new breeders” really didn’t know much about their breed, yet planned to sell their pups for thousands of dollars! I felt that a strong educational program was needed, as well as a united co-op advertising program needed to be developed, so that individual breeders would not attempt to “cut-throat” each other on  prices, etc.!

Enter the VIB program! If the breeders were willing to unite their advertising efforts, by paying a small 5% commission on each pup sold,  it would enable the club to better promote the breed! By this time I had run out of funds, and felt that I needed to focus on my bills too! I had been sacrificially supporting the club for 5 years! Landers and Walczak CPA have documented that the club has had a total (from 91-96) income of $52,584.16 ($36,244.99 of this “paid by Tina”) plus total expenses of $60,264.82. I f you want a copy of the complete statements, please send a SASE.

f)        I felt that since these “new breeders” were getting such good prices for their pups, the tiny “token” referral commission would be no problem! After all it would be used to promote the breed, so that they would get even more sales! The alternative would be for each of them to run their own ads, costing them a lot more money, and could end up creating problems between breeders! Without a united effort, there wouldn’t be enough “buyers” for all the pups this group was producing! I had been passing all of my “old” customers to them, but my sources just couldn’t keep up with such a massive increase of litters! Regretfully, by that time I HAD also run out of funds, to keep it all going! The credit cards had been max’d out, the loans had been exhausted, I had even mortgaged my property! I had no more to give! I was headed toward bankruptcy because of the efforts I put forth….for the breeders!  It was time for the club to receive some effort from “the breeders.”  Unfortunately a small group of “breeders” refused to join the VIB program, because they didn’t want to do homework or contribute to the “promo” campaigns! They just wanted to sell pups, collect big checks, and the heck with responsibility! This caused some of the VIB’s to start complaining, “why should we have to play by the rules,” if they don’t! While the non-VIB’s complained that it wasn’t “fair” that they weren’t getting my referrals! Whine whine whine!!

g)       I had been hoping that the “Newly Elected Board of Directors” would join forces and start dong something! Instead…things went from bad to worst! DM started the “Back-problem” hysteria, our AOL BB was loaded with trash (invented by the “four fools”) people were starting to panic, and “puppy buyers were “waiting”! Since so many “new breeders” were having pups, or planning to breed…panic ensued! This was great news for DM, who proceeded to bombard all members with her own, as well as some very interesting “anonymous” mail-outs!

h)      1997 was on the horizon, and things were progressively getting more “out of control.” It seemed like everybody was complaining about something! In the spring of ’96 I had appointed Gary Allison as Vice President, hoping that he would be able to deal with the complaints and discord that was festering among some members! Instead, DM got her hands on the entire membership list and immediately started her disgusting mail-outs! Again I would be forced to waste more time & money answering these accusations! My phone would start ringing at 7 AM, and would not stop until well past Midnight! I was starting to feel like a broken record, answering the same questions over and over again! For the past 8 months, only the VIB’s had been flooded with this nonsense, now “they” (the “paper tigers”) were involving the rest of our members too!

4.       Purpose of a dog club

       The SSDCA Inc. was formed to PROMOTE and PROTECT (take some time to read your constitution!) the Shiloh Shepherd “breed.” It was also formed to give recognition to their REAL “creator.” It was to consist of breeders that wanted to Show-off their progeny, via the shows. As well as “members” that were interested in owning a Shiloh, but wanted to learn more about them first. The Newsletter was a way for both groups to share their experiences, knowledge, etc. It would function as a format to bring this group of people together, especially at the shows. The club would be responsible for educating new Shiloh breeders; as well as future owners, etc. Basically, “the club” is nothing more than a “people” organization, just like any other “club” (a group of people organized for a common purpose) .  In a well-run club, this group of people work together toward properly representing their chosen breed to John Q. Public. What they do right...or wrong…will be reflected by future public opinions!! Any “discord” among the members will inevitably be reflected upon the popularity of the breed! The biggest problem that most dog clubs have is based on “differing opinions” among their leaders….therefore clubs end up with “splits”! Also known as “splinter groups.” This is a very common occurrence and has practically destroyed many breeds! If you really care about your dogs, then you should talk to some leaders of other clubs. They will tell you that the old saying, “United they stand…Divided they fall"…is very true in the case of breed clubs! This is why I am so adamant about keeping this club operating as “one”! As long as there is any breath left in me, I will not advocate a “split” of any kind! If I have to…I will find a way (whatever it takes!) to stop anyone from attempting to start “a splinter” club! I will always be deeply grateful to Gary A. for “fronting” over $23,000 to take the “Shelly” case to court…and win! Now she has to call her “breed” King Shepherds…because she cannot call them Shiloh Shepherds! Yes!

 5.       Reflections on failure of My Vision

       I had envisioned teaching dozens of “breeders” to multiply my ideals! Selfishly I knew that I would be unable to produce 70 or 80 litters of Shilohs each year…but if only 35 breeders produced 2 litters each, just think of how many happy Shiloh Shepherd owners we would have all over the world! Through the VIB program, I was willing to teach them everything I had ever learned, so they could avoid some of the horrible pit-falls normally associated with dog breeding! There is no other breed of dog that has maintained such detailed records on their genepool! With other breeds you have to rely on information from many different breeders (as they remember things), often times this information is “sketchy” at best, and false at worst! Most of the time it is impossible to get full details on even 3 generations, much less 7..9…11…etc! I encouraged this new generation of breeders to charge the high prices, so they could use those funds to attend shows, etc   After all…the HARD work of developing the genepool had been done! I had spent 3 decades of my life documenting this information, taken from hundreds of litters! The “dues” had been paid! For many years, while operating and developing my (Shiloh Shepherds) I had spent close to $100,000 each year! My total dedication in time and money had been astronomical, yet I was looking forward to sharing all the things I had learned with all of the new breeders! Now it was time, for them to “reap” the rewards!

 6.       My world turned upside down:

      Instead of being grateful for the opportunity to jump on my wagon, some of these new “breeders” felt that they didn’t want to be “under my wing.” Sure, they wanted the “wagon” but not the driver! They felt that by “turning” the members against me, they would be able to obtain their goals! Henceforth the mailings were started! First only to the VIBs, then to all members! I was spending days on the AOL BB answering their foolish rumors! When the “back” letter was mailed, just before Christmas, I was angry! I knew I had to reply immediately with the true facts so my phone would stop ringing! By this time I was worn out, and disgusted with the attacks! Yes, I did write “rumor has it”! My mortal sin!  **But, look again** First of all, I knew how DM got the membership list…there was no doubt in my mind, although I could not 100% prove it! There were only 4 lists (including the new members that were added in September!) I knew 100% for sure that the other 3 DALSs didn’t give their list to DM! So how did she get it? The person I listed was her close friend, angry with me for not liking her video tape, and the only other DAL that had a copy of that list! Now that you have had 5 months to read the “posts” she put on AOL, etc. maybe now you can understand why I was so sure then and am positive now! Yet, I was attacked unmercifully by some of the members! The only other remark I heard about was “Tina’s Glory to God letter.” Did people just “miss” the fact that it was Christmas Eve? I quoted Luke 2:14 at the top of my letter! Horrors! How could I be so foolish to think God had anything to do with these dogs! They must have forgotten that even the name “Shiloh” comes from the Bible! They could care less! The members now started screaming that I was politically incorrect!!

      I looked at the membership list, 268 members, and I didn’t recognize 1/4^th of the names! All new people, signed up by their breeders, or some looking for more info on the breed. These peopled didn’t know me and didn’t even understand who I was! They wanted me to conform to their image! No thanks! I have been “me” all of my life, and don’t plan to change now! I had been writing Newsletters from “Shiloh Shepherds” to my customers for over 2 decades! They were my friends, I was “keeping in touch” with them through the “Newsletters.” We shared stories, letters, health updates, etc. etc.  they understood when I got “upset” and got on my “soap-box” about an issue that could effect my dogs, etc. They knew what an emotional person I was, and how deeply I was dedicated to my dogs…therefore they could “over-look” my statements when they were “politically incorrect”! Slowly, I was beginning to realize that this new generation of “members” was very different!

 7.       The Registry will NEVER fail

      This year I have fully realized that I can no longer waste my time and money on “club” foolishness! I have neglected the Registry (the heart of our breed!) and my VIB’s, to deal with gossip/rumors/innuendoes etc.! Some people have shown “great” concern that our “club” problems would “undermine” the effectiveness of the ISSR. Let me assure you that it’s quite the opposite! I plan to devote more of my time to perfecting (and enforcing) our present system. The ISSR, Inc. will not subject itself to “club” discord and gossip! The rules will be enforced, without regard to any sort of “politics.” I have no intentions of “leaving” the ISSR! I developed it, I own it, and I plan to continue running it! Without it, your dogs would be worthless!

 8.       The Homecoming

      This event was established in 1974! It was designed to “bring home” all of the pups I produced, at one time, in one place, so that I could evaluate the development of my litters. It also provided a way for people that owned “litter-mates” to meet each other, etc. We used to put on some BIG “bashes.” By the early 80’s this event was held in my 12 acre pasture, complete with tents, Port-a-potties, Schutzhund demonstrations, Temperament Tests, shows, games, big bands, food, etc. etc.  We invited guest speakers (like Fred Lanting), held seminars, etc..etc…It was fun for all! I remember roasting marshmallows around a big bonfire, talking dogs! People laughed, danced, talked…met new friends, and learned a lot! That’s’ what it was all about! I had a chance to see my litters, together…in one place, so I could document more data for the LMX program, and people had a chance to have a lot of FUN, sharing stories, etc. with other Shiloh Shepherd owners!

      The past two years, this event has become hectic and much less enjoyable for me! Last year I didn’t even have time to talk to many of the people that came to see me! I kept rushing around trying to keep things on schedule, and the “board meetings” I had to attend actually upset many of my customers, because they felt neglected! What had once started out as a “family reunion” has turned into a political nightmare! Let me assure you…this year it will once again be a fun time for all! This is “my party” and I promise not to tolerate any “party-crashers!” You will have an opportunity to meet some of your dogs littermates as well as parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.! I promise that you will be well fed, and well educated! Therefore….Please take some time to read the enclosed schedule and fill out your entries.

 9.       The Future

      Of the Shiloh Shepherd is secure! There are enough dedicated VIBs that will continue to breed quality dogs, and I own/co-own such a large variety of the best genepool, to continue producing these dogs indefinitely! So any “fears” you may have had, can be put to rest! The Shiloh Shepherd is not my “breed”. This breed belongs to Adonai, and He is more than able to do with it as He wills, despite any feeble attempts made by foolish humans!

      As for the “club”…I have no alternative other than to shut down the SSDCA, Inc. For nearly a year now I have been busy, working “behind the scenes” with Gary and Dan. They offered to take over operating the club, while retaining me as “President” as long as I was willing to act “properly”.  I just could not agree to being censored! Either I am, or I am not. I tried to bring out these matters in the March Newsletter, it was done and at the printers on time, but a “hold” was put on it. The financial report was “pulled” and changes were made to my “letter.” I was deeply offended, but I didn’t want the members to have to wait any longer…so I told the printer to “run it!” I don’t want to be put in that type of situation again! I feel very strongly that Gary & Dan want to do great things for the club, and need the chance to do so, without my interference!

      By now it should be quite obvious that my efforts to maintain unity among the members has failed! I am physically worn out, mentally drained, and financially busted! I was very concerned that all members would still receive the type of support I had wanted to give them through newsletters…at specialty shows, etc., etc.  The new club leaders have assured me that all of you will receive as much...if not more attention! You should be receiving a letter from the new club, along with mine, that should clearly answer all of your questions! For now, I will try to answer some of the FAQ’s asked by members!

                 Will we be getting the July Newsletter?

      Not from the SSDCA, Inc. I still have not even started to pay off the March one! The club has been charging all of these newsletters at the Pennysaver,, and while paying “on” the bill…getting further behind. While the interest charges keep adding up! Even though I paid them $800 a few weeks ago, we are still deep in debt! The new club is planning on preparing one for you soon, so you will not be ignored…I promise! We just ask that you be a little patient during this transition!

          Will the “NEW” club keep the same constitution, directors, etc?

      Wendy will continue as the Secretary. The club will be located in PA. It is my understanding that the name has been changed to……The International Shiloh Shepherd Club, Inc…..

                        What are you going to do if this “new club” quits?

       I have an agreement with Gary & Dan to close out the SSDCA as of the end of this fiscal year (8/31)! It will not be “dissolved” for at least 18 months thereafter. At that time, all of the members will be asked for a “confidence” vote, and if the new club is doing great (and I have no reason to believe it wouldn’t be) then the SSDCA will be formally dissolved!

Are you still going to be involved?

 I will focus more of my energy on the ISSR, my kennel, my VIB’s and my Alpine business! I think that will keep me busy enough! Although I will always be available to Gary & Dan, if they need any help, in any way! Wendy has sufficient experience (with the breed) to carry this venture into positive new dimensions! I am confident that as professional business men, they (Gary & Dan) will be able to deal with a lot of the problems I had, in a much more successful manner!