Ethics in breeding and field trialing at its best / worst

Everyone who knows me understands that I am an avid bird hunter and that its all about the dog work to me.  Bird dogs doing their job is what makes it awesome.

Bird dogs come from somewhere.  The breeds get better because of breeders breeding the best.  The best are measured either through a home grown hunting dog breeder program where dogs are tested each year on wild birds or perhaps the testing is done through field trials.

I agree with horseback field trials though my dogs are mostly proven through working wild birds year in and year out.  I do seek out new blood for my program from time to time and the only way to find proven blood is with a fellow hunter / breeder or perhaps a proven field trial dog.

The proving methods can be questioned.  A breeder who proves his dogs through wild bird hunting can lie about how good his dogs really are.  Field trial dogs can be a ‘lie’.  There are dogs that are titled by virtue of who the owner / handler knows not necessarily on the merit of the dog.  I have seen this.  In simpler terms, cheating (ouch, I know that word is offensive).

There are field trial judges in the trial system …  …who give in to their own bias and blindly select dogs of their ‘friends’ as winners.  This is the part of the bird dog world that turns my stomach.  Backyard breeders who are clueless about breeding are no worse than biased field trial judges and the handlers who expect it.

Bird dog judges like real life judges can be biased crooks.  The line between what is real and what they want to happen sometimes becomes blurred.  They want it so bad they are willing to overlook mistakes ‘their’ dog made while being critical of the ‘unfavored’ dog.  It’s enough to make you puke.

Some judges have been around so long in the game that they feel they are above reproach.  They become high on their own self-importance.  They are willing to ‘bend’ the rules when in fact it is breaking the rules.  The ‘pro’ this person favors realizes this and makes every effort to make it to trials that this judge is judging at.  Who’s worse?  Both are sleaze in my book.  No matter what you are speaking of in life, isn’t it more rewarding to earn it?

Let’s not forget the field trial committee chairperson / secretary who influences the 2 judges final decisions.  This person is, in my book, a bully who intimidates judges into changing placements.  Of course the ultimate triple whammy is the biased club member / club officer / also judging at the same trial.  If you aren’t “in” you don’t stand a snow balls chance in you know where.

Sound bitter?  Nope, not me.  I don’t look for the bad.  I try to see the good in everything.

So Dave, why trial?  Because the minority does not represent what is right with trialing.  Trialing is a time honored tradition that is an awesome way to prove dogs.  Trials set forth a standard and, on a level playing field, the best dogs do rise to the top.

Some folks who have been involved with trials and won’t go back.  I didn’t want to either but circumstances have changed my opinion a bit.  I do believe in the trial system, flaws and all.  One thing I won’t do is sugar coat trials like they are some sort of panacea.  They are not and like any other organization out there, it has its issues.

My favorite analogy is to youth baseball.  I was a parent, coach and league president through the years with my kids.  I saw as much trouble there as any other organization.  There are bad umpires, biased umpires and fair umpires.  Everyone takes the good along with the bad.  No organization is free of foul.

Prove your dog the way you want to and be happy with it.  You don’t have to join a club to be happy with your hunting dog but if your dog does have trial dogs behind it and it hunts very well for you, you can thank your breeder and field trialers.

Dave