Hi,
You can (and, in fact, must) register your dog with all the legitimate
registries----AKC, CKC, UKC, SKC, ASCA, USDAA, NADAC and show your dog in
all the performance (obedience, tracking, carting, agility) activities you
want to. You do not need to be in any registry to do Pet Therapy. For
therapy work, you should enlist in one of the therapy organizations, like
TDI (Therapy Dogs International), so that you are protected by insurance
when you go to a hospital, school, or nursing home. To get hooked up with
TDI, you need to take the CGC/TDI test.
The Registries I listed are:
AKC American Kennel Club
CKC Canadian Kennel Club
UKC United Kennel Club
SKC States Kennel Club
ASCA Australian Shepherd Club of America (non-Aussies can register for
Performance activities at ASCA)
USDAA United States Dog Agility Association
NADAC North American Dog Agility Council
These are all legitimate registries and, once registered, you can earn lots
of titles!
Get those blue eyes out there and go for it!
sara steele
----- Original Message -----
From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Wednesday, October 16, 2002 6:52 AM
Subject: Re: blue eyed pup (long)
> Hi Audrey,
>
> Here are answers to your questions, hope it helps you sort things out.
>
> > 1. I was wondering if I purchase a blue eyed berner could I still
compete
> > in carting and obedience?
>
> Absolutely! ...and tracking and agility and therapy work...
>
> > 2. Is this pup not able to be registered?
>
> Provided the pup's parents are registered with a recognized registry and
the
> breeder completes the registration process, a blue-eyed pup certainly CAN
be
> registered. Since you're in Canada, I assume you'd want to register with
the
> CKC (Canadian Kennel Club).
>
> ***WARNING!!!***
> There is a registry used by puppy millers and brokers that also calls
itself
> (not conincidentally) the CKC (to stand for Continental Kennel Club).
> Another registry used by commercial producers & brokers is APRI. When you
> talk with a breeder about *registration* in North America...make sure
you're
> talking about either the *Canadian Kennel Club* or the *American Kennel
> Club*...period.
>
> > 3. What are the chances if bred of having brown eyed pups??
>
> Blue eyes are a hereditary trait, therefore, breeding a dog with a blue
eye
> increases the liklihood of producing puppies with blue eyes. The BMD
> standards (a description of the the ideal BMD that responsible breeders
> strive for) around the world specify that the Bernese should have dark
brown
> eyes.
>
> Breeding responsibly entails protecting the breed for future generations
to
> enjoy. Although each dog deviates from the standard in some respect, the
> only way to preserve the breed is to breed ONLY those dogs which come
closest
> to the 'ideal' detailed in the standard. If breeders disregarded the
> standard and didn't plan breedings with the goal of getting closer to that
> ideal with each generation, it wouldn't be long before the Bernese no
longer
> looked or acted like the breed you fell in love with to begin with.
>
> So, you can see...breeding a dog with a blue eye would be doing a serious
> disservice to the breed. The only reason for someone to do it would be
for
> profit, cleary NOT because they love and care about the breed.
>
> > I hear in Switzerland that it is not a disqualification but in Canada
it
> is.
> > Is this true?
>
> No, it's not true. A blue eye is a dis-qualification in standards
throughout
> the world.
> Following are the descriptions of the desireable ("correct") eye and the
> disqualifications in the FCI*, CKC, and AKC versions of the standard.
> *The FCI standard is the Swiss standard, it's used in much of the world.
>
> FCI
> "Eyes - dark brown, almond shaped, with well fitting eyelids."
> "Disqualifying faults - split nose; wall eye; short coat, double coat
> (Stockhaar); other than tricoloured coat; other than black main colour."
> (wall eye another term for a blue eye)
>
> CKC
> "Eyes - dark brown in colour, almond shaped, and well set apart; tight
> eyelids."
> "Disqualifications - Cryptorchid or monorchid males; split nose; absent
> markings as described in compulsory markings; white neck ring; blue eye;
> ground colour other than black."
>
> AKC
> "The eyes - are dark brown and slightly oval in shape with close-fitting
> eyelids. Inverted or everted eyelids are serious faults. Blue eye color is
a
> disqualification."
>
> If you'd like to learn more about the standards, you'll find all three
side
> by side (along with other helpful information about sorting out
responsible
> vs irresponsible breeders) on the IMBDC website:
http://www.hottub.org/~panda/
>
> If you're interested in learning more about BMDs and the goals
*responsible
> breeders* strive for, you have an incredible opportunity right in your
> neighborhood, starting this Thursday. The BMD Club of Canada National
> Specialty (the annual 'Stanley Cup' for the breed) is in Abbottsford, BC
this
> year. (In dog-speak, anywhere in your province is your neighborhood <g>)
>
> The specialty is an unequalled opportunity to get to know the dogs, pick
up
> educational information, buy berner stuff, and most important...get to
know
> the people who love and cherish this breed. Worth taking a day off from
work
> for <g>.
> Here's the website for more information:
> http://www.bmdcc.ca/specialty_2002.htm
>
> Thank you for asking about eye color in Bernese. If you have other
> questions, please ask! I'm sure there are many people on the Berner-L
who're
> interested in the same things you are.
>
> ~ Sherri Venditti
>
