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INTERVIEWS
ONLINE
The Chihuahua
Debbie
Martin responds
to Interviews Online @ TheDogPlace…
1. WHAT IS THE SINGLE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION ABOUT YOUR
BREED?
People think of the Chihuahua as little yappy, nervous ankle biter!
They are supposed to have a terrier like temperament and most
never bite! Add that to the fact that so many think they should
look like the Taco Bell dog! They are truly a wonderful family
companion and get along well with other dogs.
2. WHAT IS THE MOST DEFINING PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTIC?
The size. They are a toy breed. They should be between three and
six pounds. Over the last couple of years it has been
heartbreaking to see these 2 pound dogs with these extreme heads in
the ring cringing at the thought that they may someday be bred. Breeders
must give more thought to structure and movement and less to overdone
heads and small size!
3. WHICH BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERISTIC MOST TYPIFIES THE BREED?
That is easy. FEARLESS! They do not know they are small.
They are happy but watchful and they love with a devotion that
knows no bounds.
4. WHAT IS THE MOST COMMON JUDGING MISTAKE IN YOUR BREED?
Going strictly for head type. Yes, head type is important, but
is not all. There has to be a sound dog attached to that lovely
head to be a complete dog. It has almost become a joke, not to
me, that unless you have a "tennis ball with a bump on it"
for a head you may as well stay home. Take a good look around!
You may have lovely heads but how about those toplines folks?
How about those luxating patellas? Remember SOUND!!!!! first,
head second.
5. WOULD YOU PREFER THE BREED BE JUDGED STANDING OR MOVING?
The breed should be judged moving. That is again where the
proper structure will shine. A dog with a bad topline, bad patellas or
bad front can be "stacked" to hide some of these flaws but
moving what you see is what you get.
6. WHAT COSMETIC ALTERATIONS SHOULD JUDGES KNOW ABOUT?
There are not really any cosmetic alterations in this breed. If you
consider chalk an alteration that would be the only one I know of and
all that does is make a lovely dog even better.
7. WHAT IS OF GREATEST CONCERN TO BREEDERS TODAY?
I do not know about others, but as a breeder myself I am alarmed at
the number of dogs out there with bad toplines and even worse fronts
and rears. So much emphasis has been placed on head that the
rest of the dog has been allowed to disappear. Never let us
forget that there has to be a body, preferably a sound one, to carry
that head.
8. WHAT IS THE MOST ENDEARING QUALITY OF YOUR BREED?
Their ability to show and receive unconditional love with those who
love them back.
9. WHAT ARE THE THREE WORDS THAT BEST DESCRIBE YOUR BREED?
Fearless, Faithful and Fun.
Barbara
J. Andrews responds
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1. WHAT
IS THE SINGLE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION ABOUT YOUR BREED?
That
they are delicate and need to be pampered.
2. WHAT IS THE MOST DEFINING PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTIC?
The head. If there is any
other dog with that apple shaped head, it is genetically linked to the
Chihuahua (as so many breeds are) but without exception, they have all
been refined as their own breed so that the ChiChi head is absolutely
unique in all of dogdom. Other
breeds have large, round eyes but none have that short little button
nose and softly luminous eyes that also gives the ChiChi headpiece
that one-of-a-kind baby doll expression.
3.
WHICH BEHAVIORAL CHARACTERISTIC MOST TYPIFIES THE BREED?
Their ridiculously fearless attitude with other dogs large or small.
Other “terriers” are like that but they are not in a tiny
little Chihuahua body!
4.
WHAT IS THE MOST COMMON JUDGING MISTAKE IN YOUR BREED?
Beginning
the exam with the hand held higher than the little dog’s head.
This stimulates the strongly developed instinct to duck down
from anything “flying” overhead.
Approach the table with hand held low, palm up, and rest your
hand next to the dog for an instant so that he can see what it is.
The handler often has the dog strung up or bait shoved in the
mouth so he doesn’t recognize the thing hovering over him as a
friendly hand.
5.
WOULD YOU PREFER THE BREED BE JUDGED STANDING OR MOVING?
Moving.
Again, too many handlers have not read the standard and don’t
realize how important a survival characteristic that “alert,
swift-moving” skill is so they want the dog to stand perfectly still
and bait like a statue. You
can’t evaluate the ChiChi that way.
6.
WHAT COSMETIC ALTERATIONS SHOULD JUDGES KNOW ABOUT?
I don’t know of any that really pertain to this breed.
Tail carriage has a lot of latitude and bites are not the end
of the world and any color is correct so there is no incentive to
alter anything.
7.
WHAT IS OF GREATEST CONCERN TO BREEDERS TODAY?
Extreme
heads. Eye-catching
exaggerated heads. Having
said that, what should be of the most concern is to STOP IT
before we destroy the breed. The
tiny button (called a nose) stuck on a paper plate profile that
contains dangerously large eyes mounted on a misshapen topskull should
be of great concern.
8.
WHAT IS THE MOST ENDEARING QUALITY OF YOUR BREED?
That
although they are the most “pack oriented” breed I know, they will
forsake the company of any dog, any time, under any circumstance in
order to be in a human lap.
9.
WHAT ARE THE THREE WORDS THAT BEST DESCRIBE YOUR BREED?
Most
Ancient Lapdog
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