Okapi Faun

Dumping some older stuff here.

Brett

Pedigree Dogs Exposed on BBC America 12/10

Pedigree Dogs Exposed will air on BBC America tomorrow.

"In a controversial UK documentary that divided the British dog world, the practices and methods for breeding pedigree dogs are exposed with heartbreaking stories.

Two years in the making, Pedigree Dogs Exposed lifts the lid on the true extent of health and welfare problems in pedigree dogs. This in-depth investigation suggests they're in serious trouble, plagued by genetic disease due to decades of inbreeding. Disturbing footage includes Cavalier King Charles spaniels in terrible pain because they've been bred with heads so small that their brains outgrows their skulls.

Finally, the film offers up some options to dog lovers who want to safeguard the future health of their purebred dogs."

I'm glad for a chance to see it, because we cannot download much video and watching it on the web is not an option. There's been a lot of buzz about it, both pro and con, and it caused quite a shakeup in the UK, with the Kennel Club changing policies and even breed standards in response to public outcry. If it provokes a strong reaction I will likely blog about it. Stay tuned.

A few more old Anthros

I couldn't find them posted here, I know they were on DA.

Best,

Brett

My ongoing effort to give Steve an aneurysm

Been busy today, I'll have to look over the comments on the other posts and cringe before answering.

Best,

Brett

New Agers and Creationists should not be President

An EXCELLENT article by Roger Ebert:

New Agers and Creationists
should not be President

Enjoy as I did;)

Brett

More Anthros

I don't know if these have been posted yet but enjoy:)

Best,

Brett

Militant Atheism, not what you think.

Random Doggage: Domina and Faust Get Some Air

We Don't Really Get Snow

Our elevation simply isn't high enough for snow. When it snows, it's usually slushy and doesn't stick. On the 30th we had just enough snow to turn the yard into mud. Yes, the dogs go out in it. They have a dog door and are allowed out whenever they want, and they love precipitation. Any kind will do. Heavy rains will drive them back into the house, after they've gotten soaked.

I think we've had more freezing nights so far this year than all last winter combined. Everything was frosted this morning, the dog water was frozen and I had to break a half inch of ice in the water tank.

Snow is nice to look at, but really, I'm glad it rarely gets any closer. I'm too well acclimated to the heat to like the cold.

Afghan Hounds, Primitive Dogs

I am bringing this up from comments because my reply become too long to remain a comment.

From Retrieverman:

"The photos of your Afghans have totally changed the way I view them.

I used to think of them as Stanley Coren did (and probably still does).

Now, I see them as something rustic, natural, and possessing an intelligence very different from our dandy Western dogs."

First off, I firmly believe that you can make a puppy stupid by raising it incorrectly. Pups need stimulation, to go outside and dig and get dirty and chew things and make mistakes, they need to hang out with adult dogs that aren't their mother. They need challenging environments, too hot, too cold, dirt, mud. What they don't need is to be protected from everything. They need to be dogs. All dogs have the potential to be intelligent. Combine that with the independent nature of the sighthound and you get a dog that is absolutely it's own being, no one's servant, a dog to work with you, not for you. This is not a type of dog for everyone but for those who appreciate them, there is simply no substitute.

Afghans want to be rustic and natural. If you ask them, and you listen, they will tell you that they want a coat that is functional, that doesn't impede their stride, so that they can run as fast as those darned Salukis. They want a coat that sheds so they are comfortable in summer. (Mine definitely have an attitude change and their activity level goes way up once they've been clipped for summer.) They want a coat that doesn't grow forever, a coat that has a length that matches weather conditions throughout the year. They will tell you they don't want exaggerated upright head carriage and overly long rears because it affects their stride and makes them inefficient runners. They will tell you they don't like a level bite because their incisors wear down, and their canines do not fit correctly.

Vladimir Bergovoy, in his article on aboriginal dogs, uses the term "undistorted beauty." The functionality of the dog is what makes it beautiful, how the various parts fit together to make a whole that is designed to do something specific, and do it well. That is true beauty, not artifice. I don't like fake dogs.

I ran across an article the other day titled "Afghan Hound-Supermodels of the Dog World." Just the title made me cringe. The Afghan in the West is a sculpture, an abstraction, a stylized, exaggerated version of it's original form. Fake. Even if the hound underneath remained unchanged, the coat itself would limit it's function. Simply breeding for such a coat is the opposite of 'preservation,' or 'improvement.' If you try to place the Western Afghan into the context of Eastern sighthounds as a landrace, each type elegantly adapted to it's own special conditions, yet sharing characteristics with it's brethren, the Western Afghan is an anomaly, a freak. A lie.

My Afghans never cease to amaze me with the instincts they have, instincts that live on despite their being bred mostly for their appearance for many, many generations. These instincts tell me that there is a tough, all-weather hunter, a dog of unusual appearance, with a unique, undistorted beauty and functionality, hiding under that hair, that conformation. My Afghans speak to me across a century of breeding for coat, for head carriage, for sidegait, for all the nitpicky little things that the show ring calls for, and they say, "Give me back my heritage. Make me a dog again."

And I'm listening.