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Date Posted: 00:21:51 10/23/10 Sat
Author: Dapo
Subject: Re: Working Boerboels
In reply to: Sharon B 's message, "Re: Working Boerboels" on 13:11:32 10/21/10 Thu

Greetings all,

You all make salient points in this interesting perennial discourse.In response,I felt I should chime in since much of this concerns me directly. I have worked various breeds of dogs for 3 decades in a number of pursuits including Personal Protection,substance detection,search and rescue and various dog sports.I currently own several GSDSs,and other breeds including farm dogs of indigenous lineage alongside my Boerboels and run a dog training facility.I own a farm so I am no stranger new to working farm dogs either.

My understanding is that EBBASA is proposing to put together a steering group of experienced people to help steer them in the right direction and ultimately to fashion out a road map of tests and assessments for this breed with a view to preserving it's abilities as a utility farm dog and family guardian . I assume that is a correct description of what the breed is. I also assume that this is the focus of EBBASA.This is surely not a novel description of the Boerboel and can only be a positive.

"Yesterday is History".Those of us who have worked our dogs in PP,particularly bitework have been relentlessly shot down for ages but have remained steadfast and unrepentant to the cause regardless of breed association dictates. I don't however recall that EBBASA has ever taken a firm position against bitework and I certainly have never heard of them penalising anyone for teaching their dogs bitework as others have. Even those others appear to have softened their stance and made u-turns.In these changing times we should not prejudge anyone's motives until we have given them a chance.

I believe the current crop of officials of EBBASA to be honest and frank people with transparent intentions. They have IMO approached this subject with candour.In fact, I applaud them for making what amounts to a very brave move and a leap in the dark which may ultimately alienate many breeders and even risk the angst of some of their own rank and file particularly in the homeland of the Boerboel most of whom have no desire whatsoever to work their dogs and may one day find themselves bound by breed testing.Already we see many breeders parading themselves breeders of working Boeboels on their web pages.Others have tried in the past with varied degrees of success/failure.

People will naturally latch on to the 'Working Boerboels' mantra as a marketing ploy. So be it, however misplaced or ambitious.Sooner or later the sheep will be sorted from the goats. I sense some of them will be shown up as this movement gains momentum. The good thing is that we will all know where to go to find proven working stock in due course.

Every working dog movement started with a group of like minded people. We are blessed with individuals who have many years of experience which they could and should bring to bear on this movement. It sounds like a clarion call from EBBASA rather than a crusade to change the face of the breed and why would they not only be given a chance but also be unwaveringly supported with resolute determination .

James puts it very eloquently and I concur. Nobody within this breed is a repository of total knowledge and as a group we stand to gain immensely from each other's collective experiences.

There are some outstanding Boerboels out there who have accomplished much and are continuing to achieve sterling plaudits from world acclaimed working dog groups. I happen to know that discussions are currently in progrees with some groups who have identified the Boerboel's prowess and like what they see. We can all fight our own individual corners which appears to be what has prevailed, but that doesn't make for cohesive information sharing.The primary focus should be on proper evaluation,identification and preservation of assigned traits and in paricular its working aptitude through health, mental and physical assessment.

Those who have bred working Boeboels whether through selective breeding ,dint of hard work in training or both should be very proud of themslelves and encourage the rest of the community by sharing their experiences.

I sincerely hope they succeed.We can put our weight behind a concerted effort by EBBASA and let posterity judge them rather than by a jury on chat groups. The truth is out there and we will find it. No breeder can say 'hand on heart' that they've not had their share of failures both in health and aptitude. We have heard of many such breedings. I have tested Boerboels that frankly give me cause for worry going forward. For me,this would certainly be an an avenue to identify and source the next generation of really good working dogs.

I discussed working abilities of Boeboels many years ago with David on several occassions and it was because I recognised his knowledge and dedication to the cause that I contacted him. More recently my discussions with James have centered extensively on working Boerboels.

Of course I commend David and Tony among others for the work their dogs do on their farms with their dogs.This is precisley the reason I followed Harris Boerboels. Sadly,how many Boerboels truly do that kind of work today.

I suggest we start with proper evaluation for health,temperament,mobility and substance.We can then go on to more specific function tests later.

Can I end by saying that in my opinion we need to learn from history.That history tells us that leadership,discipline,hard work,dedication and commitment are the hallmarks of every single successful movement.

Just my humble opinion.
Dapo

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