Theory of Scent

Under ideal conditions, a track footprints) across a nice grassy field with a sufficient delay in time to allow bacteria reaction on the soil causing a good odor is probably the best type of track to have. The problem, however, is how to keep this track from being contaminated by another human beings track–particularly in …

Scent – Pheremones and Odor

Compare the canine’s nose Inside) to the human nose–it is much longer. The olfactory lobe of the canine is many times larger. Therefore, his brain’s ability to register different smells is many times greater than ours. There are different nerves inside of the nose that register smell. One particular gland (running the long way on …

German Lines? The Case for Outcrossing

We in North America have seen a great growth in the GSD population with recent German bloodlines and first-generation imports. In recent years there has been a slight increase of interest in matings between the immigrants and the “American” dogs. In almost all cases, it has been domestic bitches …

PANOSTEITIS

Revised December 2011. DESCRIPTION One of the main reasons for a young dog to be “pulled” from a show, or excused from the ring, is the sudden lameness of a condition known as panosteitis, familiarly labelled “pano” by many breeders. Of some 130+ breeds recognized by the American Kennel Club and hundreds more by some …

Summary of PennHIP Research

The following is a summary of PennHIP-related research published by Smith and colleagues. References to the actual publications are given at the end of each section. Topics Measuring Hip Joint Laxity Reliability of the Method The Risk of Developing DJD Heritability Biomechanics of Canine Hip Laxity Measuring Hip Joint …

A LOOK INSIDE A RENDERING PLANT

Rendering has been called “the silent industry”. Each year in the US, 286 rendering plants quietly dispose of more than 12.5 million tons of dead animals, fat and meat wastes. As the public relations watchdog newsletter PR Watch observes, renderers “are thankful that most people remain blissfully unaware of their existence”. When City Paper reporter …

Training & Development – Prey Drive Promotion

Following the popular response to Armin Winkler’s introduction to drives in protection training published in a previous issue he was asked to continue discussing the drives used in protection training in a series of articles. He uses his translation of Dr. Helmut Raiser’s book Der Schutzhund as a reference in his discussion. Let’s begin practical …

In Praise of Working Dog Temperament

What started as an ordinary interest in and liking for German Shepherd Dogs has become an obsession to understand the marvelous character of the working German Shepherd Dog because its versatility and greatness seems to surpass all the rest. My search for understanding has been greatly illuminated by Schutzhund training. Through it and the people …