The Politics Of Swissys.
How to use critical thinking to apply appropriate filters to information and disinformation available about Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs.

The following represents a summary of some of the opinions held by Michael Reddin.
Karen Becker may or may not share some or all of these opinions.

Well you may be thinking what the hell is this guy talking about

It is pretty simple

EVERYTHING you hear about GSMDs is shaped and colored by the person, people or group saying it.

EVERYONE has an agenda. There are NO individuals or groups that present a totally objective view.

Having an agenda isn't necessarily a bad thing but it does affect the information that someone is providing to you.

With a few exceptions NO ONE will put you first. The responsibility for looking out for your personal interests is yours and yours alone.

It is up to you to decide if the advice that you are getting is applicable to your situation and only you are responsible for making the decision to buy a puppy from a particular breeder.

There are a couple of egregious examples that come to mind.

1. The book “The Greater Swiss Mountain Dog a Complete and Reliable Guide”.
   This book does have some accurate information but it is far from “complete” or “reliable”. This book was written by one of the highest volume breeders in the country and its purpose is simple. It was written to sell dogs. Preferably those produced by the author. That doesn't mean that you should ignore it. Just apply the appropriate filter.
2. The forums at gs.c
   Again there is valuable and accurate information here. In fact there is quite a bit and I recommend it if you apply the appropriate filters. You need to understand that the sites owner has a radical agenda in addition to using the site to pursue personal vendettas against those he dislikes (the last GSMDCA president being his most recent victim). In My Opinion there is no more divisive figure in the breed today than this person. In My Opinion his vitriol has contributed significantly towards the factionalization of the GSMD community over the last several years. This person would have you believe that his views represent a consensus of the majority of the GSMD community when in fact only a tiny fraction of that community share his stated views (which are different from his actions). He states that all are welcome to contribute when in fact the site is heavily censored. Very few experienced members of the GSMD community and almost no experienced breeders contribute to his site. When using the resources on this site think of it as Fox News and it's owner as the Bill O' Riley of the GSMD community.

These examples are extreme and represent some of the worst instances of people deliberately attempting to prevent you from getting all the information you need to make an informed decision. There are many more subtle influences that have to be taken into account in order to make that decision.

When getting information apply the following filters depending on the situation.

The GSMD community is highly factionalized and individuals within the different cliques regularly intentionally spread incorrect and inflammatory information about the people, practices and breeding stock of breeders in other groups. This is the most important thing to keep in mind and all the information you receive from inside the GSMD community must be filtered through it. Keep your ears open to those that refuse to participate in this. The people that you need to listen to are those that refrain from actively volunteering negative information about others. If you are concerned about something you hear that sounds negative you owe it to yourself to go to the person that is being talked about and first confirm that the information is accurate and then get an understanding of the information from their point of view.

People that are not breeders cannot possibly have an informed opinion about breeding. They simply don’t have the experience to understand the complexities involved. That doesn't mean they have nothing to offer. They certainly can tell you about their experiences with their own breeder. They have a lot to offer about their experiences with their dogs. Some are very knowledgeable about training, diets, health issues, working and conformation events and other issues important to you.

Stud dog owners are not breeders. You have to breed bitches and then whelp, place and accept responsibility for the puppies in order to comprehend what it means to be a breeder.

People that have had one to three litters and then decide that they aren't interested in breeding again are not breeders.

People that only have a litter every 4-6 years are not breeders. If you don’t have a bitch or are in the process of acquiring one that you are planning to breed you are not a breeder. Breeders breed pure and simple.

The terrible twos. People that have a little bit of experience and suddenly have an opinion about everything. We all go through this period. Fortunately most of us come out of it relatively shortly. Unfortunately some of the most vocal members of the GSMD community never come out of this infantile period.

Experience does not necessarily equal competence or ethical behavior. There are several breeders that have tons of experience that In My Opinion are either or both incompetent and unethical. Even worse there are experienced breeders that have fallen into the trap of rigid thinking. Kennel blindness is common with breeders trying over and over again to produce a copy of their first successful dog. Serious health and temperament issues are ignored due to the failure by breeders to think critically about their own breeding programs.

Breeders have an economic motive. They are selling you a puppy not giving it to you. Most lower volume (1-3 Litters a year) breeders don’t make any money doing this but it is reasonable for them to pay their expenses. For higher volume breeders the economics become more important. I’m not saying that is necessarily a bad thing but it is something to be aware of.

Breeders have an egoistic motive. We all think that we are producing the best dogs in the world. If we actually have the objectivity to look at our own breeding programs critically, we certainly aren't going to tell you our harshest criticisms about ourselves.

Breeders have friends and enemies. Don’t expect a breeder to objectively criticize a friend even if they deserve it and don’t expect them to recommend an enemy. Don’t expect the all of the bad things they tell you about their enemies or all of the good things they tell you about their friends to be accurate.

Breeders are in economic and egoistic competition with each other. If you are a good home they want you to buy a dog from them, not someone else. Yes we do work together on many issues and it isn't uncommon for small groups of breeders to get behind a common goal but ultimately we are doing what we feel is best for ourselves.

Titles especially conformation titles earned by the sire or dam of any litter have absolutely nothing to do with the suitability to your situation of any puppies produced. Almost all of the puppies produced are placed in pet homes and regardless of whatever the stated goals of any breeder are the fact is that all of us are primarily producing pets. Conformation events are regularly stacked with “point dogs” allowing dogs that would not earn titles against fair competition to do so. Judging is extremely inconsistent. Dogs that are superior and should win every time out until they are finished don't. Fewer than 10% of AKC judges that are currently judging the breed know what the hell they are looking at. Fault judging instead of judging the whole dog is the rule and not the exception. Professional handlers do have a distinct advantage in the classes and even more so in the the special ring. Competition in the special ring is riddled with political favoritism. Handlers and dogs follow specific judges that unethically favor one dog around the country. Advertising does effect the standings of the top dogs.

All GSMD organizations and all dog organizations for that matter are political. Abuse of power, cronyism, and incompetence are nothing to be surprised about. This is nothing new. It is today as it always has been. There are times that are better than others and there are always individuals that stay above the fray. It especially holds true in volunteer organizations that petty politics are exactly that petty. Over time larger organizations are generally more likely to provide a balanced mix of both accurate and inaccurate information. You need to be extremely cautious when dealing with smaller organizations. Some are really well administered and are run with the best interests of their membership first in mind. However many of these are operated as the personal fiefdoms of their BODs or individuals on the BOD and are used to promote their personal views or agendas regardless of the needs of their membership as well as sometimes being used for personal economic gain. Regardless of their deficiencies I recommend that you join both the national and your closest regional GSMD organization. It is important that you have access to their membership lists so that you can network with other GSMD owners.

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I would be remiss to fail to point out that neither I nor the information I disperse am exempt from the statements above. I do have an agenda and I do have friends and enemies. My agenda is simple I hate arrogance, elitism, hypocrisy, liars and most of all bullies. It is my mission in life and in the GSMD community to mitigate their influence as much as possible.