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About This File
Pr. Jean-François Courreau examines Breed Standards/breed descriptions in terms of their focus on describing morphology - visible traits. See a discussion of limitations of conformation ring evaluations to provide in-depth evaluation of abilities of breeds.
Excerpts...
"It is a paradox that the official classification of breeds recognised by the FCI is largely based on abilities, whereas the standards only really mention morphology..."
"A "beauty" show is rarely conducive to assessing abilities. Thus, for anything that is not morphological, assessments are very limited: the only behavioural element assessed is the ability to keep still before the judge and other dogs, and the only element of physical ability assessed is the quality of movement during a few laps of the ring. Finally, the situation of dog breeds at the beginning of organised breeding should be taken into consideration. It seems to us that for dog breeders 150 years ago, abilities were inextricably linked with the breed, and were even its very essence to those breeders. Thus, unable to imagine the loss of such qualities, these good dog lovers were mostly concerned with improving morphology, which was generally a weak point. Dogs that were "good" for a particular use could only remain so. Thus, as well as having "good" dogs, they would now also have "beautiful" dogs. A special tribute should therefore be paid to all dog breeders who have pursued selection based on ability, as well as to those who are currently setting up trials at all levels, in difficult conditions."
With version 1.0.0: