The Poodle Papers - Poodle Club of America

The Poodle Papers 

Official Quarterly Newsletter of The Poodle Club of America 

Spring 2009 

The Poodle Papers

Coming Specialties 

P.C.A. AFFILIATE CLUB SHOWS 

* Note this listing comes from Helen Lee James 

May 21, 2009 San Bernadino Riverside Poodle Club TBA 

May 22, 2009 Panorama Poodle Club of Mt. Spokane 

Monica Canastrini 

Joyce L. Ostby 

May 22, 2009 Tidelands Poodle Club of Virginia 

Sari Tietjen Supported entry Langley KC 

May 23, 2009 Tidelands Poodle Club of Virginia 

Charlotte Patterson 

Classes designated as Specialty at Langley KC 

May 22, 2009 Greater Cincinnati Poodle Club Scott P Wolfe 

Patrick Higgins, Obed 

May 23, 2009 Greater Cincinnati Poodle Club Charles C Scott 

Catherine Thompson Obed 

May 29, 2009 Poodle Club of Massachusetts Michael Dachel 

Obed. And Rally Ellen I. Adomelis 

June 18, 2009 Orlando Poodle Club 

Luis Sosa 

Sweeps: Larry Cornelius, 

Ron Roberts Obed. 

June 24, 2009 Oklahoma City Poodle Club 

June 24, 2009 Oklahoma City Poodle Club 

Edd E. Bivin 

July 2, 2009 Lone Star Poodle Club 

AM Show Eugene Blake 

July 2, 2009 Lone Star Poodle Club 

PM Show Jordan Chamberlain 

Obed Nancy Simmons 

July 2, 2009 POODLE CLUB of SOUTHERN CA 

AM Show S. K. Sparks 

July 2, 2009 POODLE CLUB of SOUTHERN CA 

PM Show Mrs M Anderson 

July 16, 2009 Bluebonnet Poodle Club 

Doris Cozart . 

Obed. Joyce Morgan and Judith Brown 

July 17, 2009 Columbia Poodle Club 

Sari Tietjen 

Obed/ Rally Theresa Temple 

July 24,2009. Greater Milwaukee Poodle Club 

Joan P. Scott 

July 29, 2009 Greater Pittsburg Poodle Club 

John R. Cole 

July 29, 2009 Western Reserve Poodle Club 

Dana Cline 

July 30, 2009 Creole Poodle Club of New Orleans 

Mrs. Terry L Berrios 

Page 2 

August 8, 2009 Poodle Club of Mohawk Valley 

classes designated as specialty with the Southern Adirondack 

Dog Club judges TBA 

August 14, 2009 Columbine State Poodle Club 

Ann Hearn 

Obed Pat Maynard 

August 21, 2009 Heart of America 

Ms Terri Lyddon 

August 22, 2009 Puget Sound Poodle Club 

Scott Wolfe 

Sweeps John Gaidos 

September 12, 2009 San Diego Poodle Club 

TBA 

September 13, 2009 San Diego Poodle Club 

TBA 

September 20, 2009 Poodle Club of Hawaii Judges 

TBA 

October 2, 2009 Twin Cities Poodle Club 

TBA 

October 3, 2009, Great Lakes Poodle Club of Chicago 

Doris Cozart 

Dianne Allen Obedience/Rally 

October 8, 2009, Greenspring Poodle Club 

Elaine Lessig 

Obedience John Landon /Cheryl Pratt 

October 16, 2009 Poodle Club of Central California 

Janet Leslie Buchanan 

Obed Michael Gadsby 

October 17, 2009 Poodle Club of Central California 

Alvin Eng 

Obed Mrs Jill Urbina 

November 5, 2009 Tampa Bay Poodle Club 

Mrs. Norma J. Strait 

November 6, 2009 Tampa Bay Poodle Club 

David R. Miller 

Obed Ronald Roberts 

November 12, 2009 Central Carolina Poodle Club 

Mrs. Toddy Clark 

obedience/rally Mr. Anthony Cherubini 

December 5, 2009 Hub Poodle Club of Orange County 

Judges, TBA 

“ Nothing in life is to 

be feared. It is only 

to be understood.” 

* Note: If your show is not listed, please contact Helen 

Lee James at horselesscarriage8@earthlink.net I list 

only the shows that she sends me the information on. If 

the listing is not complete, please contact Helen Lee. 

Leslie 

MARIE CURIE 


Page 3 



Spring 2009 

2008-2010 

Officers & Committees 

President:Jack MacGillivray 

1 st Vice Pres.: Glenna Carlson 

2 nd Vice Pres.Helen Lee James 

Corres. Sec.: Peggy McDill 

poodleclubsecy@aol.com 

Record. Sec.: Joan Scott 

Treasurer: Scott Olund 

Variety Representatives 

Toy:Nancy Hafner 

Mini: Luis Aizcorbe 

Standard.: Michael Wahlig 

Publicity: Joan McFadden 

AKC Delegate: Mary Ellen Fishler 

Show Committee 

Chairperson: Glenna Carlson 

Assistant Chairperson: Arthur Foran 

Performance Events 

Obedience Chairperson-Linda Morris 

Performance Events Agility Chairperson- 

Debbie West 

WC/WCX Working Certificate Chairperson- 

Joyce Carelli 

Public Education Coordinator 

Nancy Hafner 

Judges Education 

Nancy Hafner 

Affiliate Club Council: 

Hlen Lee James 

PCA Foundation: 

Exec. Director Tom Carneal 

PCA Foundation: 

Coordinator_ Mike Wahlig 

PCA Poodle Rescue Central: 

Sally Poindexter 

poodelclubofamerica@yahoo.com 

Poodles in America: 

Editor:Betsey Leedy 

Breeder Referral: 

Poodleclubofamerica.org 

Connie Green-314-997-2711 

PCA Home Page 

Lisa Wolfe 

pcaupdateinfo@yahoo.com 

www.poodleclubofamerica.org 

PCA Information 

Hal Kinne 

infopoodleclubofamerica@yahoo.com 


Layout & Graphic design 

Editor: Leslie Newing 

Email: lnewing@earthlink.net 

President’s Message: 

The 77TH Poodle Club of America National Show was another banner year thanks to the 

hard work of many, and I do mean MANY volunteers. Great thanks and congratulations 

go to Glenna Carlson, Show Chairperson, and her assistant, Art Foran who ran a smooth 

and professional operation. The Club received many compliments, and we are all very 

proud of this year’s Show. 

Perhaps one of the highlights for me was the Board’s presentation of the American Kennel 

Club Good Sportsmanship Award to Alice Wolaniuk. Given only once per year, Alice was 

a popular choice for this year’s award due to her many years of service to the Club, not 

only as a volunteer heading the Raffle, but in many other capacities as well. 

Another highlight of the week was the presentation of a completely new judges’ education 

program designed and presented by Scott Wolfe and Gina Weiser. The program is a fresh 

approach to teaching prospective judges about our breed, and we received many compliments 

on its’ originality and effectiveness. The program is targeted to convey the essence 

of style, elegance, and other aspects of our Breed Standard which make the Poodle unique 

among all other breeds. The program is a work in progress, and I want to give special 

thanks to Scott and Gina for taking this project on. Their presentation was tops, and they 

make a great team. 

On a business note, the Board approved the latest revision of the bylaws which we are 

processing through AKC before presenting the document to membership for a vote. We 

have attempted to update the bylaws, provide for greater communication between the 

Board and the membership, and to greatly increase the ability to conduct business and 

communicate over the internet and through our Website. Hopefully this process will not 

take too much longer depending on AKC’s approval process. 

Another important bit of information is that Volume XI of the Poodles in America has 

been indefinitely delayed. This in no way is the fault of the PIA publishing Committee, as 

the work has become irrevocably delayed due to circumstances that are beyond the Committees’ 

control. The Board apologizes for any this delay and will publish an update to 

advertisers and members just as soon as events unfold and progress is known. 

We look forward to seeing you all at the PCA Regional this coming December, which will 

be held at the AKC/Eukanuba National Show in Long Beach, California. 

Best Wishes until then, 

Jack MacGillivray 

PCA Email list 

pca_on_line@yahoo.com 


Page 4 

Judges Ballots for 2011- Watch your Snail mailbox! 

Dear Poodle Club Members & Affiliate Clubs, 

The nomination process for 2011 is complete. We received 129 nomination forms for our 2011 slate. The 

ballot has been prepared from your nominations and has been mailed. 

Each member or affiliate club has one ballot and may vote for 3 judges for each variety and three judges 

for inter-variety. 

The balloting procedure is time sensitive. Ballots must be placed in the numbered envelope marked “BAL- 

LOT” and returned in the enclosed, preaddressed envelope. The envelope must be postmarked on or before 

June 15th, 2009. 

In accordance with our current protocol, the ballots will be counted by a Certified Public Accountant. 

Please contact me any time if you have questions or need clarification. 

Sincerely, 

Peggy McDill 

Corresponding Secretary 

Roster Update Form 

First Name ______________MI ___Last Name___________________ 

Home Address: 

__________________________City_______________State___ZIP___Work Address: 

__________________________City_______________State___ZIP___ 

Phone: 

H: (__) ___-_______ W: (__) ____-________C: (__)___-_________ 

Fax: (___) _______Email:___________________________________ 

Kennel Name: _________________________________________________________ 

Affiliate Club ______________________ Variety(s) S T M 

Other ____________________________________________________ 

“I prefer to conduct Poodle Club of America, Inc., business by electronic Mail.” 

Signed: ________________________________________________________ 

Return to: 

Peggy A. McDill 

24922 Las Marias Lane 

Mission Viejo, California 92691-5119 


What’s Where 

Page 5 



Spring 2009 

National Specialty News 6 

Push-Me-Pull-You, by Joann Neal 17 

AKC Outstanding Sportsmanship Award 19 

Affiliate Club News 20 

Working Poodle 27 

Poodle Club of America Rescue 34 

Poodle Club of America Foundation 37 

In Memoriam 38 

Regional News 40 

AKC Delegates Corner 41 

PCA is not responsible for any statements or claims 

made by its contributors. PCA reserves the rights 

to edit all copy and make editorial comments where 

necessary and deemed appropriate by the editor. 

PCA reserves the right to refuse items submitted for 

publication. Written permission must be received and 

granted by PCA in order to reprint any editorial material. 

Contributors reserve all rights to their articles 

and permissions must be granted by them for reprint 

purposes. © 2007 Poodle Club of America 

Poodle Papers! 

Deadline for the next newsletter is July 30th. Please 

get your articles to me by that date. Anyone who 

has an interesting topic that they would like to see 

in the newsletter, please feel free to email me at 

lnewing@earthlink.net 

Leslie 

Editor of The Poodle Papers 


Page 6 

National Specialty 

News from Linda: 

Now that life is calm once again here in Salisbury, I wanted 

to take a minute, catch my breath, and give everyone an overview 

of the 2009 PCA Obedience/Rally Trial. The day was 

beautiful and sunny, most exhibitors were successful, and 

we really were able to see a wonderful performance given 

by many outstanding poodles. 

Shirley Barkan with her little girl, Abby, (OTCH MACH5 

Sanew’s Abundance of Energy UDX8) captured not only the 

High In Trial prize, but also won the High Combined award. 

Big congratulations go out to Shirley, who also won High In 

Trial last year when she retired Apple. Highest Combined 

without an OTCH went to Napoli Onceacmepoodlekit UD 

owned by Patricia Rose. And finally, the Highest Scoring 

Champion of Record came out of the Novice B class and 

was awarded to Ch. Jay P’s Chatabout Zorro Rojo CD AXJ 

RAE owned by Donna Fox. The Highest Scoring Champion/Rally 

Combined award went to Don Brown and his 

standard poodle Ch. Liberty’s Time is of the Essence CD 

RE. Way to go, Don! It was truly an exciting exhibition put 

on by our poodles on Tuesday. 

I want to take a moment and thank those of you who helped 

to make this a wonderful Trial, not only for the exhibitors, 

but for the judges as well. I have received many thank you 

notes from our judges expressing their joy at having such 

experienced stewards. Thank you Ann Mandelbaum for 

providing PCA with these experienced and caring stewards! 

The exhibitors appreciate them as much as the judges do, 

you can be sure. I also want to thank Holly Schroth for 

the excellent care she gave as our hospitality chair. Finally, 

I want to thank Arthur Foran, his soothing presence helped 

even the most nervous and frazzled exhibitor feel that their 

needs were being met. The rings were set up meticulously 

and the use of the PA system was kept to a minimum. 

Overall there are many people who made the 2009 

Obedience/Rally Trial a success. I hope everyone enjoyed 

the day and plan to again make the trek to Salisbury in April 

of 2010. See you then! 

Linda F. Morris 

From Peggy McDill 

PCA 2010 

Friday, April 23 - Friday, April 30, 2010. 

Wicomico County Civic Center 

Salisbury, MD 

Headquarters hotel not yet selected. 

SPECIAL THANKS 

TO EVERYONE WHO SUPPORTED 

THE 2009 PCA TROPHY FUND 

To all Friends and Members who supported the 2009 Trophy 

Fund with your generous donations, a Special Thank You. 

Over 100 donations were received totaling slightly over 

$5,000. Without your contributions the many trophies and 

medallions would not have been possible. 

To our Special Vendors: Christine Pawlosky of the Oster 

Company and Carol Grossman of Purina, thank you so much 

for all your help and the wonderful prizes furnished by your 

companies. 

And, Thank You to Audrey Shade and Inga Semenschin for 

all their help during the show. 

And finally a Special Thank You to Holly Schroth, without 

whom the Trophy Committee’s work would not have gone 

so smoothly and Barbara Furbush for her kind support and 

maintaining custody of our beautiful challenge trophies from 

show to show. 

Joanne and Bob Steele 

The Trophy Committee 


PCA 2009 Intervariety Commentary 

Jordan L. Chamberlain 

Page 7 

It is a tradition of Poodle Club of America to only allow 

member-judges to select the Best of Breed winner at the National 

Specialty show. I was honored to be placed on the 

eligible judges list a few years ago, and was humbled to be 

invited to adjudicate the Best of Breed Competition at the 

77th Annual Specialty. 

I arrived at the “Greatest Poodle Show on Earth” Friday 

afternoon as Dr. Sturz was finishing Standards. It was my 

choice to arrive at the “last minute” to ensure a clear, unprejudiced, 

mind walking into the ring for an assignment I 

consider one of the most, if not “the most” important assignment 

of them all. 

I was honored with three beautiful Poodles. The Breed competition 

came into the ring, and all three exhibited “an air of 

distinction and dignity peculiar to himself.” I knew on the 

lovely length of neck, fitting into strong, muscled shoulders. 

I was most pleased with his spring of rib, and elbows that 

fight tightly against a great depth of chest. He stood on 

lovely feet, and is of correct bone. He is a true square dog, 

in solid, muscled body condition; he has the most level of 

toplines, and a beautifully correct, set on high, straight tail. 

He was beautiful to watch as he moved soundly and effortlessly, 

head held high, with a “straightforward trot with light 

springy action and strong hindquarter drive.” 

first go round that I would have to “split hairs” to get my 

task accomplished. I am not going to express any negative 

comments in regards to any of the exhibits. It was a great 

lineup. In addition, I have the greatest respect, and hold in 

the highest regard, the handlers, owners, and breeders of all 

three Variety winners. However, on the day, the Miniature 

dog, Ch. Campostela The Perfect Storm, was not to be denied. 

My comments will be limited to him. 

I was pleased to examine a lovely head, with a lot of chiseling 

under the eye so lacking in the breed at times, plenty of under 

jaw, a mouth full of teeth correctly aligned, with beautiful almond 

shaped eyes, full of expression. The Miniature has a 


The Standard and the Toy both share 

many of these qualities, but on the 

day, the Miniature “had it all”, and as 

I stood there and looked at the three of 

them, I could not send the Miniature 

home with anything less than the Best 

of Breed Award. 

Best of Opposite Sex to Best of Breed 

to the Standard BOV winning bitch, 

Ch. Randenn Tristar Affirmation, a 

lovely black bitch, beautifully presented, 

and in impeccable condition. 

Best Puppy in Show to the white Standard 

bitch, Brighton Lakecove Encore. 

An exciting puppy to say the very least, 

uses herself extremely well, lovely 

head and eye, a pleasure to watch in 

the circle. 

Best in Bred by Exhibitor Classes to the black Miniature, 

Dassin Hillwood Dierks Bentley. A handsome dog of correct 

proportion, lovely tail set and carriage, beautiful head 

and eye, steady moving dog in complete balance at all times 

coming and going and in the circle. Shown with great enthusiasm 

and in admirable condition by his breeder, he continues 

the Dassin standard of dependable Poodle type. 

Best Veteran in Show to the white Toy, Ch. North Well Chako 

JP Platina King. This 8 year old Toy is still an exciting 

dog to judge in my opinion, and although I understand this 

was his last official outing, the Top Dog All Breeds from 

cont. on page 8

cont. from page 7 

2004 is one I will always consider an ideal Toy. He is well 

in size, is 100% a Toy dog, he exudes great confidence, has 

never been seen in less than spectacular condition, and connects 

with Mr. Brazier the way great dogs always do to their 

handlers. 

Best Stud Dog in Show to the black Toy, Ch. Baliwick Billy 

the Kid. Considering the two get that were shown with him, 

this is a very consistent sire. The two were evenly matched, 

both of good body, fair of face and expression, steady on the 

move, and not overdone in any way. Exactly as Toy Poodles 

should be in my opinion. 

Best Brood Bitch in Show to the white Standard, Ch. Brighton 

Curtain Call. The dam of my Best Puppy in Show, she 

has made a marked contribution the breed. The two get 

shown with their mother will continue the tradition of excellence 

this family has set for itself! 

Best Brace in Show to the white Standard pair, Admiration 

Charmed I’m Sure, and Admiration Come Fly With Me. I 

admire anyone that attempts this feat of athleticism, and the 

handler of this pair has obviously done a lot of work with 

them! The two for the most moved in great harmony, at 

times, almost as one. 

Lastly, I want to thank the membership of Poodle Club of 

America for trusting me with this honor, my stewards for 

their help and efficiency, and as always, all of the committees 

that see to everything one could possibly imagine. 

Advertising 

Mary Lebet, Catalog Advertising Chairman and Sandy 

Marshall, Assistant Chairman, are please to announce 

the Catalog Advertising Contest winners for 2009 

- 1st - Sandra Fanelli - P. 332-333 - Come Sail Away 

- 2nd - Poodle Health Registry - P. 118-119 - Sailing 

to Salisbury 

- 3rd - Jan Hopper - P. 207 - too young to sail 

- Honorable mention - P. 103 - Poodle Club of Hawaii 

- We have navigated the stars 

- Special Achievement - Julie Pantages - P. 279 Pudel’n 

our way to Salisbury 

Choosing the winners was especially hard this year because 

the theme produced so many creative and artistic 

- and beautiful!!! - ads 

- Congratulations to all the contestants - you really 

made the catalog outstanding!!! 

Page 8 

Notes from Glenna: 


Seems impossible – PCA, 2009 is history – and a history 

making National it was. The Civic Center was especially 

beautiful – resplendent with topiary Poodles and ring design 

completed by Missy and her assistants - Joyce, Paul, Michael 

and Michael. Many people commented on the stunning 

décor. 

And, a banner event for 2009 – PCA hosted our first Tracking 

event – well received, attended and the dogs were terrific. 

Following the tracking tests were the Hunting Retriever 

Trials and WC/WCX. These events are spectacular as they 

show case our favorite breed doing the things they do best. 

Dana, Claudia, Linda, Joyce and many other volunteers set 

the pace for our full week of Poodle events. 

“Sailing to Salisbury”, our theme, was well presented in the 

catalog – many striking ads all packaged to perfection by 

Mary and Sandy. 

Meanwhile the vendors were having a better year – Laz and 

Aileen coordinate this important part of PCA perfectly. 

Food – there was and it was excellent – thanks to the planning 

and presentation provided by Toni, Mary, Ralph and 

Kay and Claudia. 

Health clinics were successfully presented by PCA’s Foundation, 

coordinated by Mrs. Pat Forsyth– it is very important 

that we offer as many opportunities as possible for breeders 

to have genetic testing done. Thanks to the Foundation for 

these clinics and their successful Foundation Seminar. 

Meanwhile, the hospitality room was again a gathering point 

for international guests, committee members and judges. 

Lois, Mary Ellen, Barbara, Joan, Holly, Marlene and many 

others hosted the room and presented treats for all - thank 

you so much! 

Joining the other committees are new trophy chairpersons, 

Joann and Bob Steele. Bob was unable to join Joann in 

Salisbury – we noticed Holly, Sandy and Inge helping Joann 

and Barbara when needed. 

Debbie West, Linda Morris and Ann Mandelbaum presented 

out Agility, Obedience and Rally events – a wonderful beginning 

to our indoor events at the Civic Center. 

Peggy and her stewards kept the conformation rings running 

smoothly – and our judges were appreciative and complimentary 

cont. on page 9


Often overlooked – but without whose help PCA’s National 

would NEVER happen – those hard-working members who 

comprise our grounds committee – Bill, Brad, Dorothea, 

Karen and their volunteers who are always available to move 

this, find that, put this up…the list goes on. 

Salisbury, MD, the community and the Wicomico Tourism 

Center led by Sandy Fulton support out National is so many 

ways – both financially and by coordinating the whole area 

as they welcome our Poodles and our days spent in their 

lovely area. We thank them for everything they make possible 

for PCA! 

Dennis McCoy again held a very successful live auction for 

entry numbers into the grooming area in 2010. The funds 

raised in this endeavor are used to continue to make PCA’s 

National the beautiful, one-of-a-kind Specialty it is. 

Reserved seating was revised this year and was again a success 

– with most seating reserved in advance of the show 

– thanks Kathy for coordinating this 

Andy, Lisa, Scott and Leslie were terrific with out audio 

and video projects – along with our video photographer, Irv 

Krukenkamp – exciting things happened which we will expand 

on in 2010. 

Scott, Lisa, Nancy and Gina conducted a very successful 

judge’s education group who enjoyed the daily guidance of 

ringside monitors and an afternoon with video presentations 

and hands-on evaluation of Poodles. 

With my thanks to the many members and non-members 

who work for Poodles each year (and I hope I have not forgotten 

anyone), I thank PCA’s Assistant Show Chairman, 

Art Foran. 2009 was Arthur’s first year in this difficult and 

demanding position – one he executed with grace and good 

humor. However, he is not convinced of what he was once 

told: “Don’t worry about it. The Show runs itself!” Arthur 

learned the Show runs itself with advance planning, a large 

binder with MANY subdivisions, a terrific memory and superb 

organization. And – we all get along with a lot of help 

from our friends! Thanks, Arthur! 

PCA has another friend who is always ready to help and has 

my grateful thanks. She is always willing to run an errand, 

go-for or do anything else asked of her – most just know her 

as “Debbie”. She is my long-time friend, Deb Spickler. 

Yes, 2010 is already in the early planning stages. We are 

happy to be returning to Salisbury and the Wicomico Civic 

Center with PCA taking center stage Friday, April 23 – Friday, 

April 30. It is time to mark your calendars and planning 

Page 9 

your entry for 2010’s Greatest Poodle Show on Earth. 


I wish you a wonderful year filled with good health, happy 

and winning Poodles. 

Glenna Carlson 

National Show Chairman 

Raffle Thank you’s 

Here we are, again, thanking everyone who helped us at 

the Raffle Table to have another successful year. How 

lucky can we be! The wonderful donations we receive 

from our vendors, as well as Poodle lovers in general 

that make our table so exciting; the wonderful people 

who give up their precious time year after year to work 

at the table; and the wonderful people who purchase 

tickets again and again with hopes of getting the things 

that are the most appealing to them. Without all of the 

above, the Raffle Table would just not happen. How 

lucky we are that you are all there for us. Thank you 

again. 

Alice Wolaniuk, Patty Moulthrop, June Noyes and June 

Thompson. 

From Debbie West: 

I can’t believe that PCA has come and gone already. This was 

my first year as Agility Trial chair and It was FUN. When 

Glenna asked, she said that it mostly meant that I would have 

to be a cheerleader on the day, not much more. It was a bit 

more than that, but it was fun. Kathy and Art Foran, who 

are so organized and willing to share their time and expertise 

and Jan Hopper who has done this many times helped so 

much and answered all questions. 

I am always over extended in regard to time commitments 

that I did really question my ability to do one more job. I 

then thought about the community of people that I had to 

ask for help and that I would be helping and that made my 

answer easy. Poodle people and especially agility people 

know how to rise to the job and never was I unable to get the 

necessary workers for any job. We even had people fighting 

over jobs. Many people thanked me for being the Chair. but 

I want to Thank you, the poodle agility community for making 

my job Fun. 

I would like to congratulate Lee Spector and his poodle Buddy 

who was our High In Trial. Lee and Buddy’s course time 

was 33% faster than the allowed time. They were blazing. 

Debbie and the mostly mini crew

Page 10 

© Photos by Leslie Newing 


Page 11 


© Photos by Leslie Newing

Our new Poodle Friends from HK, China 

Page 12 

Sailing to Salisbury for PCA: from Arthur 

This was their first trip to visit America, Peggy McDill our 

club Secretary, sent invitation to twenty six people to come 

to The Poodle Club of America’s Show and out of this number 

we had nine to be able to accept our invitation this year. 

Our venue was such a knockout inside with air conditioning 

and green grass and what a great learn experience for 

them. YES, they hired a TAXI to attend the Hunting event 

on Monday afternoon. The group was very helpful in teaching 

them all that they train the Poodles to do and how it all 

works. The land owner gave them a tour of his new boarding 

“Doggie Lodge” and then was so nice to drive them 

back to our hotel. When I got back from the Board Meeting 

they were having TEA and Cookies in the Hotel Lobby and 

had so many fun stories that they were telling each other. 

AS I took them out on my lunch break with directions in 

hand and the TAXI following . We walked over and were 

quiet as not to upset the dogs working and introduced them 

to several and had to leave them as I had to go back to the 

Board Meeting. They had such a great time learning about 

all Poodles as they attended every event that took place to 

see what Poodles could do! Thanks to all who visited and 

tried to give them information on these events that Poodles 

were able to perform. 

They went over early every day to the Civic Center to see 

everything that was the event for the day. They loved all the 

raffles and bought lots of tickets and some won and some of 

course didn’t but they had a great time! They had donated a 

Best Puppy Trophy and it was awarded outside the ring on 

Friday. What a thrill that was for them to get their picture 

taken with the winner. This picture along with many of the 

photo’s well over 2,000(I was told) will be in every paper in 

all of China! 

They are already making plans on next years trip to USA and 

The Poodle Club of America’s Show. 

Thanks to all who were so kind in helping with transportation 

and visiting with them about “POODLES” they loved 

every minute of our SHOW, the shopping, the visiting and 

meeting all of you ! 

Thanks, 

Nancy Hafner 

“ Live your life and forget your age.” 

PCA 2009 is now History. It was a great show and, like 

all PCA Nationals, had some added features this year that 

made it unique. 

VENDOR BINGO: This game was funded entirely by the 

Wicomico County Bureau of Tourism, to increase the number 

of visitors to our Vendor area. It was a great success 

and we understand that the County intends to increase the 

level of funding next year so that even more exhibitors, and 

Vendors, can benefit from the idea. 

WEB CAM: Irv 

Krukenkamp of Show 

Dog Video Pros 

stepped in on short notice 

to fill our need for 

a videographer. He was 

also able to provide us 

with two Webcams for 

Wednesday, Thursday, 

and Friday’s judging. 

This was a “first” for 

PCA and seemed to 

be very well received. 

Irv reported the PCA 

Webcam site received 

a staggering 1 million 

hits per day! Those 

who saw the Webcam 

images reported they were so clear that they could identify 

individual spectators. (I guess this means I’ll need to wear 

a tie next year!) 

FRONT ROW SEATING: This year we increased the number 

of reserved seats by placing them around three sides of 

the ring/s. All 112 front-row seats were offered at a lower 

than last year pre-show price and most were sold through 

this pre-purchase option. 

ADDITIONAL X-PENS: A PCA member-exhibitor suggested 

that it might be a good idea to have two additional 

x-pens set up in the loading dock area in case of rain. 

MB-F provided those additional pens at our request, and 

as you all know, it did rain the first few days of the show. 

It appears that many Poodles -- and their groomers -- were 

grateful they didn’t have to dodge raindrops to use the outdoor 

x-pens this year. 

NORMAN VINCENT PEALE 


PRE-PAID RV PARKING: To speed up the move-in process, 

we offered an opportunity to pre-pay for RV parking 

spaces this year and it was a big hit. By eliminating most 

cont. on page 13


of the Saturday 

evening and Sunday 

morning RV 

registration process 

and by using 

a single-file waiting 

line on Saturday, 

the Civic 

Center was able 

to reduce the total 

initial entry time 

to the RV parking 

area/s to just over 

one hour. 

C E N T R A L - 

IZED TICKET 

TABLE: We 

centralized the 

distribution and 

at-show purchase 

of Luncheon, 

Dinner and Reserved Seating tickets at a single, centrally 

located table on the Arena floor. This approach cut down on 

the confusion about where tickets could be purchased and 

where pre-paid tickets could be collected. It also reduced 

the number of volunteers needed to staff these functions. 

AGILITY EQUIPMENT: Since moving to Salisbury, PCA 

has rented its Agility equipment from the Salisbury Maryland 

Kennel Club. This worked well until SMKC moved 

its own Agility Trial dates to the 3 days prior to PCA. This 

put some pressure on SMKC to hastily wrap up their Sunday 

Trial in order to get their equipment to the Civic Center in 

time for PCA’s use. To eliminate this pressure on SMKC, 

we re-engaged our previous equipment supplier, MAX 200. 

Not only did this make life easier for SMKC, it also gave 

our exhibitors a chance to purchase agility equipment onsite 

at a discounted price. It was a successful strategy for 

everyone. 

POODLE RESCUE FOUNDATION: We were able to move 

the Rescue Foundation booth from its Lobby location to the 

Normandy Arena on Wednesday, which greatly increased 

traffic to their booth. 

WICOMICO COUNTY KIOSK: In past years, we have 

tried to answer show attendees’ questions about local restaurants 

and nearby attractions. To improve that effort this year, 

Wicomico County set up a new kiosk in the Civic Center 

Main Lobby, staffed full-time by County personnel who provided 

Vendor Bingo Cards, restaurant coupons, local maps 

and personalized answers to many attendees’ questions. 

Page 13 


This year it seemed that everyone was in a good mood, that 

the show was a success, and that Sailing to Salisbury for 

PCA was a big hit. 

Now we start on 2010 

Judges Education: 

The new powerpoint for Judges Education was well received 

and attended. 

The ringside mentoring was full of new judges and our mentors. 

Great space was given to us by the Show Chairman 

again this year. Thank You, Thank You! 

We had several who 

helped with each of the 

Varieties in mentoring. 

Many of our judges did 

stay all three days to 

see and learn all they 

could about our BREED. 

Thanks to all that help 

with the mentoring and 

letting us use their dogs 

for hands on and moving 

them at the Seminar. 

We suggested that they 

go back into the grooming 

area to be able to talk 

with the handler’s and 

go over some of the dogs. 

This was most appreciated by all. Have had several wonderful 

notes and cards and email from our PCA Judges Education 

Students Thanking US for our help and all stated they 

appreciated the Judges Education Program, the good mentors 

they had been assigned to help them understand POODLES. 

They went home with a good understanding of our breed. 

Thanks to all those who replied to the Yahoo list on the request 

for our Judges Education questioner. 

Judges Education, 

Nancy Hafner, Gina Wieser and Scott Wolfe

Page 14 


Page 15 


Hospitality at PCA 

This year the hospitality room at PCA was busier then ever. 

There were many countries represented at the international 

table. Japan, China, Scotland, Brazil, Argentina, France, 

England, Australia, Slovenia, and Canada.. Lois Noble and 

I would like to thank all the members and supporters who 

helped work . 

This is a job that starts at 6:00 a.m. picking up platters and 

plugging in coffee pots, and goes often until 8:00 p.m. ordering 

the next days platters and picking up fresh supplies. The 

room is never left unmanned. 

There is work to do all day: refreshing platters, keeping the 

judges and stewards tables supplied and cleaning. It is a job 

that does not give its workers the applause they deserve. We 

would like to give our appreciation to these people: Barbara 

Deer, Jan Hopper, Joan Kress, Daniel Augustus, Barbara 

Conley, Lisa and Scott Wolf, Linda Morris and anyone who 

donated their time and effort. 

I would also like to thank the Kinglsy’s for taking care of the 

Legislation cards and the e mail address coupon card while 

they manned the catalogue table. 

Mary Ellen Fishler 

Please join the board of governors 

in welcoming our new members for 

2009! 

Nancy & Jack Baker 

(321) 267-1738 

P.O. Box 339 

Scottsmoor, Fl 32775 

Email: nancy@nanjacpoodles.com / jackb339@gmail. 

com 

Kennel Name: Nanjac Toy Poodles 

Affiliate Club: Tampa Bay Poodle Club 

Anita McKenna 

(908) 237 2762 

8 Knoll Tavern Rd. 

Flemington, NJ 08822 

Email: anitamckenna@hotmail.com 

Kennel Name: Robin Hill Standard and Miniature 

Poodles 

Affiliate Club: Watchung Mountain Poodle Club 

Page 16 


Sheree Stone Melancon 

(832) 212 1306 

9911 Palisade Lake Drive 

Houston, TX 77905 

Email: jamesamelancon@hotmail.com 

Kennel Name: Deaux Rey Standard Poodles 

Affiliate Club: Bluebonnet Poodle Club 

Kathleen Poe 

(916) 723 9172 

8125 San Cosme Dr. 

Citrus Heights, CA 95610 

Email: Kathy@barkingpoodles.com 

Kennel Name: Barking Poodles Miniature Poodles 

Affiliate club: Poodle Club of Central California 

Clay Williams 

(972) 727 8968 C(214) 403 3303 

1314 Clearview Dr. 

Allen, TX 75002-2912 

Email: k9clay@tx.rr.com 

Kennel Name: Monogram Toy & Standard Poodles 

Affiliate Club: Lone Star PC 

Valerie Wilmot 

(817) 868 1512 

408 Catalpa Lane 

Euless TX 76039 

Email: VAWilmot@aol.com 

Kennel Name: Shimmer Ring Standard Poodles 

Affiliate Club; Lone Star PC 

Respectfully Submitted, 

Peggy McDill 

Corresponding Secretary 

“ It’s faith in something and 

enthusiasm for something that 

makes a life worth living.” 

OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES

PUSH-ME-PULL-YOU 

Opposition reflex is a phenomenon that has been experienced 

by anyone who has owned a dog, or has had a child, 

or who deals with people in any way. It basically means that 

when you push or pull on the dog or person one way, they go 

the other. It is not a thought-out process on the part of the 

one being pushed or pulled, it is, just as the term suggests, a 

reflex. On the part of dogs, the common observed scenario 

is a person pulling on the leash and the dog putting on the 

brakes; or, a person pulling a dog back while it drags them 

forward. With parents and children, the parent tries to guide 

the toddler by the hand, and the child pulls back or goes limp 

and collapses. With husbands, the wife says, “You need to 

lose weight,” and the husband orders chicken-fried steak and 

fries. The old saying, “The grass is always greener on the 

other side of the fence,” is nothing but opposition reflex explained 

in bovine terms. A restraining fence causes the animal 

to strive to be on the other side. Many dogs become escape 

artists, usually not because they particularly want what 

is on the other side of the fence, but because an irresistible 

force within them wants to escape confines. 

Opposition reflex probably has at its roots a defensive mechanism 

that causes the animal or man to try to escape a predator 

or escape being trapped. Quick action is needed in such 

circumstances—thus a reflex rather than a thought process 

guides the evasive action. 

Certain groups of trainers have learned to use opposition 

reflex effectively to get dogs to do what they want. Sled 

and other draft dogs pull against the harness and propel the 

sled or cart forward. Trainers of police dogs use opposition 

reflex to teach dogs to attack. They hold the dogs back and 

tease them until the dogs are growling and lunging forward 

with power and excitement. 

Unfortunately, most dog owners unwittingly use opposition 

reflex to teach unwanted behaviors. One often sees conformation 

people trying to drag puppies that have not been sufficiently 

leash-trained around the ring. Dogs which fencefight 

passing dogs, pedestrians, or cars have advanced their 

opposition reflex into a crazed psychosis. Most cases of 

dog-on-dog aggression and dog-on-people aggression started 

with a dog being restrained behind a fence, window, or 

door, or being restrained on a leash or tie-out chain, or being 

held in someone’s lap. The dog was effectively restrained 

while being “teased”—in this case by passing people, cars, 

dogs, or wildlife—just as the police and military train dogs 

to attack. Eventually whatever originally piqued the dog’s 

interest goes away, making the dog believe that its show of 

aggression caused the retreat. The aggressive behavior becomes 

very self-rewarding with its accompanying adrenalin 

rush. This is why dogs attack postal carriers or other 

Page 17 


people who come to the door, or people who reach for them 

when they are in someone’s lap. They have gradually gotten 

bolder and bolder with the barking, lunging, and carrying on, 

because nothing ever happens to them, and the “intruder” always 

“retreats.” If the dog were in the wild, the chances are 

good that he would get his clock cleaned if he rushed headlong 

at an intruder. He would be more cautious in the future. 

When dogs jump on people, and the people push them down 

or knee them, the dogs keep coming back for more. People 

trying to get a dogs to come to them tend to snatch them 

when they get within reach, causing the dogs to bolt or stay 

just out of reach in the future. 

One can observe many cases of opposition reflex at work 

watching people train dogs for obedience. The dog lags, 

the person pulls or jerks on the lead, and the dog puts on the 

brakes. Pretty soon, the dog associates the lagging position 

with the leash pull, and stops or lags more whenever he finds 

himself a little behind. The behavior is shaped on lead, then 

becomes more pronounced when the leash is off. Trainers 

often knee a dog which is crowding. This typically causes 

the dog to lean into the handler even more, until heeling becomes 

a “contact sport” to the dog. People often try to train 

stays by jerking or manipulating the dog back where it was 

left. The more they put the dog back, the more it wants to 

leave. People walking their dogs in the park can often be 

observed being drug forward by their dogs while they pull 

back. One would think the thought process of the dog would 

make it get tired of choking and gagging and expending its 

energy in this way, but the behavior is not caused by thought. 

It is caused by a reflex. One would think that it would occur 

to people that the more they pull back, the more the dog pulls 

against them, but it rarely does. Could it be opposition reflex 

on the part of the HANDLER that is causing him to continue 

pulling, jerking, and pushing against the dog, when it obviously 

is not causing the desired results? 

In many cases, if the handler would stop his tug-of-war or 

pushing contest with the dog, he could think how to use opposition 

reflex to his advantage. When one of my students is 

having a hard time keeping his dog with him when heeling 

off-lead, I often attach a light line to the dog and keep applying 

gentle pressure to pull the dog AWAY from them. After 

only a bit of work to get the dog to understand what is happening, 

the dog is straining with every muscle to try to get 

back to his handler and stay in heel position. Many people 

who are training stays gently pull the dog’s leash to get the 

dog to pull back and resist moving. For many dogs which 

jump up on their owners, taking hold of the dogs’ front feet 

and holding them in the jumping-up position until they are 

very unhappy about being there, is a very effective cure. The 

dogs start wanting DOWN instead of UP! 

cont. on page 18

cont from page 17 

In almost any case where the dog is pulling on the leash towards 

some desired destination or object of interest, rather 

than hauling back on the leash, which causes the dog to pull 

more, one can “goose” the dog from the rear with a toe, or 

pull on his tail, or grab his “skirts,” and thus trigger his opposition 

reflex to cause him to turn his back on what he wanted. 

Adding a “leave it” command to the “goose” quickly teaches 

the dog to ignore whatever he was looking at (tidbit on the 

ground, another dog, the person he was about to jump on), 

and keep his eye on his “sneaky” handler instead. 

When training a dog to walk on a leash, one can get the dog 

to move forward much more quickly if he will loosen the 

leash instead of tightening it. Coupling that with the handler 

FACING THE DIRECTION HE WANTS TO GO instead 

of facing the dog, and luring the dog with food will usually 

work to get the dog started. If a puppy I am leash-training 

is resisting, I pick the puppy up and take him away from 

his familiar place, then walk him back toward it, and he is 

generally more willing to go. For instance, walk toward the 

house instead of away from it. Or, walk toward the other 

dogs instead of away from them. Be sure to praise the puppy 

and give it the treats when it moves, and not when it is pulling 

back, or it is the pulling back that is being rewarded. 

For the dog that pulls on its leash while being walked, quickly 

reversing one’s direction and heading the other way with 

purpose, and repeating as often as the dog pulls, will eventually 

cause the dog to quit pulling. The handler does not get 

very far on the first few walks when using this method, but 

the dog usually figures out that he’s making no progress and 

he’s not in charge, and he quits the behavior (pulling on the 

leash) that he has discovered triggers the handler’s reverse. 

Page 18 

Understanding and using a dog’s opposition reflex can increase 

the effectiveness of the serious competitor or the casual 

dog owner. 

“ Poodle” 

By LaDonna Olanyk 

(~written for Fred, my standard poodle friend~) 

A poodle has such poise and grace, 

With well-coiffed fur and lovely face. 

The dainty feet with manicures, 

That “poodle” image he endures. 

A playful comic, furry clown, 

His joyfulness can’t be toned down. 

Matching ribbons, scarf and hat - 

What other dogs submit to that? 

With curly lashes, fluffed up ears, 

But ... all is not as it appears. 

Deep down inside, beneath the fluff, 

A poodle’s made of tougher stuff. 

Many agility people use opposition reflex to get their dogs 

A fierce protector to his friends 

to speed up when going towards or over contact obstacles. 

We put a target (food or toy or touch-target) out, and then 

He’ll growl and bite as he defends. 

put gentle pressure backwards on the lead. Food alone often 

does not cause a dog to hurry, but holding the dog back from 

A loyal soulmate by your side, 

it does. One of my pet peeves at agility trials is people and 

their dogs leaving the ring after their run, mowing down everyone 

in their paths—the dogs dragging their handlers back 

A pal in whom you can confide. 

to the crates to get a treat. I have particularly noticed that it 

A friend who listens to your fears 

is the slowest dogs on the course that are the most enthusiastic 

when dragging their handlers back to the crates. The 

And licks your face to wipe your tears. 

handlers seem to have some idea that encouraging the dog 

to run AWAY from the agility obstacles is going to somehow 

A poodle’s skills are oft ignored, 

make them want to hurry TOWARDS the agility obstacles. 

One result of this questionable training tool is that the dog 

But nonetheless, they’re still adored. 

decides to leave the agility course before he has finished the 

course in order to rush back to the crate for a treat. Another 

result is that some timid dog or unsteady handler gets 

6-1-07 

knocked around right before his turn in the ring. 

sent in via the internet by Sandy Marshall 


Page 19 

Poodle Club of America Awards Alice Wolaniuk 

With the 

AKC Outstanding Sportsmanship Award 

In the American Kennel Club’s on going efforts to recognize and celebrate its 

volunteer Club members, The AKC Outstanding Sportsmanship Award program 

was established in 2006 to provide each member club with an AKC Medallion to 

award to one of its own on a yearly basis. 

This year the 

board of the 

Poodle Club 

of America 

unanimously 

awarded the 

AKC Outs 

t a n d i n g 

Sportsmanship Award to long time working 

member Alice Wolaniuk. I am thrilled to 

write this article. After all, I have known her 

since my childhood. 

This award honors those individuals who have 

made a difference in the sport of purebred 

dogs,who deserve special recognition, embodied the AKC Code of Sportsmanship, 

and have been an active and valued member of an AKC member club. Medallions 

are awarded solely at the club’s discretion. 

Alice is known for breeding under the prefix of Kuinalow, a line of top winning black and brown toy poodles, 

including Ch. Kuinalow Graham Cracker, 1978 PCA BOV winner from the Bred By Exhibitor class. She is one 

of the founding members of the Affiliate William Penn Poodle Club. If you have ever visited the raffle tables at 

our National Specialty, you have met Alice. Her willingness to work tirelessly with a notable and constant sense 

of humor, and to help educate any newcomer to the breed and sport, is her legacy to Poodle Club of America. 

This is just one aspect of her life that makes her a constant source 

of pride to her husband of 57 years, Frank, and her children Gail 

and Steve. 

Submitted By 



Page 20 

Affiliate Club News 

“AFFILIATE CLUB DUES 

Our PCA Treasurer, Scott Olund, has advised me that there 

are quite a number of Affiliate Clubs who as of the date of 

our National Specialty had not paid their annual dues. 

Annual dues both for individuals and Affiliate Clubs were 

due on March 1 for 2009. Last year, it was voted by the 

Board that Clubs who were in arrears for the time allotted 

in our present bylaws, 60 days, would be dropped from 

membership and would have to reapply. Only in “meritorious 

cases” would an additional grace period be allowed. 

If you have any doubt as to whether or not your club’s 

Treasurer has paid the annual dues, please make inquiries 

to determine if your club has paid the dues and is “in good 

standing”. 

Helen Lee James 

Our program was given by Del Dahl and myself and the 

subject was organizing modules of learning to help breeders, 

judges, and exhibitors “Develop a Comparative Language 

Based on the Breed Standard”. 

My contribution was a lead in with a brief discussion of oral 

critiques. Del’s portion of the program was inspirational, 

practical, and very educational based upon a program he is 

developing which will be of inestimable value to our Affiliate 

Clubs if they choose to take advantage of it. 

His program was concerned with his “first module”, General 

Appearance, and a “facilitator’s guide” which provided 

instructions to a club to introduce this type of learning. He 

wanted all of us to understand that we must use language, a 

comparative vocabulary, which consistently describes a dog 

and which we all comprehend. 

Del explained this concept very well and gave examples of 

terms consistently used in judging cattle or halter horses. 

© Shella Barclay 

Sandstorm Miniatures 

BIG CONGRATULATIONS! 

Another OTCH Poodle was achieved by OCTH MACH 

Sandstorm Skedaddle! Skid is owned by Rhonda Clark of 

Lubbock , TX and bred by Joann Neal. 

Skirt’s dam is CH OTCH MACH Braylane Betty’s Bein’ 

Bad, which makes Skid a third generation triple champion. 

He is sired by Ch Songbird Rock My Way TP and out of CH 

OTCH MACH Sandstorm Skirt Alert. 

Skid is only the fifth poodle in any variety to earn this title! 

Skid is also the first dog Ronda has earned a OTCH and 

MACH with.....pretty awesome! 


It is my hope that as this program develops and the other 

modules become available all of our Affiliate Clubs will take 

advantage of what I believe to be the best opportunity ever 

presented for an in depth learning experience. 

The number of people attending our Affiliate Club Council 

was disappointing and very few clubs were represented. 

Those who chose to attend the raffle or some other activity 

missed an exciting opportunity. 


Second Vice President 

Poodle Club of America 

Regional? 

Is your club interested in hosting a 

Regional? 

Contact 


at 

horselesscarriage8@msn.com 

Tel: 303-979-7638

TOY REPRESENTATIVE 

It was great seeing everyone in the ring showing all the 

beautiful Toy Poodles again this year. Congratulations to 

all! Our attendance was down somewhat HOWEVER, every 

class had several nice Toy’s in many of our colors to 

observe. I always try to remind myself and others of the 

fact that everyone wants to win their class, Winners Dog, 

Winners Bitch and Best of Variety. That just isn’t a reality, 

its all about bringing your breeding stock to show the Poodle 

World of your accomplishments for the year of 2009! To 

see how your Toy Poodles measurer up to your competition! 

Also to visit with your Poodle Friends that you may only get 

to see once a year. 

IT was great for you to bring your dogs over and put on the 

table for a up close view for our aspiring new Poodle judges 

to observe at ringside. Thank You for your help on this new 

idea for “Judges Education” this year. 

Hope to see a good entry at the Regional. 

Enjoy a safe summer of fun with your Poodles! 

Nancy Hafner 

From Michael Wahlig 

Standard Representative 

After 8 days of events at the 2009 National Specialty show 

I have been asked to comment on what the Standard Poodle 

variety was like when we first became involved with the 

breed, what it is like today and what I see for the future. 

When we first started in Poodles, life was simple, it was divided 

into Wycliffe, Bel Tor, Alekai and Dassin. Jean Lyle, 

Becky Mason, Wendell Sammet and Bud Dickey were formidable 

breeders and advocates for their lines. If you were 

starting out you became an acolyte of one of these lines and 

that is how you saw the world. I remember spending hours 

looking at Poodle Review stud issues focusing on the tiny 

black and white photos of the big stud dogs of the day trying 

to discern everything you could from the picture and the 

accompanying pedigree. Ch. Wycliffe Thomas, Ch Wycliffe 

Kenneth, Ch. Dassin Debauchery and Ch. Bel Tor Big Picture 

seemed to be in a race to breed every bitch in the country. 

Page 21 

Poodles as Jean Lyle did, imposing, handsome and BLACK. 

Every once in a while we would stray and find ourselves 

looking at pictures of Big Picture and seeing a certain refinement 

that was attractive, or we’d see something in the 

white Alekai dogs of the day that attracted us. Debauchery 

lived just in the next state and his owner Joyce Bachner was 

a presence on the local show scene so Debauchery was always 

a dog to watch. When we first started showing we ran 

directly into two young siblings, Lou-Gin’s Kiss Me Kate 

and her brother Lou-Gin’s Solitaire. Over the next several 

years, as Kate enjoyed her fabulous specials career, we were 

reminded regularly that the Poodle world was much more 

than just imposing, handsome and BLACK dogs. 

As we progressed as exhibitors and then breeders and began 

to learn about type, style and soundness as well as focusing 

on the health of our dogs, the simple life became much more 

complicated. Eventually lines started to fade, you’d hear 

about someone breeding a Wycliffe dog to a Bel Tor bitch, or 

a black to a white. You’d hear about inherited health problems 

such as bloat or hip dysplasia in certain lines and worry 

about how to avoid those problems in your breeding. Health 

testing consisted of OFA x-rays. Bloat was the same problem 

it is today, and everyone had their own theory on how 

to deal with it. 

Over time, Jean and Becky departed the scene and their 

visions blended as breeders looked to create the future for 

Standard Poodles. Of course, both the Dassin and Alekai 

lines continue to put their stamp on contemporary Standard 

Poodles. We had the opportunity early on in our career to 

meet and entertain both Jean and Becky (however, not at 

the same time). They were fascinating women who really 

put all their energy into their breeding programs, were great 

advocates for what they believed and their lines were clearly 

the result of each of their own very focused visions of what 

made a Standard Poodle. 

Today’s Standard variety, evidenced by the dogs shown at 

the 2009 National Specialty, reflect the work of breeders 

of the last 30 plus years to create their own vision of the 

Standard Poodle using the lines that were predominant in 

the 1970’s. There has been a blending of styles and colors 

over the years, but the result is, in my mind, a type that still 

reflects the language of the Poodle breed standard “That of a 

very active, intelligent and elegant appearing dog, squarely 

built, well proportioned, moving soundly and carrying himself 

proudly.” 

Our first Standard Poodle show dog, Degana Sams Alex 

Joshua, an infinitely patient dog whose championship was 

greatly delayed by his amateur handlers, had a number of 

Wycliffe dogs in his pedigree and so we came to see Standard 


I was pleased to get this writing assignment from Leslie 

Newing because it meant that my “job” at PCA this year was 

to sit and watch the Standard judging. “Can you sell T-shirts 

for an hour Mike?”, “Sorry, I’m busy doing my ‘job’ ”. 

cont. on page 22


From my seat in the bleachers, outlines, side picture and 

overall movement were very impressive. Grooming and 

presentation continue to excel. Temperaments were sound 

with only a couple of the entrants not enjoying themselves. 

I know people bring their best to PCA, but I was still very 

excited by what I saw. This year I saw more strength in the 

Dog classes than I did in the Bitch classes. The Winners 

Dog, who went on to Best of Winners, was everything I like 

in a Standard Poodle. 

I listened carefully to the Standard judge, Dr Donald Sturz 

Jr., speak at the PCA dinner on Friday evening. He presented 

one of the more thoughtful judging critiques that I 

have heard in a number of years. Hopefully, he will have an 

opportunity to write about his judging assignment. Since my 

observation was mostly from the bleacher seats, it would be 

interesting to have his comments on strengths and opportunities 

for our variety in writing. 

I am not a Pollyanna. Over the years, I have put in great efforts 

to focus on the problems of our Standards, and I’m well 

aware that handlers are very well paid to present the dogs in 

the best light possible, but overall, I was very excited to see 

the quality of entrants this year. 

To me the most interesting and challenging phenomenon in 

Poodles today is the technology and scientific advances that 

are available to breeders and our biggest challenge is how 

we use the technology and scientific advances to better our 

Standards. One example of the technology advancements 

is that around 30 years ago breeders started to “collect” their 

stud dog’s sperm and freeze it. The technology was new and 

not always trustworthy and in those days it was so expensive 

that few people could do it. 

When we were just getting going as breeders, a young dog 

came on the scene and took the Poodle world by storm. That 

dog was Ch. Eaton Affirmed. Through the use of modern 

technology, some 30+ years later his influence is still being 

directly felt in today’s Poodle world. His daughter, Ch. Randenn 

TriStar Affirmation, “Yes” is a formidable presence in 

the show world and this year’s Standard variety winner at 

PCA. That’s not great grand daughter or great, great grand 

daughter; that’s daughter. She’s a winner in the show ring, 

but is also a tremendous example of the results of modern 

day breeding technology and how that technology can be 

used by breeders. 

As a result of modem techniques of reproduction today’s 

breeders are going to have the ability to go back generations 

to pick the sire for their next litter. Also, with other advances 

in technology, it is much easier today to have the choice of 

Page 22 


any dog in the world as the sire of your next litter. It gives 

today’s breeders concentrating on the next generation great 

opportunities and also great challenges. 

In 2008 AKC registered 49 Al Poodle litters and 5 were from 

non-AKC registered sires or foreign dogs. I don’t have any 

further breakdown among the varieties, but my suspicion is 

the majority of these litters are Standard Poodle litters. 

Today’s breeders need to have the eye of an artist and the 

computer skills of an IBM programmer to manage the variables 

and the mountain of information they need to make a 

reasoned and informed breeding decision. The data bases 

available to breeders are much more informative than 30 

years ago, but they need to continue to strive to provide relevant 

and accurate information to assist breeders in making 

the best decisions they can. 

As to the future of the Standard variety, that is being decided 

in the whelping box every time a new litter is born. Breeders 

need to continue to focus on type, balance, temperament and 

the health of their breeding stock and the offspring they produce. 

Try to avoid the fads, the excesses and extremes and 

concentrate on the breed standard as they make breeding decisions. 

Breeders continue to have more and more information 

available to make thoughtful breeding decisions. Now 

they need to use that information to make the best breeding 

decisions possible. 

I think I’ll assign myself the same “job” next year at PCA, 

maybe I’ll even pay up for one of those ringside seats and 

see what another year has done to the Standard variety. 

New Poodle Judges 

Mr. Fred Dieball- Lapeer,MI 

Mrs Patricia Mowbray-Morgan- Lanesboro, 

MA 

Mrs. Sherry Swanson- Dublin,CA 

Mr. Irving Bonios, West Hollywood, CA 

Mrs. Karen Ashe-Parkville, MD 

Ms. Sharon Danley-White Beear,MN 

Mr. Alfred Ferruggiaro- Burtonsville, MD. 

Mrs Wendy Kobrzycki- Montgomery, MI 

Ms Patricia Laurans- Newtown, CT 

Mrs Kristi Tivilino-Seattle, WA

“PCA 2009-A Look to The Future” 

by Luis E. Aizcorbe 

PCA-Miniauture Poodle Representative. 

It was a blast, wasn’t it? In spite of the fact that this year’s 

entries were down, in this writer’s opinion the 2009 version 

of the Poodle Club of America National was as competitive 

and overall as enjoyable as any within recent memory. I 

spent substantial time during conformation judging, mentoring 

prospective judges, a number of which expressed being 

awed by the glamour, organization and overall atmosphere 

of the show; and of course, the quality of the entry. Some 

volunteered that they had never witnessed another comparable 

breed national. But we already knew that, didn’t we? 

Foreign visitors were equally free with their expressions of 

praise. To everyone, starting with club President, Jack Mac 

Gillivray, to Show Chairman extraordinaire, Glenna Carlson 

and her excellent Assistant, Arthur Foran to all committee 

heads, members and tireless workers, our thanks and congratulations 

for their selfless contribution to the success of 

this show. 

Class after class of elegant Standard Poodles entered the ring 

to the excitement and cheering of the crowd, culminating in 

the breathtaking Best of Variety Competition which brought 

together a group of some of the best poodles to be seen anywhere, 

before the discerning eye of Dr, Donald Sturz. It 

would be difficult for me to comprehend that a better collection 

of poodles of any size could be assembled in the same 

ring at one time. Some sent chills down my spine. The depth 

of quality in the Toy Variety afforded Mrs. Norma Strait a 

number of choices not available to others judging this variety 

at recent PCA events. 

As PCA’s Miniature Poodle Representative and given my 

prior involvement in the breeding and showing of this variety, 

I was especially rewarded by the surge in quality of 

this year’s miniature entry . Mr. Richard Bauer expressed his 

surprise about the excellent quality of his entry, and his remarks 

could not have been more on the money. It was almost 

a revelation to see so many quality minis; mainly black, but 

also white, brown and beautiful dilutes. The “Specials” class 

was highly competitive and quality also abounded in most 

other classes in both sexes. 

The highlight of the show for Miniature Poodle fanciers 

came near the end of competition, when after a drought lasting 

several years, a black miniature dog, Ch. Compostela 

The Perfect Storm, made a statement in the Best of Breed 

ring unlike any other by one of his variety in recent history, 

and was rewarded with the Best in Show rosette. Although 

Page 23 


unknown, as he recently had finished , this young dog, exemplified 

poodle type, and his performance proved he was 

hardly in awe of his surroundings. He withstood the formidable 

challenge of a Standard who has made poodle history 

and a Toy well on his way to doing so, while giving way in 

hardly any feature made available to the ringside observer. 

For me, it was quite a thrill to witness these three outstanding 

poodles, at the top of their game and handled to perfection 

vie head to head for poodledom’s most coveted award 

of the year: Best in Show at the Poodle Club of America 

National Specialty. It was the icing on the cake to what truly 

was a fantastic event. 

It sometimes happens that due to the lack of sufficient quality 

within a variety, judge’s error, or other factors, representatives 

of one variety or another fail to be competitive in the 

Best of Breed ring. It is to the credit of these year’s variety 

judges: Mrs. Norma Strait, Mr. Richard Bauer, and Dr. Donald 

Sturz that they presented the Best of Breed judge, Mr. 

Jordan Chamberlain with such high quality choices that he 

could have done no wrong. It is to Mr. Chamberlain’s credit 

that his selections on the day were predicated on his opinion 

about the contestants’ merits as he saw them, devoid of any 

pre-conceived ideas that sometimes creep into some judges’ 

decision making process. 

At a time when the whole sport of breeding and showing 

dogs is going through so many changes and challenges, most 

of them not for the better, predicting the future of Miniature 

Poodles in this country almost requires the benefit of a crystal 

ball. The down turn in the economy has affected people 

in almost all walks of life, the “dog game” being no exception. 

Dog legislation around the country has had a very negative 

impact on responsible hobby breeders. Some decisions 

made by the AKC, including those concerning their new registration 

policies, have served to emphasize the breeding of 

mixed breeds, whether they admit it or not, to the detriment 

of quality 

breeders of purebreds; and it goes on and on. All but the 

most naïve will agree that the common underlying force 

fueling these trends is financial: the struggle for the ever 

mighty dollar! 

What do all this, you wonder, has to do with the future of 

Miniature Poodles? I am a firm believer that the future of 

any breed rests with the quantity of its quality breeders and 

I fear that the day might come when some outside forces, 

financial and otherwise, might drive some weary quality 

breeders away. In spite of the health challenges that this variety 

is facing, few would question that quality Standard 

Poodles outnumber those in the other varieties. The reason is 

that there still are more good Standard Poodle breeders than 

good breeders of the Toy or Miniature varieties. 

cont. on page 24


During the 1960’s Miniature Poodles were, by far, the most 

popular variety, a fact that was borne by the overwhelming 

success of this variety in the show rings .The number of well 

known breeders of this variety, in this country and abroad, 

made those dedicated to the breeding of the two other varieties, 

pale in comparison. At the time, Miniature Poodle 

fanciers became enamored with English miniatures, nearly 

equating the word “English” with the word “Quality”. It 

became a status symbol to own dogs that carried the better 

known English kennel prefixes, and the American miniatures 

started exhibiting some of the features that were so admired 

in the English dogs. As PRA and other genetic problems 

propagated, some ignored them, while the more conscientious 

checked their dogs and proceeded with caution. Some 

were lucky to start their breeding programs with line-bred, 

genetically sound stock acquired before the time when the 

genetic diseases were discovered. The variety lost breeders 

discouraged by the genetic debacle they faced, while others 

stopped breeding for health and other reasons. Other reputable 

breeders continued, somewhat deflated by the loss of 

breeding resources available to them. This trend continued 

through the 70’s and 80’s leading to the decline of the Miniature 

Variety throughout the 90’s and the new century. During 

these years Standard Poodles started gaining popularity 

and steadily improved in quality and Toy Poodles continued 

on an up and down journey, facing some of the same perils 

Miniature breeders faced , but buoyed by several breeders 

whose efforts helped improve type. 

The Poodle Club of America Foundation has done a fantastic 

job of promoting and funding studies of numerous hereditary 

diseases plaguing our breed. Greatly due to the efforts 

of those working on behalf of this organization, tests have 

been developed for several of these hereditary diseases. Optigen 

tests has been invaluable, especially to Miniature and 

Toy Poodle breeders and is one reason we can be optimistic 

about the resurgence of this Variety ,but only if it is used. 

The quality of Miniature Poodles at PCA this year has made 

me more optimistic than ever about the future of Miniature 

Poodles in this country; It is time to build on something good 

and this can only be achieved through mutual cooperation , 

the sharing of factual information and a total commitment 

to testing. .And please, make your breeding decisions based 

on a stud’s quality, your knowledge of his genetic makeup 

and your perception about his compatibility with your bitch . 

Those that fail to breed to a stud they believe to be the best 

choice available, based on personal issues or petty jealousies 

are doing a disservice to themselves and to the breed. I have 

seen it happen during the days when we were active breeders. 

. 

Page 24 

Website Update: National Notes 

From Lisa Wolfe 

The results are in! And available on the PCA website. From 

the home page, just click on “2009 National Results” and 

navigate each 2009 event using the links on the left side of 

the page. A HUGE thanks goes to Andy Kress for tirelessly 

typing in the conformation and veteran sweeps results ringside 

while he adeptly announced. Talk about multi-tasking! 

Also a shout out goes to Joyce Carelli for working results, 

Claudia Straitiff & Dana Stewart for tracking and hunting, 

and Barbara Blanchfield for agility. Obedience results were 

obtained through http://www.infodog.com. I so appreciate 

the help of all involved to provide our website visitors with 

up-to-the-minute information. 

Website Statistics: 

On the average, the website attracts about 600 visitors per 

day, but during the National, the statistics soar. Here is a 

breakdown of the numbers: 

Total visits: 

March 2009: 20,326 visits 

April 2009: 27,352 visits 

Day by day website hits during the National: 

Sunday, April 19: 828 hits 

Mondy, April 20: 1.037 hits 

Tuesday, April 21: 973 hits 

Wednesday, April 22: 1,530 hits 

Thursday, April 23: 1,994 hits 

Friday, April 24: 2,202 hits 

Saturday, April 25: 1,271 hits 

Webcam, anyone? 

For the first time ever, webcams offering a view of both rings 

during conformation judging could be accessed via the website. 

These webcams, actually linked to the video photographer’s 

website, allowed enthusiasts not able to attend the 

National to experience just a little bit of the excitement. If 

you have questions about these webcams or video, visit the 

conformation results pages for a link to more information. 

Affiliate Clubs please note! 

If your 2009 dues have not been paid, no application 

for a specialty show will be approved nor will a medallion 

be sent to your club!! 

Helen Lee 


horselesscarriage8@earthlink.net 


Page 25 


Page26 

Westminster Results 

Congratulations to “Yes” on her Group 1 and to all the other Poodles that won their varieties. 

Toys BOV : CH. Smash JP Moon Walk 

Miniatures BOV: CH Surrey Sweet Spice, Owned by Ron Scott and Debbie Burke 

Standards BOV: Ch Randenn Tristar Affirmation, Owned by Toni and Martin Sosnoff 

photo by Lisa Croft-Elliott 


Page 27 

Working Poodle 

Medallion 

Owner 

Call 

Name AKC Registered Name 

Gold Jack Combs & Mia DiBenedetto Ten Bibelot’s Tolka Hands Up MH 

Gold Claudia Straitiff & Dana Stewart Jamie CH Ascot For Your Eyes Only RN JH 

Gold Carol & Kevin Stone Rio Finesse All Jazzed Up CDX RAE MXP MJP JH 

Silver Mary Ruth Calhoun Mac Tudorose McCheers JH NA NAJ 

Silver Carol & Kevin Stone Sassy K.C.’s Sassafras of Weilerback UD RAE AX AXJ 

Silver Carol & Kevin Stone Rio Finesse All Jazzed Up CDX RAE MXP MJP JH 

Silver Patricia Rose Harper Jo Whirlwinds Majormajormajor UDX RN SH 

Bronze Danielle Rouleau Ruger When the Gunsmoke Clears RN JH 

Bronze Joyce Carelli MacGregor CH Carlyn Hard Spun 

Bronze Claudia Straitiff & Dana Stewart Ruffian CH Poo’Pla’s Ruffian of Talisker 

Bronze Linda and Ron Miller Dash Valentine’s Splash ‘N Dash RN 

Bronze Amy Pyeatt Hattie Hattie Mae La Rey RN 

Bronze Margaret Fox Sly Valentine’s Sly As A Fox CD 

Bronze Jac Taylor Pasa Osea Que Pasa CD RE JH NAJ 

Bronze Sheree Melancon LaTee Leap N La Tee CD JH 

For more information: 

“If you are interested in learning more about 

Tracking or how to get started in Tracking, 

contact Carol Pernicka at tracker@lpbroadband.net” 

“The rules and guidelines for participating 

in the WC WCX can be found on the PCA 

website. If you are interested in learning 

more about the WC WCX or starting basic 

retriever training, please contact Joyce 

Carelli at jcarelli@bellsouth.net or Linda 

Miller at rmiller942@comcast.net” 

THANKS EVERYONE. 

Claudia 

cstraitiff00@bellsouth.net 

*photo by Jon Carelli 


PCA Tracking, Hunting, WC WCX Events 

Feature Poodles In the Field 

Submitted by Dana Stewart and Claudia Straitiff – Co-Directors 

Working Poodle Program 

The 2009 Outdoor PCA field events were nothing short of 

wonderful. Once again God watched over the Poodles and 

we enjoyed blue skies and sunny warm days for the Tracking, 

Hunting Test and the WC WCX tests in Salisbury, MD. 

When late in the year we asked the Board to support a Tracking 

event for 2009 – people thought it could not be done. 

But with the hard work of volunteers PCA was able to offer 

the first Tracking Dog Tests in Elkton MD on Friday. We 

had 8 trackers actually try to qualify for their Tracking Dog 

titles. Seven Poodle/handler teams passed, including three 

teams that achieved new titles. 

On Saturday and Sunday we moved our outdoor Poodle party 

to the Anatidae Farm just north of Salisbury. This was a new 

venue for us. The setting and the owners could not have been 

better! Frank and Teri Durham – owners of Anatidae hosted 

our event on their farm which offered great water for tests 

and lovely terrain that allowed for spectators to get closer to 

the action than ever before! We had a new format to operate 

the tests this year, and a willing pair of judges that agreed to 

the format. 

Another new addition to the weekend was a Performance 

Raffle to benefit the PCA Foundation. There were plenty 

of Tracking and Poodle Retriever focused items in the raffle 

and Tracking and Retriever enthusiasts were able to generate 

more than $1100 dollars! 

The weekend culminated with what is now the Working Poodle 

Dinner on Sunday night. This year we added the Tracking 

folks so our party is getting even more festive! We recognized 

qualifiers from Tracking, Retrieving and WC WCX 

events and awarded the 2008 Medallions for which many of 

our WC WCX exhibitors work throughout the year. 

Once again the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center catering 

team served up our feast for our exhibitors and guests. 

We’d like to thank the following team of workers who 

Chaired “field” events and supported them with hard work 

and sponsorship! 

• Glenna Carlson, PCA National Show Chairman who 

always believes in us! 

• Members of the Board of Directors who continually 

support our events. 

• Tracking: Joan Scott, PCA Board Member and Carol 

Page 28 


Pernicka , Joyce Lindloff and Kim Raymond who did all the 

work necessary to offer a Tracking Event at the caliber that 

PCA expects – and on short notice! 

• AKC Hunt Tests: Linda Miller and her committee of 

volunteers including Margaret Fox and Susanne Nash 

• WC WCX Hunt Tests: Joyce Carelli, Chair and her 

committee, including Dana Stewart and Kim Raymond. 

• Joyce Miller who organized Hospitality for us all 

weekend 

• Carolyn Wray (Tracking) and Carol Stone (Retrieving) 

who put together a Performance Raffle that was such a 

success. 

• Our many performance participants who pitched in 

as volunteers throughout the weekend. These events don’t 

happen without YOU. 

PCA’s Tracking Event Launches the Weekend! 

PCA held its first Tracking Dog test on Friday, April 17 at 

Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area in Elkton, 

Maryland. 

Fair Hill is a 5600 acre multi-use facility with beautiful rolling 

hills, light woods and lush grass, perfect for tracking. It 

was originally an estate of the famous DuPont family, and 

is still maintained meticulously, hosting numerous tracking 

tests during the year as well as international horse shows. 

Judges say this is one of the most lovely tracking sites in the 

entire country, and it made a beautiful backdrop for all the 

Poodles – even with their noses to the ground! 

Carol Pernicka – judge and owner/handler of a Champion 

Tracking Poodles herself, and Jacob Kay kept everything organized 

and the operations running smoothly throughout the 

day! Carol Pernicka had many nice things to say about the 

field of Poodles who participated in this inaugural event. 

“I cannot say enough about how well they [Poodles and 

Handlers] worked. Every dog was better than the last, moving 

steadily, methodically, and confidently down their track. 

They all ran their tracks in about 6 or 7 minutes; corners 

cont. on page 30

Page 29 



were precise, handlers able to walk briskly behind their 

dogs. What a beautiful example of great tracking. I was so 

proud of them all!” 

Tracking Dog Passes (* denotes new TD Title): 

• *Standard Poodle, Rebelstar’s Ella Enchanted 

owned by Sharon Fesmire of Tennessee. 

• *Standard Poodle, Kali’s Lil Lucky Simon, owned 

by Marcia & Gene German and handled by Bev Olsen from 

New Jersey 

• Standard Poodle, Miles Wicket of Wide Water VCD3 

SH RE, owned and handled by Tom Reese. Wicket made it 

look easy, not shabby at all for a dog who is 13! 

• Standard Poodle, Colando’s Compay Segundo TD, 

one of three poodles entered by Shirley Robertson MD from 

Michigan. 

• Toy Poodle, Wraynbow FrenchVanilla CD TD RN 

NJP owned and handled by Carolyn Wray, all the way from 

Oregon! 

• *Standard Poodle, Czar Colando’s Wallace RN OA 

OPA NAJ OJP, owned and handled by Shirley Robertson 

MD from Michigan. 

• Standard Poodle, Colando’s William Carlos VCD1 

RE OA NAJ, AXP, AJP, NFP owned and handled by Shirley 

Robertson MD from Michigan. 

Congratulations to all who passed and to everyone participated 

in order to make this a successful, enjoyable and educational 

event! 

PCA AKC Hunt Test - “Just Ducky!” 

The effects of holding annual retrieving events and encouraging 

participants to test their dogs’ retriever instincts could be 

seen in the field at the Hunt Tests and the WC WCX tests. 

Linda Miller, Hunt Test Chairperson kept things moving 

along with the help of Margaret Fox the Chief Marshal. Secretary 

Susanne Nash did a super job organizing the people 

and paperwork. Joyce Miller, Hospitality Chair kept the 

group fed and watered throughout the day and made sure we 

left things as we found them! 

As is tradition at PCA Hunt Tests, all participants were asked 

to volunteer for stints in the field or in other areas of the 

test: Most responded enthusiastically and willingly to help 

get the job done! To list all is to list every person that participated 

during the day, but suffice it to say we really appreciate 

you! 

Judges Megan Baker and Tom Lehr set up a sequence of 

tests that showed the increasing level of skills from Junior 

Hunter to Senior Hunter and through to the Master Hunter 

Page 30 


levels of an AKC event. This was a change from the past 

– and enabled every handler and gallery member the opportunity 

to see all other participants and all test levels throughout 

the day. The format was designed to motivate those just 

beginning in the field to continue their training beyond Junior 

Hunter levels. It was well received and the Committee 

hopes to do it again next year! 

The new venue – the same distance from downtown Salisbury 

– but a different direction (west) proved to be a great 

option that provided landscape variety and space in which to 

run tests that were easily accessible by the gallery. 

The owners of Anatidae Farm, Frank and Teri Durham were 

welcoming and very supportive of the Poodle event. Their 

presence at the tests, as well as their interest and encouragement 

of the Poodles went a long way with everyone involved. 

We’ll be at Anatidae in 2010, you can plan on it. 

Qualifiers in the PCA Hunt Tests included: 

Junior Hunter: 

• Stoney Brook D. , “Lucy” owned/handled by Denise 

Herman 

• CH Poo’Pla’s Ruffian of Talisker “Ruffian” owned 

by Dana Stewart and Claudia Straitiff 

• Via Alps JP’s Promise Me Romance RA, “Roxy” 

owned/handled by Mary Hudson 

• K.C’s Sassafras of Weilerbach UD RAE AX AXJ, 

“Sassy” owned/handled by Carol Stone 

• Windswept Gentile Aloutte UD OA NAJ, “Ali” 

owned/handled by Suzanne Fairbarn 

• Tudorose Abby Girl, “Abby” owned/handled by Denise 

Herman 

• Valentine’s Sly As A Fox CD, “Sly” owned /handled 

by Margaret Fox 

• CH Carlyn Hard Spun, “McGregor” owned/handled 

by Joyce Carelli 

Senior Hunter 

• Jo Whirlwinds MAJORMAJORMAJOR RN UDX 

SH, “Harper” owned/handled by Pat Rose 

Master Hunter 

Handled by Jack Combs 

• Lonetree’s Go Bang MH, “Bang” owned by Jack 

Combs and Mia DiBenedetto 

• Bibelot’s Hands Up MH, “Ten” owned by Jack 

Combs and Mia DiBenedetto 

Poodles Entered in WC WCX Demonstrate Increasing Talent 

cont. on page 32

Page 31 



Page 32 

When PCA agreed to sponsor WC WCX certificates in the 

90’s, it was a commitment to a journey focused on recognizing 

and generating retriever instincts in our breed. Eventually, 

due to the efforts of those in the early years, the AKC 

acknowledged the Poodle as a breed able to participate in 

AKC Retrieving tests. 

While watching the Poodles run in the WC WCX tests this 

year, several of us commented that the 2009 “field” of dogs 

was consistently improved. Handlers were prepared and 

the owner of the property ended up bringing back a car full 

of them to Salisbury because there weren’t enough participants 

left at the site to get them back to town! 

Thank you especially to Joyce Carelli who has Chaired the 

WC WCX events for many years. She and her committee 

did a wonderful job keeping handler/dog teams organized 

and everyone taken care of with food and drinks. Also thanks 

educated about what to expect. Poodles were prepared to the 

work – and though some as always picked the WC WCX to 

demonstrate their comic sides – it was evident they had the 

instinct and drive to do the work. 

We can’t wait to see what the future brings! 

For whatever reason, the gallery this year was not as large as 

in years past. That’s a shame because we know that is where 

interest in our event can be generated. We did however, 

have visitors from Hong Kong come to the tests in a cab – a 

first for us in the field! This group of visitors was incredibly 

interested in what we are doing. They enjoyed watching the 

dogs work, and even got to throw a few bumpers for Poodle 

to retrieve. They stayed for the whole afternoon. 

Passed 

Windswept Gentile Alouette UD OA NAJ WC TDI (Allie) 

Suzanne Fairbairn 

Valentine’s Splash ‘N Dash RN WC (Dash) Linda Miller 

CH Carlyn Hard Spun WC (MacGregor) Joyce Carelli 

Stoney Brook D (Lucy) Denise Herman 

Gloria’s It’s Magic Merlin CDX RE (Merlin) Joann Smith 

Villa Alps JP’s Promise Me Romance RA WC (Roxy) Mary 

Hudson 

Tudorose McCheers JH NA NAJ WC (Mac) Mary Ruth Calhoun 

In fact, they stayed so late visiting the kennels on site, that 


to our throwers and volunteers in the field. This year we got 

to watch a very special “retrieve” of a boat by Dana Stewart 

– proving that not only our Poodles know how to bring back 

the goods. Though admittedly his “Here, Heel, Sit” isn’t 

very good. 

Congratulations to the 2009 Qualifiers. 

Working Certificate: 19 entered, 18 ran, 13 passed 

cont. on page 33


Valentine’s Sly As A Fox CD (Sly) Margaret Fox 

CH Carlyn Calamity Jane NA JH WCX (Janie) Joyce Carelli 

Bibelot’s Tolka Hands Up MH WCX (Ten) Mia DiBenedeto 

Jo Whirlwinds Majormajormajor WDX RN SH WCX 

(Harper) Pat Rose 

Tudorose Abby Girl (Abby) Denise Herman 

CH Poo’Pla’s Ruffian of Talisker WC (Ruffian) Claudia 

Straitiff 

Working Certificate Excellent: 13 entered, 13 ran, 8 passed 

Page 33 

Passed 

CH Carlyn’s Neon Moon JH WCX (Chip) Joyce Carelli 

Lonetree’s Go Bang MH (Bang) Jack Combs 

Finnesse All Jazzed Up CDX RAE JH MXP MXJ WCX 

(Rio) Carol Stone 

Paradigm Walkn The Wild Side CD JH RN (Walker) Margaret 

Fox 

Stoney Brook D (Lucy) Denise Herman 

Jo Whirlwinds Majormajormajor UDX RN SH WCX (Harper) 

Pat Rose 

Bibelot’s Tolka Hands Up MH WCX (Ten) Jack Combs 

CH Carlyn Calamity Jane NA JH WCX (Janie) Joyce Carelli 

Photos by John Carelli 

WC/WCX Qualifiers 2009 

Congratulations to everyone! 


Page 34 

P.C.A. Rescue 

The Story of Marcus 

Marcus, the toy poodle with the grade 4 luxating patella, was 

the poster boy for Rescue in the booth. Handi Skorich of 

Indianapolis Poodle Rescue, took this little one in knowing 

that he would require surgery. She put her luscious handmade 

soaps for sale in the Rescue Booth, the proceeds of 

which were ear-marked to help with the cost of Marcus’ surgery, 

which had been optimistically posted for the week after 

PCA. Below is her follow up on Marcus. 

Marcus arrived home after his surgery on 4/30/ 2009. He 

didn’t realize his leg would bend now. A couple of times he 

forgot about his affected leg and did actually touch it to the 

ground, something he has never been able to do in his entire 

life. The surgeon wants him to use it ASAP. I was so pleased 

that he had come so far temperament-wise being fostered 

while I was at PCA! He is not nearly as shy and timid. I plan 

to ask Mary, the foster Mom, if she would take him back until 

he is ready to go to his permanent home. I am so happy to 

see his behavioral progress and the improvement in his leg. 

Thank you PCA Rescue Foundation, Aroon and Debbie 

Maben, Ann Green, Missy Galloway, Ruth Hollis, and all 

the folks that purchased poodle soaps at the Poodle Club of 

America Nationals (PCA). I now know that we did in fact 

do the right thing in spending the money for Marcus to have 

this procedure. 


Handi Skorich, President 

Indianapolis Poodle Rescue 

AKC Calls on All Dog Organizations to Spread 

Responsible Dog Ownership Message this 

September 

Date of Article: May 06, 2009 

- Annual AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Days Comprised 

of Hundreds of Events - 

Each year, the American Kennel Club® calls on its nearly 

5,000 affiliated dog clubs and all other pet-related organizations 

from around the country to participate in AKC Responsible 

Dog Ownership Days. The nationwide initiative educates 

the public about the importance of being a responsible 

dog owner and celebrates the deep bond between humans 

and their canine companions. 

“Last year more than 600 organizations across the U.S. held 

AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Day events in their communities,” 

says AKC spokesperson Lisa Peterson. “We are 

thankful to those who have helped us spread this important 

message and encourage more organizations to join us in 

2009.” 

Events can be held anytime during the month of September. 

Sign up at www.akc.org/rdod and create an “Event Accont. 

on page 35

Annual Meeting 

The Poodle Club of America 

Rescue Foundation held it annual 

meeting on Wednesday, April 22, 

2009 in Salisbury, Maryland at the 

conclusion of judging and the Parade 

of Champions. Nancy Williams, a 

certified Animal Behaviorist, spoke 

on “Temperament Evaluation for the 

Rescued Poodle.” Among the ‘pearls 

of wisdom’ that she dispensed to 

those in attendance included a behavioral 

assessment tool using the acronym: 

R-U-L-E. R = a reactive dog; 

U = a dog using aggressive threats; L 

= a dog with a lack of impulse control 

and E = a dog with everyday life 

problems that may be slow to recover in some situations. 

Any dog displaying these characteristics in her experience 

would be a difficult dog to place or a dog that would require 

extensive intervention. She has found that a rescue dog’s 

reaction to children, other dogs and cats is fairly predictive 

of how well the dog will do when placed. She suggested a 

simple coding method for placing rescues; green, yellow and 

red. For example, green coded dogs have few issues and can 

be easily placed, yellow coded dogs require supervision and 

some training and red coded dogs require life-long management 

and should never be placed with children. Ms. Williams 

has advised various rescue groups that it is important 

for them to develop standards for accepting dogs into rescue 

and to have consistent training protocols and objective methods 

for evaluation of these dogs. In addition, she believes 

that follow up at 6 months and 1 year after placement is very 

important. Included in her talk was video of her experience 

with some of the Michael Vick dogs. Ms. Williams was one 

of the few people in the US who has had hands-on interaction 

these dogs and she notes that there is still work going 

on today. Interestingly, the green-yellow-red coding method 

was used on these dogs. Only one dog was green coded, a Pit 

Bull bitch that was Vick’s personal pet, and she is the most 

successful placement of the lot to date. Ms Williams concluded 

her talk with a demonstration of some training toys 

and devices that she uses in her practice. 

Page 35 

The Rescue Foundation set up a first-time fundraising and 

information booth in the Atrium of the Civic Center for the 

two performance days of PCA. After PCA Foundation concluded 

their two-day fundraiser on the Arena floor, Rescue 

moved to that location for the rest of the week. Two community 

rescues sent merchandise for the benefit of their own 

programs. Handi Skorich of Indianapolis Poodle Rescue had 

wonderful hand-made soaps with poodles stamped on them 

for sale and raised $334 to help defray medical expenses for 


Marcus (see attached picture and sidebar). 

Ruth Hollis of Poodle Rescue 

of North Texas sent beautiful crate 

pads, darling poodle-embellished 

pillow cases and greeting cards with 

images of rescued poodles on them 

and raised $434. PCA Rescue has 

a quilt raffle, a quilt Silent Auction 

and several smaller items for Silent 

Auction. In addition, we introduced 

our new logo on a pin and the booth’s 

banner. We are deeply grateful to 

Claudia Straitiff for the logo design. 

The Rescue Foundation raised over 

$1500 for the week. Only a few pins 

remain available for sale at $10 each 

plus shipping; contact Cindy if you 

would like to buy one – clcrawley@ 

starpower.net or 410.321.4493. The 

booth was faithfully maintained for the week by Sally Poindexter, 

Cindy Crawley, Melissa Bass and her rescue poodle, 

Lukas, Janet Howard, Fronah Heil and her rescue poodle, 

Hope, and Betsey Leedy. It was a great week. 

count” by August 1, 2009. The first 500 organizations who 

confirm the details of their event will receive a complimentary 

resource-filled packet including posters, brochures, stickers 

and many more materials to assist them in putting together an 

entertaining and informative event. All events will be listed on 

the AKC web site, searchable by state, beginning July 1. 

“The AKC believes that education is the key to addressing 

responsible dog ownership issues in every community,” added 

Peterson. “AKC RDO Days have helped clubs forge valuable 

relationships with legislators, news media and community 

leaders, which has helped bring clubs to the table when legislation 

is being discussed in their community and seek support 

for educational programs and activities.” 

Once again, Invisible Fence® Brand is a proud nationwide 

sponsor of AKC RDO Days and will support community 

events, as well as attend AKC’s flagship event in Raleigh, 

North Carolina on September 26th, where AKC’s Operations 

Center is located. Included will be activities such as AKC 

Canine Good Citizen® tests, Obedience/Agility/Rally demonstrations, 

microchip ID clinics, breeder referral and rescue 

information, raffles, games and many more entertaining and 

educational events. 

To learn more about AKC Responsible Dog Ownership Days, 

sign up to hold an event or view photos and information about 

previous events, please visit http://www.akc.org/clubs/rdod/. 

cont. from page 34

Page 36 

PCA Rescue Foundation 

Please think about a tax deductible donation to PCA 

Rescue before the end of the calendar year. One hundred 

percent of your donation goes to support the efforts of 

volunteers all over the United States to rescue Poodles from 

abandonment and find them permanent safe, loving homes. 

Clip and return this coupon to the address below. You will 

receive an acknowledgement of your donation by mail and in 

the 2009 PCA catalog. 

NAME ___________________________________________________________________ 

ADDRESS _______________________________________________________________ 

_______________________________________________________________ 

AMOUNT _______________________ 

Send this form and your check to: 

Anne Stokes, Treasurer 

4014 Duplin Drive 

Greensboro, NC 27406 

Poodles in America 

We are planning to extend Volume XI to a 5 year volume and will 

accept more ads if you wish to advertise. 

Exact publish date is not known, but will be this fall. 

New ad deadline will be August 1. 

The PIA committee thanks you for your patience and understanding. 

$275/per page and $10 for a dog who has become a Top Producer 

since Volume 10 stats. 

Betsey Leedy 


Peabody is presenting to 

Nancy McGee his donation 

to the PCA Foundation. 

Donations were made 

for his haircut. 

OptiGen 

During the first quarter of 2009 (January 1-March 31, 2009) 

OptiGen tested 268 Poodles for PRA. The breakdown is as 

follows: 

Total Miniature Poodles tested - 132 

Normal - 96 

Carrier - 34 

Affected - 2 

Total Toy Poodles tested - 136 

Normal - 87 

Carrier 45 

Affected - 4 

Countries testing this period include: Canada, Denmark, 

Finland, France, 

Germany, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Norway, Russia, Slovenia, 

Spain, Sweden, 

Switzerland, United Kingdom and USA. 

If you have any question regarding this information, please 

feel free to email me. 

Sincerely, 

Becky Iddings 

Administrative Support Associate 

Sincerely, 

Becky Iddings 

Administrative Support Associate 

OptiGen, LLC 

Cornell Business & Technology Park 

767 Warren Road, Suite 300 

Ithaca, NY 14850 

phone: 607-257-0301 

fax: 607-257-0353 

email: genetest@optigen.com 

web: www.optigen.com 

Page 37 

P.C.A. Foundation News 


The Foundation is extremely proud of all the fundraising 

that took place at this years annual gathering. I cannot 

thank all the people who worked thru out the week but would 

like to call attention to the various leaders who provided the 

leadership to accomplish such great fundraising. We thank 

everyone who donated time,effort and prizes for all our our 

projects 

The tracking event was headed by Carolyn Wray 

The WC/WCX event was headed by Carol Stone 

The Preformance Raffle was headed by Charlotte Mitchell 

Peabody’s Haircut was organized by Judy and Mark Leister 

Thank you Peabody for growing all that hair 

Mary Lebet for her efforts at the catalog advertising and providing 

the funding for the contest 

To Alan Kingsley for his year long efforts at selling 

the tapes and PIA 

Last but not least to Roger and Lynn Brucker for the PCA 

Data base. 

The annnual sales is outstanding 

The PCA Foudation Board is grateful to all involved and 

look forward to next year when we will add the silent auction 

to the events on Wed-Thurs and Friday 

A special thanks to all who worked the health clinic tables 

and to Joan McFadden for keeping us organized 

Best to all 

Tom Carneal-President 

PCA Foundation

“ABC’s of Dog Breeding” 

Seminar Features Wealth of Knowledge for Breeders 

“ABC’s of Dog Breeding” Still Offered at PCA Discount 

On April 21, more than 85 poodle people attended the PCA 

Foundation seminar, which this year featured Claudia Orlandi 

and her widely acclaimed presentation on the art and 

science of breeding better, healthier dogs. The day began 

with an update by PCA Foundation President Tom Carneal 

on research addressing health problems such as epilepsy, 

chronic hepatitis in Standard Poodles and Miniature-Poodle 

dwarfism (see upcoming Poodle Papers issues for more on 

these studies). 

Page 38 

In Memoriam 

Judith DeLaughter 

It is with a feeling of regret that we announce the passing 

away of Judy De Laughter, who lost her battle to the ravages 

of brain cancer on May the 8th. Judy, Karin Berlind’s mother, 

was a dedicated miniature poodle breeder and fancier who 

with her then husband, Joe Makowski , founded the Karadale 

prefix, which Karin has been so successfully developing 

for many years. Obviously, Karin acquired her love for and 

dedication to Miniature Poodles through her parents. 

During the seminar, Dr. Orlandi discussed breeding concepts 

and tools (such as genetics, breeding systems and anatomy), 

kennel blindness, and knowledge breeders need for the critical 

goal of eliminating genetic disease. She concluded the 

day by demonstrating her technique for measuring shoulder 

placement and angulation. Attendees practiced with some 

poodle “volunteers,” who enjoyed the attention. Many 

thanks to the breeders who volunteered your poodles during 

a very busy week! 

Throughout the day, Dr. Orlandi also shared her own experiences 

from more than 20 years of successfully breeding Basset 

Hounds. The Orlandis have bred more than 100 champions, 

including the top-producing Basset Hound dam in breed 

history and the top Group-winning Basset Hound (Ch. Topsfield 

Bumper Cars, CD, ROM). Ch. Topsfield Vision Silver 

Noodles was among the nation’s top hounds in 2008 and is 

now the top Group-winning bitch in breed history. In addition 

to breeding, Dr. Orlandi is also devoted to teaching and 

currently chairs Member Education for the Basset Hound 

Club of America. She dedicates her seminars and book to 

“my fellow breeders everywhere, who share a passion for 

dogs and the belief that there is always more to learn!” 

For anyone who couldn’t attend the PCA Seminar or had to 

leave early for other obligations, Dr. Orlandi has extended 

the PCA discount on her home study book, “The ABC’s of 

Dog Breeding: What Every Breeder Should Know,” through 

July 1. If you’d like to order one, send your mailing information 

with a check for $30 ($35 for Canadian orders), 

which includes shipping, to Claudia Orlandi, Ph.D., PO Box 

169, Essex Jct, VT 05453-0169. Be sure to mention PCA to 

get the discount. 

We met Judy in the 1960’s, when she lived in Miami. She 

purchased an English black bitch, Ch. Tophill Thunderbird, 

which became the foundation for the Karadale Miniature 

Poodles. We became close friends and spent many a night 

discussing breeding strategies, and traveled together to 

shows on many occasions. Judy was an honest, breeder who 

stood by the power of her convictions and took excellent 

care of her dogs. She was a steadfast believer in checking for 

PRA and hips, which were of primary concern to responsible 

Miniature Poodle breeders of the day. 

When Judy moved away from Miami in the1970’s, we believe, 

we lost direct contact with her, and saw her in person 

only a couple of times. Through Karin, however, we kept 

abreast of her progress over the years. As fate would have it, 

two weeks after Karin attained her greatest success in dogs, 

her PCA win, she had to suffer the great sorrow of loosing 

her mother. 

Luis and Maria Aizcorbe 

Mentoring helps shape the future 

of our sport of purebred dogs. 

Have you mentored anyone lately? 

by Pat Forsyth 


Page 39 

The Poodle 

Club of America 

Foundation, Inc. 

The Poodle Club of America Foundation is a tax-exempt public charity dedicated to 

research and education projects benefitting Poodles. Since its inception in 1989, PCAF’s 

generous donors have funded research resulting in DNA tests for inherited conditions, supported 

Poodle health screenings and underwritten PCAF’s free annual seminar at the Poodle Club of 

America’s National Specialty Show. 

Your donation to PCAF will help us continue this important work for Poodles and will be 

acknowledged by mail and in PCA’s next National Specialty Show catalog. (If you would rather 

remain anonymous, check here □ and your name will be omitted from the catalog.) 

Donations to PCAF are tax-deductible as charitable contributions under the U.S. 

Internal Revenue Code and may be tax-deductible in other jurisdictions. Please consult your tax 

professional for details. (The Foundation’s federal tax identification number is 41-1645173.) 

DONATION FORM 

(PLEASE TYPE OR PRINT CLEARLY) 

Donor name: __________________________________________________________________ 

Street address: ________________________________________________________________ 

City, State, Zip: _______________________________________________________________ 

Phone number or email address: _________________________________________________ 

My donation is made □ in honor of: □ in memory of: 

Use my donation 

______________________________________________________ 

□ wherever it is needed most (the PCAF General Fund), or 

□ other (please specify below): 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

______________________________________________________________ 

Please enclose with your check payable in US funds to “PCA Foundation” and mail to: 

Nancy J. McGee, Treasurer 

PCA Foundation 

208 Crosbytown Road 

Quitman, GA 31643 

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING POODLES! 


POODLE CLUB OF AMERICA 

REGIONAL 

The Poodle Club of America will be holding their Regional 

Specialty this year in conjunction with the American Kennel 

Club/Eukanuba National Championship-2009, a historical 

event celebrating the 125th year of the American Kennel 

Club,at the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center 

in Long Beach,California on December 12th and 13th 

.This years Championship promises to be bigger and better 

then ever. Over 260,000 square feet of space will be utilized 

for Conformation, 30,000 square feet for Obedience, and a 

60,000 square foot unique structure will host the AKC Agility 

Invitational 

“The core mission of the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship 

is to showcase the breeders who have dedicated 

their lives to improving the health, temperament and quality 

of purebred dogs.” In the past this show has been limited 

to an invitational list only but this year it will be an open 

entry. There will be approximately 70 different Regionals, 

Nationals, Independent Specialties and supported breed entries 

held in conjunction this year. There will continue to be 

the spotlight on the Bred-By-Exhibitor competition; which 

enables owners to handle the dogs they bred with care and 

pride. The Eukanuba World Challenge is an international, 

invitation-only dog show, it will continue this year. (Last 

year dogs from 52 countries competed for prestigious international 

recognition and prize money.) 

Beyond the excitement of the show rings, as an AKC Parent 

Club, we will be actively participating in one of the signature 

events that takes place over the weekend the Meet the 

Breeds segment of the AKC/Eukanuba National Championship. 

We will be on hand to meet and greet the public and 

educate them about the special characteristics of our wonderful 

Poodle. 

For those of you planning on making this trip, don’t forget 

that there are shows the week before which usually draw 

majors: December 4th and 5th is Shoreline Dog Fanciers; 

followed by Malibu Kennel Club on December 6th and 7th. 

These shows are all located at the same location in Costa 

Mesa. Then leading up to the AKC/Eukanuba National 

Championship is: Beverly Hills Kennel Club on December 

9th, Los Encinos Kennel Club on December 10th, and Long 

Beach Kennel Club on December 11th , all held at the Long 

Beach Convention and Entertainment Center. 

This years Regional Show Chairman is Mary Olund. Glenna 

Page 40 

Regional News 


Carlson will be supplying all her previous knowledge and 

advice and Peggy McDill’s proximity to Long Beach will be 

make her assistance invaluable.I will be the hotel coordinator. 

Mary will be providing her committee information as 

we draw nearer to the date. Please remember that putting 

a Regional together takes lots of planning and manpower, 

so those of you who wish to help be apart of this endeavor 

please contact Mary at cabpuddel@pacbell.net. Our judges 

for Conformation are own members, Mr.John R. Shoemaker 

doing Toys and Mr. Frank T. Sabella doing Miniatures and 

Standards. 

The host hotel for PCA is brand new and opening in July 

2009. It is the Avia Hotel-Long Beach, 285 Bay Street, Long 

Beach, CA 90802 (it is located across the street from the 

Convention Center), the phone is (562)436-1047and the web 

address is http://www.aviahotels.com/hotels/longbeach/. 

This is a four star hotel that does not normally allow dogs 

but is making an exception for the AKC/Eukanuba event. 

There are classic King guestrooms, classic double Queen 

guestrooms (limited), Grand King guestrooms, a Grand 

Suite, Lux Suite and Master Suite. Our rate for this event is 

$159 plus tax and incidental charges. There will be a onetime 

$75.00 non-refundable deep cleaning fee charged upon 

check-in for all rooms housing a pet. Rooms may be inspected 

daily and any damage to the room will be reported to 

the Director of Sales, discussed with the guest and handled 

on a case by case basis. 

The cut off date for reservations must be received before 

Wednesday, November 11, 2009. Reservations should be 

made by individual attendees directly with AVIA. A credit 

card number of 1 night advance deposit will be required to 

secure a room out of this block. Credit cards will be charged 

for one night room and tax at time of reservation. Any credit 

card or check deposit will be refunded it notice is received 

by 6 p.m., Pacific Time, Tuesday, December 1, 2009 and a 

cancellation number is obtained. If notice is not received by 

6 p.m. Pacific Time, Tuesday, December 1, 2009 the guest 

will be responsible for one night’s room and tax, non-refundable. 

So make sure you mark your calendars and start making your 

plans to join the American Kennel Club, Eukanuba and the 

Poode Club of America this December, for what promises to 

be an exciting and unique experience. 

Mary Ellen Fishler, 

megcamelot@aol.com

Page 41 

A.K.C. Delegates Corner 

Gail Golab, PhD, DVM 

American Veterinary Medical Association 

ATTN: Animal Welfare Division 

1931 N. Meacham Road, Suite 100 

Schaumburg, IL 60173-4360 

Dear Dr. Golab, 

The Board of Governors, representing the membership of the Poodle Club of America, desires to defend the practice of 

docking tails in our breed. It is our job, as the parent club, to protect and advance the interests of Poodles. First, we do this 

by being the guardian of our breed standard, and second, by educating the public with regard to breeding, proper care, and 

maintenance. We support and encourage research activities designed to improve the health and welfare of Poodles. Therefore, 

it is our aim to discourage the AVMA’s current proposed policy of anti docking as a purely cosmetic procedure. 

It is with some concern that the Poodle Club of America questions the AVMA’s standing on cropping and docking as an 

animal rights directive and not as a support of animal welfare; one being political and the other being a humanitarian issue. 

The docking of dogs tails is a practice which has been carried out for centuries in order to avoid tail damage, for hygiene and 

other reasons. There are over fifty traditionally docked breeds which are recognized by the American Kennel Club. 

It seems that the AVMA’s conviction for the banning of this practice is based on the supposed possibility of the pain endured 

during the process, potential health risks (infection, incontinence, etc), and that somehow the animal will become physically 

or psychologically disadvantaged. From our research, it seems nothing could be further from the truth. 

1. The tail bone in a 3-4 days old puppy is still only partially formed and the nervous system undeveloped and therefore the 

level of pain is less and fleeting. (1) A parallel can be drawn comparing tail docking to human circumcision. There can be 

no question as to which causes actual pain. 

2. Poodles are very versatile dogs. They work and perform at any task requested of them. They hunt, track, do search and 

rescue, etc. A long tail can be easily damaged in the home as well as the field. A docked tail is less susceptible to damage 

. Once damaged, the tail is extremely difficult to heal, whether broken or split, sometimes requiring amputation. Since 

tail docking was banned in Sweden in 1989, there has been a massive increase in tail injuries among previously docked 

breeds.(2) 

3. When done properly, the procedure is quick, with very little vascular involvement, and with therefore less chance for 

infection. It is the rare docking procedure that goes wrong when done at 3-4 days. Yet the early spay neuter policy currently 

being applauded has all kinds of serious chronic conditions that can develop ie. chronic incontinence in young dogs, CCL 

rupture, hip dysphasia and other serious medical issues. (3) 

4. The Poodle has been around for centuries. In fact it is one of the oldest breeds. P. Howard Price was able to trace back 

as far as Roman and Greek coins, and there are also little poodles represented on some monuments about the time of the 

Emperor Augustus, approximately A.D. 30, and there is art work throughout the centuries displaying Poodles with docked 

tails.(4) The Poodle has maintained popularity, for work, service, and pleasure throughout time, seeming to dispel the issue 

of being physically or psychologically disadvantaged 

The American Kennel Club recognizes tail docking, as prescribed in certain breed standards, as an acceptable practice 

integral to defining and preserving breed character, enhancing good health, and preventing injuries. The Poodle Club of 

America truly believes that the procedure of docking tails, when performed by a veterinarian, is safe and virtually pain free. 

We firmly believe that we, jointly with our veterinarians, should have the right to decide on the proper care and treatment of 

our pets. The Poodle Club of America is distressed with the AVMA’s attempt to misrepresent centuries of breed history by 


cont. on page 42

Page 42 


using inflammatory verbiage, such as the words amputation and cosmetic mutilation, to inflame animal rights advocates. 

This wording is designed entirely to elicit emotional responses and destroy any possibility of logical consideration. 

The Poodle Club of America respects and holds the AVMA and its members in the highest regard. You are a proven academic, 

professional, and science based medical association. Your expertise enables all animal owners to make informed decisions 

concerning the healthcare needs of their animals, including preventative care. We are grateful. But our membership 

has been polling its veterinarians and we have not found a preponderance of veterinarians who are against the procedure of 

tail docking. Please initiate a review of your membership and the actual percentages of established American veterinarians 

against tail docking. We would be interested in seeing the compiled data. The Poodle Club of America respectfully requests 

that the AVMA reverse their anti crop and dock policy immediately. 

Respectfully submitted, 


Representing the Membership and Board of Governors 

Poodle Club of America 

References 

1. Prof. Dr. R. Fritsch, Clinic of Veterinary Surgeons Justus Lieberg University report at http://www.cdb.org/vets/fritsch. 

htm 

2. The Case for Tail Docking, http://www.netpets.com/dogs/healthspa/case4dock.html 

3. Early Spay-Neuter Considerations for the Canine Athlete One Veterinarians Opinion, Chris Zinc DVM, PhD, DACVP, 

http://www.caninesports.com/SpayNeuter.html 

4. P. Howard Price, The Miniature Poodle, Great Britain, 1960 

Poodle Club of Central California Specialty 

October 16/17th followed by two days of all breed shows Del Valle Kennel Club 

Friday, Oct. 16th 

All three varities-Mrs. Janet Leslie Buchanan 

Obedience-Alvin W. Eng 

Saturday, Oct. 17th 

All three varities-Mr. Michael Gadsby 

Obedience-Mrs. Jill F. Urbina 

Sunday and Monday, Oct. 18th/19th To Be Announced 


DELEGATES REPORT 

The main focus of the Annual Meeting of the AKC Delegates 

on March 10, 2009 was the election of the new Board of 

Directors Class of 2013. Four new Directors were elected: 

Lee Arnold, Delegate from the Southern Colorado Kennel 

Club; Carl C. Ashby, III, Delegate from the United States 

Kerry Blue Terrier Club, Inc.; Alan Kalter, Delegate from 

the American Bullmastiff Association; and Dr. Robert D. 

Smith, Delegate from the Memphis Kennel Club. 

Due to term limits taking effect for the first time this year, 

there were no incumbent candidates. In addition, Ronald H. 

Menaker was re-elected as Chairman of the Board and Dr. 

Thomas M. Davies was elected as the new Vice-Chairman 

of the board at a meeting of the AKC Board of Directors, 

convened after the Delegate Meeting. 

The Beagle Field Trial Rules were amended, effective January 

1, 2011, to differentiate Beagle Field Trial Championships 

by the three distinct hunting styles demonstrated in 

different field events. 

The AKC then announced that the first stand alone AKC 

Meet the Breeds event will take place at the Javits Center in 

New York City on October 17th and 18th, 2009. Pet Partners, 

Inc will be the anchor sponsor and the Cat Fanciers Association 

will participate displaying 41 breeds of cats. The 

event will emphasize responsible ownership for both dogs 

and cats. Poodle Club of America will again be taking part 

in this endeavor. Please contact me if you are interested in 

working this booth. We have already had good response. 

There was an extremely good presentation on the AKC’s involvement 

in current legislation. 

The AKC’s Government Relations Department in 2008 

monitored 800 potential laws. 

So far, to date in 2009, they have dealt with 615 potential 

laws. This department does research and legislative analysis, 

models new legislation, has developed direct contact 

with various lawmakers and has engaged the assistance of 

the Federal bipartisan Lobbying Team of Greenberg and 

Travrig. The Government Relations Department is working 

with state federations and local dog clubs to protect the 

rights of owners and breeders. 

The web page for the Government Relations Department 

has a state level online tracking system with legislative e- 

alerts and news updates. They encourage the support of the 

AKC PAC and the Canine Legislation Support Fund. Pac 

supports dog friendly political candidates, (donations must 

be made by individuals); and the Canine Legislative Support 

Fund supports advocacy and educational efforts, (individuals 

and Clubs may contribute). For more information on any 

of the measures currently being monitored, they can be con- 

Page 43 

tacted at 919-816-3720 or doglaw@akc.org, or visit the web 

at www.akc.org/canine-legislation. 


The group Realignment issue was presented and discussed 

again. Besides presenting the current recommendations, 

this time Darrell Hayes, Vice President, Dog Show Judges, 

discussed some of the procedures being put into place for 

judges to be prepared for the new groups. There was also 

discussion on the effect on Clubs who have Group Shows. 

The American Kennel Club believes that the realignment 

will help give more energy, and help revitalize current dog 

shows. 

Also at this meeting there was a non-binding resolution 

passed by a majority of the Delegates asking the Board to 

reconsider a program for mixed breeds. Previously, before 

I was the Delegate there were two votes taken that were 

against this idea. But now after one hundred twenty five 

years, where the American Kennel Club has been the nations’s 

premier advocate for dogs and the people who love 

them, the AKC is now acting even more broadly and effectively 

as the dogs champion by announcing their new mixed 

breed program. The Board of Directors voted unanimously 

after extensive research, including gathering feedback from 

AKC Delegates, AKC Clubs, and mixed breed dog owners 

The program, includes a Listing Service and Competition 

Elegibility. This program starts October 1st, 2009. If you 

would like to see all the information regarding this program 

contact mixedbreed@akc.org. 

As the Delegate for the Poodle Club of America, I have 

been asked to discuss some of our concerns over this registry. 

Since poodles seem to be the breed of choice for mixed 

breeds, we are worried how this registry will effect our rescue 

efforts. (we have continued to rescue mixed breed poodles 

along with pure bred). The foreseeable future is that 

there could be a tremendous influx of these mixed breeds 

now that they have a registry. 

Please feel free to contact me with any of your concerns or 

thoughts at megcamelot@aol.com or 301-977-6789 


“ Life is rather like a tin of sardines 

- we’re all of us looking for the key. “ 

ALAN BENNETT

Page 44 

Leslie A. Newing 


200 Aran Hill Rd. 

Fairfield, Ct. 06824-1712 

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