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By Chris Robinson
If this story was being written by a headline writer
using the Associated Press stylebook, in all likelihood, what you
see above is the form that ?head? would take. And it probably would
be a screaming banner in boldface type because it truly is news.
For, shocking as it may seem, that much-maligned ultimate ?foo-foo?
dog, the Standard Poodle, even after generations of ribbons in its
hair, painted toenails and an embarrassing hairdo, is making a
successful return to its historic roots as a fine retriever.
Not
that all Poodle folks through the years had abandoned the idea of
this breed continuing to be a useful hunting dog. Here and there,
dedicated Poodle owners refused to let this important part of the
breed?s genetic make-up die. For example, in 1943, National
Geographic magazine ran a photo of a Standard Poodle (Ch. Blakeen
Caf? Parfait) making a water retrieve of a duck. A decade later,
members of the Greenspring Poodle Club in Maryland did a lot of
field training with their Poodles, used them as their waterfowl
hunting dogs and the club hosted annual Poodle retriever working
trials. As has frequently been the case with other hunting breeds
where the historical purpose was ignored for generations, the people
stepping to the front and leading the movement back to
respectability as a sporting breed are folks who also compete in the
show ring and other performance events.
However, it was not until the mid-1980s that the
Standard Poodle was able to take its first tiny steps toward
returning to its primary historic job of duck dog. This was when the
Canadian Kennel Club, at the strong urging of Jacqueline Harbour,
decided to allow Standard Poodles to compete in its Working
Certificate program. At the same time, the hunting retriever
movement began to develop in the U.S. in response to the unrealistic
tests being set in licensed field trials. By 1985, both the AKC and
the UKC were holding non-competitive retriever hunting tests. Since
the UKC has always considered the Poodle to be a sporting breed,
Poodles have been eligible for the UKC?s Hunting Retriever Tests
since the program?s inception. In 1993, the Poodle Club of America
implemented a retriever working certificate program which was a
prerequisite to making Poodles eligible for the AKC?s hunt test
program and in 1996 when the CKC initiated its own retriever hunt
test program, Poodles were automatically included among the eligible
breeds. Finally, in 1998, simply because Dr. Grace Blair refused to
let the idea die and continued to badger the AKC?s performance
division, Standard Poodles became eligible to run in AKC hunt tests.
The CKC?s WC/WCI/WCX tests were opened to Miniature Poodles in
January of 2002.
The result has been a significant number of Poodles
that have earned hunt test titles or working certificates and this
change has created some re-thinking among many Poodle fanciers about
the breed?s inclusion in the non-sporting group. Cheryl Ingwersen,
who owns Can. Ch. U-CD HRC SHR Tudorose Roman Emperor WD JH CDX AGN
PCA-WC, RAMCl CGN, said flatly that the Standard Poodle?s presence
in the non-sporting group is an insult. ?Anything would be welcome
that would get Poodles out of a group called non-sporting. That
designation is a complete insult both to Poodles and all the other
dogs that are in that group with them. Poodles should be in the
sporting group. That is their heritage and their birthright.?
Joyce Carelli, the Poodle Club of America?s chair for
the club?s WC/WCX program noted that there had been a good bit of
conversation within the club on this issue recently. ?Personally, I
think Poodles belong in the sporting group. It would highlight the
breed?s functionality and perhaps we could get away from the hairdo
being such an important factor in winning. The breed should be
judged according to the standard and this perfectly describes a dog
that is a terrific retriever. Unfortunately, when you exaggerate any
of the parts, as is commonly rewarded in the show ring today, you
lose some of what allows the dog to be able to do its job
efficiently.?
Jac Harbour, who has bred and owned more Poodles that
have hunt test titles than any other Poodle breeder said, ?It would
be desirable to have the Poodles in the sporting group especially
since this would encourage more people to show their dogs in the
shorter HCC or historically correct clip.?
Dianne Wigelsworth, who owns Ch. Sundance
Irresistible Fire CD SH said ?I believe that both Standard and
Miniature Poodles should eventually be returned to the sporting
group especially now that both are proving themselves as successful
hunting dogs.
On the other hand, I can understand the apprehension
of many breeders and handlers. The jump into the sporting group is
so great. It is already so large that it would make it much more
challenging to get group placements and best-in-show wins on
Poodles. Still, that?s where the breed really belongs.?
However, Claudia Straitiff, who owns Ch. Ascot
Boucheron Joalleria CD RN, sounded a note of caution. ?Personally, I
don?t think it matters what ?group? the Poodle shows in as much as
how the Poodle is perceived by the general public and judged by
conformation judges. I believe in some ways that we have done a
disservice to the breed by letting handlers in the show ring take
the hair to such extremes, which makes it a grooming contest in some
cases, rather than an evaluation of the structure, temperament and
attitude of the dog. Besides, historically, Poodles were guard dogs,
hunting dogs, circus dogs and companions so putting them in the
Sporting Group would really only recognize one of the many hats the
breed has worn.?
These Poodle ?Pioneers? said that a variety of
reasons motivated them to ?take up the cause? of returning the breed
to its main historical function as a hunting retriever. Jac Harbor,
one of the first to take this initiative said that a boarder at her
kennel was what got her into the field with her Poodles. ?I owned a
boarding kennel and a client boarded his field trial Labs with me.
Watching his dogs, I thought that Poodles were hunting dogs so I
started going out with him and began looking for a Poodle of mine
that liked and would retrieve birds.?
Inwersen noted that Harbour provided the inspiration
she needed to switch from Labs to Poodles. ?I was perfectly content
running my Lab in field events until I went to a Canadian WC test
and saw Jacqueline Har-bour running a wonderful Standard Pood-le. I
was thrilled to see how well that Poodle worked and then and there I
decided my next dog would be a Poodle and I wanted to be part of the
group of people who were helping the breed re-discover its hunting
heritage.?
Wigelsworth said that she always wanted to know if
her dog had any instinct for retrieving. ?I knew about the Poodle?s
history as a retriever and I always wondered if my dog had any
instincts for this work but I didn?t really know how to go about
determining this. One problem was that in 1998, when I decided to
pursue this, there weren?t many places to go for information within
the Poodle world. Finally, I surfed the Internet and found a UKC
Hunting Retriever Club near me so I contacted them and someone got
back to me right away encouraging me to come out and watch a hunt
test. I brought Abby with me and we got the grand tour of all the
tests offered that day. I was also put in touch with some local club
members who were willing to let us participate in their training
sessions. I?ve been hooked ever since.
Carelli said that the retrieving instinct still
resides in a lot of Poodles although it has been hidden and
suppressed for generations. ?I happened upon field training because
I had a dog who needed some fun in her life. She had been
misdiagnosed with lymphoma and underwent 11 months of chemotherapy
only to discover that she had never had lymphoma at all. I was
looking for something she would enjoy because she deserved it. The
first time out training with a group of dogs and owners both she and
I were hooked. She had such a love for retrieving and swimming that
it was a joy to watch her have this much fun and we started on our
journey of learning how to be a hunting retriever together. Once I
saw the potential in the breed for retrieving and understood a
little about the training, I also learned that the instinct is still
there in most Poodles and this is an activity that they seem to
enjoy to no end.?
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HUNT TEST PROGRAMS
While there are some differences, all of the retriever hunt
test programs bear a strong resemblance to each other. At the
introductory or junior levels (started hunting retriever in
UKC/HRC tests) dogs are expected to make four single, marked
retrieves to hand (meaning the dog has to deliver the bird to
the hand of its handler) with two being land retrieves and two
from the water. At the second level, which is called senior in
AKC /CKC tests and seasoned in UKC/HRC tests, dogs are
expected to complete two double marked retrieves (two birds
down at the same time requiring the dog to remember the second
mark), one on land and the other in the water, a blind
retrieve (where the dog does not see the bird fall) on land
and water. They are also expected to do something called a
?walk-up? which means the dog walks up to the line from which
it will depart for a retrieve off-leash and under control of
its handler and they must be steady to the shot meaning they
can?t depart from the line until they are commanded to do so
by their handler. In AKC/CKC tests, senior dogs are also
expected to honor another dog?s retrieve. At the master
(AKC/CKC) or finished (UKC/HRC) levels, the dog has to do
multiple (doubles, triples and even quadruple) land and water
marks, land and water blind retrieves and an honoring test. In
other words, the master or finished dog must exhibit all the
skills of a fully-trained retriever. The CKC?s WCIX program
differs somewhat in its requirements at the various levels
from the hunt test programs but the major difference is that
hunt test programs require multiple qualifying scores at the
various levels in order to earn the titles (JH/SHR, SH/HR,
MH/HRCH) and the WCIX program requires only a single pass. For
more information contact the AKC, CKC or UKC/HRC.
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Straitiff noted that it was an effort to persuade her
husband to go along with her desire to have a Standard Poodle that
brought her into the growing group of Poodle retriever enthusiasts.
?I had a Standard Poodle when I grew up so I knew they were once
retrievers. My husband hunts so I told him we would teach the Poodle
I wanted to get to retrieve. He was skeptical but he went along with
the idea. Luckily, Mulligan had all the hunting instinct she needed
and as a bonus had good enough conformation to compete in the show
ring. Once I saw her swimming and chasing ducks, catching sticks and
all the other encouraging signs you look for in a young retriever, I
really got into the hunting idea. So much so in fact that since
training her, I have learned to shoot and bought a new shotgun last
fall. Thanks to Mulligan, I rallied behind the hunting idea for the
breed and here we are today.?
Training Poodles to hunt can
sometimes be challenging. ?They are often too clever to train as
hunt test dogs,? said Harbour. ?They do great as hunting companions
since they love to problem-solve. Many often have such a sense of
fun that they turn all training into a fun activity like tossing the
bumper or bird in the air and catching it as they race back to the
handler with it. There are some hunt test judges who frown on such a
devil-may-care attitude. Also, their retrieving instincts are not as
strong as you?d find in a Labrador, for instance. This means that
like some of the other less-popular retriever breeds, they don?t
bounce back from harsh corrections because they know a reward in the
form of a retrieve is coming. Most Poodles have very strong chase
instincts and you have to modify your training techniques to allow
for these things.?
Carelli also noted that Poodles? intelligence can
pose problems in training. ?They are quicker to learn what we?re
trying to teach them but that also means they are quicker to try to
find better ways to do things rather than just sticking to doing
what they are told to do. It is a challenge to stay ahead of them
but that?s one of the things I like about the breed. Some Poodles
are not as fond of swimming as some of the other retrievers. They
were originally bred to do their retrieving in marshy areas, not
necessarily in wide-open swimming water. Some need more time to get
comfortable in the water than other breeds. And, some have
conformation problems which cause them problems in the water. A lot
of Poodles have fronts that are not as angulated as they should be
or the bottom shoulder is too short and set too far forward. This
makes swimming much more difficult for these dogs. Not that it can?t
be done but it is physically harder and the dog has to work more to
get the same propulsion through the water.?
Straitiff said that the breed has quirks that have to
be taken into consideration when training and anyone who says they
do not is either naive or full of it. ?They are thinkers. You will
see them pause, mark and then enter. They are cautious. They are not
as forgiving for corrections when they are unsure of what they are
expected to do. They need a relationship with the handler. They
don?t do well if all the handler does is train them for the field.
They need to trust their handler. They get bored with repetition.
The more creative you are, the better a Poodle performs. There are
some trainers who say that we just don?t know how to train our dogs.
Others say they would like to train a Poodle with a Lab puppy to see
if they got the same results. Believe me it has all been tried. I am
one of the few Poodle owners who has placed a dog with a
professional trainer for an extended amount of time. Since Mulligan
started her field work so late, I thought I could catch up by
sending her to a pro. While she developed all the right skills with
him, she didn?t have a relationship. He was able to take her through
?seasoned? (see sidebar) and to one qualifying score in ?finished?
but then she just shut down and showed it by demonstrating a lack of
effort at tests. Recently, I sent her to a more upbeat and
enthusiastic trainer. She and Mulligan worked really well together
through senior and to her first qualifying score in master. Then it
happened again. She shut down. She?s tired of the game again and
needs to come home. This behavior is typical of a Poodle. Being away
from home, away from their people and doing a lot of repetition just
shuts them down. They are not mechanical and they don?t ?live only
for the bird? as is the case with most Labs. (Note: This is not an
unusual situation with retriever breeds other than Labradors or
Goldens. A long-time and very successful retriever trainer says that
he would never keep Chesapeakes for more than a month to six weeks
at a time because they would hit this same wall. He found that by
sending them home to be with their owners for a few weeks, they
could come back to him happy and ready to work once again. He said
it was like they needed the reassurance that they were still loved
by their owners in order to get their heads back in the game and he
noted that he had similar experiences with Curly-Coats and several
Flat-Coats.) Poodles aren?t for the weak at heart as far as hunting
goes and you can?t ?correct? them into submitting, e-collar or
otherwise.?
Straitiff also noted that there is a significant need
to educate hunt test judges about Poodle style. ?I think a lot of
times they are compared to Labs rather than being evaluated for how
they actually ran the test in hunt tests. They are never going to
look like a Lab in the field. They have their own style. It is like
watching a pelican catch fish versus a heron catching fish. They
both get the fish but they don?t look the same doing it. A number of
Poodles hit the water cautiously and they mark deliberately. They
aren?t lightning fast but they do the work. So we see judges who are
Labrador people mark them down for style. (Note: Again, not an
unusual situation. Many Chesapeake, Flat-Coat, Curly-Coat and Irish
Water Spaniel people say they have experienced the same sort of
bias.) So, we have a lot to do with educating judges on what a
Poodle is capable of doing and we need to keep taking the dogs out
there. I think that the situation is improving. Lots of people show
up to watch the Poodle run and they cheer for them. We run into very
few critics anymore and most people are enthusiastic that we are
bringing the breed back to its roots.?
All of these Poodle lovers said they believed that
dual-titled Poodles (dogs with conformation championships and field
titles) were vital to the future of the breed. Ingwersen said it
best. She said, ?We do not want to change the essence of the Poodle
to be competitive in the field or for that matter, any other
performance event. I don?t want to see Poodles go the same way as
Labs and Goldens with distinct field and show lines where many of
the field lines produce dogs that do not even remotely resemble the
breed standard and many of the dogs from strictly show lines have
lost all the ability to perform their original purpose. However, a
retriever that will not or cannot retrieve, no matter how pretty it
looks, is a disgrace to its breeding. That being said, Poodle
breeders should not be trying to produce ?non-shedding Labs? for
field work. Instead they should be focusing on producing
good-looking Poodles that can still perform their original job as a
water retriever.?
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