"Reflections”
AKC Gazette Column for Bearded Collies
Susan Lybrand, Columnist

In 2009, the Bearded Collie Club of America celebrates its fortieth year as an AKC recognized breed.  I have been privileged to have been a part of that milestone with this breed for twenty of those years.  It is thinking back on those twenty years that gives me pause to reflect back on my time with this marvelous breed and all that I have learned from it.

When I acquired my first Beardie, I thought that she would set the world on fire in the show ring.  We were going to the top for sure and there would be no stopping us.  The reality was that forty-eight shows later, I finally finished her and she was quickly retired from the show ring forever.  I have learned that while you may think your dog is perfect, perfection only exists in your own mind.  If you want to truly move on in a breed to another dog that is much closer to the AKC standard, you have to be willing to look hard and see the faults in the dog that you have.  Without the ability to do that, you will never have anything better than what you already own.

I have learned that anyone can breed dogs, but to be a real breeder, it means being there for all of your puppy buyers now and forever, to share in the ups, downs, successes and any problems that might come along.  I might have had better luck successfully swimming the English Channel than getting in touch with my breeder after purchasing my first Beardie.  She totally disappeared after the money changed hands and I was left on my own to work through all of the problems and challenges that this atypical Beardie brought into my life.

With the purchase of my second and third Beardies, I have learned what a mentor was and all they were able to teach you if you had the desire to learn.  I quickly enjoyed success in the show ring with dogs that were much closer to the standard of the breed then I had before, and my involvement in the world of Beardies became strongly cemented.

I have learned that taking an active role in your national breed club can be a very rewarding experience.  It gives you the opportunity to contribute your time and talents to a worthy cause.  It brings together a passionate group of people to exchange ideas with and learn from their past experiences for the betterment of the breed.  It gives you the opportunity to take on challenging roles in helping to promote and protect your breed.

I have learned that you never will know it all about any breed no matter how long you have been involved in it.  There is always a new prospective on something to think about from even the newest neophyte to the most seasoned veteran.  Part of the excitement in anything I am involved in for me is the prospect of a new possibility in my way of looking at something.  When you believe you know it all, perhaps that is the time you need to really take a hard look at yourself  and get out of the breed.