FURTHER DIFFICULTIES
Members of the ASDC immediately bombarded the dog press
with letters. Throughout 1983 rumors
reached AKDC members that the January decision would be altered and in an effort
to avert any decision being taken without sensible consultations, the Secretary
of the AKDC wrote to the Chairman of the KC in April 1983 offering any
assistance required. She
received a reply that nothing would be done without consulting the registered
Breed Club A.K.D.C.
Later in the year, the AKDC was asked to send
representatives to the KC in November of 1983.
Upon arrival they were introduced to Dr. Willis who said that in his
capacity as Genetic advisor to the KC and on the evidence he had seen from Mr.
Roy Robinson, he had advised the KC General Committee that there should be only
one Breed – ASD and this should encompass all large dogs from Turkey.
The breed Standard had been changed dramatically but most
notably the color clause now stated: all
colors are acceptable. The only
clause remaining the same was the coat clause that still called for a short
dense weatherproof coat.
Dr. Willis said that acting on his advice the General
Committee had made their decision in May 1983 and the Breed Standard had been
changed accordingly. He refused to
listen to any reasonable objection maintaining throughout that he, as a
geneticist and breeder of GSD’s knew best.
Also present as the meeting were Miss Czartoryska, Mr. J.
Jones, Dr. Tapper an Anthropologist and an American gentleman flown in for the
occasion, Cdr Ballard. Cdr Ballard
stated at the meeting that it was he who had in 1968 told Dr. Steele the name
Karabas and that she had no knowledge previously of the name.
Dr. Steele then produced the letter she had received from
the Kennel Club Stud Book & Registrations Manager Mr. D. Chiverton dated
October 1965. Mr. Chiverton who was
present examined the letter and confirmed it’s authenticity.
Cdr. Ballard immediately offered Dr. Steele his unreserved apologies
& gave his word an a Officer & Gentleman that this story, plainly
mistaken, would never again be repeated.
AKDC representatives tried in every way to point out the
flaws in the decision. They argued
that if the Kennel Club had been given any information of sufficient importance
to totally change the name & Breed Standard of the Breed, they had
recognized for nearly twenty years, then that information should have been shown
to the registered Breed Club Officers and discussed with them. If
there were any flaws or errors in the information the KC had been given, then
the Karabas standard, Breed Name, & register should not be changed.
All attempts to present the facts (including
documentation from
Members of the AKDC went to discuss the way forward.
They tried contacting the KC Chairman & Secretary but were refused
any further discussion. Finally,
they had no alternative but to seek legal advice.
There were long drawn out negotiations until finally in
1988, the KC agreed to word the Breed Standard as before with the exception of
two clauses:
- Temperament:
They would not agree to reinstate without
undue aggression and insisted it must remain
without aggression. The AKDC
Officers argued that a dog without any aggression could not protect flocks
but the KC insisted there must be no excuse for people to breed aggressive
dogs.
- The color
clause: after much talking a
compromise was reached. The KC
insisted on keeping the words all colors acceptable but did not agree to add
but it is desirable they be whole
colored Cream to Fawn with Black Mask & Ears.
The coat section remained as it had always been, “a
short dense weatherproof coat.” Finally
the KC insisted that the name remain ASD but they would review the matter of a
separate registry and restoring the Breed Standard in 5 years.
Every 5 years from then on the Officers of the AKDC
requested the reinstatement of the name and Breed Standard for their dogs.
Always supplying evidence to support their request and always receiving
the reply that it was not the correct time for such a decision.
In 2003 the Shepherd Dog Club requested the KC to make
significant changes to the conformation, size, coat, and color in the Breed
Standard. The KC requested the
AKDC to place the matter before it’s members.
At a Special General Meeting, members present voted to reject the
proposed changes and instructed the Committee to apply to the KC for the Breed
to be returned to it’s original name and status separate from the Shepherd’s
Dogs. Also, for the name Kangal to
be inserted to the title in recognition of the current Turkish wishes, i.e.
Anatolian Karabash (Kangal) Dog.
The Committee worked through the Secretary at that time,
Mrs. Margaret Mellor to produce a complete dossier of information that covered
the complete time span since the breed was first introduced to the KC to the
present date, including documentation from the Turkish government of a Turkish
Government patent for the Kangal Dog and a United Nations grant for the
Conservation and Breeding of the Kangal Dog.
The matter was
placed before the Breed Standards and Stud Book Sub Committee in May 2004.
The ad hoc Committee upheld the decision of the BSSBSC and in January
2005 announced that the color clause of the Breed Standard had been changed
there was no longer a requirement for Black Mask & Ears or in fact any
specific identifying color requirements at all, any color, with or without would
do.
ASD any color
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