Monday, August 10, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Purposes of AKC ILP Numbers
Hi Everyone,
There has been heated discussion about the issue of ILP numbers. I wish to avoid the heat, and also give more historical information to people who are interested in the subject.
ILP numbers had a two-fold purpose before they were changed to PAL numbers by the AKC. There had been too many *heated* complaints about the misuse of ILP numbers in performance events.
A few decades ago owners of purebred dogs were denied access to performance events because the ancestry of their dogs was unknown. These dogs were barred from AKC registration for various reasons. Unregistered dogs could not compete in AKC events, even though many were purebred, but couldn't prove their ancestry.
The AKC responded to the wishes of these owners who wished to compete in obedience, tracking, herding, and other trials by issuing ILP (Indefinite Listing Privilege) numbers to approved applicants whose dogs had to be spayed or neutered, and also looked like their breed from front and side views. ( A Canaan dog was once denied a number because she had button ears. When her ears went up, she got a number.) This number could be withdrawn at any time.
The second use of ILP numbers was for dogs whose breed clubs were applying for full acceptance of their breeds by AKC. The requirements for a number were the same, except that dogs were allowed to remain entire, and reproduce. They were allowed to enter conformation events, but could not earn championship points. They competed in miscellaneous class, a class that exists today to give owners of "new" breeds a chance to meet the fancy, and vice-versa. There were many Canaans who competed in this class, and also in tracking and obedience to earn their titles. Canaans spent eight years in miscellaneous class before being granted full recognition. That is another story.
Most people use the privilege honestly. Some do not. Many people cannot afford to purchase a purebred puppy. They get a dog from a shelter. The shelter tells them it is a Canaan dog. The buyer, who often likes to think of himself as a rescuer, but that is another story too, believes what the shelter tells him, trains his dog, and enters competition with a dog he thinks is a Canaan. There is a near 100% chance that it isn't, because an unregistered dog, or dog whose litter is unregistered, is hardly ever a Canaan dog.
The idea of issuing ILP numbers also works to promote the breed by giving Canaan Dog owners a chance to educate ILP dog owners about the breed. Their next dog could be a real Canaan, and the club could be one member stronger. I saw one young 14-year-old trainer compete at the 2002 specialty in obedience and junior showmanship with her ILP-numbered black-and-white dog. She did well in obedience, and not as well in juniors. I felt that she could be welcomed and educated about the breed. Instead she received a cold shoulder from most people there. The next year, a young girl from Texas had worked hard (make that very hard, because it is extremely difficult to qualify for Westminster) to show her black-and-white dog in junior showmanshp at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in NYC. She showed competently, if not well, and was as good as ignored in the ring. When the judging was over, she left the ring, and was never seen again. I felt she was a prime candidate to do good things for the breed eventually, and that we had lost the opportunity to do so.
There are always crooks around. It is a terrible thing to cheat at sports. It is wrong to claim to have a Canaan dog just to make the climb up the ratings list easier because there are very few dogs competing. People who do this, and there are several competing in agility now who do, are despicable. I, for one, don't want to discontinue the privilege of competing with ILP, or PAL, numbers in the face of a few dishonest people. Now, of course, as Ro and Joe Steinberg have already pointed out, it's a moot point, because mixed breed dogs will compete in their own "separate but equal" classes, and the crooks will disappear. We hope so, anyway.
Bryna
There has been heated discussion about the issue of ILP numbers. I wish to avoid the heat, and also give more historical information to people who are interested in the subject.
ILP numbers had a two-fold purpose before they were changed to PAL numbers by the AKC. There had been too many *heated* complaints about the misuse of ILP numbers in performance events.
A few decades ago owners of purebred dogs were denied access to performance events because the ancestry of their dogs was unknown. These dogs were barred from AKC registration for various reasons. Unregistered dogs could not compete in AKC events, even though many were purebred, but couldn't prove their ancestry.
The AKC responded to the wishes of these owners who wished to compete in obedience, tracking, herding, and other trials by issuing ILP (Indefinite Listing Privilege) numbers to approved applicants whose dogs had to be spayed or neutered, and also looked like their breed from front and side views. ( A Canaan dog was once denied a number because she had button ears. When her ears went up, she got a number.) This number could be withdrawn at any time.
The second use of ILP numbers was for dogs whose breed clubs were applying for full acceptance of their breeds by AKC. The requirements for a number were the same, except that dogs were allowed to remain entire, and reproduce. They were allowed to enter conformation events, but could not earn championship points. They competed in miscellaneous class, a class that exists today to give owners of "new" breeds a chance to meet the fancy, and vice-versa. There were many Canaans who competed in this class, and also in tracking and obedience to earn their titles. Canaans spent eight years in miscellaneous class before being granted full recognition. That is another story.
Most people use the privilege honestly. Some do not. Many people cannot afford to purchase a purebred puppy. They get a dog from a shelter. The shelter tells them it is a Canaan dog. The buyer, who often likes to think of himself as a rescuer, but that is another story too, believes what the shelter tells him, trains his dog, and enters competition with a dog he thinks is a Canaan. There is a near 100% chance that it isn't, because an unregistered dog, or dog whose litter is unregistered, is hardly ever a Canaan dog.
The idea of issuing ILP numbers also works to promote the breed by giving Canaan Dog owners a chance to educate ILP dog owners about the breed. Their next dog could be a real Canaan, and the club could be one member stronger. I saw one young 14-year-old trainer compete at the 2002 specialty in obedience and junior showmanship with her ILP-numbered black-and-white dog. She did well in obedience, and not as well in juniors. I felt that she could be welcomed and educated about the breed. Instead she received a cold shoulder from most people there. The next year, a young girl from Texas had worked hard (make that very hard, because it is extremely difficult to qualify for Westminster) to show her black-and-white dog in junior showmanshp at the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in NYC. She showed competently, if not well, and was as good as ignored in the ring. When the judging was over, she left the ring, and was never seen again. I felt she was a prime candidate to do good things for the breed eventually, and that we had lost the opportunity to do so.
There are always crooks around. It is a terrible thing to cheat at sports. It is wrong to claim to have a Canaan dog just to make the climb up the ratings list easier because there are very few dogs competing. People who do this, and there are several competing in agility now who do, are despicable. I, for one, don't want to discontinue the privilege of competing with ILP, or PAL, numbers in the face of a few dishonest people. Now, of course, as Ro and Joe Steinberg have already pointed out, it's a moot point, because mixed breed dogs will compete in their own "separate but equal" classes, and the crooks will disappear. We hope so, anyway.
Bryna
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