Called to Order at 7:20 Pm

The below minutes are for the 2010 annual meeting in Potsboro, Tx and are posted here only for information, they will need to be approved at annual meeting of the membership in California 2011

Called to order at 7:20 pm

A quorum of 43 members is present

Beth Lachnitt and Teddy Gill made a motion and a second to approve the minutes. Motion passed

Report of the President:. The Board was introduced by President Tami Worley. Present were Chris Curran 2 nd VP, Sonja Ostrom 1st VP and Parliamentarian, Vickie Marie Treasurer, Ramona Kraft Board Member, Terri Ann Votava Recording Secretary, and unable to attend were Board Members Barbara Swisher and Estelle Breines and Corresponding Secretary Mary Grace Buckwalter. The President thanked the current and past board members for their service and the group from Texas for this awesome specialty. A huge thank you goes out to Laura Patton and her committee. The committee chairs need a vote of thanks and appreciation for your work and time served. We have 62 lifetime members and that speaks to the commitment to the breed and the club. The first National was in Chicago in 1949. Tami shared a story of the starfish. A man is walking along the beach where there are thousands of starfish washed ashore and picks one up and tosses it back in the sea and then another and another. A man asks why he is wasting his time there are thousands of them and what difference will it make. The first man holds up the next starfish he is going to toss back to the sea and says “it makes a difference to this starfish”. Please stay committed to our breed and our club

Susan Spinhirne and Sharon Roundy were introduced from the Rescue Trust as the Co-chairs. Their commitment to our breed and the dogs they serve is unbelievable. They need more help. Please consider volunteering and thank you for the awesome support that you are showing to the Trust.

Report of Treasurer:

The treasurer presented the figures from the balance sheet. She apologized for the time it took, but since she was just appointed in late February it did take time to transfer funds, information and to put the books in order. (See Attached Treasurers Report). The tax returns have been completed. The report of the Trust fund (see trust fund) was presented and some concerns voiced. In the old days we just managed the funds for rescue. We created the BSDRT as a 501 3c. There needs to be a separation of the two. The July 2009 motion stating that the BSDRT will be handling the health funds has created additional issues. It appears that the BSCA Treasury is accepting as part of the dues checks the health funds. The co-mingling of these funds could result in the potential loss of non profit status. We are therefore seeking both legal advice and advice from the IRS. We believe that to protect the status that the dues checks and the health and rescue donations need to be separate checks until this is resolved.

I am proposing that we decrease the dues and Newsletter assessment to 50 dollars. This is workable by decreasing $5.00 off the newsletter and that we reduce the health assessment to the BSCA to $0 as part of the dues assessment and ask members to write a separate check for health and rescue to the BSDRT and identify such as part of the dues notice .

Motion by Valerie McKagen, seconded by Lynette Gandl, that we reduce the dues and assessments to the BSCA to $50 by removing $5 from the newsletter assessment and the $5 health assessment. The new dues notice could solicit both health and rescue donations to be written directly to the BSDRT to ensure their being tax deductible. The breakdown would be as follows:

Individual $50 $30 to Newsletter $20 to dues Family $70 $30 to Newsletter $40 to dues

Juniors $30 $30 to Newsletter $0 to dues Lifetime $30 $30 to Newsletter $0 to dues

A concern was raised regarding the Newsletter being able to be reduced and that the additional funds are due to the lack of a newsletter. The vote was postponed to new business waiting for Bruce Freedman to be able to answer questions regarding the Newsletter

Audit report: Ron Worley

This report did take longer to prepare than usual do to circumstances beyond the Treasurer’s and the committee’s control. The committee consisted of Ramona Kraft, Ira Breines and Ron Worley the committee does have a 24 page report is available. The Statement balances do match. There was a 20% review of checks written and there were no discrepancies.

Funds transferred or written to the trust were not verifiable and the opening and closing balances between 2007 and 2008 were not able to be confirmed.

Kathy Champine and Sharon Roundy moved and seconded to accept the audit as it stands pending the 2 items of clarification. Motion carries

The merit committee would propose the new point schedule (see the merit report) by Karen Hodges and a second by Rachelle Bailey. Lynn Black spoke against the motion in that it would possibly kill the regionals if there is no incentive for people to drive the distances to compete. There is also a problem with the reports in that it does not carry all the information requested. Karen addressed that it is the member’s job to obtain the reports and required information. Motion by Karen Hodges, seconded by Linda Robey. Motion passes

Performance committee report (see attached) The National Herding recommendations are suggestions future nationals. Lynnette Gandl makes a motion that we accept the recommendation of the Performance Committee, seconded by Gail O’Neil to establish a HIT in agility at future National Specialties. Motion passed

Tami Worley spoke to the constitution changes and them not being warranted at the current time. They have been referred back to committee. The Health Registry committee proposes replacing the health registry with a health survey with the goal of improving information on the health of our breed. Suggestion that it be online.

The legislative committee. See board minutes

Newsletter committee See the recommendations. Working would be working/performance and the rescue issue would become a newsletter column and that issue would be replaced by a puppy issue. A member raised the issue about reducing the number of issues. Marion Heise recommended that we talk with other parent clubs at the parent club conference and then form a newsletter committee to look at these recommendations. Members asked for specific positions for which to volunteer. Bruce Freedman will submit positions that we could use help on. The Board has approved the Alphagraphics recommendation of $250 per month for layout, which the Newsletter Editors believe will greatly assist in the production of the newsletter. It is further felt by the editors that there are two issues which affect the timeliness of the newsletter. The information has to be gotten to the newsletter staff in a timely fashion and can not be continually redone if we want to see the Newsletters out on time and there is a lack of volunteers to put it out. Members are asked to be part of the solution and volunteer to help in any way possible.

The BSDRT asked that the closest large city will be identified on the new membership forms to assist rescue in locating help.

2010 Show: Hospitality is awesome. Great entry. Only 1 complaint so far from the hotel about a barking dog.

2011 Sunny California. Logo has been developed. Herding is going to be at a great facility and tracking will be happening. We are planning fun since it has been 36 years since it has been in California. 3 days of herding will be available. Hotel is available and willing to have dogs. WWW.BSCA2011nationalspecialty.info and to get the lowest rate possible please go through the website. John Wayne airport is closeby with free transportation. LAX is 32 miles from the host hotel. Prime time for arrival is 10 am to 1 pm or after 7 pm. The park for the events other than tracking and herding will be approximately 1 mile from the hotel with food and fun right on site. Fundraising on Thurdsday evening of “Worst in Show” with wine tasting will be held to benefit cancer research. The dates are Monday April 4 – April 9, 2011.

A bid for 2012 has been received from Raritan April 15-22, 2012 in Lehigh Valley, Bethlehem, Pa.

2013 will be in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin at the Olympia Resort.

Unfinished Business:

Marion Heise: I strongly recommend that the board reconsider the motion authorizing up to $100 annually for an appreciation gift for the National Specialty chair. Kathy Champine. It is hard to recognize only one person when putting on a specialty. Motion made by Heise and seconded by Champine, hand counted vote of 20 for 20 against. While the motion does not carry the Board will respectfully reconsider the motion.

Marion Heise moved that she would like to see us do more now for lifetime members and that the membership strongly recommend to the board that the motion to donate $100 to either rescue or the CHF be reversed. The membership committee should find a more cost effective means of honoring lifetime members while they are alive. Kathy Champine seconded. 21 to 16 motion carries

Cathy Champine raised a question regarding Article 2, Sections and the dues. Yes it was discussed to extend the timeframe as a result of confusion with the resignations of key positions but it did not happen and therefore is not a violation. The Article III, Section 1 violation of the Annual Meeting Notification. Yes the notice was 15 days late but we can not answer the question of why, since the responsible person has resigned and been replaced. We will strive to do better next year. She also questioned the removal of minutes and financial statements from the newsletter and is concerned by the tardiness of said reports on the BSCA Website. It was reiterated that a Board discussion took place and by virtue of documentation of willingness of Chris Curran and Ramona Kraft to snail mail to any who requested the minutes and reports that a concensus was arrived at and since we have not had newsletter publications that it was much better to get this information to the members in a more timely manner and the posting on the website was viewed as much more efficient. It also was pointed out the number of pages that it occupied in the Newsletter and that by posting on the website we are also saving that amount of money. It did not appear by membership participation to be a concern of the members.

Dues motion by Valerie McKagen was reread for the membership with the second. A lengthy discussion on dues and the cost of the newsletter by Marion Heise were heard and that she felt the finances of the Newsletter are not indicative of a reduction at this time. Additional concerns were raised since full financials were not available (this was addressed by the Treasurer in her report earlier in the meeting). Concerns regarding the BSCA being an agent of the Trust were again brought up and again were addressed as we are seeking legal counsel and IRS advice. Once again she also addressed that there were no issues with members writing their check to the BSCA and that money being directed to the BSDRT and tax deductible. Again the Board advised that we are seeking legal counsel and IRS advice regarding this issue. The dues were voted upon and passed 35 to 2.

Tami Worley spoke to a need for ongoing fundraising needed for future National Specialties and is going to be chairing that endeavor.

Membership in the BSCA is 421 members with 34 non renewals who are all being contacted and 62 life members. We have 9 new applicants and each member needs to think about why do you join a National Breed Club. Yes it is the sole group responsible for the standard but also the knowledge that is available and the means to access information. How do we as members help to increase the membership of the organization.

The Ballot counting committee was selected: Penny King, Katherine Rossman and Rachelle Bailey with Lynn Black as the alternate. There being no objection the meeting is adjourned at 10 pm.

Attachments: Annual Reports

AKC Delegate's Report--By Barbara Swisher

There were four delegates' meetings this year--two in Newark, NJ, one in Raleigh, NC, and one in Long Beach, California. At the Raleigh meeting, in addition to tours of the AKC administrative headquarters, there was a special presentation by Curt Curtis AVP Companion Events Department, on the state of obedience in this declining monetary environment. There was also a special "Caucus" on technical issues, led by Philip Guidry, legislative analyst, AKC. He said that the AKC stands ready to help support efforts to respond to negative legislation: there were over 800 bills introduced in the first four months of the year, which are as many as in all of 2008. We are under "legislative assault," Mr. Guidry said. Any questions on legislative and government affairs should be directed to Guidry's group at AKC offices in Raleigh. The group realignment project was again discussed at length. At Long Beach (I did not attend this meeting), a report by the chief financial officer, pointed out that "total revenues of $55.5 million for the first 11 months of 2009 were 10% lower than last year." He mentioned that "the major sources of our revenues" were negatively impacted by the recession. One of these was registrations, which are still declining. At the September meeting in Newark the much discussed amendment to split the groups and create another one was postponed. A vote on the amendment to Chapter 3 Section 5 of the rules applying to Dog Shows which would allow for the division of the 12-18 month class AT THE OPTION of the individual clubs, passed. The class may be divided to: 12 months and under 15 and 15 to under 18 months. A long discussion of the Grand Champion award was held. Details of this may be read on the AKC website. The meeting at Newark in March was the one of the shortest on record. It was also the largest with 396 members attending. It took only one ballot to elect the three directors to the AKC board. I had received instructions to vote for the three who were elected. They were Dr. Charles Garvin with 238 votes; Patricia Scully with 218 votes and Dr. William Newman with 217 votes. One hundred and ninety-eight votes were needed to elect. This was the first election in which term limits came into play. There is now a discussion to eliminate the term limits. In other business, Chairman Ron Menaker, distributed the AKC awards. These can be seen on the AKC website. The financial report, given by James Stevens, chief financial officer of the AKC, was mixed. The portfolio is up over last year but all auxiliary revenue dependent on them is down even further than last year. Entries at shows and other events are up slightly over last year. Registrations continue their decline. The group realignment issue was withdrawn and will be sent back to the board. There is some discussion about reducing the number of delegates' meetings and other ways of making the delegate body more effective. Mixed breeds were welcomed (with some restrictions) into AKC events with the first shows where they were able to be shown on April 1, 2010. The next meeting of the delegates will be in Atlanta in June.

Constitution Committee Report

Estelle Breines, Chair

Several years ago I was asked by the board serving at the time to make some revisions to the constitution. One item was to change the schedule of elections so that elections would be held each year. I expressed my objection to this personally but I said I would make the revisions regardless of my views, indicating that I would vote against the measure when the opportunity arose. I made grammatical and substantive corrections and worked with Judy Johnson as liaison on the language. Judy transmitted the document to the AKC for review. They made several requests. I incorporated the AKC language throughout the document as relevant and submitted the document to the board for their review and approval. Last year when Sonja was appointed liaison I sent the document to her requesting her input and it was further edited. When the revisions were complete, the current board reviewed the document and determined the following as noted in the February 2010 minutes:

After considerable discussion regarding the proposed constitutional changes it was felt that while some changes such as the grammatical changes and the change to age 9 for a junior member would be warranted, that they did not outweigh the cost and timeline restrictions that would be imposed if we changed our constitution for just them. It was felt that the change to Article III to allow the Board of Directors to handle all matters pending the general membership if a quorum was not at the annual meeting were far too sweeping and would take even more membership rights from the members such as a vote on dues or the standard. The electronic voting change as worded would require the BSCA to assure that each board member had the means to vote electronically. The additional change to voting for one half of the board annually seems to increase our costs while not necessarily increasing the effectiveness of the Board. The Board members could also not account for delaying the exchange of officers until July. The change to list the agenda is an AKC recommended item but is already in Roberts Rules which we incorporate and follow. Therefore a motion was made by Votava to vote on the constitutional changes as a whole, seconded by Swisher. For the constitutional changes: None Against the constitutional changes: Votava, Swisher, Marie, Breines, Ostrom, Kraft , Curran Abstain: Brosnan (submitted by T. Votava, Secretary)

Consequently, there is no change to the constitution currently being considered. I am fully in support of this decision as I believe constitutional changes should be rare and activated only to assure that the organization will be improved with its action.

General Education Committee Report

Three articles were written and submitted to the BSCA Newsletter:

 Evaluating Your Brood Bitch

 Deciding on a Stud Dog

 Placing Belgian Sheepdog Puppies

I had hoped to videotape several different Belgians while herding and put together a presentation of how structure, as described in our standard, related to function as a herding dog. I spoke to several individuals and judges and interest was expressed in it but several different personal issues came up and I just didn’t have the time to devote to it. I contacted a couple of other individuals that had expressed interest in the project and they were also over committed and did not have the time to put into it.

I would like to establish a Breeder’s Education page on the BSCA website and to provide more tools to assist new fanciers in learning about correct structure and movement and how it relates to the working ability of the Belgian Sheepdog.

Lorra Miller BSCA Health Committee

It has been a very exciting year for BSCA Health. As you know, we have spent more than a year asking for samples and DNA for the Gastric Carcinoma Study and last Fall the Canine Health Foundation approved funding for the actual research portion of the study. That study, done by Michigan State University and the National Institutes of Health, began accepting financial donations in January, and thanks to incredible generosity on the part of our membership, we were able to make a $10,000 – yes, TEN THOUSAND DOLLAR – donation to the Gastric Carcinoma study. We are hopeful that the study will yield exciting results for us.

Next, we have a report from Dr. Oberbauer. She states “We do have a manuscript in press with the following conclusion:

Taken together the data tentatively indicate six QTLs, three on CFA 2, and one on each of CFA 6, 12, and 37, that support fine mapping for mutations associated with epilepsy in the Belgian Shepherd. The study also underscores the complexity of genomic linkage studies for polygenic disorders.

We will be fine mapping the above regions, and now that we have this published we can go in for NIH funding. In addition, I have cobbled together some additional funds to do some SNP arrays on the Belgians.

Unfortunately that requires blood derived DNA at this time. Still. The key point will be to get blood samples from old dogs that do not have autoimmune disease nor epilepsy. The unaffected are often the hardest to get. Blood can be shipped priority and not overnight which greatly reduces costs. In contrast to the previous means to study the DNA, the SNP arrays do not need samples from related dogs. If owners of old dogs (say 9 or older) that are healthy would send blood in, we'd really appreciate that.”

So as your Health Chair I will, by this report, BEG ALL OF YOU with older dogs to PLEASE submit blood samples to Dr. Oberbauer’s lab. You can find the necessary forms and information at HTTP://CGAP.UCDAVIS.EDU .

And finally, we do not intend to rest on our accomplishments. We are actively searching for new and exciting health studies for our membership to support.

We encourage you to check in at www.akcchf.org on a regular basis to see what’s happening in the exciting world of health research!

Judy Johnstone, Health Chair

Health Registry 2010 Annual Report

The BSCA health registry questionnaire first appeared 14 years ago in the 1996 July/August issue of the Belgian Sheepdog Newsletter. Although strongly supported by some of our members, I now believe the health registry, as it exists, should be abandoned. Why? Because the submission rate has always been extremely low. During the past several years, information on fewer than 5 new dogs has been submitted annually. And many questionnaires do not provide useful information, because they are completed on very young dogs with no subsequent follow-up years later. What may find more acceptance, and consequently a higher participation rate, is a health survey. A health survey will not identify individual breeders, or dogs. But it should help identify health problems. The information obtained from an anonymous survey would at least show us what the major health problems are in our breed (most of which we probably already know, but there may be a few surprises). While this won't help us track problems in particular lines, the health registry won't either, because of the extremely low submission rate. Therefore, I am proposing replacing the health registry with a health survey with the goal of improving information on the health issues facing our Belgian Sheepdogs.

Renee Artymyshyn, M.D.

Historian Report

The boxes of the BSCA historical records arrived in July. Since then I have supported the newsletter editor by providing scans of photos dogs and bitches. I also provided a scan of the Belgians on Skyline photo. I have signed up for “The Breeder's Standard(tm) .NET” software so that I can provide “co-efficient of inbreeding” when requested. I responded to one member’s request for a co-efficient of inbreeding.

I responded to a request for information on previous officers of the BSCA by scanning old BSCA catalogs and going through the secretarial records.

In March this year BSCA received some old BSCA newsletters from Libbye Miller, the ABTC Archives chair.

Currently BSCA records are still stored in boxes. This year I would like to move them into filing cabinets and book cases.

Sharon LaFuse Judges Education Committee April 2009 – April 2010

The Judges Education Committee consists of: Chair, Linda Robey, committee members Marcy Spalding, Peri Norman, Jill Miller and Sandy Shaw. Susan Hoffman is our board liaison.

CD ROM presentation: Some additional pages have been added and some updated photos. Seminars:

April 30, 2009 - Linda Robey presented the PowerPoint presentation to the membership. There was a question and answer session after the presentation.

May 1, 2009 – A judges education presentation along with ringside mentoring was done in conjunction with the National Specialty. 12 potential judges attended. I am going to start listing the judges who attend so we will have a record of them, Tami Worley, Don Duerksen, Mary Murphy, Merle Taylor, Sharon Danley, Margit Brand, Danny Brand, Lisa Graser, Lloyd Graser, Roger Winnie, Mary Lee Winnie, Nancy Eilks.

August 12, 2009 – Marcy Spalding gave the JEC PowerPoint and did hands on education in conjunction with the American Dog Show Judges group in PA. This is a large educational event with ½ of each of the 7 groups being covered. The judges attending are: Judy Brown, Lloyd Graser, Peggy Hauck, Linn Klingel, Mike Lanctot, Mary Murphy, Merle, Taylor, Elliott Weiss, Don Duerksen, Joyce Geshwiler, Peter Green Betsy Humer, Marion McPherson, Barbara Pessina, Linda Riedel.

April 2010 – The Judges Association of Georgia requested a seminar. No presenters were available without a big expense. I advised them we could not do it in 2010 but would be open in the future. Ringside mentoring: Jan 8 & 9, 2010, Marcy mentored Sam Folsom, Eric Liebes & Victoria Jordan at the TVBSC and Nolan River shows. Jan 21, 2010, Jill Miller & Teddi Gill mentored and did hands on education with Marilyn Van Vleit and Paul Chen at the regional specialty in Portland Oregon.

BSCA Web Page:

I am still hopeful that the on line presentation can be made printable. If it can be printable it can then be developed into a new Judges Ed handout that will be able to be printed rather than mailed. This could save the club some postage dollars and printing costs in the future.

I am still looking for many old photographs of National Specialty winners.

Outside Communications: All outside communications answered in a timely manner. This includes responding to the AKC judges department for information on seminars and specialty shows. It also includes arranging mentoring for potential judges and responding to requests for information. In 2010, I received an interesting request for judging information from Australia.

Comparison Presentation:

August 28, 2009 - A BSCA presentation was requested during the Tri City KC Shows in Amana IA. I suggested the Comparison Seminar since all 3 Belgians would have an entry at that show. Linda Friedow from the American Belgian Malinois agreed to do the seminar. Judges attending were: Louise Palarik, Sharon Danley, and Nancy Eilks.

Linda Friedow who is a member of the JEC for the ABTC also did some updates on the Comparison PowerPoint to reflect the updating of the Tervuren standard.

Ongoing activities:

Marcy Spalding continues to mail out breed information to judges that request the material. To save expenses the JEC decided to mail our material only on request.

Upcoming activities: A Judges Ed presentation is scheduled for the National specialty. Dates are not set as of this time.

Respectfully submitted:

Linda Robey

Chairperson, Judges Education Committee

Judges Selection Committee Report

All Stage 1 ballots were mailed out to the membership by Tuesday, April 6th.

They are due back to me by May 9th.

I will be at the National if anyone would like to give me a ballot in person.

Kind Regards, Rachelle Bailey Austin

Legislative Action Committee

Peri Norman

No report. I was unable to assemble a committee and did not engage in any activities specific to the BSCA which was not previously participating in.

Belgian Sheepdog Club of America

Merit Committee Annual Report, May 2010

Committee Members

Lynn Sharkey, Chair

Linda Brady, Karen Hodges, Tami Worley, Sharon LaFuse, Lorra Miller

Barbara Swisher, Board Liaison

Fourteen 2009 Merit Awards will be presented this year:

Working Dog -Competition: 3

Agility Hall of Fame: 5

Registry of Merit: 3

Herding Hall of Fame: 2

Breed Hall of Fame: 1

The Merit recipients will receive a 5 X 7 engraved frame.

Linda Brady is responsible for the photo of the Merit Winners and also designing the banquet booklet for all award winners.

All Merit forms are available on the BSCA website.

All applications for Merit Awards are usually due by February 1st of the following year, however, this year it was extended so the application forms could be printed in the BSCA newsletter. At the annual meeting 5/2010, we will be voting on the a change in the point system of the Breed Hall of Fame. This point schedule was presented at the 2009 Annual meeting and was published in the BSCA news letter. The Merit Committee did not receive any comments, concerns or questions.

The Merit Committee realized that most of the area specialties have less entries than in previous years.

We felt that dogs winning a large Regional entry should receive more points than those with a small entry.

The following would be the new point schedule”

10 points for 30+ entry for BOB at a Regional Specialty 8 points for BOS

8 points for 20+ entry for BOB 6 points for BOS

6 points for 10+ entry for BOB 4 points for BOS

0 points for entry under 10

This entry size will be verified by the AKC DOGS DEFEATED REPORT through AMC. The applicant applying for the BREED HALL OF FAME will be responsible for the required report and will need to include it when applying for the award.

A reminder: When applying for the Working Dog -Competition and the Working-Dog Excellent Award, you need to complete the BSCA Merit Application and send in the most recent AKC certificate which would include all titles needed. You do not need to send an AKC report. All Hall of Fames and ROM need an AKC report verification.

Respectfully submitted,

Lynn Sharkey, Merit Chair

National Specialty Advisory Committee

This year has seen continued changes in the support provided to local groups organizing and holding BSCA National Specialties. Most significant of these are changes AKC has made in filing of paperwork for events. The old “red book” is obsolete! All event submissions can be handled through an on-line portal at the AKC website. Naturally, this is only after submission of the appropriate fees for the events. These changes have been documented and the updated information has been posted to the BSCA website. (Go to 'Committees', National Specialty Advisory') Additionally, with the help of Bonnie Leonard, a 'statistics' page has also been added. This workbook has performance entries for all National Specialties from 2001 forward and conformation entries from 2003 forward. It is current through 2009. Also included are room nights used, banquet information, hospitality information and other miscellaneous items that are important to a successful event.

Also posted this year is the financial report for 2009, which may also be used as a template for National Specialty reporting going forward. A budget was also compiled and should be available on the website as well.

The paypal account for use by National Specialties has been approved and is up and running for 2010. A full report on the success of this payment method will be coming with the financial report.

I have also responded to many questions from the 2010 folks in Texas, the 2011 folks in California and have been providing information to a currently anonymous group on the East Coast surrounding the 2012 National Specialty. The 2013 National will be in Oconomoc, WI at the Olympia Resort.

While there is a lot of information available on line, there is nothing written up about Tracking events! I invite all you tracking folks to send me specifics about what needs to be done for a National Event, TD, TDX and VST! I can put everything on paper, please just send me information so we can get this event documented. What needs to be included? Things such as location/site specifics, # of worker bees and their responsibilities, props & equipment needed, etc.

Looking forward to seeing everyone in Texoma!

Respectfully submitted,

Marion Heise

Committee Report, BSCA Newsletter, Past and Future

Opening Comment: We need to change the BSCA Newsletter.

Friends and fellow members; we have a great club, full of great members who do amazing things with their dogs. I have had the honor of working closely with many of you while assisting in the production of the BSCA Newsletter. Since the Annual Meeting in 2008, I have watched, sometimes in horror, as hard working altruistic volunteers have been consumed by the weight of producing a quality product in a timely manner. Due to turnover, the BSCA Newsletter Team(s) have had to completely rebuild the templates three times from scratch since September, 2008. Each issue requires several hundred combined hours to produce and frankly, it is too much for a volunteer staff to produce consistently.

As of April 27, 2010, the BSCA Newsletter needs 1. Either an Editor-In-Chief or a Co-Editor. 2. A design/layout person (Our printer has offered to do this job for $250.00 per issue)

I urge the Club to discuss and vote on the Newsletter regarding the following issues. 1. IMMEDIATELY APPROVE THE COST OF HIRING OUR PRINTER TO COMPOSE THE NEWLETTER. 2. Do we keep the BSCA Newsletter as a printed magazine? 3. If we cannot find a member who will step up to take on the task and commit the hours to edit and/or compose, we need to hire a professional staff to produce the Newsletter. 4. Do away with the printed Newsletter. Option 1: Online in a low resolution pdf for people to access easily and in a high resolution pdf for people to print their own copy. Option 2: Mail a high resolution copy on DVD or CD for people to download on home computer or take to an office store and print your own copy. 5. Regardless of change or no change, we should be archiving high resolution pdf copies of the Newsletters on our website. 6. The amount of our annual dues allocated for producing the BSCA Newsletter is fixed by the BSCA Constitution. We presently allocate $35.00 per member for the Newsletter. If we went to an online delivery, I believe we could drop our total membership dues by $15.00 per individual. A motion needs to be made, seconded and voted on at the Annual meeting. 7. Change focus of specific issues. The Newsletter Team proposes to remove Rescue as devoted issue and instead make Rescue a feature in each and every issue and replace with an issue devoted to PUPPIES. We would also like to make the WORKING DOG: issue into the Working Dog and Performance issue.

Cost impact: Let’s say our costs average $2,000.00 to print, mail, etc per Newsletter. If we went to an online feature, most, if not all of this would disappear. Because costs come in different forms, I’d estimate our reduced cost to be approximately $500.00 per issue. Of course expenses are offset by revenue streams that come primarily from advertising. I know many, including myself, are reticent to advertise in anything other than a paper medium. However, it’s enticing to consider advertising in a medium that is easily accessible and will be online for years to come.

Humbly submitted on behalf of the Newsletter Team by

Bruce Freedman

Performance Committee

Recommendations for Selecting the Herding Venue at the BSCA National Specialty Prepared by the 2009 BSCA Performance Committee

December 2009 No other event at a national specialty presents a greater planning challenge than the herding trials and tests. There are not many places in any state where one can find good flocks of sheep and ducks, as well as trial arenas that conform to AKC herding regulations. To find a satisfactory herding facility near the national host hotel is the luckiest of circumstances. The BSCA performance committee recognizes that it is sometimes the case that members who have volunteered to be on the national herding committee have little to no previous experience organizing an AKC herding trial/test. In an effort to help future national herding committees plan their events, we offer the following recommendations. These are not meant to be hard and fast criteria for herding venues, but constructive guidance to assist the herding committee in planning a successful event. 1  The temperament and herding experience of the livestock are perhaps the most important factors affecting the success of the trial and tests. Sheep or ducks that are flighty and reactive will be very difficult to work by all but the most expert dogs. Sheep also are extremely sensitive to different dog breeds—flocks that have only been worked by border collies can be expected to be initially fearful of Belgian sheepdogs. We recommend that the herding committee carefully evaluate the quality of the stock available at farms and herding facilities being considered to host the specialty trial and tests. Flocks that have been regularly worked by multiple dog breeds are preferable to flocks that only have experience with one or two breeds. Furthermore, the most “heavy” (i.e., docile) stock should be reserved for the HT and PT tests to give the novice dogs/handlers the best chance at success. Larger herding facilities usually will have separate flocks for trials and tests. 2  Good herding facilities are few and far between. It is not unusual for the nearest site to be more than 90 minutes from the host hotel. Most experience competitors don’t mind making the long drive to trial on good livestock. However alternate motels and RV parks closer to the herding site should be noted in the premium list. 3  If the herding trials and tests are to be held at a remote site, try to find a field for the HIC instinct tests that is more conveniently located to the host hotel. Consider transporting a couple sets of heavy sheep from the main herding venue for HIC tests. Many BSCA members have lifelong memories of watching their Belgian sheepdog face livestock for the first time. The herding trial committee should ensure that the HIC tests are a positive experience for the participants. The judge selected to conduct the HIC tests should be highly skilled in herding instruction, preferably with Belgians. 4  Once the herding committee has selected a venue, the contract with the facility should stipulate that livestock provided for the trials and tests have been on the site for at least one month to ensure that the animals are familiarized to the daily routine, the fields and pens, and especially to other members of the flock. Animals that have recently arrived at the facility can be expected to be nervous and will not group together when worked by a dog. 1  It may be useful to solicit input from members most likely to participate in herding events to estimate entry numbers and help decide which courses and stock to offer. The Belgian sheepdog herding community can be contacted though the Belg-L and BSCA Notices lists, as well as through herders on the BSCA performance committee. 2  Encourage participants in the herding trial to arrive one or two days early to practice at the facility where the event will be held. This will familiarize the stock with our breed and make them less nervous during the trial. Consider writing a stipulation in the contract with the facility to offer discount practice rates to participants during the week prior to the trial. 3  It would be a great service to participants and BSCA club members if the herding committee could arrange for the trials and tests to be video taped, shared online, and archived by the BSCA to demonstrate the working capability of Belgian sheepdog.

Last but not least, we encourage the national specialty herding committees to consult with us as they begin planning for the trials and tests. Members of our committee may know of herding facilities in the vicinity of the host hotel and can suggest judges that are familiar with tending breeds. Some of our members have chaired trial committees at previous nationals or other AKC herding events. We are happy to share our experiences and offer our support to the specialty herding committee. BSCA Performance Committee (cont)

Recommendations for Awarding HIT for Agility at the BSCA National Specialty Prepared by the BSCA Performance Committee

February 2010 The High In Trial (HIT) award recognizes the pinnacle of teamwork between dog and handler that can only come with dedication and commitment to excellence in performance sports. This prize is routinely awarded at AKC obedience and herding trials to spotlight and honor the top-performing dog and handler teams. Because of the high level of achievement marked by an HIT, dogs that win it in obedience and herding at the BSCA National Specialty are given special mention at the Banquet and in the Newsletter, along with the conformation winners. Like obedience and herding competitors, participants in agility invest a significant amount of time and energy in training, traveling, and competing in the pursuit of excellence. Showcasing the culmination of this hard work at the National Specialty is one of the high points of an agility competitor’s year. However, unlike for obedience and herding, the offering of HIT for agility has been inconsistent and at the discretion of the host club each year. The result has been that the top performing agility dogs have frequently gone without recognition for their achievements at the National Specialty. The attainment of excellence at the National Specialty should be equally recognized and honored for all the performance sports. A reason given for not offering HIT for agility is that AKC generally does not recommend this award for agility trials. However, this is only true for all-breed trials, where the large range of breed heights and abilities makes a fair calculation of HIT difficult. AKC recognizes that specialty clubs may choose to offer the award because comparisons of speed and ability within a breed are equitable. We therefore recommend that the BSCA establish the policy of awarding an HIT for agility at all future National Specialties, and we propose a standard method of determining the recipient of the award. Note that the proposed method tends to equalize the opportunities to win HIT among different skill levels because it accounts for differences in standard course times. We believe the following method of determining an HIT, based on the fastest dog with a perfect score in both regular courses (Standard and Jumpers with Weaves), is fair and not biased by level of competition or by program of competition (Regular versus Preferred). 1 1. Only dogs with a score of 100 in both Standard and Jumpers With Weaves courses will be considered. Dogs running at different levels for these two courses may also be considered for HIT. 2 2. To determine the fastest dog with the score of 200, divide the sum of the total yardage for each class in which the dog ran by the sum of the dog’s actual running time from each course (in seconds) to get the total speed at which the dog negotiated both courses (i.e., yards per second).

Additional guidelines 1  The HIT award must be listed in the premium. 2  At no time shall a judge hold a run-off for this award. Winners of run-offs of individual classes determine eligibility for HIT award. 3  Dogs from all levels of both Regular and Preferred programs will be considered together for one overall HIT on each trial day.

BSCA Performance Committee

2009 Annual Report of the Belgian Sheepdog Rescue Trust Submitted by: Sharon Roundy and Susan Spinhirne BSDRT Co-chairs

The Belgian Sheepdog Rescue Trust had a very busy 2009 both administratively and with actual rescues. Administratively, we have added several venues to showcase our dogs, educate the public, solicit volunteers and encourage donations. We continue to build and improve our web site as it provides the major source of information and education about Belgian sheepdogs in general and those available for adoption. We now have an ad on Belgians.com, a You Tube account, a Facebook page and a Petfinder page. Belg-L and the BSCA Notice list continue to aid us in communicating with the Belgian Community. We also have collaborated with American Belgian Malinois Club Rescue and we are grateful to them for their support.

Additions to the BSDRT Web Site

We have added several articles to our web site at www.bscarescue.com. One such article relates to identifying BSDs. We have had many dogs referred to us who were actually German shepherds, both purebreds and mixes. We have found that many people do not know that German shepherds can be solid black and long coated. Telling the difference between these dogs and a purebred Belgian sheepdog can sometimes be difficult especially with puppies. To address this confusion, we now have an article on the web site, co authored with an AKC herding group judge, complete with photographs. We have received much positive feed back from volunteers about this article. Occasionally adoption applicants have written wondering why they have not been selected to adopt a dog even though they have been waiting several months. To clarify the steps in the adoption process we have added two new articles. One of which was written by one of our adoptive families. This article describes their experience with the BSDRT, starting with the submitting of their application to the adoption of their dog. We have also added an article detailing the steps involved, again from the start to the end of the process. It is difficult to explain to potential adopters that our mission is to find homes that match our dog’s needs and that each dog has different needs. While a home may not be “right” for one of our rescue dogs given time another dog might come into the program for which they are accepted. We try to explain that we are here to find homes for our rescue dogs, not to find dogs for our applicants. This is not just semantics, but rather, it is a critical difference we hope everyone understands.

We also added an article to the web site describing the duties of being a foster home. Our most critical need is foster homes and we hope this article encourages people to volunteer as a foster. The concept we are trying to get across is that fostering is not just providing love, food and shelter to the foster dog, but it also involves preparing the dog for adoption. This preparation is different for each dog. Sometimes we take in a dog that needs very little preparation as he/she comes in with few if any issues or baggage. More often some retraining and socialization are required. Another aspect of fostering is what many fear and is bittersweet (hopefully more sweet than bitter). That aspect is the satisfaction that comes when the dog leaves, ready for a forever home only because of the hard work done by the foster. We also stress that fosters have the full backing, support and whatever help is needed by the entire BSDRT Team.

More additions and changes are planned for 2010 (See new Health page added April 2010).

Fulfilling our Mission through the Internet

Part of fulfilling the BSDRT mission statement is Public Education. Our main web site and events like the AKC's Meet the Breeds, the Eukanuba Invitational and other dog shows across the country have been the traditional method of reaching and educating the public about our rescue program. In the past we have relied heavily (and will continue to do so) on the membership of the BSCA to spread the word about the BSDRT and our rescues. But as more and more people come to rely on the Internet for information we see another way to educate the general public about what the BSDRT actually does. The website YouTube.com was suggested as the perfect vehicle for our needs. You Tube has a worldwide following and there is NO charge for using it.

Collaborating with Joe Szewculak, the co-chairs helped to create the first in a series of educational presentations to introduce the BSDRT to the world of streaming videos. With the Trust board’s approval, we uploaded the first video, “The BSDRT: An Introduction” to You Tube. The video was viewed 336 times during the first three weeks it was uploaded. We received very positive feedback from members and the public. Two more videos were uploaded since that time and more are planned for release in spring and fall of 2010.

Another Resource: Social Networking

Once the You Tube idea had come to fruition it was easy enough to extend BSDRT’s reach to a social networking site. Facebook was selected as it is currently the most used social networking site and also user friendly. Facebook currently has 350 million users. A site like Facebook offers the BSDRT, at NO charge, the opportunity to reach not just Belgian fanciers but dog fanciers from all over the US and as a bonus all over the world. At Facebook our web page allows us to list our available adoptions and preview our educational videos. It also allows for comments and the public is able to become a fan of our site.

Less than one month after the BSDRT’s Facebook debut 186 people became fans. Some of our fans names are recognizable from the BSCA membership directory and some are just as the name implies “fans”. Our “fans” located in the United States will hopefully follow our rescues, offer to volunteer or share our info with others and finally perhaps remember us when it comes time to opening their hearts and their homes to another BSD.

Spreading the word about BSDRT In the spring of 2009 we started to notice a pattern when being contacted about possible rescues. We were being notified about dogs that were listed on Petfinder, Craigslist or and Freecycle. By far the most referrals came from the website Petfinder.com. Shelters and rescue organizations from across the US have come to rely on the Petfinder web site to publicize their animals that are available for adoption. These organizations have reported to the site owners that more than 50 percent of their adoptions are from Petfinder. Membership to Petfinder is limited to organizations that are NOT operating for the purpose of making a profit (no breeders or pet shops). Since this is a FREE service this makes Petfinder one of the most effective advertising mediums, especially for a small non-profit group like the BSDRT.

The site has proven to be user friendly and provides us with weekly reports of activity from our listing of available dogs. Besides listing our available dogs for adoption (along with their photos and our contact information), the web site provides us with a home page that we use to share information about the BSDRT. Our purpose is to encourage people to go to our main web site to learn more about the BSDRT and our mission and in hopes of broadening our application pool to find the best adoptive homes possible for our rescues.

2009 Application Report

Cathie Lang, our lead application processor, has provided us with the following breakdown on applicants.

A total of 89 applications were received in 2009 - the breakdown is as follows:

* 5 from the Pacific Northwest

* 5 from the South East

* 7 from the South Central Region

* 8 from the Rocky Mountain Region

* 11 from the Great Lakes Region

* 12 from the Pacific Southwest

* 19 from the North East

* 22 from the Heartland

While the numbers of applications submitted are high, many of the applicants withdrew soon after applying or within the first few months. The reasons are numerous. Some get dogs elsewhere, others develop health issues or have financial setbacks and others just change their minds. In addition, we have very few dogs relative to the number of applicants which allows us to reject homes that are not good matches for the dogs available at the time the applicant applies. Many of these are good homes, but just not for our current dogs. As we said before, we are looking for homes for our dogs. We are not looking for dogs to give to applicants.

Reports of Possible Belgian sheepdogs Investigated: January 3, 2010-Febuary 10, 2010.

During this time period 124 dogs came to the attention of the BSDRT. These dogs break down by region as follows:

Pacific Northwest - 5

Pacific Southwest - 23

Rocky Mountain - 5 South Central - 15

Heartland - 30

Great Lakes - 7

Southeast - 16

Northeast - 15

Unknown - 5

Canada - 3 (Our Policy Document specifically states that we can not extend into other countries)

Of these dogs, 12 were taken into the BSDRT program and all were fostered, treated medically and adopted into permanent homes. One dog was taken into the program and later euthanized due to illness related to starvation. All 124 dogs were investigated by the BSDRT Team or our volunteers. The other dogs were not accepted for a number of reasons. The most common reasons were: adopted out by the shelters; shelters would not work with us and/or we could not contact; in foster homes with other rescue groups; mixed breed; or aggression issues.

It Takes a Village to Rescue a Dog

In conclusion, the BSDRT Team wants to thank the many people who helped us as we investigated possible BSDs and rescued those we could. We also want to thank the volunteers who helped by fostering, transporting and identifying dogs and to those who helped us network to find people who could volunteer in a particular situation. The BSCA and the BSD community have been incredibly generous with their financial help, their time, efforts and support. The BSDRT could not function without the support of either. We have not named all of those who aided the BSDRT in this report as there are simply too many to list. However, our heartfelt thanks go out to all of you.