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Master the art of judging Dobermans: learn breed history, standards, and key traits for a balanced, ideal companion and guard.
Jeffrey Lynn Brucker
The Weekly Brief
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This article was originally published in Showsight Magazine, September 2018 issue.
In order to judge the Doberman, you must first know what you are looking for. You must have a mental picture of the ideal. You need to make yourself very knowledgeable about the standard and the history of the breed.
You also need to know what Dobermans were bred for (companion and guard). Knowing the reasons for the Doberman will help you decide which parts of the standard are most important.
All show dogs have good parts and faults. When you make your decision, make sure it is based on the standard, not only on which dog is showing best. After all, you, as the judge, are basically endorsing dogs for breeding stock.
In 58 years of breeding and showing dogs, I have seen them go through many changes: too big, too long, missing teeth, and not enough bone (they should be heavy boned). It seems as if as soon as we correct one problem, we have to address another.
The only way to monitor the current problems in the breed is for the judges to enforce the standard.
The current problems in the breed, as I see them at this point in time, are a lack of underjaw and planes that are not parallel. Both of these faults seriously affect the expression.
Another fault currently plaguing the breed is incorrect tail sets. The tail is a continuation of the spine, yet over and over, I see judges overlooking extremely high tail sets. Some of them look as if, were the tail longer, they could scratch their head with it.
Another current problem is that the dogs are too long. Dobermans are supposed to be square with a level topline. Dogs that are long are winning all the time. Thirty to forty years ago, we rarely saw a dog with a sway back, let alone one that was winning.
Temperament: The Doberman, being a companion and guard (not or a guard), should display no shyness.
Size: Males are 26 to 28 inches. Females are 24 to 26 inches. In evaluating size, the fault should be in the deviation from the ideal.
I hope in some way I have helped you on your journey. Judging is always a work in progress, and that is what makes it so exciting.
This article is authored by me and in no way represents the Doberman Pinscher Club of America.
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