Mara Flood | SugarNSpice Collies

Interview with Mara Flood, Breeder of SugarNSpice Collies

1. Please tell us a little bit about yourself. Where do you live? How many years in dogs? How many years as a breeder? What is your kennel name?
2. In your opinion, is your breed in good condition overall? Any trends that warrant concern?
3. As a Preservation Breeder, can you share your thoughts on the sport today? How’s the judging these days?
4. How important are Performance Events to you as a Preservation Breeder? As an Exhibitor?
5. In your opinion, is social media good for the sport? Is it harmful?
6. What are the biggest challenges facing the dog show community as a whole today and how can these be addressed?
7. What are some of the positive changes you’ve seen in the sport over the past decade?

Mara Flood

1. I’m Mara Flood. My daughter, Rebecca Flood, was a very active Junior Handler, and now grown, she is still very involved in the sport and our breeding program. Together we are SugarNSpice Collies in New York. I am a Collie Club of America Smooth Collie Breeder of the Year award recipient and have enjoyed tremendous success with our Collies. I live in Goshen, New York, and have been in dogs for 35 years. My first litter of Collies was whelped in 2010, but I have experience since my teens, assisting with breeding and showing Chinese Shar-Pei with my sister Debbie, DJ’s Shar Pei, and Alaskan Malamutes with my sister Zaneta of A-Storm Kennels.

2. Yes, my breed is in good condition overall. I feel the breed is moving in a better direction. Breeders all over the country are doing more and more health testing and I have noticed a positive effort in breeding for the overall dog.

3. As a breeder and active exhibitor, I have seen many shows getting smaller, but often the quality in the Group rings has been strong. I would really like to see more Bred-By events offered. I know the OH event is very popular and is a draw for entrants, but I would like to see the non-regular Bred-By events offered just as often.

I have heard many people feel that there are too many dog shows, especially with the decline in entries across the country. But I feel that if we took away some of these shows, creating fewer local opportunities and farther drives for exhibitors, it would have a negative impact. With the cost of travel, hotel stays, and finding a dog sitter for the ones at home, I feel having fewer shows would not achieve the goal of creating more entries. I think, instead, with the exception of those for whom dog shows are a source of income, many would just not show at all or only show a few times a year when the shows come to their local area.

4. Performance events are important. I think it is very important to have other avenues to enjoy with your dog, but it also helps with identifying temperament in relation to the purpose of that dog’s breed. As an exhibitor, it’s a lot of fun to do other things at dog shows.

5. I think social media is both good and harmful for the sport. It is a great source for event information and spreading good and bad news as needed, but it’s also abused often and is a negative outlet for some.

6. We have to find a way to get back to the purpose of dog shows, which is to present and preserve our best breeding stock. We need to find new members for old clubs. We need to create interest in dog showing in general and teach the younger generations coming up in the community the value of learning about raising and supporting a breed and presenting quality specimens, and less focus on the potential monetary gains from being involved in showing dogs.

7. The creation and addition of the 4-6 Month Beginner Puppy Competition has been a tremendous resource for both seasoned exhibitors to use as a training tool for young dogs and also a nice, low pressure avenue for new exhibitors. I also love the increase in the two shows a day shows, especially for the smaller, struggling clubs.