Old Timers... Dr. Mary Belle Adelman, cont.
Mary was encouraged to train Buruki to herd, to obtain a Herding Started
title, which would finish her sire Jedi's ROM. Mary and Buruki not only
earned an HSAd, which made her sire CH Glendhenmere's Jedi CD VQW ROM
CGC TDI, but Buruki had earned a Started Sheep leg in the process. Well, that
title couldn't be left unfinished, so they pursued sheep, and also entered on
cattle, then earned a Started Cattle leg, then hit an ASCA trial and got more
titles and things have kept going and going until Mary realized that since
2004, when she entered Buruki in her first herding trial, she has put 25 more
titles on her and counting. All of these titles have been earned while Buruki
was a Veteran! Mary's original promise to Buruki was retirement after
earning her Herding Started title, but they are just having too much fun to
slow down now.
Buruki is now 1 Advanced ASCA leg, on each type of stock, away from
earning the title of Working Trial Champion. She is also working on her
UD and will debut at the 2008 National in Utility. Mary has also been
working with Buruki in tracking and has been training her for Search
and Rescue work, where she shows promise as a cadaver search dog.
Unfortunately, Mary was never able to get a puppy out of Buruki to
pursue a ROM for Buruki, but she has a new double mask, blue bitch that
she is currently training with hopes of starting a "new" ROM line of dogs
for herself.
Dr. Mary Belle Adelman is an AKC judge in conformation, herding,
tracking, and obedience and was a Schutzhund judge in the 1980's. She
has authored hundreds of training articles and The German Shepherd
Dog Handbook which contains her innovative approach to obedience and
tracking for all breeds, the OPT Program, which allows for all obedience
training to be done without touching
or correcting the dog, and without holding the leash in the hand. She has
put over 100 titles on five different breeds and is currently working on an
all-breed obedience book for Hoflin Publishing. Mary considers herself a
mentor in our breed, and rightly so,
because she is willing to discuss and
help anyone interested in owning,
training or competing with an ACD. She
is also a Junior Mentor and donates
lessons and training to all ACDCA Junior
members at no charge. She did not
have any mentors when she entered the breed, and feels that she can make a
contribution by helping others find their way. Mary is the breeder referral for
the Paducah Kennel Club and the GSDCWKY and is always counseling people
of many breed interests on the pros and cons of breeding and what is involved
beyond the cute puppies they hope to create. She emphasizes soundness,
temperament and type, in that order, to ensure a good specimen of the breed,
with trainability and longevity. Mary's words of wisdom to all looking to
purchase a dog, as a companion, for competition, or as potential breeding
stock, is to study first and buy second. Sound advice from a long time ACD
breeder, owner, trainer, competitor and judge.