Flying Poodles

Reading poodle history

I’ve been doing some poodle history reading of late. I’ve been reading this book: Annie On Dogs which is a compendium of articles by Anne Rogers Clark, who had three dogs that she bred win Best in Show at Westminster. She was a poodle breeder and a judge of multiple breeds for the AKC. The Wikipedia entry is sparse: Anne Rogers Clark. However, her description of the idea poodle conformation is dead on, and well worth seeking out: “check head (foreface and skull of equal length), eyes, expression, mouth, ear leathers, fit and placement of the shoulders and forearms, correct heart-shaped ribs, slight depression just behind the shoulders at the top of the back (the swimming dip), good length of rib cage, short very muscular loin, depth of chest, forechest apparent in front of the forelegs, beautiful poodle feet, good weight and muscle” (page 74 of her book). She also has an amusing discussion of how poodle fashions have changed over the years, with photos of standard poodle Westminster BIS winners from 1935, 1958, 1973, and 1991.

If you’re wondering what a 1935 BIS winner looked like, check out this picture: 1935 poodles.

Now besides reading Anne Rogers Clark, who was one of the first professional handlers (male or female) in the conformation ring, I’ve been reading Blanche Saunders, who was one of the developers of competitive obedience. Her 1974 book The Story of Dog Obedience is readily available used for a few dollars. She was a poodle breeder and apparently an amazing dog trainer. The book is heavily larded with black and white photographs of black poodles with way too much hair, but by viewing them in bright light, you can see that the poodles were pretty amazing. My favorite is King Leo of Piperscroft taking the broad jump, in the early 1930s:

King Leo of Piperscroft, from the book The Story of Dog Obedience