Articles Index/Titles, Championship and Performance
Revised 08/18/04
Not just a brag, not just a stepping stone to a higher title, not just an adjunct to competitive scores, a title is a tribute to the dog that bears it -- a way to honor the dog -- an ultimate memorial. It will remain, in record and in memory, for about as long as anything in this world can remain. Few humans will do as well or better in that regard.
And though the dog itself doesn't know or care that its achievements have been noted, a title says many things in the world of humans, where such things count.
A title says your dog was intelligent, adaptable, and good-natured. It says that your dog loved you enough to do the things that pleased you, however crazy they have sometimes seemed.
And a title says that you loved your dog, that you loved to spend time with it because it was a good dog, that you believed in it enough to give it yet another chance when it failed, and that in the end, your faith was justified.
A title proves that your dog inspired you to that special relationship enjoyed by so few; that in a world of disposable creatures, this dog with a title was greatly loved, and loved greatly in return.
And when that dear short life is over, the title remains as a memorial of the finest kind, the best you can give to a deserving friend, volumes of praise in one small set of initials after the name.
A title is nothing less than love and respect, given and received and permanently recorded.
Sandy Mowery
ANTIC, June, 2004
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