ummm do u agree with this statement. - Page 4

Vianden, is that your dog?

I could use the education, how does one determine from this pic that the dog is not balanced.

Yes, GSD's do stand in a natural stack position once in a while, however, that is a far cry from how man stacks them.  Nothing natural about it.

Red sable, I agree. Dog stands on it's own doesn't have someone's hand mashing down on its tail to accentuate the extreme drop from withers to tail. I still can't find where the breed standard describes this anomaly.

Red Sable I don't agree! Part of the equation, of course, is HOW the dog is stacked. Pushing down on the back end is not part of a proper stack. You can come up with millions of photos of poor stacks, but it all boils down to doing it correctly, not how many bad ones are out there!  Those who do it right are NOT, I repeat, NOT making an un-natural position, many well trained dogs will walk NATURALLY into it in the ring with VERY little help. While it's true that many are stacked unnaturally and "a far cry" from natural, those same examples are not correct. Mine naturally stack themselves ALL THE TIME, much more than occasionally. A dog that has correct conformation will be comfortable and natural in the stacked position. 
Debby

Blitzen said, ". Some like to show their dogs swinging from a sleeve, others like to show them in the traditional stack, others use both. "

Debby said,"Those who do it right are NOT, I repeat, NOT making an un-natural position, many well trained dogs will walk NATURALLY into it in the ring with VERY little help. "

I like these comments!

While attending the Sieger Show last year ..

#1 In the ring dogs walked right into a very natural stack without the aid of the handler..

#2 While in the stacked position for individual judging the dogs were very balanced and comfortable,,

Prince does have a nice natural stack as well and I see it quite often...

What if after say a week, month or even a year, the poor owner of the dog stumbles on this thread and sees some of the "very nice comments" made on and about his beloved companion .

It's not like discussing a public figure, like a VA dog where owners are already used to hearing all sorts of opinions and critiques of their exsposed to public dog.

Ibrahim

The dog is over stretched in the stack? The back left leg is for sure, but the other back leg doesn't looked stretched very far...... I still don't think this dog would have a good structure even if the back left leg was in a natural position.

Pro handlers know how the stack a dog to make it look its best. It's not always the way the dog would stand naturally, it is done to highlight pros and downplay cons. I believe Rik would be able to show you the same dog on 3 different photos looking like 3 different dogs just by setting them up differently. That is where the down and back and side gait comes into play and many judges, both SV and AKC, will require that the dog be walked into a natural stance. The free gating in the working classes is also a good way to judge a dog's anatomy. 
 

How about some WL photos now?