Type...how important is it really?

Scrolling through facebook today I came across this article:

https://showsightmagazine.com/jennifer-able-jones-j-bar-papillons/?fbclid=IwAR2ESR_LlbPvSAZyAnec26LaQF_Ua7kHS8cldRUQ6YMi-4ocDU2nELn6bgg One statement in particular stood out to me from this breeder of show-line Paps: "Since health has already been achieved, my priorities in breeding are maintaining correct breed type. When breed type is lost, there’s not much point to the rest of it".

What. The. Heck. We can all agree health is king and the first and foremost priority. A dog who doesn't have health, doesn't have anything at all.

But the idea that a breeder would put type second on this list just shocks, saddens and disgusts me. What about movement? What about structure? What about temperament? There's "not much point" to those things?

Let me be very clear and say type is literally the least important trait a dog can have in my book. But we also have to define type. Type in its most generic way encompasses all the traits that allow you to look at a dog and know immediately what breed it is. This can include many finer points of cosmetics as well though. Hair length/type, color, markings, ear shape/set, eye shape, tail carriage, all these things are included in type. So how would I rank my priorities? 1) Always health. All dogs need health. Pets, working dogs, sport dogs and show dogs. Everyone needs health.

2)Temperament. All dogs need a good temperament. What constitutes a good temperament can vary between different types of dogs but we ALL want a dog that, at minimum, is not people aggressive or dangerous.

3)Movement/structure. I put these together because they're intrinsically linked. A certain structure creates certain movement. Movement/structure is not important for pet dogs. It IS important for working dogs, sport dogs and pet dogs. Someone will say "But a dog with bad structure will get injured and go lame!" If a dog has structure so poor it causes injury to a dog living an average pet life, I would place that in the "health category". When we discuss movement/structure, we're talking balance, reach/drive, neck length, head sets, leg to body ratios, height to length ratios etc. The average dog living on a couch doesn't need any particular set of traits here.

4)Type. ONLY show dogs *need* type. Other people may appreciate it, but it serves no practical purpose. It applies to the smallest number of dogs. It won't make your chihuahua a sweeter companion or your aussie a better herder or your border collie a faster agility dog or your malinois a better drug sniffer. Type simply isn't important to anything but a show dog. So if Type is your second priority in your program, that's a huge ethical problem in the sport. Stop worrying about ear set and eye shape and start breeding dogs with stable temperaments and good structure!