USA / SVF Judge Clarification

… Updated

There have been a lot of questions on some of the Web Forums regarding the SV licensing of our USA Judges and the use of the acronym SVF as well as their names on the SV Judges List. I have used the acronym SVF and in the upcoming issue of the USA Magazine I used the acronym USA/SV Judge since at that time it was not clear what would be the most correct.

I have now received a copy of the letter confirming the license of one of our judges. In order to properly designate our USA Judges that are SV Recognized to award titles in the United States, we will use the acronym SVR (for SV Recognized). All of our Judges that attended the SV Seminar and passed are SV Recognized to award titles in the United States that will be recognized for Breed Survey by the SV.

What are membership needs to remember is that what is most important is these judges are recognized by the SV. All awarded titles will be accepted the same as they are from any other SV Judge for the purpose of Breed Surveys.

Before the SV will list the USA Judges, they needed to become SV members so that they could issue licenses. Mr. Grewe and Mr. Hintz were already SV Members, so they will be listed in the Jan 2010 SV List (Jan 2010 SV Zeitung). All Judges living outside of Germany will be listed with an "L" after their name. The remainder of the USA Judges that are SV Recognized will be listed as soon as their SV Membership is processed.

All titles awarded by USA Licensed Judges are and have always been recognized in any WUSV Member Organization for the purpose of sport. It is important to remember that USA Judges have been invited to judge at the WUSV World Championship under their USA License which proves the validity of the organization and its Judges' College.

In the future, the USA Judges that have earned SV Recognition will use the acronym "SVR" to make it easier for the membership to determine if that Judge and / or title is SV Recognized for SV Breed Requirements. Also, please remember that if you plan on using the USA-only Breed Survey, titles from any USA Judge are accepted.

I hope this answers some of the questions that have been asked.

We are dedicated to protecting and preserving the German Shepherd Dog's working heritage through Schutzhund training. Schutzhund is a sport that focuses on developing and evaluating those traits in dogs that make them more useful and happier companions to their owners.

The purpose of Schutzhund is to demonstrate the dog's intelligence and utility. It also measures the dog's mental stability, endurance, structural efficiencies, ability to scent, willingness to work, courage, and trainability.

This working dog sport offers an opportunity for dog owners to train their dog and compete with each other for recognition of both the handler's ability to train and the dog's ability to perform as required. It is a sport enjoyed by persons of varied professions, who join together in a camaraderie born of their common interest in working with their dogs. Persons of all ages and conditions of life including those with significant disabilities enjoy Schutzhund as a sport. Often, it is a family sport.