Sally Gift | Gordon Setter Expert

“Together we will build an interactive, searchable resource for the Gordon Setter Fancier” – Sally Gift

I have been asked by some GSCA members about the origins of Gordon Setter Expert and, in talking to them, learned that there are many misconceptions about why I launched this site and about it’s name. I launched Gordon Setter Expert, because as chair of the GSCA Breeder Education committee, I had heard from many members who expressed there was a need for a web based resource tool for all Gordon Setter fanciers, not just GSCA members. So, my intent here was to create a blog wthat was going to be owned and hosted by the Gordon Setter Club of America, Inc. and managed by a team of GSCA member-experts. I called this blog Gordon Setter Expert because I believed the content would be contributed by the hundreds of Gordon Setter experts in the GSCA’s ranks. I purposely chose to use the word Expert , to gain trust and to attract Gordon lovers to the Gordon Setter Club of America where these experts so willingly shared their experience. I had planned to illustrate, through our web presence, the value of being a member of the GSCA.

My proposed prototype for this blog was sent to the GSCA Board of Governors for approval in January of 2015, where unfortunately approval to launch the site was stalemated. I understood then, that some members of the Board could not recognize the value of a site like this for our breed or club. as a labor of love for our Gordon Setter breed, It was then that I choose to launch the site on my own, as a personal contribution to the breed we all love. I believed then, and continue to believe today, in this blog’s ability to promote, protect and advance the purebred Gordon Setter.

It will always be my hope someday to transfer this blog to the Gordon Setter Club of America and that my offer will be accepted and GSCA will carry on the work that I began here.

Today GSE visitors will find over 250 articles related to breeding, showing, field events, performance events, training and health. Gordon Setter Expert is followed by 2,400 people who receive the new articles by email and other web services. Followers come from all walks of life, from all around the world and include some GSCA members. I am pleased that so many individuals, breed clubs, and parent clubs link to Gordon Setter Expert to share this resource with their friends, members and the visitors to their websites.

Gordon Setter Expert proposal sent to the GSCA To read my first proposal to the 2015 GSCA Board requesting their approval to create this blog on their GSCA’s behalf click this link.

To learn more about me and GSE click here to read the “About” page

Sally Gift, Mesa AZ

Please note that the views and opinions expressed on this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Gordon Setter Club of America.

*Members are aware that since January 2017, I’ve served as Vice President and now President of the Gordon Setter Club of America, Inc. At times, GSCA financial matters, and Board controversy about these matters, have grabbed headline status in the newsletter, by email and during conversations at GSCA events.

What never changed or grabbed headlines was my dedication to the objectives of the GSCA and the reason we all belong – the dogs.

In September of 2015, well before I was elected to office in 2017, I wrote a blog that clearly states my personal dedication to our beautiful breed and my commitment to pursue and fulfill GSCA objectives. An excerpt from that article follows.**

“There is a call to action to be heard here, for those who want to protect and preserve the Gordon Setter, and that call goes out to all who own and love them. I am not advocating that we begin to mass produce Gordon Setters by indiscriminate breeding and one should never interpret this data, nor my words, to mean such action should take place. The AKC however, is taking appropriate action steps to improve the reputation and increase the interest in purebred dogs and we can follow their action plans and their lead. The AKC cannot be successful on their own though, it will take the support of everyone who loves a Gordon Setter and that includes pet owners, breeders and hunters alike. We each need to heed the call to act, to do our own small, yet vital part, to promote purebred dog ownership and the benefits of owning a purebred. We need to join and support our National club and regional specialty clubs to do any small part there that we can contribute. At the next level the breed’s parent club, the Gordon Setter Club of America, also needs to visit this call to action to ensure that we, as an organization, are doing our part on a larger scale to promote the breed, interest in the sport, the preservation of our breeders and the development of a future generation of breeders.”

It would be impossible not to recognize that GSCA events, activities and charitable donations could come to a grinding halt, if the club’s financial matters aren’t managed consistently and appropriately. And that attending to this task ensures the club can fulfill its objectives. One thing follows the other and vice versa. It is after all, about the dogs.

Sally Gift, Mesa AZ

*This is a personal message and is not intended to represent any official statement of or by the GSCA or the GSCA Board.

**excerpt from IS OUR BREED IN JEOPARDY?

We are dedicated to building a knowledge base and a sharing site for those who are involved in all of the various aspects of competition with Gordon Setters, competitions that showcase the Gordon Setter’s Beauty, Brains and Bird-Sense.