Sable Timeline-page1

This article was published in the January 2001 issue of the The Cocker Spaniel Leader.
In an effort to provide information to the MANY who have contacted me privately, I have created a sable timeline from 1979 to the present. If an item has an asterick beside it I have that item and you are welcome to contact me and I will either email or fax it to you.
Definition of Sable
From the AKC Dog Book (1943, 1951 & 1964):
Outer coat shaded with black over a lighter under coat as in the sable collie.

1979
ASC Board: President-Charles Cobb, Emma Dodd, William Dodd, Jeanne Meister, Jean Peterson, Walter Thompson, Norman Austin, James Duncan D.V.M., Frank Wood, Clara Freidrich, Lois Hicks-Beach, Alice Swiderski, Rosalie Anderson, Ed Piner. Standard Committee Chairman-Tom O’Neal.
Ballot for Standard Changes was to include new wording for all three varieties (adding sable to the ASCOB variety) and tan points. The first ballot* (on orange paper) was mailed out November 29, 1979 and the tan points section was left off. A revised ballot* (on green paper) was mailed out the next day. All motions contained on the green ballot were passed as per the letter* from ASC to AKC dated January 7, 1980. There was apparently some question over the way the ballot was presented to the membership and the Board of the AKC withdrew action on the approved revision to the standard per their letter* dated April 15, 1980.
Definition of Sable
From the AKC Dog Book in 1979: A lacing of black hairs over a lighter ground color. In Collies and Shetland Sheepdogs, a brown color ranging from golden to mahogany.

1981
1981 ASC Board: President-Charles Cobb, Jean Peterson, Lois Hicks-Beach, Lloyd Alton, Jeanne Meister, Louis Milner, Hugh Spacht (appointed to fill vacancy due to resignation of Dr Duncan), Ed Piner, Frank Wood, Kenneth Keach, Ruth Baumgartner, Alice Swiderski, Dr. Marilyn Wood, Muriel Barber. Standard Committee Chairman-Tom O’Neal.
1981 Ballot
This ballot* had five (5) items:

Move B/T to the Black variety
Add Brn/Tan to the ASCOB variety
Add sable to the ASCOB variety
Change the wording in the Parti variety
Change the wording on the Tan Points section

All of these revisions passed with the exception of including sable in the ASCOB variety. The ballot received 420 FOR, 289 AGAINST, and 46 ABSTENTIONS.