Wow. Good thread, Lisa.
Hmmm....what do I look for in a mentor?
First is the length of time spent with the breed. Someone who's only been around the breed for 2 years isn't going to truly know enough especailly to teach someone else about it.
Second would be the knowledge, historical & present, they carry with them. They MUST be someone who is well known within the breed & whose dogs are prime examples of what the breed was, is, & should be. They must work there dogs not only to prove the dogs worth in accordance to the breed standard but to also prove himself/herself as a dogman/dogwoman.
Showing is nice, but I don't place much, if any, precedence on them. All shows are is one person's particular preference that day. At a UKC show for APBTs, I saw a judge put up an enourmous 90+lb hippo over a nicely muscled, lean, well put together APBT in the 50lb range. That "win" meant nothing more than the judge was ignorant & stupid. IMO, a great working dog within the breed should show well as form follows function.
Working titles are great as they are proof that the mentor is letting his dogs do the talking. Someone can run their mouth all day long, but if their own dogs can't perform, how do you take them seriously?
IF the person has breed 1 or more litters, I would look at the quality of the pups produced. I would ask his reasonings behind the pairing of the stud & dam & if the pups were old enough to be worked, I would inquire about their achievements. As a good quality breeder with quality dogs will produce a higher percentage of quality pups. Also, this kind of person is usually very strict about breeding guidelines & are open to all kinds of questions & is highgly against/outpoken against bybs.
As for location, I was lucky to meet my mentor at a dog show in LA 10 years ago. I was lucky that he lived only an hour from my hometown, but regardless, I would've met him anywhere. Location shouldn't be a deterrent for learning all you can & getting hands-on experience....especially if you are serious in becoming a QUALITY OWNER with the breed's interest put before your own.
And to me, ALL the requirements must be present in order for me to have this person as a mentor as just having 1 of the mentioned "qualifications" can be misleading (i.e. someone could have 15 years in the breed, yet they are someone who never works his dogs, never shows his dog, & peddles non-standard/poor quality pups out the wazoo. Just b/c they've had the dogs for that length of time, doesn't make them qualified)