Great series of posts.

Leaving a dog down too long is part of my not being a fan of the scratch to continue. My belief that scratching is meant to allow a dog to quit (which every dog has the right to do so) and not meant to prove a dog is game is why I do not like the scratch to win stipulation. Sort of like little steps. If the dog wants to quit, let him, and then it is over. The dog that made his last scratch has done all that is asked, again, it is over. Allowing/making a game dog scratch just for a repeated display of his gameness after his opponent has checked up is extra....and extra is not what I am looking for at that point.

When the dog checks up, or is picked up, or I have picked up, in that split second in time all the energies should be switched from the match to the well being of the dog/dogs involved.

Great reference to boxing/MMA. There have been many fighters who would have on their own come out for the 16th/17th/18th round and potentially died either there, or shortly after from their beating. The only drawback to rules and rounds and judges is sometimes there are quick stoppages. Quick stoppages suck for the loser and the fans but the alternative is watching someone get beat to death. It is a no-brainer there. Like Jack said, pretty much no difference in the dogs. Most matches are less than an hour, (for any number of reasons) and in most matches the winner is clear 30-40-50 minutes. (I agree some great stories have been told about dogs who come from the bottom and win after an hour plus dragging, but they are the exception, not the rule.)

After a clear winner has been displayed (in lots of cases) the losing camp leaves the dog down because they either do not know any better, they do not care, they are hoping against hope the other dog will quit on top to save and save their money. For me, and it is only a personal opinion, this is like first cousins to scratching to win. The dog is doing more than he was originally asked to do, and I am not a big fan of that. EWO (sorry for the length)