Tips to Preparing For A Dog Show
So you love dog shows? You can be more than a spectator and feel the thrill of the ring by entering your own
purebred dog in a show. First, though, you'll need to prepare yourself in several ways:
Familiarize yourself with dog shows. If you want to show your dog, but you've never been to a dog show, that's a little like being a novel writer who's never read a book. You can learn a lot just from watching the techniques and protocol of every dog show you attend. If you're really serious, find out how you can volunteer, or at least stick around afterwards and try to talk to everyone you can about the process. Talk to the handlers, the judges, the commentators, and the dog owners. If you approach people politely and express your interest in becoming involved, most people are happy to share a little bit of their know-how with you.
Read up on the process, vocabulary, and judging criteria. Do your research, either online or at the library, and make sure you're familiar with the jargon, the breed classes, the awards, and the types of dog show competitions.
Know before you begin whether your dog is a contender. After doing a little bit of research, you'll be familiar with the type and temperament of dogs that become champions. More than just a purebred, champions are almost-perfect specimens of their breed, with all the desirable characteristics and none of the bad ones. Their breeding line is also important. While having the perfect
characteristics and heritage may be good signs, it doesn't guarantee anything in the dog ring.
Tips to Preparing Your Dog
Once you feel confident in your base of knowledge, you'll need to also prepare your dog for the ring. She must be the picture of grace and confidence - agile,
obedient, and well-mannered. While some dogs just have an innate sense of grace, other dogs can learn it through classes. Join a local kennel club and participate in the wide range of classes designed to
groom dogs and handlers for competition.
If you don't want to do the handling yourself, you can hire a professional to do that job for you. You and the handler will consult on matters of training and conditioning your dog, and you can take advantage of the pro's years of expertise and (hopefully) an amazing winning streak.
