I have a 3-day dog show next weekend,and its our last in novice!

[airhead]

I'm gettin' withdrawal pains already. I'm at a dog event just about every weekend so its going to be hard not to enter shows.
My trainer says its time to move on to Open A. Georgie is bored and getting "ringwise". I know she's right,but I'm really going to miss that "rush".
All of you who do the shows know what I'm talkin' about. You know that feeling you get when you drive into the parking lot of a dog show and people are grooming and walking their animals. Even my dogs start yipping with excitement. They love it too. Its the pre-show rituals that I'm gonna miss too. I love getting my "stuff" together,packing up all the essentials that can make or break the day. That special leather collar & lead that is only for the show. When I put that on Georgiegirl,she knows its "showtime". Making sure the baitbag is full of prime roastbeef or dried liver. The crates are all cleaned out and ready with clean beds and the all important Fuzzyman. And,we can't forget Lammy who has been with Georgie since she was 10 weeks old!
Yeah,I'm already missin' the barking and clapping at ringside when the day goes just as you imagined on the drive to the show. That feeling of total satisfaction and pride you feel as you drive home with your dogs tucked in their crates all tired and content from working the ring to please you. Show ribbons on the dash so you can glance over and relive that awesome 10 minutes that you shared with your dog. I love that ride home.
Yup.Its gonna be a long summer.........

 

[EsmeraldaX]

I love watching the dog shows. Those dogs are so cute and I imagine they are SOOOOO pampered.

Unfortunately, my dog is a total spaz monster and would never do well in a regular ring. Agility yes, a regular ring , no way.

 

[airhead]

Not my dog!!! Well,maybe a little bit!!!!!! LOLOLOL

 

[LindaG4458]

Congratulations of finishing you novice title! I tried for years (literally) with one of my pups. She thought it was a social event. We gave up when she visited the people on the side, then pooped in the ring at Bayside in Boston. She really didn't care.

I know what you mean, though. Being in a show is entirely different from attending one, and I didn't realize it until I entered my first one.

Would your dogs like agility? You could still be in the shows and have fun, plus it's a new perfomance every time. One of my dogs took a beginning agility class and he just loves to do his tricks!

 

[airhead]

Oh Linda,your post made me laugh! I can just imagine that happening!!! What breed was it? As far as agility,not with this dog. Maybe the next pup if I start her/him young. This dog is moving on to Open and then Utility. I know its time to move on,I just hate the idea of not doing trials.

 

[stamper]

Congrats on moving up...seems a good thing to me, but then I know nothing about obedience! I'm a conformation girl myself.

May I just say.....feel fortunate the rides home have been so fun! We have had a rough time lately and the rides home have been V-E-R-Y long!!! And incredibly frustrating. And my time in the ring nothing short of humiliating! Ah well, gotta love it.

I do have to say though that we have taken some time off from the shows. My girl is horribly out of coat and my boy is just not ready(he's the cause of my public humiliation ) and we have friends at shows right now....I find myself wishing I was there too.

Enjoy your ring time next weekend and your accomplishments!

 

[nativetxn]

Good luck next weekend!

 

[LindaG4458]

My pup was an ASCOB cocker spaniel. She just loved people and thought she should visit all those smiling faces. I had taken her out to the potty area before we went into the ring, but she wouldn't go because it wasn't a grassy surface. It was so humiliating! Everyone who was watching thought it was funny, too.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

Don't worry CJ, you'll be back in the show ring in no time. It only took us 4 years between our CD and CDX. LOL It took a really long time to teach Natasha to retrieve and I refused to earpinch. I'm sure you'll get back in there before 4 years. Good Luck with that Dobie!!! I have Jasmine entered the 19th and 20th and the show is closed and of sourse now she is blowing coat like crazy. I guess I'll be showing a naked dog. Oh well, take care!

 

[airhead]

Linda,do you know about"matching" your dog? It really works,EVERY time!! I've done it many times with mine so we don't do "anything" in the ring.

Roliepoieoliefan--4 years!!!! NO!! that can't happen!! LOLOLOL!
Actually,my goal is that we have our CDX by the boston show.
She's doing everything EXCEPT the stupid broadjump! She LOVES the dumbell. Not at first,but now its her favorite thing to do,especially on the high jump. And,man,is it pretty to watch her fly over that jump! She's a very tall dobie and has to jump 28". Its not a problem for her at all. Her out of sights are very good. I have been doing out of sight with her for about 8 months now. At first,I couldn't trust her to stay if she was next to an intact male,but she's come in to her own and is ok with the boys!!


Stamper-----Sorry to hear about the long rides home!! I know what that feels like too,believe me. I think conformation is hard because its so out of your control. Depending on who is judging,they all seem to see things differently. Tell ya the truth,I don't get it. At least in the obedience ring,your dog completes the task or they don't. Although,I have watched judges take points away for one dog and not the other for the same mistake. Oh well,that dog shows!!

 

[LindaG4458]

I have heard about "matching" but have never done it. I know some handlers in conformation do it routinely. In that case, though, it's embarassing but doesn't get you excused.

If I ever take a dog into the ring again I might try it. Harry is a little more predictable.

 

[stamper]

Airhead,

Agreed....conformation is very subjective and frustrating. It is awful when your dog does everything right but the judge that day favors a different head style, or coat length or bone size or what ever......UGH!!! Such is life at the dog show!!! At the end of the day the thing that matters is that your dog still loves you and your family supports you...everything is else is just one person's opinion.

 

[airhead]

In the end its all about the love you have for the dog. And about showing in any ring,you really have to enjoy the WHOLE process,from training and preparing/grooming yourself AND your dog to the long drive it sometimes takes to get there. All of it is for that 10 minutes in the ring. I think that's why a lot of people
don't get it. A friend came with me to a show up in Maine and after we came out of the ring she said,"that's it?"

 

[stamper]

It's true that the time in the ring is short. But for us the time outside the ring with friends, especially now that we have a camper, is what we look forward to. We love our dogs, but love people more. So, while our time actually showing is over quickly, the relationship with our dogs and the people we show with lasts much longer....hopefully! We have taken some time off and it seems weird to not be at the shows when our friends are! Wish I was independently wealthy so I could go to more .

Good luck to you this weekend. We should be going to that show(our breed club has a meeting and we need to attend one more to become members), but have a cousin and a friend graduating...so we have parties as well as my DS's t-ball game.