Southern Indiana Match

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HopeShelties

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I'm sick today, so won't be online for long, but wanted to post about the match today. The sheltie entry was quite large (most entries of all breeds) and quality packed, and my Caleb took winners dog, and best of opposite. I'm very proud of him, as he had to beat some really nice dogs today.
Caleb has his UKC CH, and is one win short of his UKC grand CH. He has matured out to be quite a nice boy. He will probably never show AKC conformation, as I've been burnt too many times at AKC shows, and I am unwilling to send him out with a pro (If I'm going to have dogs, I am going to show them myself, not pay someone else to enjoy my dogs for me). We did the match just to get out and do something, and I was already taking my puppy, so figured it would be good for him as well.
My puppy, Lark, took 3rd in her class. I really wasn't expecting anything other than it just being good experience for her. She doesn't have a typey enough head, is a very obvious sable merle, and has a merled eye. While she is going to be a nice UKC dog, she will never be AKC material. She was also the smallest puppy, and had the least coat, so that didn't help matters either. All in all, it was a fantastic experience for her, which is why I took her. I think she is really getting comfortable with shows. She eared up, and stacked for me. She did a little crabbing, but for the most part, showed nicely. I like to take advantage of every opportunity to get my young dogs out and get them exposure to the show environment.
 
sorry to hear that you are sick.
Congrats on Caleb doing so well. and congrats to Lark- she is such a cutie :wink2:
hope that you got some good pix to post :yes:
 
Congratulations! Sounds like you had a pretty good weekend even though your not feeling well. I hope you feel better soon.
 
I hope will will re-think your thoughts on "been burnt at AKC shows". When I hear that, it makes me think the person is not realistic about the virtues, or lack of, of their dog. Of course, Judges are human, and sometimes things look from the outside as unfair, but generally speaking, Judges want to get it right. I don't mean to get my ire up, but it is so easy to put blame on your dog being out of the ribbons, because of unfair judging. I guess I was trying to follow your post, and understand what your goals are. Will you only show in UKC because you are realistic that your dog is not competitive in AKC shows? Showing your dog yourself is absolutely the best. Understand your dog's virtues and faults. Please don't put in on the quality of the judging.
A wonderful example of this is Ann, aka "sheltieholic", who had never been in the ring before. Nobody had seen her before, and she shows like a novice (sorry Ann). But the QUALITY of the little dog she was showing was competitive. She has shown, I think, 4 times, and was reserve twice and took the points twice. She beat me handling a little bitch who sports 12 points and a specialty major. So, I guess I am saying, keep an open mind.
 
It's not the placements that I mean by that. It is the nastiness of the handlers I've dealt with. I'm doing this because I truly enjoy showing my dogs. I don't need to participate in a venue where the attitide has always been 'we don't want you here' toward me.
The reason I prefer UKC is that I am not treated like s*** there. I like being able to compete with my dogs, and not have to feel like I am unwelcome there. This isn't my job, and should be enjoyable. I'm not going to be somewhere where I again have to question why I'm doing it. I did that in horses for 16 years. Believe me, I understand competition. I showed Saddlebreds. Due to my past, I have a hard time dealing with people, so just sucking it up, and having a tough enough skin to deal with the attitude I've dealt with isn't something I can deal with. My personality makes *me*, not my dogs, unsuitable for AKC conformation. UKC is more laid back, and friendly. It is the right venue for me to be a part of. I showed AKC with a couple of dogs and came away with quite a few wins, and took several BOBs. It's just not a venue where I enjoy competing.
My male dog has no problem with beating other dogs. He has taken quite a while to mature, but now that he has, he has no trouble winning, even when the quality is very deep. Our UKC shows are packed with quality, with the entries usually being filled with UKC GR CHs, AKC CHs, and CAN CH (even a dog who won the open black class at the assa national competes in UKC here). He has beaten numerous champions in competing in that venue. If I were willing to send him out, he could do well I believe. He has quite a nice head, with our UKC sheltie breeder judge commenting on his pretty head, and telling me his head was better than our competition, an AKC/UKC/CAN/INTL Ch. He also now has the coat (took until three years old to get it), and moves quite nicely. I could fault him for a slightly short upper arm, his eye is too round, and his tail is gay, but otherwise he is a nice boy with a lot of virtues. However, what fun is there in that for me to send him out? I showed as an amateur owner trainer in horses against the pros. I get no satisfaction from having someone else showing my dogs. A CH that I didn't earn on my dog isn't worth it to me. Plus, it takes time away from our training for performance venues to have him out with someone else. The performance is my first love, and I'm unwilling to give up time I could be spending preparing my dogs for various performance events to have him away from home to work on an AKC CH.
No, my puppy isn't an AKC dog. I know that. I don't begrudge that at all. I am realistic and understand that. However, she has lovely structure and movement. Judges have raved about her structure and movement in the UKC shows we have competed in. I will show her where she can compete. Each dog has its' faults, and hers are things that make her unsuitable to be an AKC conformation dog, however that doesn't make her a dog that I wouldn't want. It doesn't mean she isn't a quality dog, despite not having a typey head. She has enough virtues in other ways besides a nice head that make me believe she is a quality little dog. They all have faults, and I will take a dog who moves well any day over a pretty head. I'm an agility person, who also herds, and does various other physical activities and a dog who can't move, but has a pretty expression does me no good.
Showing UKC doesn't mean the dogs being shown there aren't quality, or that they are dogs who aren't good enough for AKC. My male certainly is, as are the AKC and CAN Chs that come to compete around here.
 
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Then kudos to you! But we need new people showing their exciting young dogs in AKC. Align yourself with someone similar, become friends, and just strut your dog past them on the way to the ring. I can't begin to tell you how hard it was for Megan (Tofu Pup) at age 13 with her special, Mark. The professional handlers were ruthless with the manuvers they would play to try to get the advantage over "the kid". I wanted to have a whistle to blow signeling "foul!". These handlers made their money on the dogs and winning the breed with a client dog was the goal...every single weekend. Megan and I kept showing up, show after show, making friends, and many times taking the breed. For years. Then the amusing thing was, the first year Megan won Best Junior Handler at the National all the handlers from the east coast were beaming saying, "That's our girl". Now they act like extended parents, as though they were a significant part of her success.
 
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