Doggone Etiquette —

Be A Show Dog!

By Bardi McLennan

A Word to the Dog:           

If you are not entered in the big dog “show of shows” known as Westminster Kennel Club (or “the Garden”) be sure to watch it on TV.

There are sure to be some dogs you’ll like. Maybe even one that looks just like you! Wouldn’t you love to hear thousands of people cheering for you simply because you are nicely trotting along beside your favorite person? 

You could pretend you hear it when you’re on your favorite walk even if there’s not another person in sight. It’s easy. Instead of spending all your time sniffing to find out what other dogs went by, try trotting and looking up at your favorite person. Your favorite person will smile back at you and tell you how clever you are – but in your head you’ll hear those cheering crowds! 

A Word to the Dog’s Owners:                          

It’s definitely not like Sunday night football, but the Westminster KC dog show is the Super Bowl of dog shows in this country. It’s held in Madison Square Garden; it’s glamorous, and it’s surrounded all week by other “doggy” events. And if you can’t get into NYC to participate, you can watch it on TV in the warmth and comfort of your home, with Rufus at your side or on your lap.                            

Westminster is not the biggest dog show, partly because there isn’t room for more dogs, and because the entries are limited by invitation only to the top dogs in each breed. This method also makes it a “Champions only” show. The enormous dog shows elsewhere in the world — Crufts in England, and the World Show held in a different European country each year – bring out 20,000 or more dogs whereas Westminster is limited to 2,500. Still, that’s a lot of dogs, isn’t it? Watch it next Monday and Tuesday , February 9 and 10 on TV and you’ll see at least a portion of all those dogs.

Some people think dog shows are merely beauty pageants and that the dogs are judged on how gorgeously they are groomed and how grand they look going around the ring. General appearance is only one small part of each individual breed standard that the judge has to consider. For example, the Poodles (in all three sizes – Toy, Miniature and Standard) all have coats that need to be correctly groomed for their breed, originally created for the dogs’ work. Today, without the work in mind, it does make them look pretty fancy. There is even a special (not so fancy) trim for a Poodle puppy. But a smooth-coated breed like a Pointer or a Beagle doesn’t require a lot of extra grooming to look more beautiful than it already is.

The whole idea of the dog show is for other breeders, and for the general public to observe what the careful breeding of purebred dogs can produce, and these are the “best of the best” of man’s best friends. If muddy, un-brushed, un-trained dogs were exhibited, it wouldn’t be a “Show” worth the effort to put on or to watch, now would it?

Consistent breed type is what you see; the judge’s hands check what you can’t always see. At this point, you might want to have Rufus stand up (or, if small, put him up on a table) so you can try to figure out the angle of his shoulders, the depth of his chest, whether or not he’s the right weight for his breed, and even check the condition of his teeth. But I rather think that after watching all those champions, you’ll just look down at Rufus, smile, give him an extra few strokes and tell him he’s the best!

Until next time – BE GOOD!

- Bardi

Bardi McLennan bred, trained and showed Welsh Terriers for 30 years during which time she wrote a monthly column on canine behavior in Dog fancy Magazine. In addition to contributing to numerous dog publications, she has written 15 books on dogs, the latest being Rescue Me! which received the ASPCA Humane Issues Award last year.