By Lisa Peterson

Are you ready to enter your first dog show?

By now you have purchased that perfect pup from the reputable breeder and taken him to handling classes. You have attended dog shows and studied what it is all about. Now you are ready to take that leap of faith and march towards making your purebred dog an American Kennel Club Champion.

To enter a dog show you must obtain a premium list containing an entry form from the show superintendent. One that is very active in our area is MB-F, Inc, P.O. Box 22107, Greensboro, NC 27420. You can call or write to them or better yet visit their website and enter on-line at www.infodog.com To find nearby shows you can also log on to www.akc.org to search by state, event name or type. To obtain that Champion title you will want to search for Conformation events.

To complete an entry you will need a few pieces of information that can be found on your dog’s AKC full registration certificate. These include the dog’s full name, registration number, date of birth, sex, sire and dam, breeder and the owners. Make sure you list all the owners. Breeders may list themselves as co-owners on dogs they sell. You will want to include all owners listed on the AKC certificate on your entry form.

Fill in the breed of your dog and if your breed has a variety (i.e. Dachshunds come in smooth, long-haired and wire-haired) fill in the variety line if it applies.

The tricky part is what class to enter. Here is a run-down on the classes available to win points towards you Champion title (depending on if you are a novice handler or have a puppy versus an older dog, certain classes may be more appropriate).

Each class is divided by sex. So there is a full compliment of classes for Dogs (males) and Bitches (females). If you have a puppy (less than one year of age) enter the puppy class. Puppy classes are divided by age between six-to-nine months and nine-to-twelve months. You may not enter a puppy if it is less than six months old.

For dogs over one year old there are a few options for classes depending on you and your dog’s experience. There is the 12-to-18 months class for those dogs who may still look like puppies and are not mature enough to compete against older dogs.

Next comes the Novice class. This class is open to dogs that have never won a blue ribbon in any other class, or have won fewer than three blue ribbons in the novice class. This might be a good place to start for your very first show, but it is a good idea to try and move up quickly to more competitive classes.

These classes include American-Bred, Bred-By Exhibitor and Open. Unless you are the breeder and the owner, the Bred-By Exhibitor class is not for you. It is a very competitive class as breeders show off their best stuff in this class. The American-Bred class originally promoted dog’s whose parents mated in America and were born in America. This class is an old throw back to the early days of dog shows when most dogs in America came from England or some other country. Today almost all the American show dogs are bred in America and this class lacks the competitive edge it once had.

The final class offered is Open. This class is open to any dog. No restrictions. This is the class where the mature dog can be found. It is also the class where the majority of professional handlers can be found. As a novice amateur handler, this is the class to watch and learn from. It is from here where your dog will most likely move up to the winners class to get championship points. The winner of each regular class competes in the winners class. The winner of that class gets the point for the day.

Don’t forget that all dog shows are by pre-entry only. Each show has a closing date by which all entries must reach the superintendent’s office, usually by noon on the Wednesday two and half weeks prior to the show. This gives them time to compile and print a catalog for spectators. Make sure to sign your entry and write your phone number on the entry in case they have questions. Mail it off in plenty of time or go on-line for quicker service, although there is an extra charge to enter on-line. Most dog shows entry fees range from $16 to $23 per class.

A week before the show you will receive a conformation in the mail with your ring assignment and time. Each breed gets a specific time to show. So arrive early and don’t be late!         

Our next column will discuss how to prep your dog for competition and a handy checklist of what to bring to the shows.

 

Lisa Peterson is the Public Education Coordinator for the Newtown Kennel Club. She is a long-time breeder and exhibitor of Norwegian Elkhounds in conformation and obedience and is the AKC Delegate for the Norwegian Elkhound Association of America.