Dog Shows

Conformation

All canines will be examined for proper conformation. Think of a dog as a machine with many moving parts, all synchronized to move in harmony together. When all the gears fit properly, the machine works wonderfully, but if a gear is out of whack, the machine has difficulty doing it's job. Dogs with the best conformation will move fluidly, according to the demands of their breed standard.

The Classes at Dog Shows

Initial competition is divided by sex; dogs(males) and bitches(females). Each sex is entered into one initial class according to the exhibitor's choice. Available classes are:

• Puppy class (May be divided by age.)
• Bred By Exhibitor (Only for breeder/owner/exhibitor.)
• American Bred (Born in USA.)
• Open (All ages, regardless of country of birth.)
• Breed Competition (For finished champions, Winners dog and Winners Bitch.)

The Process

Let's begin our explanation with dog (male) classes. All the dogs entered in puppy class are called into the ring together and line up. Each exhibitor wears an arm band on their left arm that bears the dog's entry number for recording purposes.

Each dog is stacked, which is dog show lingo for posed to perfection with all four feet in place, and head and tail in correct position for the respective breed. After a cursory look, the judge will ask the group to move once around the entire ring and then stop where they first started.

Now each dog will be examined separately. Large dogs will be stacked on the floor in a space designated by the judge. Small dogs will usually be stacked on a grooming table in one corner of the ring to make it easier for the judge to reach.

During this examination, the judge will be looking to see if the entire dog is put together correctly. The judge will specifically examine for:

• Head shape
• Bite/teeth for proper placement
• Placement of shoulders
• Level topline
• Tail set
• Proper leg structure according to breed standard
• Proper coat texture and condition
• Both testicles in males

Then to confirm what the judge has felt with his/her hands, the exhibitor will be asked to move their dog again. This may simply be a straight line down and back to the judge on the center mat, or the exhibitor may be asked to move the dog in a triangle, which allows the judge to see the dog's movement in the rear legs, the entire side picture of the dog moving, and the movement of the front legs as the dog comes back toward the judge to stand still and stack. Then the exhibitor takes his place in the line up as the judge examines the rest of the dogs in the class.

The judge may finally ask the dogs to move around the ring together once more, and reposition the first four dogs at the front according to what he/she considered the best. Then the judge will point to individual dogs chosen and say one, two three, four. These four dogs will move across the ring to the corresponding number signs, and the ring steward will record the arm band numbers in the judge's records.

This process will be repeated through all the classes in dogs, and then each of the first place winners in the dog classes will be called back into the ring to compete for Winners Dog. After Winners Dog, a Reserve Winner's Dog will be chosen in case the original winner becomes disqualified for any reason. Then the entire process will be repeated for all the classes in bitches until an ultimate Winners Bitch is chosen.

Championship Points

Depending on the number of entries for each sex, 1-5 championship points will be awarded to each Winners Dog and Bitch, with 3, 4, or 5 points considered a major win. To finish a championship a canine must accumulate a minimum of two majors under two separate judges, and enough single points to add up to 15. It is possible to finish a championship with three 5 point majors awarded under at least two different judges.

Breed Competition

Now, the Winners Dog and Winners Bitch will be called back into the ring together for Best Of Breed Competition. At this point, Champion Dogs and Bitches who are also entered for Breed Competition will also be called in and placed in front of the Winners Dog and Bitch. The class will go through the entire process again until a Best Of Breed (BOB) is chosen. Here's where it gets tricky:

• A champion will be BOB if chosen.
• A Winners Dog/Bitch will be BOB and Best Of Winners if chosen.
• A Best Of Opposite Sex will be chosen according to which sex won the breed, and could be one of the champions or one of the Winners.

Group Competition

Each BOB winner will report to their respective group for more competition. There are seven groups to which all breeds belong:

• Toy
• Non-sporting
• Sporting
• Terrier
• Hound
• Working
• Herding

The dogs will go through the same process again to select the top four placements in each group and the first place winner of each group will move on to Best In Show competition.

Best In Show

The process is repeated one final time, and from this elite group of seven, the best dog is awarded the coveted Best In Show.