Haill - Stand!: a complete guide to showing your dog from companion to champion

STAND!

A Complete Guide to Showing Your Dog from Companion to Champion

TRISH HAILL

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2015 by

The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2015

Trish Haill 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 9781 84797 994 0

Disclaimer

The authors and publisher do not accept any responsibility in any manner whatsoever for any error or omission, or any loss, damage, injury, adverse outcome or liability of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any of the information contained in this book, or reliance upon it.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my husband, Steve Haill, for his support and putting up with being dragged along to most of the dog shows Ive attended, and to my son, Michael Haill, for his encouragement and help.

And of course I cant forget Bess (Snuggler Honey Pie over Smokeywater), without whom I wouldnt have started showing at all.

Acknowledgements

First and foremost I have to thank Gill Tully (Highclare), whose encyclopaedic knowledge of the dog showing world has been fundamental in ensuring this book is as accurate and informative as possible. I thank her for her time, help, ideas and encouragement, both with the book, and in the show ring. Without her practical, no-nonsense approach and support, this book might not have been written!

I have been overwhelmed by the amount of advice and encouragement given freely by so many people I thank them all, but in particular Id like to mention David Alcorn, Kim Black, Sue Brown, Katherine Bull, Olivia Carty, Julie Frost, Georgina Harrison, Jane Heggie, Vicki High, Paul Meakin, Helen Moore, Amelia Murray, Virge Neary, David Paton, Graham Peers, Jamie Read, Val Rottger, Gillian Serpa and Carla Young; and Sharron Dyer (Sharnphilly), who suggested ringcraft classes, and the Central Essex Dog Training Society, which set me off on the right path!

There was a huge response to my call for photographs, for which Im extremely grateful. It was a very hard job sorting through them all, and I apologize that I was unable to use all the photos submitted. I did enjoy seeing them all!

In addition, I have to thank the various Breed Clubs which so kindly responded to my requests for Breed Showing information, and the Kennel Club for so patiently answering my queries about the less obvious interpretations of the regulations.

Finally Id like to thank Pat Brown who initially suggested that I enter the show world.

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

After reading Stand! by Trish Haill, my first thoughts were What a well written and suitably illustrated book. It would have made life easier for me when I first entered that exciting world of dogs many years ago. I had so many questions to ask but nobody to answer them. Sometimes people gave you incorrect information but you could not check it and so just believed it (as people still do).

In my early days the people who did know the answers were so far up the ladder in the chosen breed that you felt you could not even speak to them. As the years went by, some of these people became good friends and were always happy to share their knowledge.

But with this excellent book you can find out all you need to know from the beginning. One sentence especially rings true: You hope that one magic day youll reach the point when you know everything! But I suspect there are very few people, if any, who could legitimately make this claim. This book will help you in your quest and will always be to hand.

Valerie Foss

Valerie Foss has had sixteen UK Champions and Champions in Europe with her two breeds, English Setters and Golden Retrievers (Elswood). Being extremely busy in the canine world, she has personally not bred or shown for ten years.

A renowned judge, she awards Challenge Certificates in the Gundog, Hound, Working and Pastoral Groups, regularly judges Groups at Championship Shows, including the Gundog Group at Crufts in 1995, and the Pastoral Group in 2014, culminating in being the Best in Show Judge at Crufts in 2010. She judges all over the world as well as in the UK. She has had eleven books published, and is President of the following organizations: the Young Kennel Club, the Manchester Dog Show Society, the English Setter Association and Scottish Breeds.

Valerie Foss, Best in Show Judge at Crufts 2010, and her winner, Hungarian Vizsla Sh CH/AUST CH Hungargunn Bear Itn Mind. With Moray Armstrong, Jock Bettie and John Thirlwell. ( The Kennel Club)

PREFACE

Many years ago I bought a pedigree dog, and the breeder asked me if I would show him. Piece of cake, I thought, so I trotted along to a Companion Show. I hadnt heard of ringcraft, had made no preparation, and hadnt a clue what to do. My dog was miserable, with his tail between his legs. I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me and I was disillusioned when the judge didnt place us. Despite owning more pedigree dogs, I didnt go back to the show ring for about twenty-five years!

Fast forward a couple of decades and I acquired an Irish Setter and decided it was time to try again. This time I decided to learn something about dog showing first, but I found that however hard I looked, I really couldnt find all the information I was looking for in one place, either in books or on the internet. Even though Id gone to ringcraft training, there seemed to be a lot of practical gaps in my knowledge this was only too apparent when I arrived at my first show and didnt even know what a ring number was, let alone how to obtain one!

Knowing that it would have been helpful to have understood the details before I set foot in the show ring, I decided to write the book that I felt was missing to help newcomers to the sport enter the show ring with more confidence. My background in research and in interpreting legislation came in useful when trying to understand the show regulations, and with the expert advice from knowledgeable friends and contacts Stand! gradually emerged.

As I was writing and talking to people, it became clear that many exhibitors have learnt from the famous sitting with Nelly method, and there were lots of conflicting views and interpretations about what the showing regulations actually mean, even among experienced show-goers. So Ive taken the time to try to cover most (I wouldnt dare to say all) topics in the dog showing world, and hope that Stand! will act not only as a basis for newcomers, but also as a reference book for those already actively engaged in the sport.

There is no doubt that dog showing will change over the next few years, and some possible changes are discussed in the final chapter. Its an interesting time, with newcomers actively encouraged to join in the sport, giving everyone owning or thinking of taking on a pedigree dog an opportunity to show off their beloved pets, to make new like-minded friends and to engage in the canine world in a way which has a positive benefit to dog health and welfare.