#dog show handler

[abirddogmoment]

everyone say "rory championship points weekend"

[creekfiend]

I've had some spicy opinions about dog shows and AKC confo specifically in the past but not anymore. I only have one dog showing opinion anymore and it's that if they allow pro handlers those pro handlers should be required to have a special Handler Name and a whole Schtick to go along with it, like drag queens.

the persona I'm envisioning currently is sort of a hot and sinister widow sort of vibe. you know. descending the marble staircase in a feather boa to meet the cops that are here to tell you your husband has been found dead under suspicious circumstances.

but at the dog show.

many other such concepts could exist if only we opened our minds somewhat. please join me in my vision

[writterings]

honestly my state's pride was ultimately underwhelming this year for me, but i gotta say it's...somewhat nice that it can be boring? like im so accepted and validated by people in my life that pride no longer feels like (for me) an escape or outlet. i attended this specific event with my mom in 2018 and it was my first pride event. i was still in high school. i remember it literally brought me out of a deep depressive episode for a bit, because of how fun and affirming and safe it was. it was a celebration of me and people like me!

but now i kinda get that everyday in my life. so pride really only offers me a chance to hang with some friends, day drink, smoke weed in public, and pick up freebies at every tent. it's basically like any other holiday to me now. but isn't that amazing? that im so accepted and loved and celebrated as a whole queer person, that i can take something like pride for granted?

i'm super thankful for that. i'm still super thankful for pride.

and, i gotta say, it was really touching to see so many middle school and high school aged kids there, sometimes with their parents and sometimes by themselves. i hope they one day can find pride as "boring" as i do. i hope every queer person can.

[fjordfolk]

i sometimes wonder if the people who put sad face emojis on show groomed dogs are also critical of compulsion in hobbyist dog training or reliance on stress in sports

[khayr]

🍗✨️

[quillusquillus]

Mild spoilers for a great show with great twists, but considering tumblr's love for dog-coded characters lately I feel like I need to share The Rowdy 3. Extremely dog-coded very bark

[pawsitivevibe]

This is frankly a silly amount of ribbons to be given when you haven't earned them. I do think it's weird that conformation shows still give you ribbons when you're the only dog of your breed to show up. Is he the Best of Breed or is he Only of Breed.

[caterpillarinacave]

What will it take for kids cartoons to stop wildly misrepresenting what a service animal is

[abirddogmoment]

Sunrise and fog and attempted stack photos

[bas-rouge]

I'm sort of toying with the idea of perhaps seeing if I could intern as an assistant to a pro handler next year... or simply apply to be one... I have multiple acquaintances who are pro handlers or who work closely with them, and I have their personal contact, and they live within 45 minutes of me, so I don't think reaching out would necessarily hurt... obviously not at this time because the big show in Florida is coming up and that is simply too soon and I do not think I can travel to Florida... but it is something I have been considering.

[pockets-and-paint]

major life events keep happening in hopperville

[kelev9]

The dog show today was amazing!!! I had such a good time that I did not take a single photo because I was too busy watching and petting dogs. And even though it was an AKC event, there was a Dutch Shepherd there that I got to meet and I talked with his owner and she gave me some really great Dutchie advice. Everyone there was so nice and so happy to talk about their dogs it was really such a lovely first dog show experience! I'm gonna be on the lookout for more shows/dog events to go to because it was such a good time. Unfortunately nothing ever happens in Oregon so I'm fully expecting a bit of a drive for the next one lol

[alltrekvarnews]

'The Morning Show' y 'Succession' Lideran las Nominaciones Televisivas a los Critics Choice Awards 2024

[healingheartdogs]

For all the comments about hair breeds having high show coat maintenance as motivation for quick early titling, why exactly does that mean you can't show them at an older age? What prevents you from keeping your dog shaved down (or whatever your preferred easy groom is) when they're under a year or two old and waiting until they're closer to maturity before getting them into show coat, maintaining it only until they title as mature dogs, and then going back to your easy clip for them after?

Like... I have a breed with a lot of show coat maintenance (and hand stripping at that, literally the worst oof), and that was what I decided to do -- just not keep my show dog in show coat until he was grown out and I felt he was ready to start showing. It was actually the lowest effort solution I could find to the problem y'all are saying makes you have to title early because it meant we could take our time with low stakes cooperative grooming and training when he was a baby without any rushing for early titles, which was less frustrating and exhausting for both of us while he matured and didn't require any kind of coercive forceful grooming or handling like what I see unfortunately often with young dogs at shows outside the ring.

Waiting and taking our time without the stress of having to maintain a show coat on a baby or teenage dog who has a very short attention span for kind of annoying and/or boring things like grooming literally improved my relationship with my show dog and made raising and training him easier as well as setting the foundation for more easily maintaining his coat cooperatively long term. So yeah, I'm having a hard time understanding how your dog's hair type means you have to title them before a year old for coat maintenance convenience.

i haven’t been in poodles long (less than a year) but i’m already noticing a really uncomfortable pattern of VERY young dogs getting championships/grand championships, including my own dog. shrike was a UCH at 9/10 months old. he’ll be a GRCH by 14 months. he’s not even done growing, how is he a good representation of the breed’s structure and movement? i just saw a 7 month old UCH. 7. months. that’s insane. that dog will probably look very different when they’re fully mature, in 2 years.

and apparently, poodles are in their “prime” showing window BEFORE THEYRE A YEAR OLD. the most competitive ages for standard poodles is 9-12 MONTHS. is that not ridiculous? that’s like taking a 13 year old human and saying “this is the pinnacle of human body structure. the ideal.”

if the entire point of conformation shows is to demonstrate breeding stock, why are we constantly rewarding very young dogs, who should not be bred yet, with accolades that mark them as good breeding stock? what if that 7 month old UCH bitch grows up to have undesired structural qualities? what if that 16 month old GRCH dog develops concerning temperament or health concerns when he’s 3? what then? in a culture that relies heavily on conformation titles and accolades, it’s more than a little concerning.

i know i’m just one person, a person very new to showing dogs, let alone poodles, but it’s so strange to me that we’re expecting so much of these young dogs, and we’re being rewarded for that. why are these young dogs winning over mature ones? are the mature ones out of standard? does the standard only reward young dogs?

i’m worried that the solution is to only show mature dogs, or at least dogs over a year, which is something that most poodle people would scoff at. it’s a very competitive breed, and the pressure to finish your dog before they’re even a fully grown adult is insane. i should not be worrying about putting a Grand fucking Championship on a dog who isn’t even two years old.

i don’t know. it worries me so much. ideally all future show poodles i own won’t be shown in adult classes until they’re, you know, adults, but i know that i’ll be pressured by the entire community to jump in as soon as possible. and it freaks me out.

[khayr]

I never posted this clip of Ashen being a very good girl for her handler at the show we did this week - she won this class and got lots of looks and a second hands on from the judge in winners, but no dice this time for points. We'll get there!! Lots coming up in September with her breeder handling down in NJ. 🥰

[poodleteeth]

that german longhaired pointer handler should've been kicked out of the ring. what the fuck was that.