The ‘Sport’ of Dog Showing – Should We Embrace the Cheats?
written by Karen Clark-Stapleton of EuroBichons.com
We in Britain are regarded as a nation of dog lovers, some may argue that just isn’t the case as figures show that abuse towards animals and dogs in particular is rising, mostly due to fighting rings and the sickening trade in selling dogs on a mass scale from what is termed ‘Puppy Farms’.
Here in the UK we have the Worlds best canine show ‘Crufts’ and each year thousands of dogs compete to qualify for entry into that show, sadly though rules are being broken and cheating is causing distress to many owners who simply don’t understand that this has more to do with politics than the actual sport of dog showing.
In many cases the dog doesn’t matter, it’s how the handler performs , this cannot be right , afterall, when these dogs achieve champion status their progeny is sought after and frankly if its not up to scratch then, what does this say about the quality for the future of the breeds we have in the UK.
Breed clubs in the UK are where judges come from , when they get it wrong , its dogs that will ultimately suffer, a judge should not be swayed by a friends dog showing, by a ‘you scratch my back and I will yours‘, yet this is what is happening in dogs shows throughout the land.
Breeders whose dogs coats are not good are using human hair straighteners, curling tongs, and in many cases are trimming them even though this should carry an automatic disqualification in some breeds. Judges are failing to act and this is causing concern amongst the more ethical breeders and exhibitors.Some have even used tooth whitening cream that is painted onto the dogs teeth, it wasn’t designed for dogs teeth and yes it is blatantly obvious.
If this was any other sport , those cheating would face a ban, they would not then go on to judge the following week.It really is about time that judges were selected from other sources and that this particular sport was brought into line with all other sports.
The Kennel Club must act sooner or face a very bleak future with poor quality dogs being made up to champion simply because they show under a select number of unethical judges.
Many will argue what the hell has this got to do with breeding and selling, well its got everything to do with it , Top Sires or Brood Bitches will be mated and if they are not fit for purpose then the quality being produced will fall , then we face the sad possibility that UK dogs are classed Worldwide as useless and sickly…. Do we really want that ?
Breed Clubs need to consider who they are making judges and judges need to consider do they really know what they are judging. not exactly rocket science is it?
The Kennel Club need to consider that maybe just maybe there are those outside of breed clubs who actually know more about dogs than they are given credit for and that judges need to be drawn from a variety of sources not just breed clubs. If this was the case cheating would stop as these judges would hold no allegiance to breed club memberships and dogs would indeed be judged on quality once again !
It has to say something about any sport when competitors are being told “Dont say anything , because if they know its you , your dogs will never win again , you will be shunned ”
Do we really want this level of cheating to continue?
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The secretary of one of the UKs breed clubs was actually seen trimming her dog before being shown , she is also a show judge, maybe its time she was replaced as that is unethical , makes one wonder to what lengths she will go, to win ?
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