Page 45 - Chow Life - Winter 2025

of purebred dogs by injecting personal advantage or All of the behaviors mentioned above do exactly
consideration into their decisions or behavior.” that.
You shouldn’t be chatting with a judge before the • “The sportsman respects the AKC by laws, regulations,
show—whether you’re discussing the venue, the and policies governing the sport of purebred dogs.”
state of the nation, or anything else. Wait until
after your dog has been in the ring. Even innocent This is a minimum expectation.
conversations beforehand can give the wrong • “Sportsmen find that vigorous competition and
impression. If you’re discussing your dog or your civility are not inconsistent, and are able to appreciate
breed specifically, well, shame on you. the merit of their competition and the effort of

Once, I unknowingly spoke with a judge I didn’t competitors.”
know—only to find out three days later that he’d • “Sportsmen welcome, encourage, and support
be judging my breed. When I realized this, I asked newcomers to the sport.”
if I should pull my dog. He said that since I wasn’t • “Sportsmen deal fairly with all those who trade with
handling the dog, he wouldn’t know which one it them.”
was. Still, I chose to pull the dog because others
had seen us talking. Perception matters. • “Sportsmen are willing to share honest and open
appraisals of both the strengths and weaknesses of
• “The sportsman judge judges only on the merits of the dogs their breeding stock.”
and considers no other factors.” • “Sportsmen spurn any opportunity to take personal
If a judge allows outside factors to influence their advantage of positions offered or bestowed upon them.”
decisions, it hurts the breed—and the integrity of • “Sportsmen always consider the welfare of their dog
the sport. as para mount.”

• “The sportsman judge or exhibitor accepts constructive • “Sportsmen refuse to embarrass the sport, the
criticism.” American Kennel Club, or themselves while taking

This is key to personal growth in any sport. part in the sport.”
Sadly, I’ve seen many of these principles violated at
• “The sportsman exhibitor declines to enter or exhibit one time or another. Regardless of your breed, let’s
under a judge where it might reasonably appear that the all strive to ensure that the best animal wins—and
judge’s placements could be based on something other than those wins are based on merit, not influence. Yes,
the merits of the dogs.” this is a subjective sport. A judge may place dogs
If you’re running an event and hiring the judges, differently from day to day for various reasons.
take the high road and don’t enter your own dogs. Sometimes dogs–and handlers–have a bad day and
While it’s not technically against the rules, it don’t perform well. I’ve seen my own dog in the ring
violates the spirit of competition. I’ve heard tales on an “off” day and thought, “He’s just not the best
of people calling judges they previously hired to today.” Tomorrow might be different.
ask for help in placing their dogs at other shows.
Whether this is true or just rumor, My behavior is far from perfect, and I plan to work
the damage is the same—it on that to hopefully improve myself. I’ve seen
“ from the sport. people bragging about manipulating situations to
misconduct in many breeds, and I’ve overheard
drives participants away
help their entries.

Regardless of your • “The sportsman Let’s do better—for ourselves, for the sport, and
exhibitor refuses to
breed, let’s all strive compromise the for the breeds we love. A $2 ribbon is not worth
compromising all we’re here to celebrate
to ensure that the impartiality of a
judge.”
best animal wins

The article first appeared in Canine Chronicle - August
2025 - page 254 and is reprinted with permission.
www.CanineChronicle.com
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