Article - It's All About The Money

[janices]

Article appeared in Canine Chronicle. It's interesting to say the least and thought provoking.

It's All About The Money
http://caninechronicle.com/featured/its-all-about-the-money/

 

[Leonard and his bud Snuffles]

I had some friends show dogs this past weekend in Springfield. I think some of the points brought out in the article, issome of the things they were saying.

 

[YorkvilleNewfie]

I honestly cannot say that I disagree entirely with that article.

 

[Sun Valley]

Sad but true....I was at a show a few weeks ago to watch and there were 2 Newfs that barely looked purebred! Handlers can finish most anything and then the poor quality is only perpetuated by breeding it.

LA

 

[Ginny]

At a recent show, a dog who was obviously lame, but had a top handler on him, took BOW. The crossover was an absolute travesty. I don't know how the judge, the handler, or the owners sleep at night...

 

[R Taft]

"Breed ring competition now is a contest about who has the disposable income and/or time to campaign their dog to accumulate grand champion achievement levels. Group level competition is about who has even more affluence and time to achieve Top Ten group rankings. As one advances to the Top Dog Amongst All Breeds competition, it is a totally different ballgame and parlay. It comes down to money and sometimes perseverance — as to which of the financiers, breeders and owner(s) have the most fortune to finance their Top Dog quest and yes, career. In my opinion, it is all about the money and all about coming out on top".

So true..........

 

[Whybu1]

Perhaps it is time to start judging show dogs not against each other but against the standard. I know my parents used to go to antique car shows and often the "best" car in a class was not very good but it still one first prize because it was better than the others there that day. At the national level they change and cars are judged soley against the standard. It is possible to have several "first place" winners and also possible to have a show where the top prize awarded is a "second place".

Maybe making it so judges could say "none of these dogs today are really great" and not awarding a top finisher and the corresponding points towardsa championship to a sub-par dog. I am sure that with the right handler, enough money and knowledge of who will be at what shows many inferior dogs are still capable of getting champion status.

 

[blstarke]

True. With this economy, I choose to do Major's clearences first before I continue to show. If he wins; he wins.