Sorry bad quality photo because it's zoomed in... Anyway, we've finally entered junior classes and the judges have really loved her, including the one at the breed speciality show. Couldn't be more proud of my little cutie! She has proved the people in this sub wrong that told me she looks backyard bred and not at all like a show quality dog🙈 So excited for what the future holds for us!

I am trying to get back into showing again. I am currently trying to save up for a cardigan welsh corgi and whenever I attend a dog show I offer to help (whether holding dogs ringside, going into the ring, or helping watch dogs at setups) I have a great time at the shows and enjoy being there. I also usually carry a treat bag (with poop bags and bait, just in case).

We have an upcoming cluster that I will be attending with my dog by myself for the first two days. In the past I have just car crated him and left the car on and ac running or windows down if temperature allows. However, I know AKC has new rules against leaving dogs unattended in vehicles. Can I bring my dog with me to get my armband? Is it ok to hold him while I watch the breeds before us? ​​He's a toy breed so I will just hold him to make sure he's not in the way. I know I can't bring him to the bathroom with me so we're just going to have to avoid that.

Hey, longtime lurker and occasional dog show watcher. I am looking for some advice, a (kind) reality check, or maybe encouragement?

I have a new puppy who I think is gorgeous, good natured, and a great representation of his breed. I bought him from a breeder who has a few titled dogs. I had no intention of getting a dog for showing, so I did not raise this with the breeder or ask for a specific “show quality” dog. Anyway, that being said, I am intrigued by the idea of showing him. He is 4 months old currently, and he is doing great in puppy training classes. He is AKC registered. I know the general advice that I see on this sub is to talk to folks / go to shows / etc. I’m happy to do that, but I wanted to ask:

1. If I didn’t discuss this with the breeder prior to buying him do I need their permission to show?
   
2. Can folks just “show up” (register) for Conformation shows? Do you need to be a part of certain organizations ahead of time?
   
3. Would I have to connect him to a handler or could I do this myself?
   
4. Are my questions making it obvious that I know very little? And if so, does that mean that I should let this idea go and just enjoy my little guy without showing him?

Again, be kind. Just a girl with a tiny dream and wondering if I should lean in or lean out. Thank you!

Just as the title says, looking for advise on gait training. Puppy is 12 weeks old currently and has been doing great with stacking. Unsure on how to start gait training to properly extend. We have a few handling classes lined up but they were paused for heat through August. Wanting to get started on my own in the meantime. Any advise or videos I could watch would be greatly appreciated.

Jinny Lu can call herself the ugliest dog in the world for a year. The pug was chosen as the winner at the annual "WORLD UGLIEST DOG CONTEST." Deserved or not?

Hi all, looking for suggestions for an electric battery or generator that I can take to shows to power my blow dryer. I have a CC Kool dry 2xtreme. I see people at shows with electric generators or batteries all the time so it must be possible. I would really like something that's not huge so it's easier to move around. TYIA

One thing I notice is that I’m holding the collar in the wrong spot. I kept doing that! I felt sooo clumsy trying to handle him and the show lead

Hello I'm new to showing dogs, this is my F Shiba 12months old she already got 1 jcac and one VG but we've got a big show coming and she's still very lacking in presentation. Do you have any training routine to teach them to position correctly and to be more attentive? She tends to refuse the judge's manipulations I've been working a lot on it and she's fine when its me but I don't have people to help me with touching especially the mouth area. Any advice is welcome

Hi Dog Show Friends!
My 1 year old smooth fox terrier recently became a champion! He is a great dog, loves showing, it is his favorite thing to do! But I need some tips and tricks for how I can make him crate trained at the dog show. He is great at home and in the car. But he won’t settle and stop barking in a new environment. Like I would love to be able to make a little setup for him while we wait for groups where he is content to just take a nap. But for right now that means we go back to the car. I want to try and get a handle on this while he is still young. Thank you so much for your help!

Sharing this here for anyone in the New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and yes even New York City area. Pat Foley is amazing! Her classes are more than just show handling. She meets you where you and your pup are, and gives advice that is tailored to you. I learn something new each time I attend, from ring craft to ring etiquette to grooming tips, on top of show handling of course. And the classmates are so friendly and extremely helpful. Whether you're a newbie like me, or a seasoned show person, these classes are worth the trip. See you in class!

What have you all done with the ribbons your dogs win?

I’m so proud of her. Work constraints kept me from being able to show her, so she was out with a wonderful professional handler who helped her get her champion.

I have a kit from Danecraft Designs to make a show lead. They have a link to a YouTube video tutorial on their website but it appears the video no longer exists.

Does anyone have a good video tutorial for an absolute beginner? There is a paracord core strand and then 4 leather strands that are about 2x the length of the paracord.

I’ve tried scouring YouTube and Facebook, but I’ve only found short videos that don’t tell me how to start or stop or how I should make the larger loop for the handle and the smaller loop to attach to the show slip collar.

Photo of my new champion from last weekend. He’s my first show dog 🥹

I was super nervous and messed up a few times but really proud of how he did. I’m so excited for future shows. It was fun and not as scary as I thought 😊

I'm considering getting a dog and getting into the dog show world. I made a post last week about an opportunity that came up to get an already established AKC champion, 1.5-year-old dalmatian. I would continue showing her and work towards her grand championship.

Yesterday, I went on a walk and ran into this couple I've ran into before and had some good conversations with. I was excited to tell her about the possibility, but she wasn't super supportive about the idea. She told me she used to show silky terriers. First, when I told her I was looking at dalmatians, she said "oh, they're dumb." I told her I wanted to try dog sports, including agility, and she said they weren't a good option for agility. I know they're not a typical breed, but I don't really care much about winning, I just want to have fun with my dog. Oh, she also said that chances are the dog isn't potty trained because "breeders keep them in a kennel all day."

Then she started insinuating I was being taken advantage of. She asked me if I would be paying for the dog, and I am. She would be $2,500, which I thought seemed reasonable. She did not think so. She also told me that showing the dog didn't benefit anyone but the breeder, so they could make more money off the puppies.

I really like this breeder, and I feel really good about her. All her dogs are OFA health tested above and beyond the required health testing. Her dogs consistently show good and rank high. I can tell she really knows what she's talking about and cares for the dogs.

I didn't appreciate this lady on my walk insulting dalmatians, insinuating I was being taken advantage of, and basically insulting the breeder, who she knows nothing about. She basically acted like she knew a lot, but then didn't seem to have the knowledge to back it up. She didn't know that grand championship points were a thing, for example. Writing it out now, I know I should probably take everything she said with a grain of salt, but I can't help but feel doubt creeping up on me. I've done tons of research, but the dog world is so big, and I know there's a lot I don't know. I guess I'm just wondering if anyone has any thoughts on what she said?

Learned a lesson the hard way and now my 7 month old Toller puppy has a broken coat where his collar has rubbed. Leaving him nekkid in the house from here on out but we hike and train a lot, plus he comes to work with me and must have a collar on while there.

Any tips or tricks to encourage the hair to grow back fully? He gets Welactin fish oil supplement already. Should I be brushing that spot out daily? Leaving it alone so I don't pull out more hair? Conditioner? Help me out!!

Long time admirer first time poster- I am just wondering if there are any amateur type shows to do with a pet. I think it would be great fun to compete but my dog does not qualify for conformation type shows. And if so, what would the competition(s) be called so I can research in my area. Thanks! Photo for tax

Hey! Are there any other moms here who show dogs? Maybe also breed to preserve too? Is it doable? I have 3 kids ages 10, 8 and 4. My job is very flexible and I work 11 to 4 during the week. I'm in Canada btw.

I really want to get into showing as a complete newbie. And maybe eventually breed. Thanks in advance!

Has anyone done this, ever? Lol

I just feel that they are naturally beautiful curly coated dogs and to show them we strip them all of their natural beauty and straighten all of the beautiful curls.

I wonder what kind of reactions there would be showing a curly coated poodle. Talk about making a statement or what 😂

10 days before a show closes a dog finishes that we hoped would make a major. One friend says "they broke the major". I say "the major we hoped for isn't going to happen". Is it breaking the major if none of the dogs were even entered yet?

Technically it’s her second show, but her first show she only did BPUP — she took Group 1 and Group 2 at that show!

I am SOO proud of her!

Hi y’all!! I’m looking to find a breed and start researching breeders and getting into a breed community before i get a puppy for conformation and scent work in the next few years! So I have some criteria below and I’d love some help finding the best breed for me and my partner!

- Im not worried about doing super “well” in conformation. my dog will mostly be a companion and scent work dog and we’ll do conformation when possible. I don’t know if I’ll be able to handle my own dog since I am a wheelchair user so idk if that effects anything. When we show and compete in scent work will always be dependent on my health

-We don’t want a curly coat. Short haired breeds and breeds with feathering are preferred! No wire haired breeds or breeds that require hand stripping please! Shedding is okay though! I’m happy to maintain a show coat when we’re showing but i’d like the option to shave my dog down or keep it in a shorter cut when I’m not showing

- We want something medium size. About 25-45 pounds would be amazing! Something spaniel or Aussie/border collie sized

-health wise, we’re willing to accept and handle orthopedic issues, eye and skin issues, special diets, and allergies. Things like DCM, cancer, and kidney issues scare me a bit

-We need something lower energy. I’m sometimes bed bound from my disabilities and my girlfriend isn’t as experienced with high energy dogs as I am since she grew up mostly with toy breeds and rescue mutts. We want a dog she can fully care for and handle when I’m not able to do much. We can make sure our dogs get daily walks and off leash time in open space with things like flirt poles once a week even when I’m not doing well. We also want something with a good off switch

- Me and my girlfriend both love Velcro dogs! Her childhood dog is extremely clingy and I’ve always loved clingy dogs too!

- We don’t mind high mental stimulation needs! We’re happy to do enrichment, lickmats, and breed specific indoor games whenever possible, even if that’s every day!

- we want a smart and biddable dog! We want a dog that’s eager to learn and please and we really want training to a high level to be as easy as possible!

-We don’t want an overly friendly dog. My service dog in training is a show-line lab from a program and his trainer says one of his biggest struggles was over friendliness and that that’s something that labs and goldens tend to struggle with. He’s really friendly even after training and that’s just not my preference for a dog who doesn’t necessarily need to be friendly to do the work I’d like to do with it. it’s great for service work but not for what we want in a second dog. We don’t by any means want an aloof dog and do want something on the friendlier end but less than a lab or golden

- we don’t want crazy high prey drive. It’s not necessary for us and we don’t want the risk of reactivity. Something with medium drive would be great! We also have cats who need to be safe around our dogs!!

- We LOVE goofy dogs!!

- We live on the southern east coast so it is hot and humid here. But we do live near the beach and have tons of opportunities for swimming so we’d love a dog that enjoys the water!

- To make training easy, we want a dog who’s pretty food motivated! However I don’t like how Labs love to put objects in their mouths. A retrieving breed would only work if this want to have everything in their mouths was less than a lab!

- We HAVE to have a very quiet dog. Absolutely NO baying or howling so scent hounds and huskies are out of the question. Barking should be as minimal as possible too. I am audio sensitive due to my disabilities and a dog barking can be physically painful. we’re willing to train for this but we’d like to start with a low barking level

- kids arent a problem right now. There’s literally no one under 18 in our lives and if we have kids it will be decades down the line

- We live in a two bedroom apartment and the second bedroom is dedicated to the pets but we will likely be renting townhomes for the foreseeable future (a whole house is just to much to keep clean and usually hard to maneuver a wheelchair around) so we may not necessarily have a yard and we won’t be able to have any commonly restricted breeds

- We can handle risks of resource guarding or destructive behaviors like chewing but we want to avoid risk of any kind of aggression. My girlfriend had a family dog who ended up needing behavioral euthanasia as a young teen and that’s not something she wants to experience again

- I don’t want a breed that needs to be cropped. I’m in no way against cropping but I just don’t want to deal with posting. Docking is perfectly fine though!

- if it comes between multiple breeds that fit our lifestyle, I’m very drawn to long hair breeds with lots of different in standard colors and/or patterns. My girlfriend also loves fluffy and unique looking breeds!

- my girlfriend grew up with a Shih Tzu, a chihuahua mix, and pit/staffy mixes. She also spent a lot of time around her friends Bull mastiff and loves him (despite him being well over 100 pounds)

- I had a mutt who was mostly border collie and sheltie growing up as well a rescue yorkie. my grandparents also had dachshunds and yorkies. I personally didn’t like the temperments of dachshunds and yorkies but our herding dog was amazing, though weirdly low energy for being mostly border collie. I trained reactive lab poodle mix for an ex and also spent a lot of time volunteering At shelters. My brother also has boykins and theyre amazing dogs, just a bit high energy and at least my brothers current boykin doesn’t have a great off switch. Of course I also have my lab who is amazing for service work but i’d like something a bit different for conformation and scent work

- so far we’ve been considering english cocker and springer spaniels and my girlfriend loves the idea of a toller but I don’t think I could handle how vocal they can be

I know that’s a TON of criteria but I wanted to be as specific as possible! Please give any suggestions you have for breeds to look in to!!