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In a conformation show, judges familiar with specific dog breeds evaluate individual dogs for how well they conform to published breed standards. Conformation shows are also referred to as dog shows or breed shows. Conformation shows are typically held under the auspices of a national kennel club. At the highest levels are Championship shows, which have separate classes for the majority of breeds. In addition, the show can be breed- or group-specific, usually organized by a breed club and often called a specialty show. This Chihuahua mix and Great Dane show the wide range of dog breed sizes. ...
Trinomial name Canis lupus familiaris The dog (or its younger counterpart puppy) is a mammal in the order Carnivora. ...
A kennel club (known as a kennel council or canine council in some countries) is an organization for canine affairs that concerns itself with the breeding, showing and promotion of more than one breed of dog. ...
A breed club, in the hobby of dog fancy, is an organization dedicated to breeding and showing of one single breed of dog as opposed to a diverse mixture of dogs. ...
 Handlers set up their dogs for judging so that their stance is perfect when the judge views them; this is known as stacking. Download high resolution version (800x607, 56 KB)Photograph by Jurriaan Schulman copyright Jurriaan Schulman. ...
Download high resolution version (800x607, 56 KB)Photograph by Jurriaan Schulman copyright Jurriaan Schulman. ...
Judging and winning at dog shows
The audience at a dog show is expected to be participatory and vocal, and often applaud the silkiest, fluffiest or more popular breeds while ignorant of the breed requirements. Those who are owners and breeders may cheer for a popular handler or a sympathetic favourite from a particular breeding kennel; the judge is supposed to ignore all attempts to influence the decision. A Conformation point in dog breeding and showing is any one out of a long list of dog attributes known as the breed standard. ...
This article concerns Breeder, an occupation in agriculture, animal husbandry, or animal fancy. ...
The word kennel has several meanings in relation to dogs: A doghouse, run, or other small structure in which a dog is kept. ...
Judging Dog-show judges attempt to identify dogs who epitomize the published standards for each breed. This can be challenging, because some judgements must necessarily be subjective. For example, what exactly entails a "full coat" or a "cheerful attitude", which are descriptions that could be found in the breed specifications. A dog-show judge is a person that is qualified to judge dogs at a dog show. ...
Strictly speaking, a dog show is not exactly a comparison of one dog to another, it is a comparison of each dog to a judge's concept of the ideal specimen as dictated by the breed standard, containing the attributes of a given breed and a list of conformation points. Based on this, one dog is placed ahead of another. All-breed judges should therefore have a vast amount of knowledge, and the ability (or inability) of humans to retain all these details mentally for hundreds of breeds (and to maintain their objectivity despite their personal preferences) is the subject of intense debate, particularly from the fanciers of working dogs. Politics in the purebred dog world can be as vicious as in any other arena; there have been charges of favoritism, nepotism, bribery and even drugging of competitors' animals. A breed standard (also called bench standard) in animal fancy and animal husbandry is a set of guidelines which is used to insure that the animals produced by a breeding facility conform to the specifics of the breed. ...
A Conformation point in dog breeding and showing is any one out of a long list of dog attributes known as the breed standard. ...
Animal fancy is a hobby that includes pet and exotic pet ownership, showing and other competitions, breeding and judging. ...
This working dog is a border collie mix. ...
The judge is supposed to remain free from bias on several counts. A canine judge must, for example, disregard personal or public notions about what a cute or good-looking dog is, and judge strictly to the standard. Judges must also assess specimens of all breeds objectively, regardless of personal favourites. In some breeds, the males and females of the breed have decidedly different appearances, and it is often the males who have the quintessential look of the breed. The judge must set personal preference aside and decide objectively whether the bitch is a better example of the female of the breed than the dog is an example of the male. In practice it is widely observed that all-breed judges are more likely to "put up" the dog who has been widely "campaigned," who is presented by a well-known professional handler, whose photograph appears in full-page advertisements in monthly dog magazines, and whose record of previous wins is known by all. Such a dog represents a safe and unassailable choice even though a superior but less well-known dog may be present. Similarly, the dog that either through his innate behaviour, his training, or his handler's skill, appears in the ring to embody what is called "showmanship" (flashy gait, alert expression, always standing in a correct "show stack"), is quite likely (at least in the U.S. and Canada though it may be less so in Europe) to win over a less showy specimen who actually conforms more closely to the breed standard. "Judging the wrong end of the lead," putting up the professional handler or the attractive young lady owner, is also a not-uncommon outcome. Thus the stated ideals of objective assessment, of judging strictly to the breed standard, may turn out to be honoured more in theory than in practice. The Fuel Cell Bus Club comprises the participants of the projects CUTE, ECTOS and STEP ([1]). They currently operate the largest fleet of fuel cell buses in the world, 33 buses, as part of a two-year Mercedes-Benz Citaro hydrogen fuel cell bus trial with three buses in each...
Winning
 Winning dogs are awarded prizes by the judge. Winning at dog shows differs in many countries. Dogs shown in the United States, for example, have different championship requirements than those in other countries. Image File history File links Kehleyr. ...
Image File history File links Kehleyr. ...
Dogs compete at dog shows to earn points towards the title of Champion. Each time a dog wins at some level of a show, it earns points towards the championship. The number of points varies depending on what level within a show the win occurs, how many dogs are competing, and whether the show is a major (larger shows) or minor (smaller shows). A champion dog most often refers to a dog who has earned the Champion title at conformation dog shows, but it can also refer to a dog who has earned a Champion title in various dog sports. ...
Dogs compete in a hierarchical fashion at each show, where winners at lower levels are gradually combined to narrow the winners until the final round, where Best in Show is chosen. For the various types of hierarchy, see hierarchy (disambiguation) A hierarchy (in Greek: ΙεÏαÏχία, it is derived from ιεÏός-hieros, sacred, and άÏχω-arkho, rule) is a system of ranking and organizing things or people, where each element of the system (except for the top element) is subordinate to a single other element. ...
Best in Show can refer to the following: The overall winner among many competitors, usually based on appearance or quality, such as at a dog show The mockumentary movie about dog shows, Best in Show This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise...
At the lowest level, dogs are divided by breed. Each breed is divided into classes based on sex and age. Dogs (males) are judged first, in their age classes. Within one breed, there are puppies (dogs under a certain age), mature male dogs (subdivided by age into junior, limit (or intermediate) and open); bitches (female dogs) have corresponding classes.
The winners of all classes in each sex (called Puppy Dog, Limit Dog etc.) compete for Challenge (best) Dog and Challenge Bitch; the individuals who will challenge each other for the accolade Best of Breed Except Dogs that are entered in "The import Register" or "Any Variety Not Separately Classified" classes, in these classes the dogs compete for "best import" or "best A.V.N.S.C." The remaining class winners are joined by the runner-up from the class from which the challenge winner was selected and there are competitions for second place in each gender, called Reserve Challenge Dog and Reserve Challenge Bitch. This is for fairness, as one class may contain a stronger field of specimens of the breed. If the judge believes that this is the case, the Challenge Dog and Reserve Challenge Dog, for example, may both be from the same class. Best of Breed is the title given to the dog or bitch who has been judged the best representative specimen of its breed at a conformation show. ...
From the two finalists (Challenge Dog and Challenge Bitch) is selected Best of Breed,best import or best A.V.N.S.C.The runner-up is deemed Best of Opposite Sex (or Runner-up to Best of Breed). There is then a run-off in which the second best individual in the gender of the winner (the Reserve Challenge) is brought back to stand against the Best of Opposite Sex (the Challenge who did not win) for the title of Reserve Best of Breed. So, if the Best of Breed is the Challenge Bitch, the Reserve Best of Breed may be the Challenge Dog or the Reserve Challenge Bitch.
In multi-breed and all-breed shows, the winners of all breeds within the kennel club's breed groupings then compete. So, for example, all the Terrier Group breed winners compete to determine Best Terrier the winner of "best import" is not allowed to compete for best in group,but is allowed a lap of honour around the main ring before group judgeing starts (sometimes called Best in Group). These are known as the General Specials. Dogs have been selectively bred for thousands of years, sometimes by inbreeding dogs from the same ancestral lines, sometimes by mixing dogs from very different lines. ...
The major kennel clubs divide the worlds dog breeds into Groups based on the type of work or activity for which the dogs were bred, and to a lesser extent other characteristics such as their size and temperament. ...
The Terrier Group is a designation used by most all-breed dog registries (or Kennel clubs) for a group of dog breeds consisting almost entirely of terriers. ...
A Scottish Terrier and a West Highland White Terrier The terrier is a group of dog breeds initially bred for hunting and killing vermin. ...
General Specials are dog competitions in which the Best of Breed winners return to compete for Best in Group; these dog group winners then return to compete for the title Best in Show. ...
The audience at a dog show is expected to be participatory and vocal, and often applaud the silkiest, fluffiest or more popular breeds while ignorant of the breed requirements. Those who are owners and breeders may cheer for a popular handler or a sympathetic favourite from a particular breeding kennel; the judge is supposed to ignore all attempts to influence the decision. A Conformation point in dog breeding and showing is any one out of a long list of dog attributes known as the breed standard. ...
The word kennel has several meanings in relation to dogs: A doghouse, run, or other small structure in which a dog is kept. ...
Finally, the winners from each group compete for Best in Show. Best in Show can refer to the following: The overall winner among many competitors, usually based on appearance or quality, such as at a dog show The mockumentary movie about dog shows, Best in Show This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise...
Note: This describes the Australian model; there may be differences in other countries.
 Image File history File links DogShowHierarchy. ...
Dog shows in the UK There are several types of show in the UK. The smallest are the Companion Shows, where there are usually a few conformation classes for pedigree dogs, and several "novelty" classes, such as waggiest tail and handsomest dog, which are open to any dog including crossbreeds. These shows are usually held to support a charity or other good cause. A pedigree is a list of ancestors (usually implying distinguished), a list of ancestors of the same breed (usually in the case of animals), the purity of a breed, individual, or strain, or a document proving any of these things. ...
The term crossbreed or crossbred refers to a hybrid animal of two purebred parents created by means of crossbreeding. ...
Then there are Open shows, which are open only to dogs registered with the Kennel Club. There are many Open Shows that are held all around the country. Here the dog & handler can gain experience and the dog can gain points towards a Junior Warrant award or a Show Certificate of Merit. The Kennel Club in the United Kingdom is a club aiming to improve the relationships between dogs and their owners. ...
There are also Limited shows, which are open only to members of the Society or Club running the show, and Challenge Certificate winners (see below) cannot enter.
Finally, there are the huge Championship shows, where dogs can gain points towards a Junior Warrant and compete for the highly coveted Challenge Certificate (CC). If the breed is sufficiently numerous, the Kennel Club awards a Challenge Certificate for the Best Dog and Best Bitch. A dog needs three CCs from three different judges to be awarded the title of Champion one of which must be awarded when the dog is over 12 month old. The most prestigious Championship show is Crufts, and each dog entered at Crufts has had to qualify by certain wins at Championship or Open show level. The Kennel Club in the United Kingdom is a club aiming to improve the relationships between dogs and their owners. ...
Crufts is an annual international Championship conformation show for dogs hosted by the Kennel Club (UK), currently held at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham, England. ...
The Kennel Club also operates a separate show open only to mixed-breeds, Scruffts, which judges its contestants on character, health, and temperament with people and other dogs. Scruffts is a competition, similar to that of a conformation show for purebred dogs, where mixed-breed dogs of any parentage are allowed to compete. ...
Prestigious dog shows Dog shows take place all year in various locations. Some are small, local shows, while others draw competitors from all around the country or the world. Some shows are so large that they limit entries only to dogs who have already earned their Championships. Therefore, winning Best in Breed or Best in Show can elevate a dog's, a breeder's, or a kennel's reputation to the top of the list overnight. This greatly increases the value of puppies bred from this dog or at the dog's kennel of origin.
Probably the two best-known, largest, and most prestigious annual dog shows are the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show and Crufts. The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show is a two-day benched conformation show that takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City every year. ...
Crufts is an annual international Championship conformation show for dogs hosted by the Kennel Club (UK), currently held at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham, England. ...
Criticism of the effects of dog shows The effects of conformation showing upon dog breeding and consequently on canine genetic health, as well as on working ability, has become a subject of intense debate and great concern in the dog world. Critics charge that breeding dogs for conformation shows is detrimental to the breeds involved. The major national all-breed kennel clubs maintain rigidly closed registries, requiring that all breeding be conducted only from the original founder group (which is often very small, sometimes consisting of no more than a dozen dogs); this results in elevated levels of genetic disease through sustained inbreeding, founder effect and genetic drift. Although not a direct result of conformation showing per se, the link is inescapable inasmuch as the registries themselves are also the governing bodies for conformation shows; they also have the final say on breed standards. A genetic disorder, or genetic disease is a disease caused, at least in part, by the genes of the person with the disease. ...
This article or section may be confusing for some readers, and should be edited to be clearer or more simplified. ...
The founder effect is an evolutionary phenomenon. ...
Genetic drift is the term used in population genetics to refer to the statistical drift over time of allele frequencies in a finite population due to random sampling effects in the formation of successive generations. ...
When breeding pairs are selected based on the fashions and fads of the show ring rather than on the abilities and traits for which the breeds were initially developed, inevitably major changes take place. When selection is ruled by cosmetic qualities, physiological and behavioural traits vital to working ability quickly decline. Critics find abundant examples of breeds which were formerly useful gundogs, sleddogs, and herding dogs but which can no longer seriously fulfil their original purposes. Gundogs, also called bird dogs, are a category of dog breeds developed to assist hunters or sports people to retrieve prey, usually birds. ...
Sled dogs, known also as sleigh dogs, sledge dogs or sleddogs are dogs that are used to pull a wheel-less vehicle on runners (a sled or sleigh) over snow or ice, by means of harnesses and lines. ...
A Koolie working with sheep. ...
Critics blame the registry and show-related intensive inbreeding for, among other things:
- Reducing genetic diversity in many breeds through genetic drift and high levels of artificial selection for narrow ideals of “breed type.”
- Creating "cute" American Cocker Spaniels at the expense of aggressive behavior now seen among so many of these dogs.
- Producing an American Cocker with long silky hair and short jaw, rendering the breed all but useless for hunting.
- Transforming the Irish Setter, once a popular gundog, into a beautiful, long-haired, but foggy-headed caricature of its former self.
- Creating high levels of genetic diseases such as hip dysplasia, osteochondritis, progressive retinal atrophy, glaucoma, von Willebrand’s disease, heart disease, cancer, and a long list of other genetically-related ills.
Many working dog breed organizations such as the American Border Collie Association and the Jack Russell Terrier Club of America have spent great amounts of time and effort in the fight to keep their respective breeds from being recognized by the AKC as they fear that introduction of the breed to the show ring will lead their dogs down the same path taken by the Irish Setter and the American Cocker. The ABCA has even gone so far as to mandate that any Border Collie that is recognized as a Conformation Champion will be forcibly delisted and excluded from breeding programs. Other breeds such as the Coton de Tulear and the Chinook have been taken into the AKC’s Foundation Stock Service against the wishes of a majority of breeders; dissidents accuse AKC of using their FSS as a stalking horse for forced breed takeovers. The AKC and dog show enthusiasts present the dog show sport as a harmless and even a beneficial activity, but as yet little initiative for reform has appeared and the serious genetic criticisms of the sport have gone unanswered. Genetic diversity is a characteristic of ecosystems and gene pools that describes an attribute which is commonly held to be advantageous for survival -- that there are many different versions of otherwise similar organisms. ...
The American Cocker Spaniel evolved in the United States from spaniels imported from Great Britain. ...
It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Red Setter. ...
Gundogs, also called bird dogs, are a category of dog breeds developed to assist hunters or sports people to retrieve prey, usually birds. ...
A genetic disorder, or genetic disease is a disease caused, at least in part, by the genes of the person with the disease. ...
Hip dysplasia is a congenital disease that, in its more severe form, can eventually cause crippling lameness and painful arthritis of the joints. ...
Osteochondritis Dessicans is when a loose piece of bone and cartilage seperates from the end of the bone because of a loss of blood supply and insuffecient amounts of calcium. ...
Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) is a genetic disease of the retina that occurs bilaterally and is seen in certain breeds of dogs. ...
Heart disease is one of a number of different diseases which afflict the heart. ...
When normal cells are damaged beyond repair, they are eliminated by apoptosis. ...
This working dog is a border collie mix. ...
The American Kennel Club (or AKC) is the largest registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. ...
The Coton de Tuléar is a small breed of dog. ...
Chinook has several meanings: The Chinookan nation of Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest, which inhabited the lower Columbia River valley in what is now Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. ...
The American Kennel Club (or AKC) is the largest registry of purebred dog pedigrees in the United States. ...
See also A champion dog most often refers to a dog who has earned the Champion title at conformation dog shows, but it can also refer to a dog who has earned a Champion title in various dog sports. ...
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