JUNIORS & TOY BREEDS By Susan Thibideaux
A major mission of the AKC is to protect and as- sure the continuation of the sport of purebred dogs. One way for them to do this is to look to those who are the future of our sport. In AKC’s words, “…encourage participation in the sport by young purebred dog enthusiasts; to teach good sportsmanship, win or lose; and to educate the next generation of the fancy.” AKC offers a number of ave- nues for Juniors to participate, and the most well-re- ceived and recognized event is Junior Showmanship. Generally, children begin with the family pet, but in- creasingly, we see parents on social media looking for guidance on a dog for their family and their children’s participation in dog shows. The AKC Junior Face- book group has 6,000 members and the AKC Ju- niors Facebook page has more than 1,100 followers. Parents and Juniors often ask for advice on breeds and search for dogs using those social media sources. Some children get started in Juniors with their cur- rent pet and then, as they get deeply involved and more competitive, they begin to seek out a dog spe- cifically for their Junior’s career. It’s no secret that many Toy breeders are seniors, and as time goes by our ranks are getting smaller. Unfor- tunately for those of us in Toys who want to encour- age young people to get into Toy breeds and join our clubs, we discover that when our youth are choosing a dog for Junior showmanship, the Toy breeds are of- ten overlooked for the bigger, flashier breeds. Some of this is due to familiarity and to the exposure they have to the larger dogs. Family pets are often bigger breeds from the Sporting, Working, and Herding Groups. When new Juniors begin showing, they will often see the more experienced Juniors showing in Open and Masters with dogs such as Doberman Pin- schers, Pointers, Australian Shepherds, and other similar breeds. At the Royal Canin AKC National Championship Junior Competition, with 152 en- tries, only 18 were listed as showing a dog from the Toy Group. A number of the Toy breed clubs holding specialties in Orlando on the day before the AKC National Cham- pionship have begun making an effort to reach out to Juniors and introduce them to their Toy breeds. Sev- eral Toy breed specialties held Junior competitions
© Frank Horvath
24 • T op N otch T oys , J anuary 2024
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