hour, and you are no longer focused on any one particular dog. You must see them all within this restricted timeframe, and put yourself in a position to best judge which dogs comes closest to meeting the breed standard. As you judge conforma- tion, are you able to clearly see the dog, without the distraction of the handler that is trying to present the dog in its best light? Is the dog’s at- tention on the task at hand, so that you have the best opportunity to make that judgment relative to the breed standard? Conformation of course includes movement, and again you are trying to take note of that movement free from the view of the handler. Has the handler done their job while moving the dog around the ring, to make sure your view is free and clear of other dogs and handlers? Yet again however, your viewing angle has changed: Although you clearly get to observe each dog up close, you generally see only one side of the dog. You now have the advantage of being hands on with the dog, however, and your breed knowledge must be impecca- ble through the entire showing pro- cess. There may be many excellent exhibits in the ring, but only one can be chosen on the day. Three different views: exhibitor, spectator and judge, and as a result three different perspectives. One perspective that never changes how- ever is the love of the animals and the love of the sport. And if you take that away from any show, no matter what
your view, I suspect your experience will as rewarding as mine has been over the many years. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cecilia is presently an AKC judge for the Italian Grey- hound breed and is working on ob- taining her judging license for the Toy Group. She has
been involved in Italian Greyhounds for over 15 years (Fiore Italian Greyhounds). Prior to IG’s, she gained sight hound ex- perience, beginning many years ago with Greyhounds. Cecilia is presently on the Board of Directors for the Italian Grey- hound Club of America and Judges Edu- cation Chair for the National Club. Past offices and experience with local clubs includes serving on the Board of Direc- tors and Trophy Chair. In order to fulfill her dedication and love of Italian Grey- hounds, she is involved in various clubs on both a national and local level. Cecilia is an AKC Breeder of Merit and has had numerous dogs in the Top Twenty for many years, including Multiple Specialty winners from Bred By. Since 1998, she has gained knowledge and experience in breeding and the sport of Conformation Showmanship. Cecilia has participated in various seminars and workshops re- garding canine whelping, conformation handling, genetics, breeding and move- ment. Cecilia has been studying the Toy Group and is now showing and breeding Japanese Chins along with her beloved ItalianGreyhounds.
opinions about the same dogs you are watching. You are also dealing with all sorts of distractions, as friends come and go, and dogs enter and leave the ring in a brisk pace. And although you often come to some conclusions about which dog best meets the stan- dard, you are making that decision without having crucial data that can only be gained within the ring. You have no hands-on evaluation, nor can you see the condition of the bite, for example. Nevertheless, this aspect of the show life is great fun, and cer- tainly exposes you to the many dogs within your breed, as well as dogs out- side your current area of expertise. It is a learning experience, but still does not give you a full perspective. As I went the through the qualifica- tion process for becoming an AKC judge, I was again introduced to a large number of people that gladly offered their help. The process to be- come licensed is not a quick one, as the list of requirements is quite ex- tensive. The final steps include judg- ing while under observation by an AKC executive field representative. Do your job, and you are now on your own in the ring. As a judge in the ring, the perspec- tive changes yet again. The AKC en- courages a pace of 25 dogs within an
T op N otch T oys , J uly 2019 • 53
Powered by FlippingBook