Preparation for the Dog Show

“Show condition" means literally that an animal must be in the most perfect health and condition possible. This end is only attainable, as we have already pointed out, by rational management and enormous attention to detail. There are a few items of show preparation, however, on which we have not yet touched. White dogs must be shown clean, and to get them so without resource to soap and water we would recommend the following:

With every pint of pine sawdust mis 1/2 oz. magnesia and a handful of sulphate of lime. Rub well into the dog's coat (which must be quite dry), and then brush out again. The dog will become spotlessly clean, and there is nothing illegitimate about the proceeding. For small pet dogs of any color a good rubbing with dry bran works wonders.

Upon the vexed question of trimming we can only briefly touch. Kennel law condemns the trimming of most varieties as illegal, yet a clause legalizes the removal of the whiskers of certain breeds! The fact is that most varieties—certainly all wire-haired terriers—are regularly trimmed, and furthermore no exhibitor has much chance of winning at the present time unless he does it. The legal "removal of dead hair" is the peg whereon the old hand hangs his plea for justification for the tearing out of undesirable wool, and as trimming combs are openly sold it is difficult to know what course to recommend to the novice.

Unless the trimming is well done, i.e. no signs of cut or mutilated hair left, it is best either not to show at all or to show in an untrimmed condition, because the exhibitor always runs the risk of having his exhibit objected to by a jealous opponent, with the result that he may find himself involved in costly and lengthy proceedings. If the novice is careful to buy and breed dogs with the right class of coat the necessity for trimming vanishes, and with it a continual source of controversy among fanciers. The advocates of trimming argue that it is no more unfair to trim a dog than to trim a horse, and that exhibitors of the latter would not be expected to send their exhibits into the ring with long manes and untrimmed fetlocks. Against this there is the fact that many dogs can win when they have the greater portion of their coat removed, which would be almost unrecognizable as specimens of their breed in a natural state. "Coat" is not a point in horses, whereas it is a very important one in dogs.

As to where to trim if trim one must it is difficult to say. Every variety of dog, and every individual dog, requires faking in a different place, and we have no space here to enter into details. Suffice it to say that the primary object is to bring a dog as near the standard as possible, and if the appearance of an animal is improved by leaving a little hair here, and removing a little there—why, that is where to do it! That this superficial attention will deceive a competent judge who judges by feel rather than by look we do not believe, but it may perhaps cause a dog to look well enough to "catch the judge's eye " and make him desire a closer acquaintance.

Half the battle of prize-winning is won if a dog shows well. Showing well means, of course, looking its best. Some dogs always do this in the ring; others collapse and completely shut up, with the result that, although they may be more perfect in conformation than their adversaries, they will perforce fail to get a prize. This showing well, the alert, bright, lively mien essential to the success of the terrier, is much a matter of disposition, but it may also to a great extent be acquired. The training of a show dog should begin from its earliest days.

The putting on of collar and lead should always be associated in the dog's mind with the necessity for looking his best and the receipt of due reward. He should be taught to hold himself and stand well just as a horse is taught, and he should not appear in the ring until his education is completed. That his appearance will be long deferred no one who appreciates the intelligence of the dog can for one moment believe, and we cannot lay too much stress on the importance of many dress rehearsals before our favorite is allowed to appear in the full glare of public criticism.

dog show - Yahoo! News Search Results
dog show - Yahoo! News Search Results

Westminster Dog Fashion Show 2012, New York, at the New Yorker Hotel
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Super Bowl 2012 dog/player matching game
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2012 Westminster Kennel Club's Annual Dog Show
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