There are all-breed conformation shows, in which all AKC
breeds of dogs are eligible to compete, and Specialty shows,
which are breed-specific and typically hosted by breed clubs.
(A Boxer Specialty show is only for Boxers.) Sometimes clubs
will consider the breed entry at an all-breed show to be their
specialty show. The judging process is the same for both types
of shows, but Specialty shows usually have additional
competitions. Right now, we'll talk about an all-breed show,
since they're the most common ones.
Dogs are
judged in a tiered fashion. The first level of competition is
the breed classes. There are several classes a dog can compete
in, with other dogs of the same breed. In Boxers, they are
typically:
_ 6-9 month puppy
_ 9-12
month puppy
_ 12-18
month
Bred-by-Exhibitor (dogs whelped in the
United States, owned or co-owned by the breeder of record or
their spouse, and handled by the breeder of record or their
immediate family). Bred-by is intended as a breeder
showcase.
American Bred (dogs bred and whelped in
the United States)
Open Brindle (Brindle dogs
only)
Open Fawn (Fawn dogs only)
No
dog under the age of six months is eligible to compete at an
AKC show. Dogs that have attained their Championship do not
compete in the classes.
There are separate
classes for dogs and bitches (so 6-9 month puppy dog is one
class, 6-9 month puppy bitch is a different class). All of the
dogs show first, then all of the
bitches.
Sometimes (if it is expected to be a
large entry) the classes are divided, which means there is 6-9
month fawn puppy dogs and 6-9 month brindle puppy dogs,
etc.
In the classes, dogs are judged
individually. The judge will typically have the entire class
go around the ring, then stop and set up their dogs (present
them in a "stacked" position - front feet square, back feet
extended behind, balance forward, head and ears up, neck
arched). The judge then "goes over" the dogs one at a time
with his hands, checking the bite, the eye color, shoulder
angles, depth of chest, slope of topline. In males he also
checks for two normal testicles. Then the judge has the
handler move the dog, typically "down and back" which is in a
straight line away from the judge to one corner of the ring,
then in a straight line back to the judge. This allows the
judge to see the movement of the dog coming and going. There
are several patterns a judge can use, including the diagonal
(which is a down and back to the diagonal corner), the
triangle, the L, and the T (which is rarely used). The handler
then has the dog "free stack" (set itself up in the proper
pose) in front of the judge, and then the judge send them on a
"go around" (move around the ring to the end of the line). The
judge then moves on to the next dog and repeats the process,
until all the dogs have been judged
individually.
From here, the judge must make his
decision on which dog he feels most closely meets the breed
standard. He may move the dogs, he may switch their position
and then move them (if he's trying to decide between two, it's
often helpful to see them together), he may have them stand
with fronts or rears facing him (it depends on what his
particular "hot button" is - all other things being basically
equal, some judges base their decision on who has the better
head, or front, or feet, or whatever). At last, the judge
makes his decision and choose first, second, third, and fourth
place in the class.
This happens for every class
in dogs. After the winner of the Open Fawn class is picked,
the winners of every class go back into the ring to compete
for Winners Dog. The judge will typically move the dogs again,
and may have some do down-and-backs or evaluated individual
parts before he picks Winners Dog. Winners Dog is the one dog
out of all the class winners the judge feels best meets the
standard of the breed that day. The Winners Dog is the one
that gets points that day (class winners do not get points).
The points schedule is based on how many dogs were competing
(for example, 25 dogs competing would be 3 points), and varies
regionally (in one area, 25 dogs might be 3 points, while in
another area 20 would be). Once Winners Dog is picked, the dog
that took second place to him in the classes goes into the
ring to compete for Reserve Winners Dog. Reserve Winners Dog
is similar to First Runner Up at the Miss America pageant. If
for any reason the Winners Dog is disqualified (uncommon, but
it happens) the Reserve Winners Dog would get those
points.
The same process is repeated for bitches.
Winners bitch gets points based on the number of bitches
competing (for example, 20 bitches would be 2
points).
Once both Winners have been chosen, it's
time for the Best of Breed competition. Only dogs and bitches
that have attained their Championship and that day's Winners
Dog and Winners Bitch are eligible to compete in the Best of
Breed competition. The judge again judges each dog
individually (except the Winners, which he's already judged).
The judge must make three choices here - Best of Breed (the
dog or bitch that was the best example of the breed standard
that day), Best of Opposite Sex (the best dog of the opposite
sex to the Best of Breed - so if a dog took BOB, a bitch would
take BOS), and Best of Winners (only the Winners Dog and
Winners Bitch compete for this, and it goes to whichever one
the judge feels is closest to the standard). Here is where the
points get a little confusing.
The Best of Breed
winner gets points based on the total number of dogs of its
sex, and the total number of champion dogs of both sexes,
competing that day. (So, in our example above, say a dog took
BOB. 25 dogs, plus we'll say there were three dogs and two
bitches in BOB competition, which brings us to 30 dogs, which
is 4 points.) The Best of Opposite Sex winner gets points
based on the total number of dogs of its sex, plus the total
number of champions of its sex (so, 20 bitches plus two
bitches in BOB is 22 bitches, which is 3 points). The Best of
Winners gets the highest number of points available to class
Winners (in our example above, if the Winners Bitch went Best
of Winners her points would change from 2 to 3, because it was
3 points in dogs. If the Winners Dog went Best of Winners he
would stay at 3 points). Still confused? Check out the AKC
explanation of points here:
http://www.akc.org/events/conformation/counting_points.cfm
The
Best of Breed winner then goes on to compete in the Group
ring. Boxers are in the Working Group, so our BOB dog would
compete against all of the other BOB winners of the breeds in
the Working Group (Alaskan Malamutes, Doberman Pinschers,
Rottweilers, St. Bernards - you can see the whole list of
Working Group breeds here:
http://www.akc.org/breeds/working_group.cfm) Dogs are again
judged individually, and the judge picks the dog that he
thinks is closest to its own breed standard as the Group
winner. (Dogs in Group are not compared to each other, but to
their breed standards.) Again, first through fourth place
prizes are awarded (typically referred to as Group 1 (first
place in Group), Group 2 (second place in Group), etc.) The
Group winner is awarded the highest number of points available
in any breed. (So, if our BOB Boxer winner, who currently has
4 points, took Group 1 over a Doberman who had 5 points, the
Boxer would now have 5 points.) The most points any dog can
win in one day is 5.
The winners from each of the
seven Groups go on to compete in Best In Show. The Best in
Show winner gets the highest number of points available from
the Group winners (again, maximum 5
points).
Then, if the show was on a Saturday,
they turn around and do it all over again the next day!
Article written by JulieM