At the dog show

[LittleBettaFish]

Posted this on another forum this morning and thought some of the doggy enthusiasts on here might want a look.

I found a link to these photos of the 2012 Adelaide GS champ show which was on the Queen's birthday weekend. Mum drove over with our two girls. Nike came 2nd both days in a class of around 12-13 bitches and even beat the winner of the Nationals. She came 5th at the Nationals out of around 20 odd minor puppies as well, pretty good for a girl who kept coming second last and who we were being told to 'run on' ie. she's crap get rid of her.

http://www.ingridmatschkephotos.com....3833&k=KfZ9srb

http://www.ingridmatschkephotos.com....4052&k=b6qq6wn

Pretty sure this is Nike but it's hard to tell even with your own dog!

http://www.ingridmatschkephotos.com....9993&k=Dp2BcxK

Then Miss Eos who is a middle-of-the-pack sometimes surprisingly successful came 12th out of 21 odd bitches on the first day and then under a tough judge who hates dogs out of coat (she was basically nude) came 8th. She was pulled out 6th (on the pegs) but dropped back two places. Lots of tough competition in her class and there was even the National winner (mother of the puppy Nike beat) in there.

Eos looks fairly average when standing but if you get her working she can gait (trot) as fast as you can flat out sprint without breaking. Unfortunately, she's got inflammatory pneumonia she has picked up from somewhere and was a very sick girl only a few days ago.

http://www.ingridmatschkephotos.com....9717&k=NTRtVwz

Eos at a rather unfortunate angle and not standing properly. Her handler Mark owns her dad who is an Australian champion.

http://www.ingridmatschkephotos.com....6031&k=xCqNBjx

http://www.ingridmatschkephotos.com....6194&k=hnCC7Hc

She's not even three yet and goes against mature breeding bitches so she does well. She's 27kgs of pure muscle as she gets walked 5km by me every second day, does a 45 minute swim once a week and gets two free-run sessions. Now she has to stay home and recover she is like a fart in a bottle.

My mum has already got her eye on an imported German male who won this years National to breed her to. But this probably won't be happening for another 1-2 years.

[sparkyjoe]

Oh, wow, they're all beautiful!!

Here in the States at least, it seems that the bitch classes are always the most hotly contested. It's wonderful that your girls did so well!

And good luck finding the right match for Eos!
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[LittleBettaFish]

Yeah there were 40 something bitches in the Nationals (which was in Sydney) and Eos came 23rd or something like that so we were very proud. She was purchased as a pet but my mum has used her as her first real show dog.

I had to laugh as someone at the Nationals told my mum that she needed to buy a proper show and foundation bitch rather than use Eos as mum always just refers to her as her pet. Well Eos whooped his open bitch and we got to have a good laugh about that. Some people get very nasty and competitive about showing which is quite pathetic when you think about it.

Unfortunately, poor Eos has had all her sides shaved as the vet thought she might have an obstruction and he wanted to do ultrasounds and x-rays. So mum is scratching her from a show in August and taking her up to Canberra instead, to show under a German judge and I believe it was an Italian one as well.

She got breed surveyed as a Class 1 and now has 5 or so excellent medallions so we are really proud of her.

We are just hoping Nike has stopped growing as she is 60 odd centimeters at 8 months old and I believe she can only be 61 before she is over breed standard.

[sparkyjoe]

I love it when those "holier than thou" kind of folks get knocked down a peg.

I'm glad Eos is ok! There will be other shows! Her health is more important.

Yeah, it can be tough when a star pup goes over. My preferred breed is the Standard Poodle, where there is no height limit, but there are limits in the standard for the Toy and Miniature Poodles. In those varieties it's not uncommon for pups to finish early, particularly when it's suspected that they may go over.

I'm curious what, if any, health tests you'll do before possibly breeding? I'm always fascinated by the differences in breeds as well as differences in requirements set by kennel clubs.
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[LittleBettaFish]

Haha Nike has never been much of a star. Her half-sister (same mum different dad, although Nike's dad is the son of Eos's dad) goes really well at shows and she is also huge. I'm hoping Nike does half as well. This is her half-sister Taylor who reminds me so much of Nike.

Bodecka Kennels

Eos has been hip and elbow checked. You have to do that before breed survey. During breed survey they assess every single part of the dog and you have to do things like the gun test which is hard for some dogs and going through a crowd of people as well as doing essentially a show class.

My mum has gone to a reproduction night by some specialist from overseas and the vet we go to do most of the reproduction stuff for shepherds. Don't know what other tests they actually do but we'll definitely get them done beforehand once we do decide to breed.

[sparkyjoe]

I think it's a neat idea that there are requirements for breeding in your area.

Here I see so many "top" breeders doing minimal breeding and the dogs and unsuspecting puppy owners are the losers.

ETA: Taylor is gorgeous! At local shows I see so many German Shepherd Dogs that look deformed in the hind quarters. I much prefer the more gentle angle I see in your dogs and in Taylor.
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[LittleBettaFish]

Yeah I would have preferred mum does start with a better bitch but I am always of the adage breed the best to the best. However, we could have done a lot worse and with the right cross she could make something special.

I do have to say I do not like the way the American show shepherds seem to have gone. The angulation and slope of the back is just so extreme it looks awful. You can see more extreme angulation and sloping backs creeping in a little here, but most of the dogs I see tend to be much more functional looking.

Personally, I think conformation showing by itself is the worst thing to happen to a breed. I think ideally dogs should have to do show and some kind of obedience or working class as well. Otherwise you end up with this huge divide between show and working lines. I want to know I have dog that fits the breed standard but is also sane enough to do something other than trotting around a ring. However, all the showies boo hiss at me when I bring up this point and then I have to listen to all the mutterings due to the subjective nature of show judging haha.

[sparkyjoe]

Hahaha! Yes, show judging can be horribly political here too!

I'm a fan of one of the top Standard Poodles here in the US and I was shocked and dismayed when I heard his handler say that he didn't have a chance in the Westminster show because of the connections of a bitch in the same class. That's just sad.

I don't know enough to say whether I agree 100% with the idea of needing a working or obedience component to be a champion. But I don't disagree either.

If my doctors can't find an answer to what's causing my medical challenges I may be looking for a St. Poodle that can serve as almost a service dog to help with my balance, confusion, and other issues. Either way, I'll be looking for brains as well as health and beauty.
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