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Post by S'ewing S'cubie on Jan 20, 2004 7:46:47 GMT -5
Hello all you Andrews out there. Time once again to play Nerd Alert!
Guess what? The Westminster Dog Show is slated to air on USA Network. I've been grooming my beautiful Afghan Hound, Buffy, for showing in the Hound group. I have her lovely blonde hair brushed to its silkiest and she's in prime condition.
She's strong, resilient, and fast. She might not be the smartest dog in the world, but she has experience and plenty of good, common sense. She's obedient when she needs to be, but I've come to trust her to disobey if circumstances warrant it. It was difficult to train her, but she is a champion through and through.
So, my fellow canine (and feline, let's not be exclusionary) fanciers. Tell me about your entries. Do you have an Old English? A Rottweiler? A Poodle? Maybe you have a Siamese or Persian? Who is he/she, and why do you think he/she will take Best in Show?
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Post by Sue on Jan 20, 2004 8:24:28 GMT -5
Disclaimer: I used up my entire decade of creativity when I did the 3 "I Am Joss" scenarios--my finest (and only) moment as a creative S'cubie.
Disclaimer #2: I have a pretty clear memory of Gail doing a post where she did the entire cast as dog-types so I expect her have an outstanding entry.
That said, I'll attempt to play:
I have a mutt. His name is Xander. He is brave and loyal and funny. He has beautiful, expressive eyes and a soft lovely coat of hair.
We got him from the pound where he was left unwanted by his owners.
He follows me around and always wants attention, but I am usually too busy to give it to him. He doesn't care, he's still always there. Sometimes too much there and I trip over him. This hurts him more than it does me, but he still stays near.
He generally plays well with other dogs, but prefers females. He can be territorial, especially when certain "big bad" dogs coming sniffing around his female doggy friends. He doesn't back down from a fight, even when clearly overmatched.
He's a lot smarter than folks give him credit for, he's just never had any "formal" training classes. Maybe he doesn't do tricks on command, but I bet he could rescue Timmy if he fell down the well.
He'd be even cuter if I took him to be groomed, but I don't have the time or money. That's okay, we both like his shaggy look. Besides, what makes this dog special is not his look, but his heart.
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Post by Nickim on Jan 20, 2004 18:45:33 GMT -5
I have a gorgeous panther named Spike. He was very difficult to train, but now eats out of my hand and purrs just like a little kitten when I stroke him.
His loose limbed stride makes the judges hearts beat faster. They seem to have a bit of a problem breathing and are always wiping their mouths. I know it isn't fair to the other cats in the show, but I love showing him off.
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Post by RAKSHA on Jan 21, 2004 9:20:19 GMT -5
I just spent an hour on my 'entry' and lost it. Bummer. I'll try again tonight.
I've been to Westminster several times, btw. Great show!
GAIL 
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Post by Sue on Jan 21, 2004 10:03:21 GMT -5
I just spent an hour on my 'entry' and lost it. Bummer. I'll try again tonight.
I've been to Westminster several times, btw. Great show!
GAIL
Gail, I've been expecting your entry for days. Not surprised to hear you spent an hour on it. Sorry it got wiped! Sue |
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Post by SpringSummers on Jan 21, 2004 11:55:19 GMT -5
I have beagle named Xander. He is loyal, smarter than he looks, friendly, and wags his tail all the time.
He's not as big as some dogs, but he doesn't hesitate to jump into the fray as needed. The biggest challenge is keeping him groomed though - I'm always wiping mud off his paws and picking ticks out of his coat. He likes to explore.
The reason I expect him to win the contest, despite the grooming problem, is this doggie dance that he does! It's spectacular.
Also NICKI: I have this female panther coincidentally named "Spring" who sounds like the perfect mate for your pet. Are you planning on breeding him anytime soon?
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Post by Patti - S'cubie Cutie on Jan 21, 2004 13:02:21 GMT -5
I have beagle named Xander. He is loyal, smarter than he looks, friendly, and wags his tail all the time. He's not as big as some dogs, but he doesn't hesitate to jump into the fray as needed. The biggest challenge is keeping him groomed though - I'm always wiping mud off his paws and picking ticks out of his coat. He likes to explore. The reason I expect him to win the contest, despite the grooming problem, is this doggie dance that he does! It's spectacular. Also NICKI: I have this female panther coincidentally named "Spring" who sounds like the perfect mate for your pet. Are you planning on breeding him anytime soon? Spring, this is my panther.... outrunning your panther.....on her way to meet Spike the panther...  ![]() home.earthlink.net/~pltr/picthread/blackpanther.gif[/img]![]() home.earthlink.net/~pltr/picthread/blackpanther.gif[/img] |
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Post by SpringSummers on Jan 21, 2004 14:00:08 GMT -5
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Post by Patti - S'cubie Cutie on Jan 21, 2004 14:32:25 GMT -5
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Post by Nickim on Jan 21, 2004 15:34:40 GMT -5
that's fantastic! In the delusional sort of way... Actually, it's owner's choice, and I have this incredible blonde cougar named Nicki............. ;D |
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Post by Patti - S'cubie Cutie on Jan 21, 2004 15:44:19 GMT -5
Up next at the cat show is Willow, a beautifully groomed Maine Coon....  The Maine Coon is the native American longhaired cat and was recognized as a specific breed in Maine where they were held in high regard for their mousing talents, as Willow has proven with her amazing dedication to and care of Amy the rat. The Maine Coon is also well known for its loving nature, kindly disposition (unless provoked by evil Warrens) and great intelligence. (nuff' said.) Maines are especially good with children (named Dawn) and dogs (named Xander) and have always been a popular and sought after companion (by both sexes). This particular longhair is distingished by her luxurious red coat, which at some moments can seem to include or be replaced by a magically glowing white mane... |
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Post by Patti - S'cubie Cutie on Jan 21, 2004 15:45:00 GMT -5
Actually, it's owner's choice, and I have this incredible blonde cougar named Nicki............. ;D LOL! So blonde in fact it's invisble! |
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Post by RAKSHA on Jan 21, 2004 19:27:08 GMT -5
Hello all you Andrews out there. Time once again to play Nerd Alert! Guess what? The Westminster Dog Show is slated to air on USA Network. I've been grooming my beautiful Afghan Hound, Buffy, for showing in the Hound group. I have her lovely blonde hair brushed to its silkiest and she's in prime condition. She's strong, resilient, and fast. She might not be the smartest dog in the world, but she has experience and plenty of good, common sense. She's obedient when she needs to be, but I've come to trust her to disobey if circumstances warrant it. It was difficult to train her, but she is a champion through and through. So, my fellow canine (and feline, let's not be exclusionary) fanciers. Tell me about your entries. Do you have an Old English? A Rottweiler? A Poodle? Maybe you have a Siamese or Persian? Who is he/she, and why do you think he/she will take Best in Show?
WESTMINSTER GLOSSARY:
1. Best In Show = BIS
2. Best Of Breed = BOB
3. Best of Opposite Sex to Best of Breed - BoS (meaning, if a bitch wins BoB, a deserving male dog will be awarded BoS, and vice versa)
4. Award of Merit = AoM (not offered at most dog shows, this is prestigious, the judge gives it to dogs who are of almost equal caliber to the BoB winner)
5. 'Group'. Westminster, like all AKC conformation shows, has a pyramid section. BoB winners advance to represent their breed in one of seven Groups - Sporting, Hound, Working, Herding, Terrier, Toy, and Non-Sporting. In Group, a dog can either win, which is great, or Place (second, third, fourth), which is good and fantastic if it's at Westminster. The seven Group winners go on to compete for BIS. In the end, there can be only one (unless you compete in England, where they have Reserve BIS).
6. Put Up = Does not mean 'Or shut up'. A judge Puts Up your dog when he picks it for a particular award, usually the winning one such as BoB or a Group win.
In the epic, rasped words of The First Slayer...."It's Not Enough!". Not enough for any dog to be pretty, great-hearted, sweet, well-groomed or obedient, not where the winning of Best In Show at The Garden (Westminster KC Show) is concerned.
Westminster's entry is limited to 2500 AKC conformation champions. (the only exceptions are the dogs used in the Junior Handling competitions; there, the dog doesn't count, the Handler, aged 10-17, does) Conformation champions don't win points for Obedience (that's a separate AKC sport). Of those 2500 dogs, the top 5 dogs in every breed are invited to the show, their entry assured (if their owners want to send the dogs there). The owners of dogs who are not in the top 5 of their breed must scramble to get those entries in via mail or FedEx; Westminster entries 'open' and 'close' in about two hours (thankfully not typical of most shows).
Even a beautiful champion dog or bitch has very little chance of winning BIS at the Garden. The final seven dogs who usually end up competing for BIS, who have won their individual groups, are rigorously campaigned by professional handlers or owner/handlers, expensively advertised, and are the cream of the cream of the crop. They are in the top 20 of all-breed AKC points, and have typically won dozens of Group placements and at least 3 or 4 Best In Show awards. Their owners and co-owners spend $20,000-100,000 and MORE on the dogs' show careers. Sometimes, there's an upset and unknown dog wins or places in Group, or beats a favorite in the Breed - Westminster is political but there are ALWAYS surprises. (Like when Kirby the Papillon - Ch. Loteki's Supernaturel Being, who won the Toy Group in '96, didn't even win his breed in '97. Don't fret for him, he came out of semi-retirement a couple of years later to win the World Show and then Westminster BIS at the age of eight!)
Although Westminster show dogs do not compete in Obedience, they MUST behave properly and they put up with a lot more physical and emotional stress than your average pet. Westminster is one of the most physically difficult and tiring shows of all. The dogs are required to be benched on the day that they are judged - all day, except when they are being exercised, groomed or actually shown. They have to sit on or by their assigned benches in the most crowded part of Madison Square Garden, pressed by crowds and pushy spectators. They can be crated, and usually are, to relax them, but it's still exhausting. A dog who wins his/her breed must wait at the bench until about 6 pm, then show in Group at 8 pm or later, and is expected to be perky and charismatic.
When the dog goes into the ring, it is expected to allow the judge or its handler to show its bite (lift the lip and let the judge see). If it refuses, the dog will probably be excused. (I've seen it happen) The dog must placidly allow the judge to touch its head, in some cases pull its hair (the poodle judges want to make sure that the topknot belongs to the dog rather than having another dog's hair woven in - yes, this does happen in Poodles), always check the testicles to make sure the dog is neither monorchid nor cryptorchid, check the lack of same in a bitch, possibly push on the dog's topline or second thigh, and sometimes make funny noises at the dog to judge its personality. If the dog even snaps at the judge, it will be excused; and if it bites the judge, it can be disqualified from future competition. Thankfully, most if not all Westminster (and other dog show) competitors have been accustomed to such handling and stimuli since they were 3-month old pups.
To win at Westminster, either in Group or BIS, the dogs must not only weather the stressful environment and usual judging, but display a strong personality appropriate to their breed and look as if they're enjoying being in the ring. Sometimes, when a judge sees a field of equally gorgeous dogs who all move well, personality will be the determining factor; they'll put up the dog that "asks for it".
I've attended Westminster about six times. My oldest dog competed there for three years; and won an Award of Merit (beating the top Welshie in the country, so I was happy). My boy was raised in a semi-urban condo, and was used to elevators and noise, so he was very relaxed at the Garden.
I'll close this post, and then do another post detailing my Westminster entry, so I won't exceed the 10,000 word entry.
GAIL  |
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Post by LadyDi on Jan 21, 2004 20:16:56 GMT -5
I have a mutt named Spike. I think he's mostly terrier. He's on the small side and kinda yappy. He loves people (certain ones, anyway), knows some clever tricks, and he's got personality to spare. It took a lot to get him to stop chasing the other puppies, but the effort was totally worth it. He's devoted to his family and we love him lots.
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Post by RAKSHA on Jan 21, 2004 20:22:53 GMT -5
Here we go!
For the purpose of this exercise, I am a multi-millionaire breeder/exhibitor who can afford to campaign multiple Specials (the term for a dog who is good enough to be 'campaigned' after winning its championship and is expected to take Group placements and other nice wins, and maybe get to the top) and even co-own other people's dogs as a backer.
All names, those of dogs or handlers, are about as real as Wolfram & Hart, and the Shanshu prophecy, etc. The names or nicknames for the shows are real as in real life.
I really, really want one of my dogs to win BIS at Westminster. My dogs have taken Westminster BoB wins, Group placements and wins, for 20 years, but I haven't yet been the owner of a BIS at the Garden.
This year, I have three dogs that I own/co-own going to the Garden.
My young hopeful, who has never with me but is co-owned by me (and three other people) is Ch. Sunnydale Pinocchio, call-named "Spike". Spike is a 15-month old Weimaraner, a gorgeous young grey ghost with silvery eyes, a fantastic ground-covering gait, and a jaunty personality. He's still immature, though, and needs to fill out some; when he reaches 3 years he could be unbeatable. He's already one two BIS at small shows, a BoB/Group One at the National Specialty (beating 400 other Weims), and 27 Group placements, and is the top Weim in the country. Spike is handled by longtime Weim handler Jane Griswold, who he adores. This year's Westminster Sporting Group judge, Sarah Dibble, put Spike up for his first BIS, and likes him.
I co-own a gorgeous Kuvasz bitch with a good friend of mine. She is Ch. Frostland's Snow Queen, call-named "Darla". I owned Darla's half-sister, who placed third in Group in Westminster '98. Darla is three years old, sheer white perfection with a pretty head and perfectly shaped eyes. She moves well, and is very typey, and fears nothing and no one. Darla is the top Kuvasz, and is in the top 20 all-breed, she's had 8 BIS wins and 110 Group placements, and has won BoB at the National Specialty two years in a row. She's handled by noted Working Dog handler Wesley Doyle. Vic keeps her under control; Darla likes to enforce dominance over the males and likes to body-slam while flirting; which won't do in the ring.
I'm not sure WHAT my third dog, who I personally bred and took to his championship, will do at the Garden. "Gunn", a.k.a. Ch. Ashmont Shotgun Shaft, is a big flashy Boxer of four years. He's the top Boxer, and is ranked 4th of all dogs; with 40 BIS and 200 Group placements (including 70 Group Ones)He's one of the best dogs I've ever owned; but isn't always predictable. When he's 'on', he's almost unstoppable, struts and shows to beat all. But he'sa strong-willed boy, easily bored or distracted. And he can be feisty with the other males; certain handlers like to take advantage of that and let their male dogs get too close to Gunn so he'll behave aggressively in the ring. (which hasn't happened in two years, thanks to Wes Doyle, who also handles my Darla). Gunn is typey and the best-moving Boxer I've ever seen.
The Westminster Working Group judge, Rob Ullman, has often put up Gunn, but he also likes Gunn's strongest rival - Liam the Bullmastiff (Ch. Galway He's No Angel). Liam is ranked #3 in all breeds, and is handled by that pushy, tricky slut Eve Lindsey. (sorry, but Eve's a worse bitch than any canine - she practically shoved Liam's nose up under Gunn's butt at ringside at Springfield in 2001 and at Middleburg in '02 to incite Gunn to fight. Luckily, Wes had Gunn under control, and there were no hostilities ...though there was a bit of a fracas in the ladies room between Wes' assistant Justine and Eve's sister Lilah after Group...) Liam is a strapping dog and was magnificent in his prime, but at five he's showing his age; and he's put on some weight that Eve is evidently finding it hard to take off. Liam won the Working Group at the Garden last year; but Gunn won it in '02. I don't think either Gunn or Liam have showed much under the BIS judge, T.B. Powers; he's from Alaska...So it's anyone's guess, though I'm expecting at Gunn to at least take BoB (as he's done for three years at the Garden), and hopefully First in the Working Group.
So I hope that Darla and Gunn will both place higher in the Working Group than Liam; but it's the Garden and anything can happen. Spike should place in Group, but his chief rival, Robin the Gordon Setter (Ch. Brooklyn's Avenging Son, JH) is coming to Westminster too. It should be quite a show; but then, it always is![glow=purple,2,300]GAIL [/glow]
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