From The CC Vault: Presentation Malpractice

By William Given

At least once a year, all exhibitors should go to a dog show unencumbered with a dog, grooming table and equipment. They should go for the sole purpose of observing the handling of their breed in particular, and a variety of breeds in general. We would all be very surprised, I think, at what we would learn. It might just prove to be as entertaining as it would be informative and instructional.
I know there are some who would suggest that you should not bother watching your own breed being judged because you will simply see most of the handlers exhibiting their dogs in just about the same manner as you do. However, since some exhibitors have far greater success in the ring and others no success at all, there is still something to be learned. Presentation malpractice–call it over-handling or poor handling if you wish, or simply acknowledge it as a total lack of handling skills–can result in a really good dog’s loss to competition that is of lesser quality; and it looks really ugly.

Mimicking Success

Successful methods of handling inevitably sweep right through a breed, and seemingly from either coast into the heartland of our great country. Exhibitors (and this includes professional handlers, especially the younger, less experienced ones) can be hopeless copycats. They mimic what they see that may have seemingly contributed to the achievement of a win and they will use a technique regardless of the fact that it is in deference to the breed’s standard. If we were able to retrace the origin of a change in style, we would likely discover that there was a conscious or unconscious copying of a highly successful exhibitor somewhere in the past. It is quite likely that the successful exhibitor simply modified something he or she was doing in the ring to meet the need of one particular dog they were showing. And, at the time, never imagined their technique would be copied in whole or in part for decades to come.
Perhaps it was a daring Terrier man who discovered that a dog with a tail not too well set-on would look better if he stroked it frequently so it was seemingly held in its proper place. It may have been the very same gentleman that found if a lead was held just so tight, right behind recklessly carried ears, it would bring them to the desired carriage. Whoever he was, all we can say is, “Very well done.” We have reason to believe he won a good many well-deserved ribbons because he presented his dogs to their best advantage.
However, since that very same day, probably hundreds of thousands of good dogs with good fronts, well set-on tails and correctly placed ears have had their opportunities stripped away by the ham-handed handling of exhibitors with only half a clue of what they were doing.

Professional Handlers

With my use of the word “handlers,” please do not presume that I am referring in any way to professional handlers. Although, on rare occasions, they do have their faux pas, they should be counted on to make very few mistakes in the ring. They handle every charge based on both the dog’s merits and individual needs. When they have a good dog that can and will show naturally, they will certainly use it their advantage by using an extra-long lead and standing well away from the dog.
A great many of us have, from time to time, suddenly experienced feelings of anxiety and maybe even animosity when competing with a professional handler in the breed ring. It is natural that judges give the professional some degree of credit. Professional handlers know the shortcomings of their exhibits so they work diligently to accentuate known strengths and minimize the weaknesses.

Breeds and Tactics

Quite probably, it is in the Sporting Group that the greatest differences in the methods of presenting a dog can be seen. Here we will see, for example, the larger Gundogs, principally the Pointers and Setters, set up “Gundog style.” Right hand under the chin, with the left hand holding the near end of the tail if the dog possesses a good flag. Some handlers use a variation where as soon as they stack the front and set the hind legs, they retreat to the rear of the dog and here they hold the tail, sometimes giving it a little shake for good measure.
Retrievers, of course, add to the variation. The general form here is to kneel on one knee or stand even with the dog, holding the lead in the left hand, bait in the right hand and placed right in front of the dog’s nose.
Cocker Spaniel exhibitors utilize very different tactics. With very few exceptions, they are all down on both knees. They can often be seen pulling on lips, sometimes obscuring the heads and faces of beautiful dogs with wonderful expressions, and attempting to still a very merry tail.
Other eccentricities which are entertaining to watch in some of the other breeds are the thigh-scratching meant to calm the already docile Dogue de Bordeaux and the upward flick of the brush in the Peke and Yorkie rings. In the Hounds, with the exception of the Irish Wolfhound, the general routine consists of lifting and setting the front end in place and then very precisely placing the feet. There is also the added attraction in some of the rings where you can observe the peculiar loping trot of some of the dogs and handlers. And yes, the Afghan, is surely one of these breeds.
Never having owned or exhibited a herding dog, I feel I can make this next statement without prejudice. The Collies (both varieties) stand out as being among the best handled of any breed with the possible exception of the Shetland Sheepdogs. Almost all of these dogs have the desire and training to watch their handlers and wag their tails.
While observing some of the Terrier breeds recently, it seemed to me as though some of their owner-handlers appeared to defy the judge to find the outstanding qualities of their dogs. Conversely, the breeder-handlers had their dogs in much better physical condition and very well-groomed, and they maximized their dogs’ strengths while minimizing their weaknesses.
If you walk the show grounds and observe the handling in each of the rings, you will see almost as many styles of handling as there are breeds represented at the show. There will be the overly-brushed Yorkshire Terriers, fore-posted Pekingese, leg-stretched German Shepherd Dogs and loin-lifted Whippets. The whole lot is present for our delight.

Styles and Techniques

Which of these many styles of handling should we criticize? I say none of them. And, not because it is none of our business, but rather because the criticism would be based on our experiences in our breed and that would not be fair. Which techniques should we admire and applaud? Why, the ones that win, of course.

Whether in the breed ring or in Group, when a dog wins, it would be irrational to criticize the handling. This is because a handler and his dog can do no better than win. However, when a dog loses, it could be the fault of the handler. The whole idea of handling is to make the dog look better than he really is in actuality. So, whether you show on a loose lead or move him on a tight lead, walk him into place or place each paw exactly where you want it, it effects most judges far less than you believe it does. What matters is that it is done well. If it is done well, the finished picture of the dog fills the judge’s eye and he or she retains the image of a superbly presented canine. The handling style means much less as long as the dog dominates the scene.

Just Plain Bad

When it is done poorly, the handler dominates the scene. He or she provides a distraction and focuses the judge’s attention (and of those ringside) upon himself or herself instead of on the dog being exhibited. Here are some examples I observed at a recently held all-breed show. A handler in the Cocker Spaniel ring was attempting to frame her dog’s head, but was partially blocking the judge’s view. The judge had to walk over to quietly ask her to remove her hands in order to see the entire head and neck. And, just a couple classes later, a gentleman handling an ASCOB had the lead so tight he was actually lifting the forelegs of his exhibit off the ground while gaiting. The judge found it necessary to ask him to lower the lead and repeat the pattern. Oh, and the same gentleman continued to position and reposition the front-end while the judge was attempting to go over the hindquarters. I can only imagine what the judge was thinking, how about you?

At this same show, I observed the most horrifying example of over-handling that I have ever witnessed. There was a young lady showing a German Shorthaired Pointer, and during their time in the ring, she repositioned her dog’s forelegs about three inches no less than a dozen times. Each and every time she did this, the dog restored his balance by moving his hind legs forward the same distance. The movements of the exhibitor and her dog were seamless, as if part of an intricate ritual. I am not sure the handler even realized what was happening. But, the judge noticed and did not appear amused. This is a very extreme case, but many of you have had the opportunity to observe an equally poor performance in the ring that significantly handicapped the dog being exhibited.

In the Group

Can we see over-handling in the Group ring? You bet we can, and we do not have to look too hard. The most common scenario takes place in a particularly large Group. The handler and exhibit enter the ring and move to the far end of the Group. The handler stacks the dog and immediately begins baiting. You observe the dog move a bit, the handler re-stacks the dog and again goes for the bait. The handler, oblivious to what is going on in the ring, misses the signal from the judge to move the dogs around the ring. The handler becomes startled upon realizing that the front end of the Group is on their way or maybe someone sitting ringside calls out to the handler to move out of the way. The shocked handler then hurries to get back in line to resume baiting the dog.

Now the judge begins his inspection and evaluation. The judge is focused and concentrates on one dog at a time while moving down the line. While the judge has been go-ing over the other entries, our underachiever has been giving his entry such a thorough workover that the dog is sick and tired of liver being shoved up his nose and he wants to go back to his crate to take a nap. When the judge gets to the dog, the dog is dead on his feet.

If the handler had watched the good handlers, with the goal of learning proper presentation techniques, he would have discovered that professional handlers and very capable owner-handlers allow their dogs to relax except when under scrutiny of the judge. If you think for even a moment that I may be exaggerating, watch the groups at a show near you. You can expect to observe something very similar.

The Judge’s View

My very favorite conformation training class is held in a building that has mirrors from the floor to about four feet up the wall. This gives the exhibitors the long, side view of the judge rather than the close-up, over-the-top view with which they are so familiar. It has the potential of paying big dividends for those exhibitors who choose to use it.
How much improvement would every exhibitor experience if they had the opportunity to handle in front of a mirror and have that “judge’s eye view?” Better still might be having video of our handling performance in the ring. Would that experience, perhaps, be too embarrassing, or could we truly learn a great deal from it?

Dog shows came into being to fulfill one definite purpose, to identify and acknowledge the best dogs of each breed to carry on and improve the breed. Granted, the best dog does not always win. Judges, just like every one of us, are subject to human error. However, on the whole, our judges do an excellent job so any mistakes made by a few should never overshadow or outweigh the efforts of the majority.

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Posted by Liz on Jan 29 2023. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.