Did You Know? Handlers And Judges Aren’t That Different

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84 – October, 2023

By Michael Canalizo

One can assume (and you all know what that word can mean) I undoubtedly have the background to make that statement. I attended over 100 shows a year for 25 years as a handler and now seem to be getting close to that number as a judge annually. I might have averaged between 10 to 40 Best In Shows a year as a handler. As a judge I do around 10-15 Best In Shows and hundreds of Group assignments per annum.

I caught a glimpse of a Facebook post where someone was asking about the current rate to hire a handler. That’s all I needed to draw some comparisons.

Hold on Kids–its going to be a Bumpy Ride!

Without getting too mathematical, technical, or geographical…my eyes widened as I dug around. The current rates I found from a few handler’s websites provided a range of prices. All were about the same for boarding and bathing costs–$15-20 per day. Some listed extra services like airport pick-up and overseeing a breeding. When it came to actual handling fees, they varied. To be fair, some had more years of experience and, if the truth be told, a great rate of success in the rings. I’m not sure how or whom I’d hire. Some go the route of hiring a top handler to show their dog, knowing that at/in 10 shows with (required) competition, a title might be gained; but some like to support a young, talented handler that might not have so many clients and their dog would be less likely to be handed off–which is the nature of the beast when a conflict happens. Either way, money will be spent! Here’s a sampling of fees:

Click here to read the complete article
84 – October, 2023

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Posted by AnthonyA on Oct 10 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.