In My Humble Opinion – Being Kept Away from Judging for So Long
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By Elaine Lessig
Gale Young – AKC Judge
Thinking of being in the ring for the first time, do you have any trepidation about actually judging after the long COVID-19 break?
After so many months of no hands-on contact, only online learning, and not interacting with people, friends and fellow breeders, one can certainly feel out of touch with the essence of life, never mind the pulse of a dog show. There is always the nervous excitement, the anticipation of getting back to something that you have not done for a period of time. I had the much needed, happy experience of attending a series of seminars at a show and then recently attending a show to work for my club. It was gratifying to see my friends, the dogs, and to feel how the 47 years of breeding well made and well bred dogs, as well as the 23 years of training to be a judge, ingrains in a person a certain amount of automaticity in how one evaluates the competition. The show giving clubs did a great job and I expect future show giving clubs will continue to be diligent. No one likes wearing a mask, having to be careful regarding what we touch, and constantly disinfecting but it is necessary to just do it. The difference between being a child and an adult is that an adult knows what he needs to do, when he needs to do it, and he gets it done even though it might not be his favorite thing to do. We all need to do the right thing i.e. behave like adults and we will be fine. Of course, after spending much couch time and sitting in a chair Zooming, it is very important to build up one’s stamina as, depending upon how the day is scheduled, judging requires a fair amount of physical work.
Has being away from judging altered your perspective of judging in any way. Why or why not?
For me, judging is the business of evaluating breeding stock. Does this specimen have the proper outline and does he move the way his breed should move with the attitude that is correct for that breed. Can this specimen do the job he was bred to do. It is important to me to be a preservationist breeder. It is important to understand the reasons for tail docking and ear cropping. The reason why some breeds have flat croups and some more rounded croups, or level underlines vs. well tucked up underlines. The structure of a particular breed is based upon the aerodynamics of how he should move. In many cases the attitude is the reason the dog is still alive after a day’s work. My perspective has not changed regarding judging and I feel even more strongly–considering all the effort that both amateurs and professionals put into exhibiting at dog shows–that judges need to be kind and helpful. We are working hard to preserve our breeds, to breed beautiful dogs and to show beautiful dogs, dogs that are the essence of breed type.
Mary Anne Brocious – AKC Judge
Thinking of being in the ring for the first time, do you have any trepidation about actively judging after the long COVID-19 break?
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Short URL: https://caninechronicle.com/?p=193027
Posted by AnthonyA
on Nov 30 2020. Filed under Current Articles, Featured, Health & Training.
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