The Art of Losing…Successfully

Click here to read the complete article
190 – The Annual, 2022-23

By Caroline Coile

Be Analytical!

Watch your breed until the end of judging. I know it’s hard sometimes; after all, who cares about that moron’s opinion now? But try to objectively find things the judge’s winners and losers have in common. If the judge truly only puts up faces, then that’s valuable information. Maybe one day you’ll need to hire a handler under them! But maybe they are actually judging dogs. It’s easy to be so mad about the day’s judging you can’t find anything good about the judge, but maybe, just maybe, their choices had something to so with the (gasp!) dogs! This means you have to be objective about your own dog as well as the competition. I showed a great moving dog with a poor head once. One day he lost to a poor mover with a good head. Once I got over my “They don’t run on their heads!” indignation, I brought that judge my dogs with great heads and never lost under him again! The same with a dog I showed that was more workmanlike. We lost a to a pretty little bitch under a judge who I immediately thought must be senile. But again, I stopped to think about it, and the next time he was on a panel I brought him a pretty little bitch and won the group! You may not have a dog to fit their preferences immediately, but stow that information away for future use. I could have stayed mad at both of these judges and crossed them off my list, but the loss would have been mine, not theirs!

Walk Away!

Judges don’t just see what happens inside their rings. If you can’t control yourself, walk away. Don’t complain to your friends, don’t slam your stuff back in your grooming bag, don’t stand and watch with crossed arms and a big frown; and yes, I get it, you probably meant for the judge to notice. Well, mission accomplished! They see, but chances are they are not now thinking, “Oh darn, I should have put her dog up. Look how mad she is now!” No, they are more likely digging in their heels and thinking, “I guess she can’t see how cowhocked her ugly brute is. I’m glad I only gave him Reserve. It was more than he deserved! See if I give her any breaks next time!”

Avoid Complainers!

Back to ringside. Judges do see what happens outside the ring, and you could be conveying a loser attitude even before you’ve lost. Did your friend just lose under the same judge and now wants to tell you how dumb that judge is? Maybe loudly enough that the judge hears? Your friend has nothing to lose now, but you do. Walk away. Better yet, tell them to go away. Misery loves company, and your “friend” secretly wants you to lose so you will share in the bad opinion of this stupid judge. Never allow this to happen, and never do it to anyone else.

Don’t Say it!

Click here to read the complete article
190 – The Annual, 2022-23

Short URL: https://caninechronicle.com/?p=254281

Posted by AnthonyA on Jan 2 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.