How many times have you been involved in a conversation and your thoughts turn to the response you are going to give rather than listening to the words the person is saying? Often? Don’t despair, this happens more than most people realize.
As a member of the dog show community you may have, at one time or another, bumped up against someone who totally misunderstood what you said, repeated it incorrectly and caused a conflict to begin or escalate.
By now most dog show participants are aware of the recent tragic events that happened in Indiana and Ohio where dogs died.
The sport of purebred dogs is blessed to include outstanding people. Many are professionals in a variety of disciplines.
This month we look at how to address and manage owner, breeder and handler expectations.
How we interpret difficult events or conversations dictates the impact on our response to them. Will we flow peacefully or swirl in conflict? One old adage states,
You do all you can, each and every day, to make their lives happy and healthy. Some do this full-time (handlers); others do this part-time (owner, breeders or junior handlers) while they also work or go to school.
In the dog show world, integrity, ethics and honor (IEH) are important ingredients to sustaining relationships among participants inside and outside the ring.
Happiness is never getting sued. However, when people are in conflict over an animal, deciding to sue is an easy choice.
