Home » Discussion Forums » Blog Post Discussion » Guest post by Diane in MN
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18599 is a reply to message #18598 ] |
Sat, 25 July 2009 20:45   |
 skating librarian
Messages: 570
Registered: October 2008
Location: Vermont |
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Thanks Diane!
Fascinating. My only frame of reference is Westminster (on TV) if it happens to be on when I am visiting the parents.
I wonder what it is in the human makeup that leads to competition. Whatever it is, I may lack that gene. The only reason I enter stuff at the country fair is because they give cash prizes and enough five and eight dollar prizes will buy my garden seeds for the next summer. This being the place it is, entries aren't judges against one another but against some standards which I've never seen written out or explained. That means there can be a whole bunch of first prize tomatoes ... or none.
It's obvious from this and other posts that showing your Danes is really a major part of your life. How did you get started? Is there a financial payoff, or is it all expense?
And how did you decide that the Great Dane was your kind of dog? (I couldn't fit one into my house!)
"Winning a war is like winning an earthquake" Jeanette Rankin
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18604 is a reply to message #18598 ] |
Sun, 26 July 2009 00:22 |
EMoon
Messages: 664
Registered: March 2009 |
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Teddy is gorgeous! And what a good fellow to come back the next day and show so well.
E
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18609 is a reply to message #18599 ] |
Sun, 26 July 2009 02:08 |
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Diane in MN
Messages: 2729
Registered: October 2008
Location: Twin Cities, MN, USA |
Senior Member |
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| skating librarian wrote on Sat, 25 July 2009 19:45 |
Thanks Diane!
Fascinating. My only frame of reference is Westminster (on TV) if it happens to be on when I am visiting the parents.
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Westminster isn't exactly representative of the average dog show experience, which is more likely to be at a county fairground or similar venue. Because it's the glamor show, Westminster is open only to champions, so no puppies and very few youngsters are there. You do get to see generally nice dogs, but a lot of people with very good dogs won't go because it's expensive and inconvenient.
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I wonder what it is in the human makeup that leads to competition. Whatever it is, I may lack that gene. The only reason I enter stuff at the country fair is because they give cash prizes and enough five and eight dollar prizes will buy my garden seeds for the next summer. This being the place it is, entries aren't judges against one another but against some standards which I've never seen written out or explained. That means there can be a whole bunch of first prize tomatoes ... or none.
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If you are a breeder or have a stud dog, success in the ring is a plus, but most people compete because they think their dog is good enough to earn a title in some event and they enjoy hanging around with other dog people, even if it means long drives, early start times, being made to look like a fool by your dog, etc. And spending money. As far as judging in the conformation ring, dogs are supposed to be judged against the written standard for the breed and not against each other, but every judge can interpret the standard his own way, so there is a large subjective element to it. Championship points go to only one dog and one bitch in each breed, but in performance events like obedience, many dogs can get qualifying scores.
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It's obvious from this and other posts that showing your Danes is really a major part of your life. How did you get started? Is there a financial payoff, or is it all expense?
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The joke is that the way to make a small fortune in dogs is to start with a large fortune, and this is unfortunately true. There might be a financial reward for someone who owns a successful stud dog, but I can't think of anything else. Dog showing is a hobby, which means that like other hobbies it gives you opportunities to spend time and money.  We got started by accident; our Dane had died, and the breeder, a friend, had a litter but wanted a co-ownership on her pick puppy bitch. "What does that involve?", we said. "Oh, you have to show her," she said. So we got sucked in. There is a reason why my kennel name is Serendipity.
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And how did you decide that the Great Dane was your kind of dog? (I couldn't fit one into my house!)
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Long before we got interested in showing, when we got our first house, my husband said that he'd always wanted a Great Dane. No research or anything that we tell people to do now . . . so we got a puppy and fell in love with the breed and here we are.
"The point of books is to have way too many but to always feel you never have enough . . . " Louise Erdrich
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18619 is a reply to message #18598 ] |
Sun, 26 July 2009 13:10 |
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Mrs Redboots
Messages: 943
Registered: October 2008
Location: London, UK |
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Isn't he gorgeous!
Our family has only really ever gone for "fun" dog-shows in the village, as our dogs have been working labradors. And although when in their prime they have shown to advantage and usually won the obedience classes (despite my father's only taking classes with our current dog, who he feels he has to live up to!), at least one of them, as she was getting older, said cheerfully "Sod this for a game of soldiers" and disappeared off out of the ring to make herself comfortable.... The Staffie, who was a bit neurotic, never showed to advantage, as she hated it and it showed, but she also hated being left out. Mind you, as she was never quite sure whether she was a sheepdog (my brother had working sheepdogs back then) or a labrador, she was a bit confused anyway!
Mrs Redboots
I love my computer because my friends live in it!
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18635 is a reply to message #18598 ] |
Sun, 26 July 2009 19:55 |
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Teddy is such a handsome boy! Thank goodness he wasn't scared for long, it can be such a worry when something like that gives them a shock, especially as a pup can't it? 8am starts - eek! 9.30 is usually the earliest over here *is very relieved*
Someone says "pie" and we all go on alert, like meercats. "Pie? Where?" - Blackbear
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18652 is a reply to message #18612 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 00:55 |
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Diane in MN
Messages: 2729
Registered: October 2008
Location: Twin Cities, MN, USA |
Senior Member |
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| AJLR wrote on Sun, 26 July 2009 03:31 |
Goodness me, that Teddy certainly has a lot of leg now! Your final picture, Diane, with Nina and Teddy trotting towards the camera, shows just how much the rest of him still has to grow, doesn't it! How are he and the AB getting on now?
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I'd like to see him get a bit taller and he might, since the growth plates don't close for another few months. He will be filling out with bone and muscle for the next couple of years. He and the AB are best buds, except when he pesters her too much and she decides she has to disappear.
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Showing sounds exhausting but still great fun. Do the dogs that meet more frequently get to know each other at all, in the local/sub-regional shows? I imagine them hanging out, discussing how things are going...
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The dogs that compete together do get to know each other. Teddy's aunt, the AB's other sister, spent her entire life until last fall going to shows; she was the top-winning Dane in the US for two years. After winning Best of Breed, she would go into the Working Group competition and would generally see pretty much the same dogs every week. She'd wag, they'd wag--they were her dog friends.
"The point of books is to have way too many but to always feel you never have enough . . . " Louise Erdrich
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18653 is a reply to message #18613 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 01:06 |
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Diane in MN
Messages: 2729
Registered: October 2008
Location: Twin Cities, MN, USA |
Senior Member |
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| judith wrote on Sun, 26 July 2009 04:06 |
Teddy is looking great, Diane!
I'm surprised that a grooming table was allowed under the tent. All of the premiums for outdoor shows I've entered have stated most emphatically that crates and grooming tables WILL NOT be allowed under the tent, and there has always been a separate grooming tent set up, probably to avoid just the kind of thing that happened to you and Teddy. It's always so crowded under there anyway, especially if the weather is bad. I'm glad he didn't decide to take permanent offense at tents.
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Thank you! A lot of outdoor shows, at least around here, allow crating under the tent for the duration of the crated breed's classes to accommodate people who come with multiple dogs and need to get them in and out of the ring quickly. But it's no fun for everyone else.
They had a separate grooming building, so I believe the table was there because it had been used for judging a small breed and was not needed in the ring at that time. You're so right about the crowding; I really hate it, and there's nothing to be done about it.
"The point of books is to have way too many but to always feel you never have enough . . . " Louise Erdrich
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18655 is a reply to message #18619 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 01:12 |
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Diane in MN
Messages: 2729
Registered: October 2008
Location: Twin Cities, MN, USA |
Senior Member |
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| Mrs Redboots wrote on Sun, 26 July 2009 12:10 |
Isn't he gorgeous!
Our family has only really ever gone for "fun" dog-shows in the village, as our dogs have been working labradors. And although when in their prime they have shown to advantage and usually won the obedience classes (despite my father's only taking classes with our current dog, who he feels he has to live up to!), at least one of them, as she was getting older, said cheerfully "Sod this for a game of soldiers" and disappeared off out of the ring to make herself comfortable.... The Staffie, who was a bit neurotic, never showed to advantage, as she hated it and it showed, but she also hated being left out. Mind you, as she was never quite sure whether she was a sheepdog (my brother had working sheepdogs back then) or a labrador, she was a bit confused anyway!
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Yes, they do have their ways of letting you know what they think. After my first show bitch had finished her career, I took her to her first obedience class since puppyhood and thought we'd work on an obedience title. She wanted no part of it. As far as she was concerned, a ring was for stacking and gaiting and GETTING LIVER, not for heeling, sitting, etc. etc. (She learned to eat from our Lab, so she was powerfully food-motivated!)
"The point of books is to have way too many but to always feel you never have enough . . . " Louise Erdrich
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18658 is a reply to message #18653 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 01:34 |
judith
Messages: 246
Registered: October 2008
Location: United States |
Senior Member |
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| Diane in MN wrote on Mon, 27 July 2009 01:06 |
A lot of outdoor shows, at least around here, allow crating under the tent for the duration of the crated breed's classes to accommodate people who come with multiple dogs and need to get them in and out of the ring quickly.
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Must be nice. Around here, people with multiple dogs to show either have to bring friends to hold them while the owner or handler is in the ring, or have to find friends -- QUICKLY -- at the show. Or, if there's sufficient time between classes, run like hell to their own grooming area and make the switch. I've seen people wheeling crate dollies full of teeny crates containing tiny dogs over to the judging area, but they never bring them under the tent; someone usually stands outside with them and helps them switch them around. Must be nice to have pocket-sized dogs sometimes when one is used to Danes or Mastiffs. I wouldn't trade for the world, but sometimes, when I'm checking into a hotel....
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18665 is a reply to message #18658 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 06:35 |
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| judith wrote on Mon, 27 July 2009 01:34 |
| Diane in MN wrote on Mon, 27 July 2009 01:06 |
A lot of outdoor shows, at least around here, allow crating under the tent for the duration of the crated breed's classes to accommodate people who come with multiple dogs and need to get them in and out of the ring quickly.
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Must be nice. Around here, people with multiple dogs to show either have to bring friends to hold them while the owner or handler is in the ring, or have to find friends -- QUICKLY -- at the show. Or, if there's sufficient time between classes, run like hell to their own grooming area and make the switch. I've seen people wheeling crate dollies full of teeny crates containing tiny dogs over to the judging area, but they never bring them under the tent; someone usually stands outside with them and helps them switch them around. Must be nice to have pocket-sized dogs sometimes when one is used to Danes or Mastiffs. I wouldn't trade for the world, but sometimes, when I'm checking into a hotel....
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my boss shows japs and while they are easier to transport they can be very high maintenance.
[Updated on: Mon, 27 July 2009 06:36]
Bonnie Holmes the faster ahead I go, the more behind I get
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18679 is a reply to message #18659 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 08:38 |
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| Diane in MN wrote on Mon, 27 July 2009 06:36 |
But am I correct that not all your shows award challenge certificates? Does that affect the size of your entry?
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We have open shows, where there are no CCs and Championship shows, most of which don't offer a complete set of CCs for every registered breed - Many open shows get more class entries than champ shows without tickets, and the entry can be very variable according to the judge - the year Elsa won we had the biggest entry at Crufts for years - a well respected breed specialist who doesn't judge our breed often and is fair...
Someone says "pie" and we all go on alert, like meercats. "Pie? Where?" - Blackbear
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18694 is a reply to message #18599 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 19:25 |
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The only reason I enter stuff at the country fair is because they give cash prizes and enough five and eight dollar prizes will buy my garden seeds for the next summer. This being the place it is, entries aren't judges against one another but against some standards which I've never seen written out or explained. That means there can be a whole bunch of first prize tomatoes ... or none.
Oh so that's how it works! I've never been able to figure it out-I've seen the vegetables on the tables at the State Fair, with various ribbons attached, every year, and up until now, I've been utterly mystified by what appears to be no discernible rhyme or reason to them. Thanks for clearing that up!
[Updated on: Mon, 27 July 2009 19:27] by Moderator
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18695 is a reply to message #18598 ] |
Mon, 27 July 2009 19:41 |
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Wonderful pictures of Teddy! What a gorgeous boy! I'm glad to hear that he did so well in trying circumstances. Though I'll never face the tribulation of a show, I'm well acquainted with the frustration of facing down 140lbs of conviction that 'pavement = walk nicely and grass=sniffy free-range pee time', so I congratulate you and Teddy both on your environmental triumph.
I know that speculation (especially based on photos) plus a dollar will get you a ride on the bus, but based on his head-so beautiful, by the way- and feet, I'd bet Teddy will get a bit taller. Congrats again!
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| Re: Guest post by Diane in MN [message #18796 is a reply to message #18713 ] |
Thu, 30 July 2009 00:36 |
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Diane in MN
Messages: 2729
Registered: October 2008
Location: Twin Cities, MN, USA |
Senior Member |
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| Black Bear wrote on Tue, 28 July 2009 08:58 |
By the way, Diane, I'd like to thank you for your mention and recommendation of the furminator a while back--I took the plunge and got one for my cats, and Good Lord what a difference it makes. Unfortunately one of my three hates it--but the other two snuggle up to it; I have far fewer tumbleweeds around the house and their coats look great. So thanks for letting us know about this awesome grooming tool!
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You're welcome! I'm glad at least two of your kitties like it.
"The point of books is to have way too many but to always feel you never have enough . . . " Louise Erdrich
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I still have a few of them around (the crates, not the Danes; I WISH it were the Danes). When I would show at any significant distance from home, I was usually showing just one dog at a time, and I didn't use a crate. The dog and I were never parted. Made eating very inconvenient; I'd have to get drive-through take-out or delivery. At one show, I had just arrived at the motel and was talking to the guy in the room next door. I was starving after a six-hour drive after having worked a full day. I turned around and discovered that my Mastiff girl was happily snarfing down my McDonald's dinner, and it was too late to go out for more because they were now closed....