How Dogs Are Judged

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How Dogs Are Judged

A dog show is really a large elimination process. At the end of the show only one dog remains undefeated.

CLASSES: In every breed of dogs, males are judged first, then females. For each sex there are 5 classes.

Junior Puppy...................for entries between 6 and 9 months old.

Senior Puppy..................for entries between 9 and 12 months old.

Canadian Bred.............. for entries born in Canada.

Bred By Exhibitor...........for entries bred, owned or co-owned by, and shown in the class by the breeder.

Open..............................for all dogs, Canadian and foreign bred (even if the dogs have titles in other countries). Usually the more experienced dogs are to be seen in this class.

Specials...... for dogs who already have their Canadian Championships. The dogs entered in this class do not compete until Best of Breed.

Note: In Specialty Shows there can be additional classes, 12 to 18 months, and Veterans for dogs over 7 years, and an Altered Class (which competes for Best Altered in Breed). Specialty Shows may be held for one breed or for several breeds in a Group, or an entire Group.

WINNERS: After all the dog classes are judged, the first place winners of those classes return to the ring and two awards are made; Winners, a purple ribbon, and Reserve Winners, a lavendar ribbon. This class is repeated for the bitches after all their classes have been judged. In a Specialty show, dogs and bitches entered in the Veterans class do not compete for the Winners class. The winner of the Veteran class proceeds directly to the Best of Breed ring with the Specials.

BEST OF BREED COMPETITION: Dogs of either sex who are already Champions (Specials), and the Winners Dog and Winners Bitch, compete here and one is chosen Best of Breed and given a red, white and blue ribbon. At the same time the judge will choose a Best of Opposite Sex (a green and white ribbon), to his or her Best of Breed. The Best of Winners, either the Winners Dog or the Winners Bitch, is also chosen and presented with a gold and purple ribbon. At this time a Best Puppy in Breed, a pale blue ribbon, is selected as well. (It is possible for the same dog to win more than one of the awards named in this paragraph.)

CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS: Championship points can be won by one dog and one bitch in each breed. The Winners Dog and Winners Bitch receive these points (providing they have competition). The number of points earned depends on the number of each sex competing in each breed. When a dog has received 10 points, under a minimum of 3 different judges, he/she is a Champion and holds the title all his/her life.

WHAT A JUDGE JUDGES ON: As the judge goes over each dog in the ring, he is comparing him/her to a mental picture of the perfect specimen for that breed. He judges each dog on a breed standard that includes:

1. Physical structure (head, teeth, feet, bone structure, etc.). 2. Condition (proper weight, muscle tone, condition of coat, animation etc.). 3. Gait (movement) - as seen from the front, side and rear. 4. Temperament - penalizing heavily for shyness or viciousness.

THE END OF THE SHOW: In an all-breed dog show, the competition becomes kenner and more exciting at the end. When all breeds have been judged, onlt one dog in each breed remains undefeated - the one which was chosen Best of Breed. These dogs are called to compete in whatever 'Group' they belong to - Sporting, Hounds, Working, Terrier, Toy, Non-Sporting, Herding. One dog wins each Group. A Best Puppy in Group is also chosen from the Best Puppy in Breed winners for each group.

These seven Group winners meet in the final competition and one is chosen Best in Show. The seven Puppy Group winners then compete for Best Puppy in Show.

CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS

A dog awarded WINNERS at a Championship show shall be credited with a number of championship points (ranging from 0 to 5) and the number of championship points credited to a dog awarded WINNERS as follows:

1 dog competing*..............0 points.

2 dogs competing*................1 point.

3-5 dogs competing*................2 points.

6-9 dogs competing*...................3 points.

10-12 dogs competing*.................4 points.

13 or more dogs competing*.......... 5 points.

*Includes the dog awarded WINNERS.

To determine the number of championship points earned by a dog (or bitch) awarded WINNERS, total all the dogs in competition which the dog defeated, directly or indirectly, for the following official awards: Winners, Best of Winners, Best of Breed, Best of Opposite Sex and then consult the schedule set forth above.

It must also be noted that points can be won at the Group level too, using the same point schedule as above, but substituting the number of breeds in competition - as opposed to the number of dogs. So, a dog placing 1st in Group with 13 or more breeds in competition would earn 5 points, the 2nd in Group 4pts, 3rd in group 3pts and 4th in group 2pts. With 10 breeds competing, the points would be 4, 3, 2, 1 respectively.

Also - 5 points is the maximum that can be won by any dog at a given show. So a dog that wins 3 points by winning it's Breed from the classes, then later wins the Group (say.. a 5point win) will be credited with a total of 5 points - not 8.

A dog must win a total of 10 points, under at least 3 different judges. One of the wins must be at least 2 points and must have been won at either the breed OR the group level (not a combination of the two). He must also be registered in Canada before he will be awarded a Canadian Championship.

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