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Obedience Dog Shows California Article
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Inside The Ring Advice: Part 1
from: The Complete DogAt dog shows, the "handler" is the person actually in the ring with the dog. A “professional” handler is a handler who shows dogs as a full time profession and gets paid for being in the ring with the dog. If you're not familiar the word, you may misinterpret some of these statements. When we say, "watch the good handlers," we don't necessarily mean the professional handlers. You will discover soon enough there are good handlers who are strictly amateurs.
A novice tends to make two main mistakes along with some smaller mistakes. The two main mistakes include holding the show lead in two hands instead of one, and taking tiny, little mincing steps when gaiting the dog. The many small poblems, though not exactly mistakes, should be pointed out in order to improve handling abilities. These aren't in any particular order of importance, since they're all important.
When showing your dog, use a firm hand, firm but not rough. Rough handling, especially if you have an independant minded dog, should be done at home during training, definitely not in the show ring. It may be necessary at times to reprimand a dog in the ring if he seems to have forgotten all his training, but when necessary, you should speak harshly to him, perhaps using a few light taps where they'll do the most good. A hard smack will give the judge and the spectators the impression you don't like your dog and that winning is more important to you than the dog, and they may even think you haven't done any training at home.
The gasp that goes up around the ringside if a dog is loudly spanked in the ring, even though the dog isn't hurt, will convince you that it's not a good idea. You must you acquire a firm hand so the dog knows what you expect of him. A wishy-washy touch with your dog is as bad as a wishy-washy handshake. The limp handshake might lose you an expected friend and a too-light touch with a dog might lose you an expected ribbon.
Never get down on both knees when you pose your dog because in order to get out of this position, you must shift all your weight to one knee while you're bringing the other foot into position to stand on it. You could lose your balance getting out of this position, however, sitting on your heels during a large class is better than having nothing to sit on. In the long run you'll discover the position has more drawbacks than comfort.
Showing a great many breeds will require you to be standing upright all of the time, so, if you must get down lower, try the squat, or try placing only one knee on the ground and keep the other leg bent. Whichever way you choose, keep your back as straight as possible. Either of these two positions allows you to get on your feet quickly and gracefully without the danger of losing your balance.
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