I went to a companion show this Sunday with my youngster and some of my 'oldies' who do not often get to the shows now. Because the KC regs now allow different 'pedigree' classes to be scheduled there were some interesting results !.

Hound and Terrier was won by a ...... Yorkshire terrier

Working and Pastoral was won by a ...... Cocker spaniel  well it was a working one I was told

BIS was won by a ( very nice) Swedish Lapphund - " bring out the Chow " said the judge :D :D :D

it was all very bizarre - any one else come across this kind of confusion with the move away from sporting/nonsporting etc ?

Oh and whilst I'm chuntering on about companion shows can anyone tell me WHY table dogs are put at the head of the line ? it makes it impossible to move all the big dogs properly when told to move round together !.

Yvonne

Yes a friend even has experienced a cross-breed winning BIS from the pedigree classes
She was sure that the stewards & judge would realise it was a cross...but they seemingly ignored it :rolleyes:

Most well run/organised shows have a list of all the breeds that come under each section sellotaped to a table.
It may be that the breed of dog isn't on the entry form and that's why the entry table haven't picked it up as
being wrong?

Cant tell you why table dogs are always at the front...but anyone with any sense would either just move the table dogs
and then the larger non table dogs separately if the class entry was too big etc.

I'm interested on what people think about car parking charges at companion dog shows.  I've been 'caught' twice this year.  Both times there has been no mention of a charge on the schedule but you turn up and they promptly demand a car park fee (once £5 and the second time only yesterday £2.50).   I say the same thing which is that they won't get any more money as I just cut the number of classes I enter and don't buy raffle tickets or anything else extra. 

When I had a Large Munsterlander many years ago, she was pulled out in first place as an English Setter :rolleyes:

my friend got binned with her munster pup at a companion show recently, we really were wondering if the judge knew what breed she was :rolleyes:

I usually get "Madam, can you bring out your poor Border Collie with no tail"...........:rolleyes:
They are Australian Shepherds.........

Gabrielle x

Hi Trevor (or is it Yvonne)

I know that companion shows are meant to be fun and I've had a moan about them on here before for some crazy judging eg in a pedigree veteran class giving the oldest dog who could hardly move the 'best veteran' purely because it was the oldest and then for the judge to tell me that my veteran (only 9 yrs old and and was placed last) moved like a trooper  :rolleyes:  .  Then I was at a show on Saturday where the 'judge' didn't even watch some of the dogs move before she was onto the next one on the table.     You do expect the organisers to have some idea what they're doing but on the other hand you can't take them seriously but treat it as a bit of fun and training.

Oh LOL Yvonne, couldn't help but laugh! You'd have thought they could at least have a list of breeds in each group to refer to. Having said that, I've been to shows where I have been asked by the organisers what breeds goes where etc, and I have seen a clipped Shih Tzu win best crossbreed. Must say though whenever I've seen the table dogs put first them and the bigger ones have always been moved separately.

In my experience with Malinois judges either think they are crossbreeds, or they do know what they are and get SO impressed by seeing one or more they immediately put them up LOL.

Funniest thing I have ever seen at a companion show was, when all the toy breeds had been put up on the table, the next dog to be seen was a Rottie .......the owner nearly gave himself a hernia as he struggled to lift his (overweight) rottie up!!!   His relief was palpable when the steward said "oh no, he's seen on the ground!" :D :D :D

Margot

We saw a Dobermann placed on the table at a match night LOL. Adult male he was! The judge was so surprised he didn't say a thing!

I have been to 2 companion shows with my pup, and both times I made sure to wear my breed club shirt as it has the name of the breed written on it - just in case the judge didn't recognise his breed :D
At the show last weekend there was a Labrador looking quite out of place in the AV Non-Sporting class Oh well, they're just for fun I suppose, and they're good practice!

Was judging at a companion show on saturday and luckily my very effcient steward picked up the dacshund in AV non sporting and moved it to open (the sporting class had just been judged) Lucky for the owner really as quality wise it wouldn't have got placed in non-sporting but did in open!)

Seen many amazing results at companion shows.

Table dogs have always been at the front at all shows.  No idea why, just practise, I hate it though when a judge moves everyone together.  A setter behind a peke is not something I like to do :D

I was once asked at a companion show, while the judge was going over my dog 'This is a Flatcoat, isn't it?'!!!!!

I agree, you see some funny things at companion shows - took my little Puglet to one on Sunday, together with 2 pups for experience (Puglet loves the fancy dress and novelty classes, such as prettiest bietch etc, she is such a show off!!)  There was a Shih Tzu in the toy class, a Border Collie in the working, and a a whole lot of other strange things too!

Don't completely agree about the objections to the "Table dogs at the front " thing - I think judges should consider the movement styles of the breeds in front of them, rather than a hard and fast size rule either way.  It is so exasperting, for instance, in the gundog group,  when the judge moves the dogs with the biggest at the front, and puts the American Cocker behind the Clumber and Sussex!

bye
Gwen

The table dogs at the front thing happens at open shows too, when the group or BIS is being judged. Trying to move a dalmatian at the correct speed with the people in front doing a gentle walk is impossible and most unfair.

I presume a dally might just about :D keep up with some of the whippets being shown. 
As a whippet i.e. table dog owner I appreciate the problems when you get behind a peke / yorkie etc. as it is the same for us. Just hang back and then strut your stuff when in the eye of the judge.
Alternatively don't enter varieties / Stakes  or go into the Group/BIS ring.. VBG

Oh I hate it when people are in the wrong group too - or when they miss sporting so go in non sporting anyway - I'm not bothered about winning but do object when a GSD beats my Lab in the sporting class.

I also object to the new "designer breeds" that are not KC breeds showing in the pedigree classes and winning ... what are the judges judging them against?

My Mal won open over the Summer ... however my joy became disappointment when afterwards the judge told me his neighbour had Akitas too!

Can't believe that the organisers didn't know the correct groupings :d

I remember at a companionship show last year when a Rottie was put first in best condition class it was at least twice it's correct weight if not more :rolleyes:

I know, it annoys me at our club companion show when the lady who takes the entries hasn't got a clue. She doesn't like it much when I chip in and say that no, I'm afraid you cant put your crossbreed in the pedigree just because it's a cross of two pedigrees! Mind you, my friend's Springer / collie cross looks so much like a small Gordon setter she could probably get away with it!

Another friend recently judged at our fun dog show, novelty classes only. He didn't do too badly except in child handling when he made the children all put their dogs in a sit, a down and a stand!! I was stewarding and couldn't do anything except roll my eyes quietly! :-D

my daughter won with her dog the bushiest eyebrows her dog is a powderpuff chinese crested and my daughter just took her top knot out of her hair brushed the hair forward and went off to the class, i thought she was going for the best conditioned dog, her face was a picture when they both won.
carolann