Smoo has his first show on the 29th and Im sooo nervous!! Im worried my nerves are going to effect him on the actual day

Deep breath, relax, it doesn't matter if he plays up as long as he has fun - you can settle an excitable dog over time, but it's almost impossible to cheer up a sulking dog! Get there in plenty of time, tell the steward you haven't shown before and they will hopefully be helpful and make sure you know where to stand and what to do. :-)

just to say good luck. x
no advice i'm afraid.....our 1st show is coming up in 3 weeks too.

Hi would just like to say....have fun!!!! Believe me most people are looking at your dog not you and have been in the same situation as you! lol
It is scarey but you soon learn to enjoy it!!! It cant be that bad otherwise we wouldnt all do it weekend after weekend lol!! :-)  :-)

Good luck!!

A friend has one of my puppies and had qualified him for his clubs Match of the Year. She was so nervous she shook.

I gave her a bit of advice which would work for you too.

Look down at your dog ....do you think he deserves to win?

Well .....why not go into the ring thinking that you expect to win.....think yourself a winner and look at the judge as if you believe he/she agrees with you.

My friend promptly won Pup of the year and then nearly fainted.....but she won!

You have been told the most important thing, enjoy - don't know what breed but when you get there look for someone who has your breed and tell them you are new and don't know what you are doing and would they help you. Job done, you would be unlucky to find someone who was not happy to help. If you can't see someone with your breed, collect your catalogue and find your ring, and ask someone who is in that ring with a different breed.

When the steward calls your class into the ring collect your ring number from the steward and tell them you are at your first show and they will tell you what to do and make sure you are ok. The judge will realise you are new (unless you are very good) and may well help you as well so_

What Are you Worried About!!!

It is when you have been showing for 16 years and take your new naughty pup into the ring and the judge decides you need help that you need to worry. Happens, happened to me.

Lol Jackie, happened to me a year or so back with my adult girl, I must have been giving off major 'clueless' vibes that day! :-D

Thank you all for your advice. Im very lucky in that Smoo's breeder is coming along too for moral support, I sometimes find new situations with lots of people I dont know quite hard, especially when Im not sure myself what Im doing!

The thing that worried me most was I would let Smoo and the breeder down by messing it up. We've been to ringcraft, but a 'proper' show is certainly going to be different than a small village hall lol!! But Ive every confidence in Smoo and I loved the advice about looking at Smoo thinking he's the best .......... to me he is!

I will let you all know how we get on, and hopefully maybe meet some of you at other shows :-)

Oh also wanted to say I think this site is great, Ive spent hours getting lost in old posts and have learnt so much!

I sometimes find new situations with lots of people I dont know quite hard,

Have always been grossly introverted and could not even bring myself to say hello to someone in the street then in my 50's I took up showing my dogs and now you can't shut me up - so prepare yourself to a good lift in confidence.

Yes, I think that happened to me - although I'm now talkative but still without much confidence underneath! Still can't shut me up though! :-)

Try not to let the pressure get to you and just enjoy the day - hope you have a lovely first show.