So, whilst at crufts yesterday, someone came and asked who to report a distressed dog to. I took them to the organisers office, then back down to the benching where she was going to wait with the dogs until the vet came. At the benches, were 2 dogs sharing the same ( normal sized bench) who had tangled each other so that the one was choking. A very upset lady and her young daughter (just visitors to crufts) were watching the dogs and it was they who alerted the lady who was getting help. After speaking to the security people who confirmed that the dogs had been there over 2 hours with no owner and no vet in sight ( despite someone going directly to the vets office) I decided enough was enough, released the other dog so that the choking one could be untangled and then returned them to a bench. Since we dont show ( obedience shows dont have benches) I was wondering what the rules were about benching dogs? Surely leaving dogs unattended for a length of time is not allowed??

Dogs are not supposed to share benches.  If they were put on bench together it would suggest they were not happy being benched and it would be most unwise to leave them for more than a short time.

As to how long you leave your dogs, that's personal, as many will of course be perfectly happy to rest on their benches and of course the owen5r may be busy showing another dog, waiting in the long queues for the ladies trying to get from a - B through the press of people at the show.  This is especially likely if they are showing more than one breed that may be benched far apart.

Certainly had this happened in my breed someone would have untangled the dogs and then reported the issue to the owners on their return, so hopefully ensuring they were not left at risk again.

We do generally watch out for each others dogs when the owner is away from their bench, and I'd certainly ask neighbouring exhibitors to watch out for them and let me know if there was any issue while I was away (more causing nuisance, perhaps by barking).

If a dog has been trained to bench happily there is unlikely to be an issue, the worst is if the benching chain gets caught in the join in the benching that you sometimes get.

Thank you for your reply :) These dogs had been moved (as instructed I guess) from a different hall to hall 1. Their number cards had not been moved with them and only one dog had a tag ( number unavailable) so no way whatsoever to contact any owner. By the time the owner reappeared those dogs had been left for well over 3 hours. The one dog was certainly not happy about being benched and kept trying to spin around which is probably how they got tangled in the first place. While I can see it is hard, especially if someone is there alone, there were plenty of benches empty close to where people were sitting watching the screens...had they been put down there I'm sure they would have been happier and safer...and hopefully someone could have been persuaded to keep an eye on them. Looks very bad on showing in general as I heard a lot of comments (even from the security men) about the dogs just being tools and that it happens every year! :(

I will not bench my girls as the benches are not big enough.  Its all well and good making them longer for bigger breeds but they are all the same depth. I hate to see dogs left alone on benches and would hope like Barbara arrangements have been made for someone to keep an eye out. To be left for 3 hours alone is just not acceptable in my book. The KC insist on dogs owners being contactable and in this case should have removed the dogs to a place of safety and left a note for the owners to find them. It is about time the KC put their money where their mouth is and had welfare officers continually patrolling at large shows to ensure dogs are not being treated like objects. No wonder the public have a less than healthy view of dog shows.
Aileen

Crufts is a bit different to other shows in many rules. It does for instance state no dogs should be left alone on the benches. Quote from the info all exhibitors get sent: UNATTENDED DOGS. Crufts is a public show and for the safety of all concerned dogs should not be left unattended on the benches at any time.