...that there are questions about how judging is done for the Virtual Show.

I will summarise the sort of conversations I have heard about and will address those points for everyone :smt001

Are the Judges fair ?

Judges are selected for their impartiality, honesty, and integrity.
It is preferred that judges do not own the type of dogs they will be judging, and if anything lack of specific breed knowledge is preferred particularly for Novelty classes so that breed preference is not what the judging for those classes is about, but when opportunity presents itself to have a real Breed Judge willing to judge a Breed type class, that`s a bonus to our community.


Why can`t members vote on all the classes ?

It would be a logistical nightmare for one.

The polls for the first 2008 Dash class for instance took several hours of work.

Had polls been done for all 71 standard classes, [ there are more than that for the 2008 show ! ], plus their sub classes, plus all the Dash classes, plus all the Best In Groups, plus Best In Show, the 2007 Show would still be running until 2010

Bear in mind also, not one vote so far in a Dash class has not had to have further votes because of equal placings of sometimes several dogs for one place - the time it takes to get it all done for one single class let alone all of them simply makes it beyond reasonable consideration.

Consider also the numbers of people voting on Dash classes which is actually pretty small considering the number of Dogsey members there are, and often there are less voters for those classes than the number of people who entered.
It would be very demoralising for people to enter a specific type class to see only a few people voting because it did`nt involve their own breeds or particular Novelty class interest.

Also, the intent of the Show is to be as realistic to an actual show as possible in this medium - has anyone been to a real companion show where the competitors and audience vote on the dogs in the ring ?
Nuff said


The Best In Show Judging Panel, how does that work ?

The judges do not converse with each other about the line up.
Each judge selects their own top six as if they were a solo judge.
As each judge will have their own preferences and criteria it gives every dog a fair shot.

The selections are allocated points for each placing the individual judges gave them.
The points are then added up, [ without the judges knowing who voted for which placings ], and the final placings given on that basis.

That way was considered the fairest for all, particularly as any possible `breed preference` was spread evenly between the panel.


Ultimately, the show is intended as community fun, a pleasant diversion from `real life` and worries, and has already been used as a template elsewhere for a fund raiser for rescue dogs which is something Dogsey can take pride in for providing a great example of team work, sporting spirit, fun, and yes, organisation.


I hope that will answer the particular conversations which have been pointed out to me, and please, if anyone still has questions, the person best placed to answer them is the Show Sec whom you can pm direct, or on the FAQ thread or in the Show Lounge
:smt001

All the above said, its actually good in a way that `comments` are being made `here and there`, it just goes to show how realistic our Virtual show is