judging a fun dog show

hi guys i have never done this i now its for fun and all, but we sponser a few of the classes and the lady that runs it has asked me and OH to judge our ones the ones we have got are.

best yearling 18mths to 2yrs
best vintage over 10yrsbest long coat dog and bitch class
junior handler 11yrs & under

my step dad is doing
waggiest tail ( no probs with that one)
beauty and the beast ( that should be fun lol)

so what do you think i should be looking for all help welcome. thanks guys

Its really up to you, but a couple of words of help. In the vintage class take into account how good the dog is for its age & breed. In other words a fit & active 10 year old Dane is equivalent to a fit & active 15 year old Jack Russell.
In the child handling remember its the child you are judging, ask them how old the dog is etc & make sure they talk to the dog & incourage it to do as they ask. I'm sure others will be able to help more.

I agree.

For the younger classes, you need to look for how mature the dogs are for their young ages, and how well muscled they are, along with the obvious construction points and quality.

It may only be a fun show, but many people who show, take their youngsters to get them experience and still expect a Judge to know what to score on

Good luck, hope the weather stays nice for it.

thanks guys that helps alot

Hi bit of advice for the junior handling classes I would look to see how much control they have and whether they have a good rapport with the dog - if you can see that the person is experienced maybe push a bit further and check they don't cross between dog and judge but as its a fun show not sure how experienced they will be.

I would want the child to be handling the dog on their own not with an adult though! and in control.

Maybe ask for a triangle and straight up and down but don't be too harsh on how accurate (or not) this is! But you may see that from this you do have some experienced handlers who do not cross between the dog and judge and give accurate patterns?

Ask dogs age and breed if applicable!

As said nice kind fair handling (no harsh handling at all!).

For the other classes - just go with what YOU like - you will know what you like and what you don't - as said a lot of people take their youngsters along for practice and experience - but just go with what you like - something will grab your eye am sure.

Think you Step Dad won't have any trouble with his classes at all.

Have fun - enjoy it and let us know how it goes!

Junior handlers should above all be polite and considerate to you the judge and their fellow handlers. They should be aware of you and their dogs at all times and treat their dogs with consideration and encouragements.

They should listen to what you have to say and try their best of follow your instructions, they should answer any question you put to them and they should thank you when you send them back to the line up.

If only adult handlers were like that.

Don't think anyone can help with the dog show classes proper it is up to you to pick a dog you think a good example of it's breed, well made, fit and moving well. Be aware that some handlers will not have a clue but you still give their exhibit full consideration.

With the oldies be very gentle and chat to them, watch them move and award the dog you think is doing best for it's age set against breed. Think it is acceptable to spend time fussing the old dogs and try to make a comment to the handler, different for each one if you can then all will leave the ring feeling pleased with their dogs.