A Finished Champion

28 June 2010
8:45 PM

Sunset at	12:43 AM	in direction	344°	North-northwest
Sunrise at	3:06 AM	in direction	16°	North-northeast

Civil Twilight all day

A new Champion - although not my favorite photo of her

Dog shows in Alaska, as I've stated before, are infrequent and chiefly held during the spring and summer months.  The purpose of the dog show is to determine which of the dogs competing meet the breed standard most closely (See Doberman Pinscher Standard). The standard is based on physical and personality characteristics bred into the breed necessary to their function.  For example, an alert and engaged attitude is desirable in dogs bred for protection.

For each breed, there are three overall rounds of competition at each show.  First, all the unfinished dogs (males) compete against each other.  The winner is awarded Winners Dog and earns points toward his championship.  Then all the unfinished bitches (females) compete against each other.  Winners Bitch also earns points towards her title.  Finally, any champions entered compete against each other, the Winners Dog, and the Winners Bitch for Best of Breed.  The following link provides the basics of conformation competitions:  A Beginner's Guide to Dog Shows.

To become a champion, dogs and bitches must have a total of 15 points.  A minimum of 6 points must be earned on two separate days, i.e., 3 points each day, for what is termed a Major win.  The significance of the word "major" is that the dog or bitch has competed against enough entrants of the same breed in a single day of a show to establish worthiness.  To ensure fair criteria for awarding major points, the American Kennel Club has defined regions in the United States based on several factors, such as population and proximity to other regions (Club Point Schedule).  Each region has its own entry requirement per breed to be awarded a minimum of 3 points and earn a major win.

Due to the small Doberman Pinscher population in Alaska, a major can be awarded if there are four unfinished dogs (males) working to attain their championships.  We need five unfinished Doberman Pinschers females entered to have a major win for bitches in Alaska.  By comparison, in Florida, 10 dogs must be entered to earn a major, and 14 bitches to do the same.

Finally, no matter where you are in the United States, your dog or bitch can possibly earn major points in the final ring: titled entrants, the Winners Dog, and the Winners Bitch.  Those points are tricky to anticipate.  For example, JayJay earned her second major win in a show that had only four unfinished bitches entered.  However, she took Best of Breed over a finished champion which meant that she won over five total dobermans entered and was awarded 3 points and a major.

Right at this moment, we have only one dog in all of Alaska that is not a champion and competing in the show ring.  There are only four bitches that are showing in the ring in Alaska and one of them just finished her championship, mine.  Fortunately, people do fly up for our shows.  Some do so because they consider our small population an easy place to put major points on their dog or bitch.

We have disproved that thesis several times with our dobermans.  JayJay, alone, disproved that thesis four times, three of those this season.  This year she won against a bitch from Washington in March.  She won against a bitch entered and shown by her own breeder and co-owner, Michelle Santana, in May.  And she just won and finished against two bitches from Outside, one from Oregon and the other from Washington.  There were seven bitches entered and JayJay was awarded 5 points in one day of the show to finish!  JayJay won one of the days at each show she entered this year and four other Alaskan dobermans have won at those same shows.  Per capita, we are more than holding our own.

My fellow Alaskans will continue to compete for championship points by entering their dog and bitches in July at the Kenai Kennel Club shows in Soldotna and the Cook Inlet Kennel Club in Palmer.  We are no longer gaining points for a Championship, but JayJay can now compete as a "Special".  These are dogs and bitches that are finished champions and are only going into the ring to garner additional accolades - you know, Creme de la Creme.  The champions vie for recognition against other champions and against the Winners Dog and Winners Bitch of the day.  JayJay was moved to Best of Breed competition on Sunday and although she did not take Best of Breed, she was awarded a Select point toward her Grand Championship.

It took me FOREVER to understand how this all worked, but now I write about it like I'm a pro, which, of course, I am not.  Now that she is a champion and does not need an professional to show her (Leslie, Stephanie, and Kelly), I will start handling her more. I need the experience and although accolades are FUN, they are not absolutely necessary for me.  She has met the basic standard of conformation worthiness.  Besides, I can't wait to get her into agility where we work as a team in an entirely different way like Aria and I are doing now.  And then there is breeding ... but that is a whole other story and one I may not get to this year.