Showsight December 2020

PROFESSIONAL HANDLER Q&A

With whom have we worked as assistants? Lynda worked for Ray and Jeannette McGinnis. Dave traveled and worked for Ray McGinnis and Frank Housky. Do we specialize in certain breeds or Groups? Mostly Span- iels and Sporting dogs. Would love to get into other Groups, but not Terriers. How has COVID-19 impacted our business this year? We have been to very few shows. There have only been a couple weekends in California, so if we want to attend shows we have to travel to more states in the Southeast. Did we attend many shows during the pandemic? Yes, we did. Have we had to supplement our income? Yes. What do we think of the many changes put in place at shows? I think they are great ideas for all of our health and safety. Do we have any expectations for the sport moving forward? We hope that we get through this pandemic and the shows can then get back to normal. What are our clients saying about their plans for 2021? Right now, it’s wait and see which shows will happen. Are we planning to attend Westminster next year? No, it is the same weekend as Woofstock out here in California. Morris & Essex? No. What’s the first thing we plan to do once the pandemic is behind us? Lynda wants to get a massage. For both of us, it’s get back to work. Anything else we wish to share? Just for everyone to be safe. CELSO SCHNEIDER I live in McHenry, Illinois. I have been in dogs for 50 years, 43 years as a professional handler. I am an AKC Registered Handler. There are two important sides to consider to be a member of a handler association: One is to pro- mote the sport in the right way, improve knowledge, and acquire representativeness; the other side is that, by following the associa- tion’s regulations, I achieve a recognition that is important as a pro- fessional. In which breed and all-breed clubs am I a member? I’m a mem- ber of the Fox River Valley Kennel Club. Am I an AKC Breeder of Merit? I am not an AKC Breeder of Merit. Do I have any hobbies or interests apart from purebred dogs? I like cooking, soccer, and technology. With whom have I worked as an assistant? I’ve worked as an assistant to Peter Green and Maripi Wooldridge. Do I specialize in certain breeds or Groups? I show all breeds but knotted breeds; mostly Sporting, Hound, Terrier, and Toy breeds. How has COVID-19 impacted my business this year? It has impacted a lot, affected all the plans I had for the dogs under my care. I have many dogs from abroad. Championships couldn’t be finished due to show cancellations or no majors around. Specials had their campaigns interrupted, affecting their ranking, and any strategy was useless due to judge changes and cancellations. It was a very atypical year with people giving up showing their dogs. Of course, all these issues are reflected in financial losses. Did I attend many shows during the pandemic? Between August and November, I covered a good number of shows. However, since the first week of November, all the shows I entered my dogs in through the end of December were cancelled. Have I had to supplement my income? Yes, and I am lucky to have great clients to support me; no one took their dogs home dur- ing the no-show time. This helped a lot. What do I think of the many changes put in place at shows? Some changes were necessary for the moment and will vanish with

time, like masks and distance. Others may stay, like ring entrance and exit, and numbers distribution. Do I have any expectations for the sport moving forward? The sport showed a great reaction capacity when the shows came back. All the changes and exhibitor cooperation gives us a good expecta- tion for improvement. What are my clients saying about their plans for 2021? Most of them are waiting to see how things will turn out with the pandemic, to establish a plan. Expectancy is the word. Am I planning to attend Westminster next year? Morris & Essex? Yes, it is in my plan. What’s the first thing I plan to do once the pandemic is behind us? Get back to my normal life; at least as close to this as possible. Anything else I’d wish to share? Resilience. This is what we’ve learned this year. May we use it to overcome 2020. TERRY SMITH I live in Arkansas. I have been showing dogs professionally since 2005. Am I a member of PHA? I am a PHA handler. In which breed and all-breed clubs am I a member? I am a mem- ber of the Mastiff Club of America (MCOA). Do I specialize in certain breeds or Groups? I specialize in Mas- tiffs and have shown multiple Number One dogs in this breed for years now. I also show all other breeds, having Number One Clum- bers, Chihuahuas, Manchesters, and other breeds. How has COVID-19 impacted my business this year? COV- ID-19 has made it very difficult to keep my dogs at the top in all- breed, especially in the Working Group. Certain breeds tend to get the point for placements in the Group more often than others. And with so few shows to attend during COVID it made it dif- ficult out there for those of us with dogs in breeds that are just as deserving of a placement, but are not the token four or five breeds to get Group placements. COVID was also difficult on the owners and backers, having to double and triple enter so that we might be able to attend a show that is not canceled. We had entered sev- eral shows and they would get canceled right after our money was received, and so lots of lost money this year for backers and clients trying to campaign a dog. Did I attend many shows during the pandemic? I attended every show I could possibly attend during COVID because we were push- ing a dog. Well, actually even more difficult, we were pushing a Mastiff bitch (which even on a normal year would have been dif- ficult). Have I had to supplement my income? I always plan ahead so, no, I did not have to supplement my income. TAKE THE LEAD did help me out with my insurance and I can’t thank them enough for that help! What do I think of the many changes put in place at shows? What would help us best is to put entries back on a certain day to enter, like Wednesday. Opening shows to enter at all times of the day and night (and just any day of the week) is so difficult. I need to let my clients know when they will be charged and for which shows. Do I have any expectations for the sport moving forward? I do wish that our stats for this year would have been up-to-date. It was so hard to push our dogs to the top, trying to count every point in our breeds by ourselves. The stats were not put up until after the last show of the year. This doesn’t sound like much to some, but to others it was. You see, some of us had a bucket list to fill and time wasn’t on our side. RIP my sweet, sweet friend, AKC Judge Pam Winter, my owner/backer friend who passed away not ever getting to advertise her Number One breed dog and Number One all-breed (or to even see it in the stats).

190 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, DECEMBER 2020

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