Old English Sheepdog Breed Magazine - Showsight

“PLEASE ENJOY THIS AGILE, ATHLETIC HERDING DOG WHEN JUDGING. WHEN TRAINED AND PRESENTED AT THEIR BEST YOU WILL FIND THE OLD ENGLISH SHEEPDOG TO BE A PLEASURE TO HAVE IN YOUR RING.”

your placements. Set your priorities. Which dog has the best Balance and Proportion, Head, Topline, Coat and Movement and select your placements and determine what trade-offs you will make in selecting your four placements. You will now rank the dogs from the one that most closely matches the breed standard and canine anatomy through to the dogs that may not comply as closely as your first choice. All of this has to be done in 2 min- utes per dog. While 2 minutes per dog may not seem to be enough time, we must be prepared to evaluate them in the time the AKC requires. The Old Eng- lish Sheepdog is not a difficult breed to evaluate if you follow the steps that I have outlined. Each time you judge the OES it will become easier to evaluate and find the dogs that are most compli- ant with the Breed Standard. OES exhibitors appreciate judges that thoroughly examine the dogs and get into the coat. Don’t worry about messing up a grooming job, you have to dig in and examine each dog. Please enjoy this agile, athletic Herd- ing dog when judging. When trained and presented at their best you will find

the Old English Sheepdog to be a plea- sure to have in your ring. Author’s Note —In an effort to include helpful information and useful tips to the readers I asked other OES specialist judges to share their approaches and thought processes for the benefit of the readers. Information from Terry Carter, Some Buddy OES; Martin Doherty, Auriga OES; Davor Javor, Reata OES; and Chris Moore, Perfu OES; and Marilyn O’Cuilinn, Merryrogue was included in this article. A special note of thanks to Dennis Maier for his photo contributions and content management of OESCA Judges Education materials.

wins and placements at AKC events and many have championships in foreign countries. At the 2012 OES- CA National Specialty Qubic OES were Winners Dog, Winners Bitch, Best of Winners and Best of Breed. Qubic OES have received awards for Top Producing Sires and Dams and Register of Merit awards from the Old English Sheepdog Dog Club of America. While the breeding pro- gram has remained small, she is proud to have maintained high stan- dards of health and temperament in her dogs. Mary Anne has served as a club officer, AKC Delegate and is a Life Member of the Ann Arbor Kennel Club where she is currently Show Chair. Mary Anne serves as Judges Education Chair for the Old English Sheepdog Club of Amer- ica. In 2013 Mary Anne was selected as Herding Breeder of the Year by the Santa Barbara Kennel Club. She is approved by the AKC to judge all Work- ing and Herding Breeds, PBGVs and Best In Show. In addition to judging in the US, Mary Anne has judged in Aus- tralia, China, South Africa, Taiwan, Mexico, Canada, Germany, Denmark and Finland.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mary Anne has experi- ence as an exhibitor, breeder, dog club official and judge. Mary Anne b e g a n b r e ed i ng and exhib- iting Old

English Sheepdogs in 1973 and has bred and owned over 100 OES Cham- pions under the Qubic prefix. Qubic OES have won BIS, BISS, many group

260 • S HOW S IGHT M AGAZINE , J UNE 2018

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