Showsight January 2017

Everyone else either took on a tawny tinge or melted into the background. The group carpet color was—I don’t know—taupe? Dull. Since I don’t see RC changing this, I plan to buy a black dog. #7) Judges. How unusual for exhibi- tors to complain about judge selection! But the complaints centered around lack of group specialist judges for the pre-shows, the BBE groups and the NOHS Invitational groups. Also using overexposed judges or underexperi- enced judges. Umm... #8) Small Invitational NOHS group rings. Turns out when you combine two rings to make a group ring it mat- ters whether you use the long axis or the short axis. The short axis choice makes a big square, and when 30 dogs are lined up around it there’s not much room left to move dogs. It didn’t help that few group judges made cuts, which makes one wonder if they would have gone cut-less in a regular group. Not unless most of the dogs were sub-par, which I hope is not the impression these judges had. On the other hand, hooray for judging the Invitational NOHS BIS in the big arena at night! #9) No Veteran groups. I was told the schedule was just too busy with Regular, BBE and Vet groups. Some- thing’s got to give. But I missed them. Maybe a separate Vet day on Friday? #NotGettingAnyYoungerHere # 10) Public banned from groom- ing area. No need for those unfriendly signs telling spectators they weren’t allowed in the crating area—-the fumes from the ex-pens would have had the same effect yet allowed them to think it was their own choice! True, specta- tors could visit the breeds more easily in the Meet the Breeds ® area, and it did give some added security to the crating area, but I hate to do anything that gives the public the impression we are up to something they shouldn’t be seeing. #HonorableMention The flu (human)! THE BEST #1) Being there. It’s not just the biggest, it’s the best dog event in America. Things may not always go your way, or perfectly, but it’s not for lack of trying or caring on the part of everyone involved. Besides conforma- tion, it has agility, obedience, dock div- ing, meet the breeds, awards, judging symposiums, breeder symposiums, spe- cialties and great vendors. It’s spectator

getting a spot within two miles. And even though you had to skip that morn- ing cup of coffee in your race to get there, you can bet your adrenaline was pumping once you waited in line for 20 minutes only to have the “Lot Full” sign come on as you turned toward the gate. Going to the big lot in the sky (I mean, across the street) and waiting (and wait- ing and waiting) for the shuttle was a great way to meet new people! Helpful hint: Just sleep in your car overnight in the lot and you will won’t have to fight for space or even pay! Or get a cab or Uber driver: cost about the same, and door-to-door service. #4) Crating. Yet another chance to make new friends! First, by camping in line, just like the good old days waiting for Grateful Dead tickets! Then doors open, and aren’t you glad you got that practice in at Wal-Mart on Black Friday? Of course, it was mere shadow of the Gold Rush days when all that was at stake was a few nuggets, not the solid gold floor space in the convention cen- ter. Folks weren’t above stake jumping and I heard some tales of hand-to-hand combat. I optimistically moseyed in after noon only to see every atom of crate space claimed. Some handlers had crates stacked so high they had to use a trampoline to get dogs in and out. Yet a few exhibitors set up their own mini- empires, no stacking, crates turned sideways, covered wagons full of every- thing they could bring from home. Maybe they planned to give ballroom dance lessons in the evening, or per- haps they labored under the delusion that they would have friends coming to join them “later.” Who never showed up. #YouAreSpaceHoggingCrassholes

But again, next year, bigger building, better crating. Still I can’t help compar- ing the agility crating set up: Every dog is assigned a breed-appropriate sized space. You can crate with friends if one person takes charge and submits all your names together to the crating guru. It’s like reserved grooming only free. Maybe just raise the entry fee slightly to offset the lost income and do conformation the same way? Okay, sor- ry, I just had an attack of sudden-rush- of-diarrhea-to-the-brain. I meant, offer paid reserved grooming for larger spac- es closer to the rings and free assigned smaller spaces to every other entrant farther away. #5) Private ex-pens. No. Just—oh no, no, no! I’m told the convention center didn’t want them on the loading dock as in previous years. Because, what, they stunk too much in all that fresh air? Not only did they take several thousand crate spaces, they apparently housed only ghost dogs that nonetheless man- aged to excrete a swamp of real sew- age. Think of it this way: If we exhibi- tors used ex-pens instead of bathrooms, but promised to clean up everything and place it in bags at the ends of the rows, do you think it would smell like daisies? If private ex-pens are to remain a feature (please say no, please say no) there need to be ex-pen and non-ex- pen sections, separated by about 1,000 giant fans facing back to the ex-pen side. #LikeLivingInAPortaPotty #6) Tomato soup-colored carpet- ing. Royal Canin colors are red, white and gold. Apparently red carpet dye is costly, so they went with orangish- salmon. The only people who liked it were those showing black dogs.

42 • S how S ight M agazine , J anuary 2017