says WHAT’S THE BIGGEST MISCONCEPTION ABOUT “DOG SHOW PEOPLE”?
Biggest misconception about show dog people is that they are elitist and only interested in money. —Anonymous That they are not friendly. Most dog show people are very focused on what they are doing. —Anonymous
That “dog show people” prefer not to spend time talking to “newbies”; are wealthy; do not love and care for their dogs like the rest of the dog owning public. Please give the novice inquiry a moment of your attention; explain how we have real jobs to pay for our passion and that we have hopes and dreams and unbounded love for our hopeful winners and love them both winning and/or losing. All the “dog show people” I know do health checks, provide retirement, raise well bred and socialized puppies weather the hopeful brings us glory in our breeding program or not! We know where our puppies are and provide our own “rescue”. —Pat Putman
That we are all rich or that we make money breeding show dogs! —Maura
I think one of the biggest misconceptions is that we’re all rich, that it’s a rich man’s game or that you have to be wealthy to participate. This goes hand-in-hand with the misconcep- tion that we show to win money. I think in reality the majority of owner-handlers are weekend warriors who work full time jobs through the week and most invest every dime of our disposable income showing dogs. For 99% of us, it’s a money- losing proposition but we’ve learned to be smart about costs. Instead of having a houseful of mediocre dogs, we may invest in one really high quality dog. We might forego a vacation to use the time off from work and cash to enter our national specialty. We may bring our own food and cook on the road when doing a 4-day cluster or room with another exhibitor to save on hotel expenses. Suits and shoes may do double- duty in our jobs and in the show ring. Yes, it certainly helps to have a lot of money, but showing dogs is like any other hobby—you can be frugal or you can spend a ton. You don’t have be wealthy to get started and have fun! —Edy Ballard That we are all basically the same. Dog show people are are an incredible mosaic of different races, ethnicities, occu- pations, ages, education and socioeconomic groups. It’s an amazing amalgam of humanity bound together by our love of dogs. —Anonymous
A common misconception is that our dogs are not pets first and foremost. —Anonymous
That we are in it for the money. I have explained to so many that we don’t make money showing dogs. Especially breeder/owner/handlers. Yes, we occasionally have a lit- ter of puppies for which we spend far more money than we make. And there are stud services if we own a male but we spend more money showing, finishing, campaigning and health testing than we make on the services. Only the top pro handlers make any money for they are paid by the owners whether their dog wins or loses. Then if they win they receive bonuses from the owners. There is also prize money involved for the winners of some of the top shows such as national dog shows. But the average owner han- dler there is far more money going out than ever comes in. —Karen Whyte Every successful breeder desires to become a judge— especially breeder-owner-handlers. My reason for handling my own dogs is the “competition” and the ability to compete against the greatest and win. As a lifetime athlete, it’s the sim- ply the competitive drive. —Anonymous
That we’re rich snobs who get even richer breeding dogs. I’d guess the majority of us are middle-class. —Anonymous
People think that there is money to be made if you own, breed or show your dogs. Not the case, it is simply a pure pas- sion and fun hobby to spend time with your dogs and meet various people with the same mind sense. —Rick Shriver That we make a lot of money breeding show dogs. — Anonymous
I think the biggest misconception is that we get money for winning at shows. —Pam Kozak
We do not care about our dogs. When actually they mean everything to us. —Anonymous
That their puppies are too good for the average dog owner or that we’re snobby. —Lynda Birmantas Beam
We don’t love our dogs or care about them and are just showing for our own egos! —Anonymous
That we aren’t friendly, are unapproachable and we are all a bit strange. —Anonymous
Our dogs are not beloved pets! —Anonymous
246 • S HOW S IGHT M AGAZINE , N OVEMBER 2017
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