Honi Reisman at the 2012 Morris & Essex Kennel Club match show.
Thu, 09/01/2022 - 8:14pm

Editorial: September 2, 2022

Back to the Future

What a pleasant surprise to receive in the mail (remember when premium lists and the like arrived by regular mail?) an invitation to attend a real old-fashioned and sorely missed match show hosted by the Long Island Kennel Club. A copy appears with this column.

You remember those days when you rounded up your latest litter of puppies, loaded them in your station wagon and drove to some grassy field behind the local school or park? A well-thought-out and planned outing for you and your puppies. Unrushed and relaxed, uncompetitive and — most of all — in the area where your local club was organized. An inexpensive opportunity to expose your puppies in a non-competitive but fun way to the rigors of dog shows. Like most learning experiences, like having a total stranger touch your dog, it should be relaxed for both you and your dogs, without the anxiety of nerves and championship points. For a few dollars, you pre-enter or enter the day of the match, which is so laid back the exhibitors are offered a rain date in case of inclement weather. This is not last-minute match held the night before or on the day of a club’s point show, but a planned event on an off weekend. It not only socializes the untrained puppy, but also serves as a relaxed learning experience for the novice owner-handler to learn the art of handling dogs. Like learning how to swim, you start in the shallow end of the pool and gradually go further into the deep end.

Dog shows should be like that: Teach and learn at the match-show level and graduate to the point show. It also is a great learning tool for up-and-coming future judges to get their hands on the breeds they are interested in judging.

To that end, any show-giving club holding a match show can have that event listed in Dog News on a monthly basis, free of charge. Please send your listing to editorial@dognews.com and include the following: kennel-club name, type of match show, date of event and contact information. 

 

 

 

© Dog News. This article may not be reposted, reprinted, rewritten, excerpted or otherwise duplicated in any medium without the express written permission of the publisher.

Stay Connected

YES! Send me Dog News' free newsletter!