What is a SHOW DOG? 0
by Steve Wolfson
While out and about, I will sometimes encounter a person on the street walking their Rottweiler and after inquiring about the dog’s background the owner most often adds “I bought it as a show dog, but decided not to show it. Not wanting to burst the owner’s bubble, mentally I will conclude the dog was never intended to be of show quality, and for all concerned I let the owner remain with the fantasy. Thinking about this particular problem, I thought it appropriate to discuss and define what exactly is, a show dog.
Many new exhibitors in their zeal to purchase a show dog can be easily confused by breeders and or, sold a bill of goods as to the attributes, the “show ability” of the pup they have just bought. How useful a tool it would be if we all had a template by which to define and measure what a show dog is before we put money down to buy one.
A variety of strange things occur to dog and owner on the way to the show ring. Sometime, somewhere down the road the show specimen which came with a high price tag turns out not a show dog at all, but merely a nice family pet. Is there a way to prevent this from happening? Not completely, since things which are made of flesh and blood don’t always turn out the way we want. Nonetheless, a new prospective buyer, or even a old prospective buyer can profit with a solid definition to work from.
