If you love purebred dogs and are interested in the preservation of your favorite breed, you might want to consider getting involved in the sport of conformation. The original dog sport, conformation is often misunderstood as being a beauty pageant, but that isn鈥檛 the case at all.
Whether its through watching The National Dog Show on Thanksgiving or tuning in to the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, conformation is the dog sport many people are most familiar with. Conformation as a sport is about promoting the excellence of each breed of dog and is a fun way to support your local dog community. If you and your dog have been dabbling in conformation, here are some ways you can get more involved in this dog sport.
The Benefits of Conformation
Conformation is a fun and challenging sport for dogs and people. The closer the dog aligns with their breed standard, the better the chance they have of winning. Some of the benefits of competing in conformation include:
- Bonding with your dog: Training and competing in conformation together is a great opportunity to have fun and spend quality time with your dog.
- Better Communication: Since you and your dog need to work together to be successful in the ring, the time you put into training and practicing will help you better understand each other.
- Improved behavior: Your dog will need to learn basic training skills to be successful in conformation. Not only will this help your dog to succeed in a dog show environment, but it can also help prevent many common behavior issues.
- Socialization: Dog shows are a busy place. Getting involved in conformation is a great opportunity to get your dog comfortable around distractions, such as unfamiliar people or other dogs.
- Breed Knowledge: There鈥檚 no better way to learn about a breed of dog than to get involved with showing them.
Enjoy Conformation Training at Home
You don鈥檛 have to have dreams of showing at Westminster to have fun with conformation. To get started at home, your first step is going to be to look up the breed standard for your dog鈥檚 breed. The breed standard will give you the blueprint for what an ideal dog of your breed should look like. This can help you to start to get an idea if your dog has what it takes to be a conformation dog. Your dog鈥檚 breed standard will outline the specific attributes that each breed of dog should demonstrate. Start to practice showcasing your dog鈥檚 strengths including being able to focus on you around distractions, stacking, and gaiting.
Focus
With conformation, you can have a treat (or bait as it鈥檚 generally called) with you in the ring. Use the treats to get your dog鈥檚 attention and then bring the treat up to your face, then back to your dog. Start with getting your dog鈥檚 attention at home in low-distraction environments. Then, you can start practicing on walks or while visiting dog-friendly spaces, such as your local pet store. Soon, your dog will be able to focus on you anywhere.
Stacking
Stacking involves training a dog to stand still either on a table (for small dogs), on the ground (for large breeds), or a ramp. When dogs stand in a stacked position, they鈥檙e in an aesthetically pleasing and physically balanced way, so the judge can see their body. When being stacked, a dog is being examined by the judge to evaluate their overall condition and structure. This includes a judge putting their hands on the dog to literally feel the dog鈥檚 structure. Look online at pictures of your breed at shows to see how handlers stack their dogs, then start to practice with your dog.
Gaiting
Gaiting refers to moving a dog in the direction and movement pattern (up and back, so going across the ring and back), or around the ring as specified by the judge. The judge must observe each entry individually, gaiting from the front, the side, and the rear. This isn鈥檛 just like taking your dog for a walk. When gaiting a dog, we want to see a dog moving smoothly in a free and easy gait, which shows their build. When practicing at home, it can be useful to watch videos of dogs of your breed being shown, so you can get an idea for how they should be moving in the ring. You can also take video recordings while practicing gating your dog, so you can make sure the movement you get is fluid and makes your dog look their best.
Take Videos of Training Sessions
To improve your handling while practicing in class or at home, start taking a video recording as you work with your dog. By reviewing video recordings from practice, you鈥檒l be able to get a sense of what a prospective judge will see. You don鈥檛 need a fancy setup, just prop your cell phone and hit record as you practice with your dog. These recordings don鈥檛 have to be shared with anyone but are an invaluable tool for you to analyze your handling. As you watch the training session back, you鈥檒l be able to see places where your dog might have been struggling with focus, or where your handling was less effective. Take notes on things you want to fix and then work on that during your next practice session.
Get Grooming Support
Proper grooming of dogs is essential for their success in conformation. While you can start to explore proper grooming techniques at home, you鈥檙e likely going to need support, especially if you have a breed of dog that requires extensive grooming, such as a double-coated breed. Attending local dog shows is a great way to meet people involved in your local show community who can provide you with support and mentorship with grooming.
You may also want to look up your national breed club and see if there is a regional breed club in your local area. These breed clubs frequently hold grooming seminars to teach owners how to groom their dogs to compete in conformation. Clubs can also help connect you with experienced people in your local area who may be available to mentor you, or even groom your dog for you as you gain necessary grooming skills. Your regional breed club, or handling instructors in the local area will be the best resource for finding grooming support to get your dog ring-ready.
Join a National Breed Club
Many new conformation exhibitors will become members of their local all-breed or regional breed club, but it鈥檚 also beneficial to join your national breed club. Through the national breed club, you鈥檒l have the opportunity to connect with people who are experts on your breed. This is an ideal way to build mentoring friendships with people who have more experience in the breed. Your national breed club will be a great resource to support you with grooming, training, and handling for conformation.
Take Handling Classes
When watching a dog show, it might look like the handler is simply running in a circle around a ring with their dog at the end of a lead, but it鈥檚 more nuanced. The goal of going down and back and around the ring with your dog is to allow the judge to see how each dog moves. This helps the judge to see how a dog鈥檚 structure comes together and compare each dog to the breed standard.
All-breed clubs or breed-specific clubs in your area likely host handling classes. When attending local dog shows, make time to talk to the participants, especially those who are handling dogs in the same breed and group as you. You can inquire about who they train with and if they know anyone offering conformation handling classes. Attending these classes can help you break down the nuances of what is expected of a handler and their dog in conformation. A good handling class will support you with assessing your dog鈥檚 strengths and weaknesses. It will also give you the skills you need to showcase those strengths, so that your dog can shine when you enter the ring together.
Handling classes often meet for an hour each week and involve practice exercises. You may also receive 鈥渉omework鈥� for you and your dog to work on during the week to help you build your handling skills and your dog learn how to present themselves for competition. Some conformation handling classes are drop-in, meaning you and your dog can attend weeks that work for your schedule, and miss other weeks if your schedule doesn鈥檛 allow you to attend. Make sure to find a handling instructor who utilizes positive reinforcement training techniques when working with dogs. A happy dog who is having fun is going to put their best paw forward and show their best.
Entering a Dog Show
If you and your dog have been taking handling classes, you might feel ready to enter your first dog show together. Before entering for the first time, try to attend some local dog shows as a spectator. This will allow you to get a feel for what being at a dog show is like. You can also sign up with your local club to volunteer at a show to learn more about how shows operate. To help your dog get ready to compete, you can also sign up for a fun match. Fun matches are organized like regular dog shows but are more casual and designed to help dogs and people get ready for an actual competition. When you enter your first dog show with your dog, remember that win or lose, you鈥檙e leaving the ring with your best friend at the end of your leash.
Invest Time In Community
We all benefit from mentorship. Although conformation isn鈥檛 a team sport, it is a community and one of the best ways to get more involved is to be a team player. Attend local shows regardless of if your dog is entered. Being a regular fixture at shows, volunteering, and talking to other competitors is a great way to build community. By being a consistent presence at shows, you also may have the opportunity to help other owners out ringside. Many breeders will need support getting multiple dogs in the ring and may ask if anyone can help handle a dog. This is a great opportunity for you to get experience handling a wider variety of dogs and improve your handling skills.
Show Consistently
Once you鈥檝e started showing, the best thing you can do to take your skills to the next level is to start showing more consistently. You don鈥檛 have to be at a dog show every weekend, but the more you show, the more ring experience you and your dog will get. Not only does this make you both more comfortable in the ring, but it also increases your chances of winning. After all, you can鈥檛 win shows you don鈥檛 enter! Being a regular exhibitor at shows in your local area will also get you more connected to potential friends and mentors.
Manage Your Anxiety
When getting more involved in conformation a lot of focus is understandably on the dog. However, it鈥檚 just as important to focus on improving your skills and that starts with your mental game. Stepping into the ring can be anxiety-provoking for even the most experienced handlers. Our anxiety and stress can travel down the leash to our dogs. If you鈥檙e stressed at a dog show, your dog is more likely to exhibit signs of stress in the ring. This can make showing less fun for your dog, and negatively influence their performance.
Working on your self-confidence and managing your stress on show days can help you to be a stronger handler, which in turn can help your dog show better. Try to implement some self-care for yourself before going into the ring like taking deep breaths or listening to music.
Keep Training Fun
As you get more serious about competing, it can be tempting to bring that intensity into your training. While regular training and practice is important to ensure your dog is ring-ready, remember to keep training sessions short, fun, and playful. You don鈥檛 need to have long practice sessions where you drill behaviors over and over. Instead, short training sessions spread out during the day are more effective. You can even incorporate practicing ring skills, like stacking, into your dog鈥檚 daily life as you鈥檙e playing together, prepping your dog鈥檚 meals, or while out on walks. The more fun your dog is having showing, the better they鈥檒l present at shows.
Start Entering More Competitive Shows
As you start competing more, you鈥檒l want to start thinking more about which shows you enter. As they get more involved in conformation, many owners will start prioritizing entering shows that will pull a larger entry of their breed. If your budget is limited, this might look like skipping a local show to be able to afford traveling outside the area to attend a breed specialty. This is an opportunity to see how your dog compares to more dogs of your breed, making wins there more prestigious.
Even if your dog doesn鈥檛 place at these shows, interacting with a large number of dogs in your breed is still a great opportunity for you. Specialties and shows that have a large entry of your breed give you the chance to interact with more dogs and owners than you would see at a typical all-breed show, which can help improve your skills.
Try Other Sports
Many successful conformation dogs are also active competitors in other sports. In fact, being involved with sports that utilize the skills your breed was originally developed for can help showcase how well-rounded your dog is. Other sports you might want to explore include Agility, AKC Rally, AKC Scent Work, obedience, and AKC Trick Dog. The focus, training, and socialization built through competing in conformation can give your dog a head start in training for these activities.
Regardless of if your dog ends up being a successful show dog, the experience you get training together will help to increase the bond and connection you share with your dog. Getting involved in conformation is also a wonderful way to support the preservation of your breed and encourage the future of the sport of purebred dogs.