Many people enjoy showing their dogs, it can be a great way to meet like minded dog lovers and open up a social scene where many good friends can be made. Dog showing is a sport but tends to be subjective; the judge is trying to find the best example of a breed to fit the standard based on what that breed of dog was originally meant to do.
There has been a good deal of bad press for pedigree dogs, some of it deserved, some not so but we are very fortunate in the Wolfhound, like most sighthounds, that they remain very unexaggerated, very functional and unchanged from their origins.
When starting out at shows, it is tempting to dive in the deep end and take your puppy to a Championship show to try and qualify for Crufts. However, learning to show your dog is a craft that warrants an apprenticeship in learning to handle properly, developing a rapport with your dog so that both he and you are confident and happy to enter a show ring and show yourselves off to advantage.
Ring Craft Classes are the ideal place to learn the skills required both by you and your dog and the contact for your local Club can be found via the Kennel Club website as most Ring Craft Societies will be registered with them.
Details of these and other shows are listed in the weekly dog press such as Our Dogs, which can be ordered from your newsagent or bought by mail directly from the publishers.
Shows fall into different categories but are generally all under the auspices of the Kennel Club who grant a licence for the show to be held
