What The Heck? You Have To Be A Freaking Millionaire In This Sport?

That is what I’m beginning to believe. I just made my entries for a fairly local show and it cost $318.00. That entered one special for 4 days, and 2 class dogs for 2 days. Then we will have gas and lodging and food for the weekend. It is a long weekend, so there was an extra day of entries, but even so. We will be traveling to the USA for a show this weekend, so our expense is even higher for that 3 days. We absolutely love showing dogs. There is nothing we would rather be doing. But this year, we have spent on average of $500.00 per weekend and we have shown almost every weekend. $20,000 is approximately what we have spent on showing our dogs this year so far, not counting advertising and other miscellaneous expenses. I am sure that there are others that spend more than us.

All we have to do to discourage young and enthusiastic people or families with children that are looking for a family activity or older folks that are looking for something new and fun to do in their retirement, give them an idea of what they will spend in this sport. Ok, young people most likely won’t trade off vacations with friends and their gym memberships to get into Dog Fancy. Families will probably pass because the cost is too high without sacrificing school uniforms, college fund and kids birthday gifts. Are older folks willing to cash in their RRSPs and sell the family heirlooms to have enough disposable income to pay for the dog fancy? All that said tongue in cheek, but you know there is some truth in what I’m saying.

I know someone that won the lottery and decided to use some of her winnings to campaign her dog with a professional handler for one year. That is the only way she could ever afford to do that. I know Alliances have been made between owner/handlers to help show each other’s dogs, so they won’t have the expense

of a professional handler. I feel sorry for professional handlers, too. There can’t be that many doctors, lawyers and oil or cattle barons left in this world that can afford to pay $50,000 a year to have their dogs professionally housed and shown. Obviously, participating in any sport is a choice. But if enough of us can’t afford it any more, then we take the choice away from the rest. It will get to be where you won’t have enough people participating. You won’t need to rent a venue, you can just hold the much smaller and intimate dog shows in someone’s backyard.

How then do we get the cost down so it will be attractive across the spectrum? I have no idea!!! I wish I did know how to make our sport more affordable. I would be sitting up high on the throne as the All Mighty Dog Fancy Poobah! But don’t we have enough brains among our sport to gather a forum to figure it out? Let’s lock them in a room for a long weekend and not allow them to see their beloved dogs until they come

up with a solution. There needs to be fact sheets, lists of shows, financial statements, charts, graphs and a mindset that this is a solvable problem. Approach it like a business. Offer advice to the Kennel Clubs on how to provide a show that brings more exhibitors, lowering their cost but improving the Club’s bottom line. Where are the great minds in our sport?????

I bet USAS and Peta are rolling on the floor holding their bellies from laughing till it hurts. They aren't our worst enemy. WE ARE! We don’t care enough to find solutions to solve our problems. We just like to point fingers!

She Said What? No He’ Didn’t! We voted Her Out! Don’t Trust Anything They Say! Watch Her In The Ring, She Plays Dirty!

Admit it. You have either heard these comments or said these comments and probably said or heard worse than these examples.

Shame on all of us.

We keep our sport smoldering at its core with these mean spirited comments. It’s like a smoldering fire that just sits between the floor joists doing unseen damage. It’s dangerous, it can be deadly.

Most of us learned how to get along with others when we were three years old. We learned “Do Unto Others What We Want Others To Do Unto Us” and “If You Can’t Say Nice, Don’t Say Anything At All”. Then why as Adults we can’t get along?

I find myself moving farther away from negative people ringside. I don’t want to leave the ring feeling like my stomach is in a knot. Feeling tense and in knots isn't fun. How do the comments I hear over and over about others improve anything? If you are overheard by me, then you have probably been heard by many others. Really, do you want to be that kind of person?

There was a lady that was typically disliked by everyone. People had a nasty name for her. I admit, she scared me a bit. Lyle and I were hosting a cookout at a show, and I made the decision that I was going to invite her. Several of my friends thought I had taken leave of my senses. I approached her and told her how happy I would be if she came to the cookout. She looked extremely surprised, but she said she would try to make it. Sure enough, she showed up. She was very pleasant. She joined into the conversations with ease. She was happy and engaging. It turned out she had a sense of humor and was completely different than I thought. I am so glad I invited her. Now, we can speak to each other without tension at ringside. It’s hard to call someone names when you get to know them in a different light.

I didn’t tell the story to make Lyle and me look like angels. Holy Crap, you know we are not. We are human and sometimes slip and say things that should have been filtered. Lyle and I have an agreement that we help remind each other to not say hurtful and negative things.

Again, this sport needs a huge positive attitude infusion. We aren’t helping ourselves by causing friction, forgetting that we are all different and we may not always agree. Ganging up on others can feel like bullying. Backbiting says more about those doing it than the ones it’s happening to. Always grumbling about other people, judges, venues, weather, club politics and other exhibitor’s dogs, etc. only serves to keep putting more nails in our sports coffin.

If you are talking about Lyle and me, good Lord, stop it. Oh unless you are saying nice things, Carry On! We aren’t perfect and we may say or do something mindless.

Dang, I feel like I’m preaching. Can I have an AMEN? Now, if you will turn to page 419 in your hymnals, we will all stand and sing, “You Don’t Walk Alone”.

Where are you on this chart? Do you recognize anyone you know?

Lyle Jenkins – Husband Extraordinaire, Dog Enthusiast, Amateur Dog Handler and Damn Nice Man

A person sent me a nice deed this week, and when I was reading the email, I realized she was talking about

my husband. I wrote her back that I couldn't print something about us doing a nice deed, but then I realized that l should tell you wonderful people about my man.

I married this wonderful man 15 years ago this coming January. It is probably the best thing that has happened to me, only tied with adopting my son, Tom.

Lyle is from Nova Scotia and is a real family man and thinks that families should do things together.

I come from a huge dog family, but Lyle did not. When we got married, he had to take me and my dog. In the 15 years, he has tolerated us getting more and more into dogs. He stepped in and learned how to handle our Standard Wirehaired Dachshunds in the ring. He has proved to be a wonderful student and willing to take advice. He has earned a lot of respect for his ability to learn and to laugh at himself when he has made mistakes. Lyle believes that we should have fun and when we have fun the dogs enjoy it more and present better.

Lyle believes in respect for all people. He wants those around him to have fun, too. Lyle does so many nice things for others for no other reason than it makes him happy to help others.

The particular nice deed Lyle did that was the subject of the email I received was he knew of a person staying in a unheated converted van with her small dogs when the temperature turned off very cold at night. Someone told Lyle about her situation and he went straight away to Wal-Mart and bought her a small ceramic heater. She offered to pay him for the heater and her gave her a hug and told her not to worry about it.

This is just one example of the nice things he does for others at the shows. I am a very lucky woman to have such a dreamboat hubby!

Be sure to go to Canuck Dogs, http://www.canuckdogs.com, to see all the upcoming events and to check stats. You should bookmark it. That's where you will find my blog.

XXXOOO

The Dog Fancy Gives Back

Several dog show people gathered at Oakville Senior Citizens Residence last Thursday evening. This residence consist of two high rise buildings and has lovely facilities for the seniors. We all gathered in the dining room that was adjacent to a lovely sitting area. I was amazed at how many of the residents turned out to see our little "Meet and Greet the Dogs". They had taped off a circle for our make believe show ring. They had a small table in the middle of the circle for the small dogs to be displayed on. The residents sat in a circle around us.

Wendy Davis, Jane and Caroline Holicka, Mary and Maria Mateljan, Brook Sillaby, Rhonda Smith Giannini, Rebecca Stanley

and Heather Brennan were the presenters of their dogs. We all have Heather Brennan for organizing this event with Susan Bird, the Activities Coordinator at the Residence.

Each of us took a turn going into the "show ring" and telling the seniors about our dogs. We explained about their origins, what they should look like and if they had a trick, we made sure to show it. There were Havenese, German Shorthair Pointer, Golden Retreiver, Chinese Crested, Bermese Mountain Dog, Cocker Spaniel, Standard Wirehaired Dachshund and a Chihuahua.

The Chihuahua is our boy. He is fabulous in every way, even his blind left eye. He has a permanent stink eye expression. When we were introducing him, Lyle stood up with us to show the people that he also does the stink eye. Oscar was a huge hit like he always is everywhere we go. Even at the shows, Oscar has a special bed that is on top of the crates in our set up. With the beautiful dachshunds at our set up, people will go straight for Oscar. He loves everyone and can't get enough attention. I have even seen

big, strapping teen-aged boys turn to mush when I hand them over to them to hold.

When we went there that night, we didn't expect for Oscar to be

offered a job. As it turns out, the Residents initials spelled out the acronym OSCR which they pronounce, Oscar. Susan Bird, approached me about Oscar being the Resident Mascot. Oscar was very flattered and accepted the role and he has already made plans to update his wardrobe. He wants to visit at least once per month and just be a part of the Senior's day. His only holdup is that I must get a criminal background check, first. I will be taking care of that this week.

I hope that each of you will find a way to give back to your community with your dogs. Ask around. There are nursing homes, schools, hospitals, senior rec centres, just to mention a few. Lyle and I left that night feeling very blessed to have such sweet dogs and so honored to have spent the evening with other wonderful dog people. We finished our evening talking and laughing about the event and how much we loved it.

Sur

Here are the results of our last Dog Fancy Survey. Thanks so much for taking the time to complete the survey. I will be sending the results to the CKC, so they will know what's on our minds.

DOG FANCY SURVEY # 2

1) How many times per month do you show your dog? (This would be individual shows, not weekends.

Once - 12.09%

Twice - 13.19%

Three - 21.98%

Four - 14.29%

Five - 3.30%

Six - 8.79%

Other - 26.37%

The 25.84% that answered “Other” stated that their answers were based on if they had a dog at the time ready to show or if there were specialties to attend.

2) Are you a?

Breeder - 5.49%

Breeder/Owner Handler - 59.34%

Owner Handler - 16.48%

Professional Handler - 3.30%

Junior Handler - 0%

Breeder/Owner hires Professional Hander - 15.38%

3) How much do you spend for a show weekend on average? Consider travel expense, hotel/motel, RV lot rent, entry fees, food and handler fees.

$100 - 5.56%

$200 - 14.44%

$300 - 17.78%

$400 - 23.33%

$500 - 11.11%

$600 - 10.00%

More than $600 - 17.78%

4) How many average kilometers do you travel to a show?

Less than 100 km - 6.74%

101 - 200 km - 42.70%

201 - 300 km - 25.84%

More than 300 km - 24.72%

5) Are you a dog related business or hobby breeder?

Business - 7.06%

Hobby - 92.94%

6) How do you advertise puppies for sale?

Newspaper - 1.41%

Kijiji - 12.68%

Craig's List - 0.00%

Facebook - 21.13%

Webpage - 53.52%

Dog Shows - 11.27%

Word of Mouth - 87.32%

7) Would you like to see a discount for multiple dog entries in dog events?

YES - 92.13%

NO - 7.87%

8) Do you think dog events could be more spectator friendly?

YES - 94.51%

NO - 5.49%

9) Would you like to have more benched shows?

YES - 45.56%

NO - 54.44%

10) Would you be interested in sponsoring a junior handler if you got discounted entry fees for yourself and the junior?

YES - 61.36%

NO - 38.64%