Nothing better today. Been very unimpressed with the judging so far this weekend. I was watching the judge do his thing before we had to start getting ready, and I just knew things wouldn't be good.
Feel free to not read the rant. I'm feeling a lot of emotions about certain things lol.
No consistency in his picks in the breeds I watched before, and the same with Havs. Another first in class, but nothing in the winners ring. The dog that took Winners Dog yesterday was one I could lose gracefully to. The one that won today? Not as much. Long and low with a level top line. Then a girl of a very similar breeding (sired by brothers, or something like that) took Winners Bitch. Also very long and low.
The funky looking dogs winning isn't what bothered me the most. I was asked to take a special into the BOB ring because her owners were in the ring with WD and WB (from the bred by classes). She has a similar build to the winners but is a much nicer dog when comparing to the standard, winning under judges who like the long Euro look. She was wild and excited to be in the ring with a stranger, but when she needed to perform, she did. The judge didn't give a Select Bitch, withholding the award from her. People were shocked. This girl has multiple group placements, beating a top 10 Hav on more than one occasion for breed. I, of course, felt awful. There was really no controlling her wildness (stranger handling, Mom directly behind her...I don't blame the dog), but to withhold was just unnecessary. She settled down enough for him to get a thorough exam in, and she moved beautifully on her down and back. It was being discussed a bit afterwards very hush hush, and one exhibitor who does very well with their dogs likened it to The Twilight Zone.
I also watched this judge do juniors today, and was very upset by the way he handled it. He lost his patience very quickly, gave almost no direction, and was very snippy with the kids. His group picks were completely out of left field, making little to know sense to me. Many around me during breed and juniors were discussing reaching out to AKC, the kennel club hosting, or whomever else it may concern regarding this judge. It was absolutely ridiculous and made yesterday look like a wonderful dream.
I'm not going to lie, after two days in a row of watching incredibly consistent Golden picks in an entry of over 90, I felt a bit jealous. I do wish there were more Havanese breed specialists, but it seems most judges just tick Havanese off on approved breeds to get a full toy group judging license situation. Judges tend to pick the dog with the most coat and/or the craziest top line because those are buzz words in the breed standard. Nevermind the fact that a green eyed dog was put up today...
Anyways, rant over. I have heard good things about tomorrow's judge (like that she puts dogs with less coat up if they have good structure and movement...which is where Nino is). Fingers crossed, but I don't expect too much.