Posted by John on 8/8/2006, 11:21 pm, in reply to "Re: why dose one judge tell you one thing about your dog and another judge says tells you driffrent" 1. YOU are a BREEDER with excellent knowledge and experience with your breed. 2. YOU know the breed standard for your breed(s) better than the back of your own hand. 3. Chances are pretty great that YOU know more about your breed than the vast majority of Judges who are not now nor have they ever been personally involved with your breed as a BREEDER. I can understand your search for possible explanations to account for the divergence of opinion you received, but frankly, people vary so greatly in their attitudes, knowledge, experience, and ability to interpret breed standards that I am not surprised any longer when such polarized answers are offered...it is just their unique, personal opinion, and one happens to differ from the other. Which one is out to lunch? Who knows? UKC rules says we must not argue final decisions, and provides a means for complaints to be levied, as Jerry has pointed out. I used to find it VERY insulting for a Judge to give me some kind of lame-a_ _ explantion, for it really does constitute an insult of the breeder, but then I realized that absolutely NO status, either actual or implied, is bestowed upon breeders. If breeders remember that THEY are, in the vast majority of occasions, the EXPERT on their breed (certainly not the Judge), they will not need to ask a question about their dog...our questions can more legitimately be targeted at the Judge's OPINION, and we can but try to understand why they came to the decision they did. Chances are pretty great that when a Judge does give us the benefit of their opinion we may not agree with it, but the JUDGE's opinion is the one that counts that day, at that time, and in that show. I had, however, much rather the Judge simply reply to any questions I might bring with a simple "I liked the other dog better," and let it go at that than for the Judge to insult me with some kind of explanation that just doesn't parallel the breed standard, or any rational interpretation of it. I have had one Judge tell me that my dog had incomplete dentition. I had just gotten the dog back from the Vet that very week before the show where the dog was anesthetized for OFA hip x-rays and teeth cleaning, and I got a written statement from my Vet who inspected my dog's teeth and certified, in writing that the dog had complete dentition with a correct "scissors bite." This was a statement that included certification of dentition as well as occlusion. It would have done no good to produce that certificate, nor argue with the Judge's explanation. It was obvious the Judge thought I was a fool or he would not have given me that explanation, but I was determined I would do nothing more to confirm that fact by anything else I said or did at that time. Jerry made a really good point about "all-breed" Judges: Many are being licensed to evaluate the hundreds of breeds that are recognized, but the Judge may only have personal experience with one or two breeds. The more dedicated Judges study the breed standards of the breeds they will be seeing in the show they are hired to preside over, and will ask the Event Secretary for a break-down of the breeds prior to the show date. From my experience, you can count the number of Judges who do that on one hand. Nina, just take it with a grain of salt...place confidence where you know it is correctly placed...in yourself, as a knowledgeable, experienced breeder. You know much more than you realize...YOU are the expert in your breed(s). John
209.34.8.26
is not uncommon, it occurs all the time. Sometimes it can be explained as a difference of opinion in what constitutes "hard condition," and maybe there is a different explanation from among the many that we could imagine...BUT...please consider this:
