The following is from The Dog News, Aug 3rd 2007

"The Dog on the Day"
By Andrew Brace

There has been much discussion lately about the fact that, at one of our major all breeds Championship shows, BIS was won by a dog that had placed third in a group under the same judge just weeks earlier. Some people seemed to get quite excited about that fact, and everyone who was so preoccupied with this particular win suggested that such a scenario was illogical, and by inference were being rather critical of the judge in question.

I fail to see why this situation should be in any way remarkable.. First of all, the group in question was particularly strong. While I was not present at either of the shows involved and am unable to comment on the performance of the dogs concerned, at this level of competition so much can hinge on how dogs went. Secondly, the judge had previously awarded the dog BIS, at a well-attended specialty and was known to admire her enormously.

One of the most puzzling aspects of judging dogs is that certain judges seem to feel obliged to pledge a lifetime's allegiance to a dog once they have given it top honors, and continue to send it to the top of the line, regardless of performance or competition on the day. Likewise, if a dog fares indifferently under such a judge, if the exhibitor has the courage to go back for a second attempt, even if the dog has improved beyond recognition and is in better form, they are reluctant give it its just desserts, as there is some misguided belief that this indicates weakness on their part, or suggests that their previous decision was in some way lacking.

Nothing could be further from the truth. We need far more judges who are capable of judging dogs cold, and assessing them on the day-taking into account their proximity to the Breed Standard, their form and performance, and the level of competition on the day.

Dogs change from show to show and day to day. Only recently I watched a breed being judged where a bitch I had awarded a Challenge Certificate earlier in the year was competing. She was not in the form she was when I had her, there was a bitch there that was present under me, and in conversation with her owner afterwards I confided that, on the day, she would not have won under me. That comment was accepted with good grace and I daresay an element of relief that she looked far better and the competition was different at that earlier show!

Far too often dogs get on a winning roll, and as their ribbons swell, so does their reputation. Their success may not necessarily be down to their excellence as far as breed type is concerned and is often the result of form and performance, not to mention sustained publicity. Frequently, such dogs meet up with superior animals in competition that get overlooked under judges who cannot see beyond past wins.  This does the sport no favors and can actually be harmful to breeds in the long term.

There also exists within the fancy a strange tendency for some judges to latch on to one particular dog in a breed that somehow blinds them to others. Breeds have peaks and thoughts, as far as overall quality is and depth is concerned. Sometimes a breed will go for years without any real stars emerging, and then several may appear at the same time. what could be healthier for a breed than judges acknowledging that there are several truly excellent dogs around at the same time? There is no necessity to love one and loathe the others. Rather, one hopes to get them all in the same ring at the same time and enjoy judging at the highest level.

The situation that prompted this article may have puzzled some people, but in view of the fact that the judge is question is one of our most highly respected all-rounder judges and clearly demonstrates that she is capable of judging dogs cold as they come to her on any given day, I would have thought that the end result should prompt admiration rather than criticism; indeed, the fancy would be the better for having more judges of this caliber.