From the Publisher – The Need for a Solid Foundation
Click here to read the complete article
By Tom Grabe
I started showing horses at local, open shows. My greatest memories from those days weren’t the wins or the trophies, or even winning money from a class with a jackpot. My greatest memories came after the show when we all cooked out, played football, and raced our horses around the grounds. I made good friends and learned a lot about life. I met my wife because of horses. I am certain horse shows did the same for others.
I have had the good fortune to show at the highest levels of the sport of purebred dogs and the sport of purebred horses. As professional dog handlers, Amy and I showed record-breaking dogs. We also owned a multiple Westminster group winner. We have also had the good fortune to own and show world champion horses.
Show dogs are different from horses. We rarely buy and sell them. Other than the AKC National Championship, there are no big money purses at dog shows. People compete with their dog for a variety of reasons – the love of tough competition, the love of their dogs, the love of breeding dogs, and the desire to be around other like-minded dog lovers. Similar to horses, the majority of those people don’t succeed at the highest level of the sport. There have only been 145 Westiminster Best In Show winners in 145 years. It’s hard to win Best of Breed, let alone Best In Show, at those big shows yet large numbers of people keep coming to them. It makes me wonder, “Why would a person take their dog to a big dog show knowing the odds are stacked against them?” I think it’s because they are going for the experience not the win.
Even though our sport is based on an individual competing with their horse against other similar individuals and their horses, supporting our industry is a team effort. We have some on the team who are are superstars and have become household names; but without the others, we lack the foundation to allow our industry to flourish.
