Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunnie  How exciting that must have been. I am trying to learn all I can about showing and hope to be there one day soon. How did you prepare for showing yourself?
Sonya |
Firstly, THank you all for your encouragement!
How does one prepare for showing? WOW, I think I am not equipped to anwer that question. To tell you frankly, it was awfully very difficult for me and had to go out of my comfort zone to go inside that ring and walk with My SweetPea. I was very nervous all the while.
I love My SweetPea and made a decision to take seriously my commitment to fulfill the contract that I signed with her breader. I am supposed to try to finish her, or at least try to reach her best show potential. I had to consider that fact that I just got My SweetPea last June, and yet wanted to show her as early as possible.
The first step was to sign up in this forum, and learn from the mentors about the sport, asking questions, and listening and taking advises, as well as prudence in following advises; reading and researching about the topic; enrolling in conformation classes; self-knowledge, that is, knowing what one can do or cannot do at the moment, which takes a lot of humility...
My SweetPea is very headstrong wild. I had to realize that I do not have the skills to train this headstrong wild yet adorable and loveable yorkie.
I had to accept that I am too novice (just became a yorkieMom in June) about dogs and for this special breed at that, to be able to train her and myself learning how to handle My SweetPea at the same time. This I understood after three conformation classes. Neither My SweetPea or I were progressing.
So I utilized the services of a private professional handler for all succeeding conformation classes that we attended. During the first half of the conformation class, the professional handler trained My SweetPea in class, while I observe the handler very closely how she does it; then I take over the other half of the class with My SweetPea, and she critiques me and coaches me on what to do to reinforce her training with My SweetPea. This works for me because I want to learn faster, and want My SweetPea to learn quicker as well. (As a sidebar, I have encountered yorkie owners who made me feel 'less' just because I have to have someone else handle My SweetPea for me. And I had to endure that too
). It is a professional sport, and some are good at it, some are not. Some are naturals at doing it, and some take time to learn it.
Mentors in YT and my new friends in YTCnc all said that I should just go inside the show ring and try it... which I did do! And they were all correct and right... if you want to learn the sport, then just do it! And you will not be lacking of support and encouragement form the best people in the sport... and they are right here in this forum!
Thanks for listening!