Dog breeders rebel as shows told to bar the hidden helpers
IT IS an unspoken secret of the dogshowing world; a clever way of making an animal look alert and attentive in the ring.
A second trainer, incognito among the spectators, attracts the dog’s attention using a squeaky toy, a whistle or their own voice.
Hearing the noise, the dog raises its head and pricks up its ears.
But while some claim the technique simply adds excitement to shows, animal behaviour experts say it leaves the dogs stressed and anxious.
Now the Kennel Club (KC) is acting to stop “double handling” on animalwelfare grounds, provoking a bitter row among members.
Officials will be placed among championship show audiences to spot double handlers. Shows that still allow it will be ejected from the organisation.
Some owners predict the ban will be widely ignored by those who consider the technique legitimate.
Bob Honey, a long-standing breeder and chairman of the British Association for German Shepherd Dogs, said: “Double handling has been going on for 30 years, and it will carry on whatever the Kennel Club says.
“As long as it’s not over the top, with the individual running all over the place through the crowd, it’s fine. It adds to the atmosphere at shows.”
The crackdown comes after a public backlash over a decision in March to award a “best in breed” prize at Crufts to a German shepherd with an abnormally sloped back and a painful-looking out-of-step gait, prompting some viewers to describe it as “deformed”.
The club then launched a review of breeding standards, along with an investigation into underhand practices.
As a result, it has toughened up the wording of its “breed standard” to emphasise the importance of dogs “being capable of standing comfortably and calmly, freely and unsupported”.
The club has suspended judges of German shepherd dogs for shows from 2018. It said: “The culture of doublehandling widely practised and condoned at breed club shows was felt to be having a detrimental effect on the temperament of dogs which often show symptoms of enormous stress while being exhibited and at other times. Erratic movement and apparently exaggerated conformation were other concerns.”
Some breeders warn the crackdown could force more to boycott the Kennel Club and set up rival shows.
Mr Honey said: “Things could get quite nasty. People will take the attitude that it’s their hobby, and now we’ve got people telling us what to do.”