08/19/2024
I hate conflict. And avoid it at all costs. Which is why, to a certain degree, I curate what I write and post. But I recently ran across something on FB that really bothered me. So I thought about it. And decided to write about it. I am not going to argue about it. So if you choose to post a comment in that vein, I won't respond. This is just my opinion. Take it or leave it.
I compete in dog sports. We can’t do that without judges. No judges, no competition. Pretty simple. I am not a judge. Why? Because I don’t have the skills. I’ve thought about it quite often. I’ve imagined myself judging. I’ve tried when I’m acting as a judge at matches. I can’t do it.
Being a judge requires an enormous amount of focus. Sustained focus. Over a very long period of time. Eight hours on average. Now let’s be truly fair and honest. How many of us can do that? Fewer and fewer every year. We are used to getting everything quickly. Super quickly and yet, it’s still not fast enough. Case in point, when your phone doesn’t work …instantly….”What is wrong with my phone???? Why is it so slow???” or when an internet connection isn’t fast enough..”this connection is terrible!!! It’s sooooo slow…how can I get ANYTHING done???” We have terrible listening skills. Our reading skills are even worse. We don’t have time to read paragraphs and paragraphs. It must be short, straight to the point or we are out. On to something else. Scrolling..scrolling...swiping. Deifnitely terrible for sustained focus skills.
Back to judging. You must get there early to set up your ring. You must talk to your stewards and give them instructions. These days the stewards are often not even competitors. They may not even train dogs. Which means the judge must oversee them and help them throughout the day. And when they are “slow”, or make mistakes, the judge must be patient. And must deal with the IMPATIENT exhibitors. Fun times, I’m sure. The judge must remember an enormous number of rules. Not just have read them once many years ago, but know them. Inside and out. Can you HONESTLY say you’ve even read the entire Rulebook? Because I’ll be honest. It’s been decades since I have. And if you’ve read it, have you memorized it? Because I sure haven’t.
Judges must simultaneously watch and evaluate the dog and handler. Who are not always in close proximity. They must remember the order of exercises, where to go for each one, how to move about the ring, while watching and judging. Have you ever tried to score a heeling pattern? Without looking away? How do you call the pattern, watch the team the entire time and write down what you see? Or, even more challenging in my opinion, memorize the errors to write them down afterwards. They can’t spend a lot of time writing. Because they must watch the team. Not just during the exercise, but between the exercises as well.
When they are judging they are not training their dogs or competing with them. They are giving up their weekend. They already know that everyone is NOT going to be happy with their decisions. After all, only ONE person wins. And only three more earn placements. They are going to make decisions that exhibitors don’t like. Can you imagine doing something all weekend when you know there are people that will be unhappy with you? Doesn’t sound like a lot of fun to me personally. Some people are downright unkind to them. Many are unappreciative. Some challenge them. Exhibitors love to complain about them. You think the judges REALLY don’t know that?? They are, after all, adults. They’ve been around the block a time or two. I’m pretty sure they know what’s up. We complain about the ring setup, about the flow in the ring, that their judging is to slow, or to fast, they are either too heavy with the pencil or they “let things go”. They are taking lunch too early or too late and it’s generally to long because, after all, WE want to get out of there as quickly as possible. But the judge doesn’t get to leave until their assignment is done. First to arrive, last to go home. (Other than the volunteers of course).
And goodness gracious god forbid they make a mistake. Because none of us ever make any right?? I mean we NEVER do!! Somehow, we completely forget that judges are human. I KNOW without the tiniest doubt that if I were judging I would make mistakes. I have an incredibly hard time maintaining focus. For short periods. Never mind for 8 hours a day. For multiple days. There is no way I wouldn’t make mistakes. I mean, I typically need to watch 3-5 people’s runs…because part way through I get distracted…and miss the heeling pattern, again… Mistakes are part of the human experience. But we have zero tolerance for them as exhibitors.
Now you have a right not to like a judge. That’s your prerogative. You also have choices. You can choose not to show under that judge. So go ahead and make that choice. You are entitled. But what I can’t abide is people complaining about judges publicly….especially on Social Media where it gains a wide audience. What are you hoping to accomplish? To humiliate that person? To teach them a lesson? Really? A person that does this basically for next to nothing? A person that is keeping our sport alive? Are you a judge? Because if you are not, you really don’t have a leg to stand on. You are being an armchair quarterback. Which is always easy to do.
Do you even know what they need to do to become judges? Or to keep their judging status? Because I did not. But I found out. They need to be instructors (and last I checked that’s not a profession that makes millions of dollars). They need to steward (nope, you don’t get paid for that). They need to study. They must take tests. They get evaluated. And critiqued. Oh, and most of this occurs on weekends. Which means, no training, no trialing, no show n gos, no family time. Not only are they paying in time, but they are also paying in gas and mileage. And that’s only what I know…. I recently found out that to maintain their license they must take a test…that THEY pay for. And I’m sure there is more. Are YOU willing to put that work in? If you are NOT a judge, then the answer clearly is “no”. So stop complaining. All sports have judges. And all sports encounter discrepancies from time to time. All judges make mistakes. All judges are doing the very best THEY can, on that day, in that moment. Do you really think they are PURPOSEFULLY trying to make your dog fail? Or make your life miserable? And again, if you truly believe that, then don’t show under them.
When I was young and inexperienced I took this showing stuff very, very seriously. And if I didn’t understand why I was scored a certain way I was taught that it was ok to POLITELY ask the judge. The reason was to LEARN and improve my handling and training. And I still believe that’s perfectly fine. I remember having a discussion with a judge once. Decades ago now. The judge believed my dog was doing something that I was very sure the dog was NOT doing. The judge gave me some advice…”never let the judge question what they see”. I took it to heart. I became a better handler. I tightened up my training. And yes, I showed under that judge again. I took the information and owned it. I controlled what I could. My training. My handling.
Now perhaps there are some judges that could be doing a better job. If you strongly feel that way, then write to the AKC. Let them handle it. That’s their job. It’s not ours. People complain all the time. But they can’t put in the effort to write the letter or send the email. Why not? It surely doesn’t take more time than posting something on social media. It’s definitely kinder. And if it warrants it, the AKC will take care of it.
Respecting judges falls under Good Sportsmanship. And we should exhibit good sportsmanship inside and OUTSIDE the ring AT ALL TIMES. Including when we are not showing. If I truly believed a judge was problematic, I would certainly never, ever consider making that a public announcement. Because a “judge” is a human being. And we should be kind to one another. I know, that’s a bit of an outdated philosophy these days…but it’s also why we live in a world that is so divided. Kindness, courtesy, respect. It’s really not that hard.
I don’t know about other sports, but as the sport of obedience is slowly fading and dying, we are losing judges. And not gaining new ones. We should appreciate the ones we have. If you want to mutter under your breath, or complain to your close friend, go ahead. But don’t rip that person apart in public. It’s terrible for our sport. It’s terrible for all sports.
I’m not claiming to be perfect. There were times, especially when I was younger and dumber, when I was not happy with a judge. But I learned to deal with it. I learned it was part of the sport. Part of all sports. I became acutely aware that I couldn’t’ really “judge” them because I myself was not a judge. And I learned that they are people. Just like us. With feelings, just like us. And, at the end of the day, that’s really what it boils down to. Remembering that deep down we are all the same. And we all deserve to be treated with respect and kindness and appreciation.
