Heidisaint

Showing

Showing your Saint Bernard can be fun and frustrating, exciting and exhausting, fast and slow. But the rewards are what you take away from the show, not just the ribbons. Your dog may not win one day under one judge, and yet be the Best of Breed the next day under another judge. The judges will judge the conformation of your Saint Bernard according to the standard, but the standards are just words, and therefore open to interpretation.

The day after you submit your entry forms and payment for the show, inevitably your Saint Bernard will decide to blow his coat, or develop a huge hotspot, or something else foolish. (Ask anyone in the dog world and they will tell you that if you want your dog to blow his coat, just pay your show entry fee!)

You will probably want to give your dog a bath every couple of weeks before the show, and the day before show, using a gentle shampoo. A good grooming table with a strong arm in an open area makes this job easier, although a bathtub can work just as well. Also handy is a good blow dryer. A long-haired Saint Bernard can take a considerable time to dry in the open air, and often this can lead to skin irritations. Use two or three big towels to dry off as much of the moisture as possible and the blow drying will go much faster.

Also take some time several weeks before the show to trim your dogs nails and trim them again a few days before the show. You may want to trim off your dogs whiskers as well.

If you haven't been to a dog show before take some time to attend one before you enter your first one so you will have the opportunity to know what will be expected from your dog and you. We will provide more details and hints on showing your Saint Bernard in the future.