i was suprised at this too, i havent noticed seeing chis in the ring here with no whiskers... i thought dogs needed whiskers to sense surroundings, width etc .... just different show etiquette i guess

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www.teclo.co.uk

I just got an e-mail back from Bryco's breeder. He said he always, always trims whiskers, and everyone else he's ever come across does too, so I guess it must be a US thing. I asked if he thought it inhibited the dog and he said no, and he does let them grow out if they are not showing, but that it really didn't seem to bother them or harm them else he wouldn't do it.

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Thank you Jan & Chico!!

Now I wonder if we flew over to the us to show our dogs whether we'd trim whiskers I personally wouldn't!! It's amazing how things are different here to te us but then we view lc and sc as different breeds when registering them!!

I love whiskers I think they're so cute.

I like whiskers I can't see the benefit of cutting them off. A show dog is in the ring 2% of its life and is a pet for the rest. Why would u take away one of its senses that it would use 98% of the time? The type over here differs so much from the US type no wonder its so easy to make a champion over there. Seems most people dye faults and hack into toplines. If u judge can't tell a good top line when he puts his hands on the dog then there not very good judges.

Dogs are not cats. They do not use their whiskers as an extra sense. The whiskers do not affect the dog one way or the other. They can, and are, safely removed with no ill effects to the dog. It's totally a neatness of appearence and to better showcase the face and expression. Anyone can chose to leave the whiskers if they want.

We are not all using dye and hacking at toplines. However, we do try to present the dog to it's fullest potential for the few minutes they are in the ring. Yes, the judge does put his hands on the topline to feel it for correctness. However, that doesn't mean that the visual he/she gets when the dog is going around the ring isn't important. Lots of newbies have the same "thoughts" about trimming when they first start showing. As they gain experience and knowledge, they develop the skills they need to showcase their dog....and that involves some grooming.

Everyone makes their own decisions on how they want to prepare and show their dogs. Basic grooming is not altering the dog and is NOT illegal. None of the things I discussed are against the rules, nor would I do anything that was. I don't use dye or colors or surgery or any other method of "altering" a dog. Just because we chose to show off the dog to it's best advantage doesn't mean we are cheating or harming the dog.

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Your comment suggests your dogs in the UK are superior just because you don't ever take a pair of scissors to them. I don't know a single person that dyes their dogs and the judges do feel the top line---if a hair or tuft of hair is sticking up, why not groom it so its not detracting from the dog's visible structure? We aren't trying to change the dog, its just certain things are done here to groom the dog prior to a show and that's the way it is.

I would suggest maybe just accepting that things are done differently rather than insulting a slightly different show culture. It is what it is.

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Thank you Jan & Chico!!

Grooming is obviously different in our country to yours.

Lous at work so can't respond but asked me to pate these for you!! Whilst there's no harm to a dog in trimming whiskers they do have a purpose it seems.

http://www.petplace.com/dogs/structu...ogs/page1.aspx

Anyway it's gone totally off topic I think it's obv v different here to the us not sure about the rest of Europe

In the UK we aren't supposed to trim anything with the exception that the pads may be trimmed. Anything else shouldn't really be touched, I trousers etc are trimmed then obviously they have too much coat WHICH the breed standard asks for feathering atound the ears, trousers and neck. I have only had one judge in 30 years suggest that the whiskers are trimmed off in future. Personally I don't see what the benefits are in trimming them off. Colouring of coats or noses are strictly forbidden and against KC regulations.
BTW whiskers on dogs ARE used for sensing the same as a cats use theirs

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