Road Warriors

After an exhausting weekend I thought it would be a good idea to talk about driving and safety on the road for handler, assistants, and of course the dogs.

Some weekends we have the luxury of staying at home and driving back and forth to shows, but this is a rarity.  Often handlers handlers drive hours upon hours every week to get to shows where they believe their dogs have the best chances of winning. These hours of driving on the road can be tedious, tiresome, and stressful.

Feeling like a truck driver????

Pulling into a truck stop to fuel up my truck is a very awkward feeling.  I am a very petite woman and seeing the looks of people's faces when little 'ol me gets out, it never fails to crack me up.  "You drive that?" Yes I do!  Then I start walking all of the dogs and the next question is, "How many do you have in there?"

Fast food multiple times during a week, let alone a day is one of the yucky parts of being on the road.  We have time lines and shows to make so fast food is often the best and only choice.  The cons of fast food are obvious, we hear about all over the media, fast food is bad for your health.  Handlers need to be fit to constantly run circles for a living, so eating fast food and snacks while on the road can create problems.

Keeping awake adds another element of stress while driving.  It is a little known fact that handlers often hold rock concerts in their trucks while on the road!  Sometimes there are drummers, guitar players, singers all wrapped up into one determined driver!  Others need brakes from music and listen to books, talk radio or just a time for silence, it's all about what is going to keep you awake to get to the show you need to get to.

The stress of driving these big trucks and motorhomes over mountains, through traffic, through construction can be overwhelming.  Breakdowns are unfortunately inevitable, it's how we have to handle these situations make all the difference.  Keeping the dogs that travel with us in safe, comfortable conditions is always a top priority.  Driving white knuckles for hours on end, then arriving at a show and having to immediately start working can be exhausting.  This is one the hardest things to do as a handler in my mind, drive hours on end then immediately turn it on and get going with taking care of the dogs and interacting with other handlers and clients when you've had a bumpy drive.

I bet some handlers drive more miles than some truck drivers!  Are you one of them?

Trust & Respect

Trusting our handlers is everything.  We leave our dogs, or four legged children with handlers with the TRUST they will be taken care of.  This 5 letter word has such deep meaning with any relationship and it certainly doesn't stop with dog handlers.  Trusting our handlers comes in different forms - communication, health & well being, & decision making among other areas

- Communication -

Handlers now have a dog's life in their hands and as owners we need to know it's being taken care of by receiving phone calls, text messages and emails.  With all of this great technology at our fingertips its easier than ever to keep clients informed of how their dog is doing.  I have heard of handlers setting up groups on Yahoo! or Facebook for their clients so when a show is done the handler posts the results and then the clients can congratulate each other.  I think that's a great way to build a great team among the entire setup from handler, assistant and owners.  Giving clients a simple text while at shows on periodically during the week can give assurance that their dog is being taken care of and keep them informed on successes!  Of course phone calls are the best way of communicating with clients when their dogs are left and they cannot attend the shows.

Unfortunately, I have heard that some handlers do not communicate with their clients on a regular basis except for billing.  To me this is not acceptable, these are customers and customers need to be kept happy otherwise they can take their business elsewhere.  How hard is to pick up the phone a send a quick message?

- Health & Well Being -

Owners are trusting their dogs, their family with a dog handler like a when a child goes to camp or boarding school.  Unfortunately we cannot hear from the dog, like we can from the child about what happened while away, we just have to trust.  Handlers should not only look after the health of the dog, but its well being as well.  Dogs are social creatures and they need love and attention from new four legged friends and new two legged ones.  

Dogs are not little "show machines" they need to be happy outside the ring in order for them to be happy inside the ring.  When owners go to the shows and see their dog is happy with his/her handler it can be a great feeling.  Some dogs even get to the point where they love their handler as much as their owner.  As hard as this can be on the owner, it's a good thing because you know you can trust that your dog is being taken care of.  

With regards to health, handlers are now trusted with with your dog's life.  If a dog is sick he or she needs to be treated.  If trips to the vet are necessary, owners please don't complain about the cost of the treatment.  This is you dog and we want to make sure everything is right.  Of course we're going to consult you, IF time allows, but if it's an emergency we're going to rely on our experience and knowledge to make the best decision possible.

- Decision Making -

You trust your doctor to make decisions about your health, you trust a lawyer to make decisions about your legal matters, so trust your handler for decisions about where to show you dog.  This is our job, a job you hired us to do.  Yes, handlers often consult clients and owners about different shows to attend but at the end of the day it should be up to the handler to decide where to go.  It breaks trust when clients constantly question why a handler is going to these shows instead of these.  Believe it or not, handlers want to win so they're going to try to go to shows where they think they can win!!!!!  When at shows and conflicts arise (which at some point they will), trust your handler will find the best possible substitute for your dog at that time under that judge.  It may not seem like the best decision to you, but it often is at that time.  For example things you may not see like how comfortable a dog may be with an assistant is different than with a complete stranger that is another handler.

TRUST TRUST TRUST is what it all comes down to, if there is no trust there cannot be a relationship between the dog and handler or owner and handler.  If that's the case its time to find another handler you can trust.