Just a Peek at My Day

If you’re a professional dog handler, your day is jam-packed. 

For every dog show, there’s a printed schedule sent out by Jack Onofrio (a superintendent company) a week before the show, so exhibiters have the information before the day of. The schedule states when, where, and who is judging the breeds. Judging begins at 8 a.m on the dot.

My day starts at 6 o’clock in the morning, though. At most shows, we (my mom, dad and I) have at least 20 dogs to take care of before we can even get them ready to show. All handers start this early due to the large number of dogs they show. 

We have a Renegade custom built motorhome so that we can transport and care for the dogs correctly. The back of our truck can hold up to 32 dogs with the custom-designed crates. So long story short here is that we can carry a large number of dogs to the shows, and we have to start bright and early to get them cared for. 

After caring for the dogs, we then have to get “dressed” ourselves. This isn’t just putting on regular clothes and calling it good. If you have seen the televised dog shows, then you’ve noticed that the handlers and judges wear suits. That isn’t just for TV; we do that every day we show. 

After you’re taking care of next comes the grooming of the 8 a.m breeds. At this point, you most likely have 30 minutes to groom all the dogs that show first.

Due to a large number of dogs entered at shows, there is always a scheduling conflict because not every breed we show can be judged at different times. So we often have to be at two places at the same time. This can cause a lot of stress. 

I am an assistant, so I don’t usually show unless it is vital. Instead, I am continually grooming the next dogs and making sure they make it to the show ring on time. I don’t just use the official printed schedule to time out my day. I handwrite a schedule with only the information I need that way, I don’t have to look through everything to find what I need. 

My parents have the hard part of keeping track of where and when they need to be somewhere. Also they make sure the dog they have to show is there too. Basically, the whole day is a constant hot mess, but somehow we always get all the dogs to the ring.

This is only a brief explanation of my day because soon I want to make a video of one day at a dog show and share it with y’all.