About the Cairn

Dog Shows & The Standard
Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

The C/SCTC plays host, each June, to Cairns from throughout the country as the club hosts its annual event whose purpose is to promote the natural qualities of the purebred Cairn Terrier and provide for competition of Cairns, judged to the breed standard, as articulated by The American Kennel Club. The name Specialty Show comes from the fact that the show is restricted to dogs of a specific breed, at this show Cairn Terriers. The written standard, to which each Cairn will be judged, describes the ideal size, color, and temperament of each breed, as well as correct proportion, structure, and movement. AKC approved judges will examine the dogs and place each Cairn in accordance to how close each compares with the judges mental image of the "perfect" Cairn as described in the breed's official standard. So, next we will try to provide you with all of the information you need to come out and support our club and at the same time have a great time at the “Westminster of the Midwest.”

What is a Specialty Show?

Our Specialty is a “conformation” event and is considered to be the main event of the AKC. Conformation implies conforming to the standard of the breed, as pictured, on the previous page. These distinctive features of a purebred Cairn are what the judges look for. The Specialty helps to preserve these characteristics by providing a competitive forum at which to evaluate the breeding of Cairns.

The written standard originates with our national parent club, The Cairn Terrier Club of America. The standard describes the appearance, movement and temperament of the Cairn in relation to the function to which they originally had in life. (See the Founder’s Message) Qualified breeders attempt to breed Cairns that closely conform to the standard. The AKC provides the approved judges who examine the dogs and places them, according to their vision, based on the standard, in the order that they best approximate the standard on that day. Each dog must be AKC registered, be 6 months of age, or older, and meet eligibility requirements in the written standard. Spayed or neutered dogs are not eligible to compete in the conformation classes, because the purpose of a conformation Show is to evaluate Cairns for breeding.

Each entered dog is presented to the judge by the ‘handler’ who could be its owner, breeder, owners-representative, or a hired professional. One could make a comparison of the handler functioning a bit like the jockey in a horse race. A good ‘jockey’ gets the most out of his Cairn. Most Cairns in the competition will be competing for points toward their AKC championships. It takes fifteen points, including two major wins (three, four or five points wins) awarded by at least three different judges, to become a "Champion of Record."

The number of championship points awarded at a show depends on the number of males ("dogs") and females ("bitches") in competition. The larger the entry, the more points a dog can win. The maximum number of points that may be awarded is 5. This is referred to as a 5-point major.

Cairns compete separately, according to their sex, in seven regular classes. Puppy Class (dogs between six and nine months of age), Puppy Class (dogs between nine and twelve months of age), Twelve-to-Eighteen Month Class, Novice Class (for dogs six months of age and over), Bred By Exhibitor Class (for dogs that are exhibited by their owner and breeder), American-Bred By Class (for dogs bred in the United States), Open Class (any cairn , at least 6 months of age). After these classes are judged, all the Cairns that won first place in a class compete again to see who is the best of the winning Cairns. A runner up dog is then selected and awarded Reserve. Only the best male (Winners Dog) and the best female (Winners Bitch) receive championship points. The Winners Dog and Winners Bitch then compete with other Cairns, already champions (Called Specials) for the Best of Breed award. At the end of the Best of Breed Competition, three awards are usually given:

Best of Breed - the Cairn judged as the best. Best of Winners - the dog judged as the better of the Winners Dog and Winners Bitch. Best of Opposite Sex - the best dog that is the opposite sex to the Best of Breed winner. At the judges option Awards of Merit may be given for particularly other excellent Cairns. Only the Best of Breed winner advances to compete in the Group competitions. And the winner of Group goes on to Best in Show. See, just like you see on Animal Planet.

Now, the awards! Color is Everything! Each Cairn that receives an award is given a ribbon by the judge. The color of the ribbon indicates the type of award the dog has won. Blue is for first place in any regular class, Red is for second place in each class. Yellow is for third place in each class. White is for fourth place in each class. Purple is awarded to the winners of the Winners Dog and Winners Bitch classes. You definitely want a Purple Ribbon. Purple and White - awarded to the Reserve Winner; that is, the runners-up to the winner of the Winners Dog and Winners Bitch classes. Blue and White - awarded to the dog that wins Best of Winners; that is, the better of the Winners Dog and Winners Bitch winners. Purple and Gold is awarded to the dog judged "Best of Breed". This is important because it allows advancement to the Group competition. Red and White - awarded to the Best of Opposite Sex. This means the best dog of the breed that is the opposite sex of the Best of Breed winner.

So now you are ready to attend our Specialty! Bring this with you and use it to follow what is going on. And to make it even more fun, our members will be happy to answer any of your questions. So, support the troops! Come to our June Specialty. You will find, on our web-site the time and exact location when the exact information is available.