politics of our sport that need to be addressed

[chapkosbeagles]

when there is a big page of judges in the mag. why are all the same judges judging all the time? As i set back, i see that it is always the same judges judging from week to week,and it is easy to see that they are just taking turns placing each others hounds. It is not hard to see that they have a tight nit buddy system. this is something that is growing fast and no one is paying attiontion to this. i see it in mid west, large pack, and arha. it is so bad i can almost tell you who is going to judge, where they will judge at.All this before it ever comes out in the book. i see mid west durbys are being judged by guys that have never even been to a akc judging seminare. THIS MEANS WHAT? i know they are not licences but still. How is this fair to the other that have paied and taken these classes, but because they are not in the buddy system. They will never get asked to judge anywhere. why dose akc not have some policy on picking judges. I BELIEVE IF WE HAD A BETTER MIX OF JUDGING WE WOULD BEE A BETTER MIX OF DOGS,AND IT IS POSSIBLE WE MIGHT EVEN BETTER THE BREED i have not been to a trial in some time as i sit back and watch the politices rule the sport. IT MAKES ME SICK TO SEE THIS AS I AM JUST A ROOKIE COMPARED TO MOST YOU OLD TIMERS. I KNOW GUY THAT HAVE GREAT DOG THAT WONT EVEN GO TO A TRIAL BECAUSE THEY HAVE WORKED FOR YEARS TO BETTER THE BREED BUT JUST CANT STAND TO SEE THE POLITICES OF TODAY

[Mapel Valley Kennels LLC.]

Popcorn please Joey.Even though i have wondered the same.

[T LEE]

[big rufus]

SMOKIE. I FEEL JUDGES ARE GETTING BETTER WITH THEIR CALLS. I'VE BEEN TO ALL THE LOCAL HUNTS HERE IN MICHIGAN. ARHA LITTLE PACK. WHAT I SEE AT EVERY TRAILS IS THE SAME GUYS JUDGEN WEEK AFTER WEEK. IT DOES NOT BOTHER ME. BECUASE THOSE GUYS ARE THE ONLY JUDGES WE HAVE. I RESPECT THEIR CALLS EVERY WEEK.AS FOR BUDDY JUDGING. I'M FEELINGS ARE THIS, I DON'T CARE. IF THAT THE ONLY WAY YOU CAN BEAT ME THEN FINE HAVE AT IT. NEVER KNOCK THE JUDGING SYSTEM IT MAY ALL COME AN END.

[chapkosbeagles]

NOW RUFUS YOU OLNY GO TO THE ARHA TRIALS.I AM GLAD YOU FEEL THAT WAY A BOUT THEM AS YOU WILL KEEP GETTING YOUR MONEY TAKEN ,BUT I RESPECT YOUR COMRODERY AND DEDICATION TO STICK IN THERE WEEK AFTER WEEK. MY HAT GOES OFF TO YOU BIG GUY, BUT WHAT ABOUT THE AKC TRIALS AS WELL.

[toldyouso]

I just had this discussion and i was reaped called a liar and everything else you could think about it. but ha looks like i am not the only one who agrees that akc could make a great improvements and is not as perfect as they think.

[big rufus]

ONE COULD GUESS. WITH AKC .THEY MAY HAVE LIST OF CERT. JUDGES,THEN THEY MUST CONTACT THE GUYS TO SEE IF THEY ARE COMING TO THE HUNT AND IF SO THEN THEY ASK TO JUDGE. IF THE GUYS TELLS THEM THEIR NOT GOING TO MAKE IT .THEN AKC MUST GO DOWN THE LIST. IT MAY BE THAT THE GUYS WHO ARE JUDGING HUNT AFTER HUNT ARE ONLY CERT. JUDGES THEY COULD GET. THERE IS A REASON WHY IT TURNS OUT LIKE IT DOES.BUDDY JUDGES IS ON ITS WAY OUT.

[chapkosbeagles]

AND LIKE RUFUS SAID HE GOES TO ALL THE ARHA HUNTS ,AND THEY HAVE ALL THE SAME JUDGES THERE ALSO.

as far as akc IMO they might call the same judges ,but sure dont go down a list as far as i can tell. from my opservations it is he same guys at the same clubs and no one else can get in. I AM GLAD YOU THINK THAT BUDDY JUDGING IS ON ITS WAY OUT BECAUSE I THINK IT IS JUST BEGAINING TO GET BAD.

[foxxy]

chapkos have you ever tried to run a club hunt in Arha lp or pp or Ukc pp
to get judges is like pulling teeth aint easy
have seen a small club hunt last all day because there would only be 3 or 4 guys willing to and run with theese hounds and you know there is 5 or 6 others with there license to do so. So befor you go bashing you need to make sure you look at it from both sides getting judges aint easy and judgeing aint either
have you judged in lp or mid west
i am sure clubs would be willing to let you judge if you have or got the license to do so

[old blood beagles]

Well,I thought that I was finished with the back and forth on this topic that AKC is the bad format but I just have to jump head first!!!!!!!!!!!
Here are a few questions for you people that are bad mouthing AKC Mid-WEST!!
When was the last time that you went to a trial?
Who are the bad judges that you all are talking about?
What hounds placed or won that did not deserve it?
Was you picked up because your hound had demerits?
Did you score your hounds on the rules of AKC or did you score your hounds by some other means? (remember this "SKIRTING IS A STYLE NOT A DEMERIT" statement)

To answer some of your questions about why you might see the same judges and/or the same hounds winning or placing could be the following:
Individuals might be asked to judge becasue they know that they are coming to that trial!
The judges that are picked know and follow the rules!
The hounds that are winning or placing under these judges are the better hounds that run in AKC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You might also realize if you took time too look that when some other "non-popular" individuals are asked to judge that the same hounds are winning and placing!

Just like I said in the other post, I don't judge and I am a nobody when it comes to AKC Mid-West trials but my hounds are placing at the different trials, in different clubs and under different judges. If what you are saying is true, then how can this be?
One more thing: It takes a very tough hound to become a FC in the AKC Mid-West and if you don't think so then just ask the guys that run all the different formats. If your hound is not tough enough to place or win trials then don't come on here and blame it on the judges or the organization. JUST GET BETTER HOUNDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will be glad to drop hounds with anyone as I love this sport but don't down-grade my format or organization on a bunch of bullsht hearsay!!!!!!!!! Come see for yourself and don't take away from what MY HOUNDS HAVE EARNED!!!!!!!!!!!

Duane

[Aaron Bartlett]

I have ran in about every registry out there and its pretty much the same story in all of them wether it is AKC, ARHA, UKC or PKC. There are only so many people that are willing to judge or are capable of judging. Most clubs try to use the best judges they can and still get the hunt over with in a reasonable amount of time. In some cases those who judge depends on who shows up. Sometimes clubs are forced to use judges that are either dishonest, not as familiar with the rules as they need to be or not capable of judging just because there was a shortage of judges show up.
I have been the FTC for our AKC club for several years. For the most part I have been the one in charge of getting the judges for our AKC hunts. Our members do have a say so in who I try to get but sometimes it works out and some times it doesnt. There are several judges on the list that I would like to use but for one reason or the other it never seems to work out. Getting judges for a AKC trial is not as easy as one might think. Our club is not a short drive for any judge so the first thing is are they willing to travel to our club to judge. You also have to take into consideration what class they are willing to judge. Some judges ride with others and do not want to judge the same class as who they ride with and also there are some classes they cant judge due to them running a dog in those classes. When picking judges I try to pick folks that are willing to travel to our club, know the rules, are honest and have the ability to judge on foot because we dont use horses. There is a fairly long list of liscensed AKC judges but there are alot of judges on that list that do not meet one or more of the above. I have also called some judges and they will only judge if they can judge with thier buddy that rides with them. I have also had some judges say they wont judge with some other judge. The names on the list of judges(excluding new judges) that you never see used most of the time are either not willing to travel, are known for not knowing the rules, being honest or not being physically able to judge. JMO!

[Chris Hornick]

I am an officer at an AKC Beagle club. It is indeed hard to get judges to commit. Also you will have judges that will cancel at the last minute. That being said, I do believe that there are some hounds or handlers that get special treatment. A possible solution would be for the AKC to schedule judges and not have them advertised. (That probably wouldn't work but...) A lot of guys choose which trial they attend based on the judges that are advertised. I don't have the answer but I also realize that I'm sure some shady dealings have occurred. Is it possible that the guys with the best dogs are also the ones who judge?

[gwyoung]

Guys, I am not a field trialer ,so if you want to say I don't know what I am talking about you may be right and it won't hurt my feelings, but I do have an opinion based on the very few trials I have visited, based on the frequency of judge cancelations, and so forth. It is my opinion that those judges you see judging trial after trial should receive a big thank You, for being willing to do so.

[chapkosbeagles]

old blood beagles i am just a cave man who has never attended a trial in his life i wish i had what i call a hound all i have is these 16 inch pot lickers that might trip over a rabbit he or there. they run faster backwards than they do forward sound like you have some dogs bring them on up this way and i will introduce you to a real biscuit eater i might let you pet him if your dog can even keep up with him. but all aside THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ME OR MY HOUNDS ATTENDING THE TRIALS,BUT I SEE YOU ARE ONE OF THE BLIND THAT CANT SEE WHat is right infront of you. i hope you are not like this(kennel blind) in the kennel as i see they run hand and hand. old blood beagles the hardest thing for me to beat when i hit the trials ant the dogs it the stand:nod:


arron you make some great points, but anyone who takes the akc judges class should HAVE THE RIGHT TO JUDGE atleast untill he proves that he is incapable of doing so.
i have not attended many arha trials and have not taken that class for judging. i am just making a simple opservations from reading the mag. and serfing the web

I SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE JUDGING CHARACTER AS IF ONE WAS THE LORD HIM SELF. ALL THIS WITH OUT EVER GIVING THEM A CHANCE

[Aaron Bartlett]

anyone who takes the akc judges class should HAVE THE RIGHT TO JUDGE atleast untill he proves that he is incapable of doing so.
I SEE A LOT OF PEOPLE JUDGING CHARACTER AS IF ONE WAS THE LORD HIM SELF. ALL THIS WITH OUT EVER GIVING THEM A CHANCE

If someone is a new judge I dont feel like they can expect clubs to burn thier phone line up asking them to judge until they prove themselves. If they want to judge they should be calling the different clubs around asking them about judging some derbies for them. Most clubs would most likely be glad to let them judge a derby and if they do a good job thier chances of that club asking them to judge a liscense trial later on is pretty good. Clubs are going to get judges to judge thier liscense trials that they are familiar with and those that have proven themselves not someone they dont know and have never seen judge.
I have used folks that I have never seen judge and didnt know but I always asked around to people that opinions I trust to find out about that person before hand.