Most dogs entered in conformation shows are not champions, but are competing to become one. To become a champion, a dog must get 15 championship points, 1 to 5 of which can be won at any one show. Thus three is the minimum number of shows it takes for a dog to get its championship. I quail to think of what's the greatest number of shows it has taken a dog to get its championship.
A class dog gets points by defeating other dogs in going Winners Dog or Winners Bitch; that is, it is the best non-champion dog of its sex competing that day. The number of points the dog wins depends on 1) how many dogs it defeated that day; 2) its breed; 3) its sex; and 4) the region of the country in which it is competing. All this is summarized in the point schedule issued annually by the AKC.
The
point
schedule
tries
to
balance
the
relative
popularity
of
breeds
and
their
distribution
around
the
country.
The
number
of
entries
for
points
in
relatively
uncommon
breeds
like
Field
Spaniels
are
far
lower
than
those
for
popular
breeds
likes
Golden
Retrievers.
In
most
breeds,
two
dogs
or
bitches
must
compete
to
get
one
point.
Depending
on
the
breed,
the
number
of
entries
for
more
points
rises
slowly
(6
Field
Spaniel
dogs
or
7
Field
Spaniel
bitches
for
5
points)
or
very
rapidly
(a
preposterous
152
Labrador
Retriever
bitches
for
5
points
in
one
region).
Here's
an
example
of
the
point
schedule
for
Borzoi
in
my
area
(Ohio):
1
point:
Dogs,
2;
Bitches,
2
2
points:
Dogs,
5;
Bitches
5
3
points:
Dogs,
8;
Bitches
8
4
points:
Dogs,
13;
Bitches,
12
5
points:
Dogs,
21;
Bitches,
20
The number of points the Winners Dog or Winners Bitch get are determined by the number of class dogs or bitches competing that day: the total entry minus absentees and those dogs excused or disqualified. Once won, the points are cumulative, so even if little Snookums takes two years and a hundred shows to finish her championship there's no "taking away" of the points won early in its career.
The number of points won can be augmented in the Best of Breed competition. If the Winners Dog or Winners Bitch is named Best of Winners, it gets the greater number of points between the two sexes. At one show, our Mr. Lazarus (Ch. Soyara's Esar Eleazar) was the only class dog competing while there were 11 class bitches in attendance. He was Winners Dog and ordinarily would not have received any points because no other dogs were entered. However, in Best of Breed competition, he was Best of Winners. The Winners Bitch he defeated still got 3 points but now so did Lazarus.
If the Winners Dog or Winners Bitch is awarded Best of Opposite Sex, its points are calculated from the number of class dogs (or bitches) in competition plus the number of champions of its sex competing that day. So from the above schedule, if there are 10 class bitches competing, the Winners Bitch gets two points. But if there are two special (champion) bitches competing in Best of Breed and the Winners Bitch is Best of Opposite Sex, she'd pick up two more for a total of 12, which would move her up to three points.
If the Winners Dog or Winners Bitch is awarded Best of Breed it is also Best of Winners. The points are derived from the greater of class dogs or class bitches competing plus the total number of specials, male and female, competing. The first time he stepped into the ring, our Mr. Rowdy (Ch. Soyara's Sounds of Silence CGC) went Best of Breed over several nationally-ranked specials. Though he got only two points for going Winners Dog, by going Best of Breed all the specials were added to the total to give him three points.
But wait! There's more! If in the Variety Group competition, our valiant class dog who went Best of Breed is awarded first place (a Group 1), it gets the greatest number of points awarded to any breed in its group that day. Some years ago, in Borzoi competition my lovely bride was handling Aiva (Ch. Rokaro's Aiva) for a friend. Aiva was Winners Bitch for three points and then went Best of Breed, defeating a large enough number of specials to push her to four points. In the Hound Group, Aiva got a Group 1 (to everyone's astonishment). Because there were enough Rhodesian Ridgebacks competing that day that their total was 5 points, Aiva got 5 points as well.
In the 2002 point schedule, the country (including Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico) is divided up into 14 divisions. In the 2001 schedule there were only 12 divisions. North Dakota, South Dakota, and Montana, with few shows and remote locations, had been lumped with Colorado and Washington under the 2001 schedule, but were given their own region with a much lower point totals in 2002. Exhibitors aren't stupid. They'll go to shows where points are awarded for fewer dogs defeated. The results for the new region were dramatic. The Electric City KC of Helena, Montana, accustomed to having total entries of 500 or so, saw their entries balloon to 2500 this year. The poor show committee and show superintendent had to find a sufficient number of judges to cover all the entries.