AKC Gazette Articles

February 2005

Juniors - Our Future

We are indebted to Miss Samantha Newton of Richmond, Texas for the majority of this column. Samantha has shown in juniors since she was first eligible, and has succeeed consistently against adults in the regular classes.
“The main reason my friends and I show in juniors is to have fun and make some more new friends. It is like showing in breed competition, but instead of showing against a bunch of “old” people, juniors show against kids their on age. Junior showmanship gives us the chance to compete hard and be good sports. This is something we can all use for the rest of our lives.
A lot of adults and juniors think that specialties should support juniors more by offering junior classes at their shows. It gives juniors a chance to show against our friends that have the same breed, in my case Salukis. Whether or not a club gets junior entries, offering it still encourages young people to show their Salukis.

Juniors is a fun and exciting way for young adults to bond with their Salukis, make new friends, improve their handling skills, and learn good sportsmanship hope to see you all at the upcoming shows and specialties!

Being in juniors gives you a lot of special opportunities like going to the Eukanuba Classic Invitational. You need five 1st place wins out of an open class and good grades (3.0 grade point average) to qualify. The other great show is Westminster, which now requires 10 wins from an open class.

Just a reminder to all: we juniors have a website telling how each person is ranked in their breed, group, and nationally. This website is http://jrnewsandviews.com. Also we have a discussion list for juniors to talk about our wins, losses, shows, new litters, and other such things. If you would like information about that list, you can reach me at seanewton@prodigy.net. It has been really quite on there lately so if you would like to talk with other juniors on things like tips or help with something, just come and join us!”
Thank you, Samantha. It’s good to know the future of our breed, and of the sport of dogs, is in excellent hands. At the Saluki National in June, 2004, Samantha and some other experienced current and former juniors got together to coach beginning juniors. After the training session, they held a pizza party and showed the adults how to have a good time.

2004 was not a good year for the Saluki Fancy. We lost three special people, whose knowledge guided many Saluki fanciers: Margaret Sheets, of Brenlair Salukis; Wayne Jensen of Jen Araby Salukis; Don Wieden of Sedeki Salukis. Their influence was far reaching, and the Saluki world is the less for their passing. Take the time to call those people who got you started in our breed, and thank them for setting your feet upon the path.

And, next time you’re at a show, drop by the juniors ring and cheer on the future of our sport.

Love your ‘lukis.
Monica Henderson Stoner
tsent@ix.netcom.com