Okay, so we all agree that Futurities were meant to originally by a breeder's
showcase, however given the realities of today where dogs have been shipped to
different owners in other parts of the country, the prohibitive cost of
shipping dogs etc etc it is not realistic to limit dogs to be shown in the
region they are bred. So with the premise that we have to accept those
realities, here are a couple of ideas:
a. Eliminate the Amateur Futurity/Maturity Classes. It had a good intent , but
it hasn't worked. In it's place offer the following.
b. Institute a 2-4 and 4-6 month class at Futurities with the following
caveats(these will be classified as " Youth Class": - these classes have a
reduced rate of entry - multiple entries from the same litter will have
further reduced rate of entry - Only Non-Professional Handlers can handle
in these classes - There will be a "Youth Class" winner and "Reserve Youth
Class" winner in each sex that will go to the National and they can only be
shown by Non-Professional Handlers.
c. Have Reserve Futurity/Reserve Maturity if a certain minimum number of dogs
"show up" at the show.
Ok have at it.
Best, Bill
