It's all about the looks

Wan An, a veteran handler of show dogs, sees his job as a great sport and an opportunity to enjoy the sight of cute pure breeds. There is also the thrill of competing with other dog handlers to be the best in training and presenting dogs.

"A good handler can make a bad dog look good, but a bad handler will make a good dog look bad," Wan says.

The 28-year-old Beijinger was one of the first dog handlers on the Chinese mainland, not long after organized dogs shows made a debut in Beijing about 10 years ago.

"There were no professional handlers then. Dog owners, including me, thought it unnecessary to hire a professional and normally showed the dog themselves," Wan says.

He later went through a short handler training program, held by a local kennel club. It was only then that he realized that presenting a dog at a show is nothing like taking a dog for a walk.

"People often mistake a handler with a pet trainer. A handler is not in the business of training a dog to be an obedient life companion. They train to showcase the best side of a dog at shows. Besides understanding the different breeds and their training needs, a handler also has to learn about show etiquette and groom the dog they will show," Wan says.

"A handler has to have the skill to highlight the beauty and personality of the dog within three minutes, while glossing over its physical shortcomings before the judges."

Once, at a show, Wan noticed that his dog's ears were drooping just a little when the judges came up to evaluate. He pretended to stroke the dog's hair while secretly making its ears stand up with his fingers.

"A veteran handler will not present their own dog at a show, because the dog, even if well trained, may behave in a spoiled manner or lose its temper before its owner. That's why a hired handler is of the utmost importance," Wan says.

He already has 50 Best in Show titles under his belt and earned 100,000 yuan ($15,190) handling dogs in 2010. He says a good handler is one whose appearance will match that of the dog, while not stealing all the attention.

"It is quite odd to see a tall, beefy handler walk a small, animated Pomeranian. But when a young woman handler shows up with a sweet looking dog, like a Samoyed, it can make for a very pleasant sight," he says.

Wan, who is 1.7-meters tall and has a lean build, usually shows a chow chow, which is a medium-sized muscular breed, as he feels they make for a balanced combination.

He says an excellent handler can win a dog's trust and obedience in a short time. "We may need a couple of days, weeks or even months to train a client's dog before a show. But there are occasions when we don't get sufficient time for bonding."

Wan says every year around 50 dog shows are held, mostly by major kennel clubs. They are frequented by the nation's new-rich, particularly from the fast developing regions south of the Yangtze.

"This is an interest that calls for heavy investment. My client has to pay nearly 10,000 yuan for one single show, to cover the entry fees, traveling expenses, and handling payment. It costs extra if the dog is trained and groomed in my kennel," he says. "People compete not just to see their pets as champions. They also want to show them off."

Wan also runs several training courses in dog handling for China Kennel Union (CKU), a major non-governmental organization aimed at promoting the popularity of pure breeds and licensing dog handlers.

"There are hundreds of handlers across the country, but less than 10 of them are recognized as top of the range," Wan says.

(China Daily 01/27/2011 page18)