Conformation Events, or Dog Shows, are competitive events for purebreds where a judge evaluates a dog’s structure as it compares to a written description of the perfect specimen of that breed, called a standard. While it may appear that dogs are being judged against one another, each dog is actually being compared to the judge’s mental image of the perfect dog of that breed.

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The judges must be familiar with not only the standards of the breeds they judge, but with the Conformation rules and regulations as well. Each dog is examined by the judge in a posed position and must also gait in a pattern to allow the judge to evaluate its efficiency of movement. Dog shows may be held for one breed, several breeds or all breeds, depending on the experience of the club in managing such events. Points are awarded per dog defeated within the breed competition, creating the Top Ten standings. At the end of the year points are tallied and the Top Ten dogs are invited to compete in a special event held at the largest yearly show, Premier.