# How much does a handler cost?



## Salukie

Just out of curiosity, how much does it cost, on average, to hire a handler to get a champion title on a dog?

I know that this can vary... I just want a ball park figure. A couple hundred? Several thousand? A million!!???

LOL!!


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## KalaMama

It totally depends on how good your dog is because that determines how many months of handling fees you pay. If your dog is boarded and actively shown you can easily pay 1500 to 2000 or more a month(which includes board/food). If it is a ring-side deal, I would say probably 60-80 for the handling fee, some also charge expenses for ring side but this is divided between clients so it depends on how many they have and grooming fee. It varies but there are several pro handler sites that you can look at and get a break down of cost. Probably average at least 12 shows a month when figuring. Smaller breeds or less groom-heavy breeds are generally less expensive. It varies greatly but from what I have seen the above is a pretty good guesstimate.


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## NOLA Standards

Dunno

May differ from region to region as well. Ringsiding in my area can cost as much as $ 125 and not all handlers will do it. A relationship is usually required first.


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## ArreauStandardPoodle

The handlers here are about $75 per day, plus board and a portion of expenses (hotel, gas, food) if the dog is staying with the handler. Plus grooming. Because I do all the work but the scissoring, the groom is $50, but think for someone who does not groom, that is likely in the $150 neighbourhood.


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## Feralpudel

Several years ago, I paid $75 per show, plus $75 per weekend grooming fee, plus travel expenses (plus entries, of course). I also paid for post show baths, and $10/day boarding (although he didn't board much). It worked out to about $125-$150 every time he walked into the ring, which works out to about $50 a minute, LOL.


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## whitepoodles

Salukie;116123 said:


> Just out of curiosity, how much does it cost, on average, to hire a handler to get a champion title on a dog?
> 
> I know that this can vary... I just want a ball park figure. A couple hundred? Several thousand? A million!!???
> 
> LOL!!


Saluki:

LOL when I read your question I just thought to myself OH BOY, she is going to get a shock.. and an awakening.. 

I have a wonderful handler, Jennifer Carr. My dogs live with her until they are finished.

The amount you will have to spend will also depend on whether you show your dog with a handler "ring side" or have the dog live at the handler's in which case you not only will be paying an average of $10-14 per day for board which includes food, if you wish your dog to eat the food the handler feeds her show dogs (I dont, I supply my own food) but also a weekly bath for coat maintenance which can cost anything between $25.00 -$50.00 again depending on who is handling/boarding your show dog.

The overall cost to finish a class dog in Canada depends not only on the quality of your dog but also who handles him and to which judge the dog is shown. It is a known fact that males finish faster than females, it also will depend on your dog's gender.

The average handler in Canada can cost anything between $75.00 to $100.00 handling fee per day, this does not include the pre show bath ($50.00), hotel expenses, RV hook up, electricity etc... the handler's food cost for 3 days while at the shows, and the gas expense. These are usually pro rated among all the handler's clients whose dogs she/he is showing.

My average cost for one weekend of showing was between $300-$500 a weekend, and this does not include the weekly boarding fees and weekly coat maintenance fees while at the handler's house.

This is the reason I will never show a mediocre dog and I prefer to send decent quality to my handler so that they if can finish as puppies and come back home to me. 

If I see that the class dog/bitch who finished as a puppy is worthy and I have a gut feeling that they can qualify as a Special in future and I will be then have sufficient funds to special what I believe is worthy, then I will start and VERY quickly  to save as much money as I can so that within the next 2 years until the dog grows coat and is ready to be specialed I would have sufficient funds to be able to pay my handler promptly for her services.

So if you just want to finish a title on a dog (in Canada) if you have a good dog, you can finish it providing you also have the competition numbers at the given shown between $300- $700 only. But if your handler tells you ok, this dog is ok, but it will take longer to finish than you can easily prepare yourself to be paying an average of $1,000-$2000 .

A handler should be honest with a prospective show client and tell them honestly what they should or should not expect from the dog they wish to show.

Many handlers are deathly honest (I know mine is) and if they feel that the client is wasting their money on a non quality mediocre dog/bitch they will be honest and tell the client as it is , giving the client the option to proceed with showing the dog or forgo.

I totally admire handler who are honest and upfront with clients after they grade their dog to see if it is lacing in merit or is a good show prospect , many dont and it ends up costing the client literally thousands.

If one is showing in the states, this is a total different ball game.. The point system there is more complicated and it takes much longer to show and finish a dog and even longer to finish a bitch.

Also one has to remember that politics at times reign in the conformation rings so one has to be prepared to choke it up and accept a judge's opinion whether it is fair just or even knowledeable.. many times it is not but that is the name of the game.. You pay for a judge's opinion and you get it, whether you like it or not.. Life isnt fair and neither is the show ring.

So all in all you have to look at everything and especially at the quality of your dog before embarking on any conformation activity.


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## cbrand

I do a modified ringside my dogs. They don't live with the handler, but they may go up to stay with her a day or two before and after a show. I think it can cost about $400 for a two day show. You have to pay not only handling costs(around $100 a day), but sometimes bathing before and after, grooming, mileage costs, and hotels. If you add boarding to that, your costs go way up.

It would be considered very, very cheap to finish a Poodle in the US for $2000.


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## wishpoo

> It would be considered very, very cheap to finish a Poodle in the US for $2000.


Oh I agree !!!!! In California especially it is extremely expensive ( I was given info that it is about $7,000 for excellent male :rolffleyes. 

It is very interesting to see the difference between Canada and USA :wacko:. Now I understand why California breeders have to have such a steep prices for puppies (2,000 to 2,500 ) !!!!


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## whitepoodles

wishpoo said:


> Oh I agree !!!!! In California especially it is extremely expensive ( I was given info that it is about $7,000 for excellent male :rolffleyes.
> 
> Whishpoo:
> 
> I finished my boy "Cole" at 16 mos. in 9 days cumulative of showing for under $2,000. The only reason I had to pay so much for his show career in the U.S. is because his handler does not get to shows to often and it was mostly paid for board and coat upkeep at her place.... but the 3 weekends she showed my boy she got all his majors and he finished in those 3 weekends with 17 points (incl. his 3 majors)
> 
> I finished my male "Knight" in the U.S. for under U.S. $800.00 also in 3 weekends with a canadian handler who travelled with him to the U.S. (N.York state shows)
> 
> Which handler told you it takes U.S. $7000.00 to finish an EXCELLENT male..
> 
> They must have seen you coming because it is not at all true. Even mediocre males with the right handler can finish under less than this amount.
> 
> I can understand it will cost that much for a bitch to finish since you need more bitchs vs. a vis males to build a major in bitches, but males? they are much easier to finish the bitches, in both Cda. and the U.S.
> 
> Perhapse you mean owner handled to finish a dog in the U.S.? Is this what you are referring to paying $7,000 for or using a professional handler. If the latter, then honestly you can finish a good quality male for under $2,000 for sure. Bitches are a totally different story.


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## wishpoo

Oh my :wacko:

Thanks for telling me that ! I was told that by a breeder when I inquired for a male and I asked :" By the way, how much it is to finish a dog"? and was given that answer. I never asked anything further since that amount was just too much for me , so I really do not know if that implied a handler or not :rolffleyes:. I did not plan to show at that time- I was just curious, and did not ask for any further details or explanations. 

I just know that in CA shows are very well attended and competition is fierce. Some breeders go to AZ or NE to faster finish their dogs or even the East Coast !


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## cbrand

The best advice I would give someone who wants to pay a handler to show your dog:

1. Have a good quality Poodle. It costs the same to show a good dog as it does to show a not-so-good dog. It costs wayyyyyy more to finish a not-so-good dog. Don't tilt at windmills.

2. Make sure your Poodle is ready to win. You are more likely to win with a mature dog who is in full coat. Young puppies, or dogs who have coat issues or dogs that are in a funky clearing stage are simply less competitive overall.

3. Learn how to take care of coat. Paying a pro-handler to grow coat on your Poodle is not a good use of money.


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## whitepoodles

Wishpoo:

Dont let one breeder dictate what you want to do whether to show or not.
The amount she/he quoted you is trully unrealistically high especially since you inquired about finishing an EXCELLENT quality male.. Goodness mediocre quality males can finish for much less than that amount :rolffleyes:

Some breeders see a novice coming and either discourage them by giving them such a steep figure for finishing a dog or want to test the person to see how much money they are willing to invest in a dog they will buy (I assume from the person you spoke to).

You will only have to speak to a profes. handler if you really want to find out exactely what you are going to be faced with financially if you ever decide to show a dog.

Also from what I know majors differ in each zone in the U.S. and from what I heard it takes less dogs in California to build a major by comparrison with other states in the U.S. Yes competition is fierce in California, there are many breeders there who produce beautiful dogs/bitches and there are some very well known top handlers there.

If you ever wish to show a male or a female speak directly to a top handler or even maybe two or three to get a ballpark figure of what they will charge.


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## Feralpudel

cbrand said:


> The best advice I would give someone who wants to pay a handler to show your dog:
> 
> 2. Make sure your Poodle is ready to win. You are more likely to win with a mature dog who is in full coat.


Carol makes excellent points. I would just add that a nice older puppy (9-12 months) can be very competitive, especially if the handler knows which judges like puppies. Conversely, the 12-18 month class can be tough to win from. They look gangly in their new contis and have less hair than the more mature dogs. And all of a sudden that poodliness/goofiness that the judge would overlook in the puppy classes just looks immature, not cute.


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## Rockporters

We pay $75 per day to show. $100 per weekend grooming fee. We've only used the handler a few times so far. I believe she charges $10 to keep overnight. (not needed since we live nearby) Expenses for shows that are further are split amongst the clients.


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## Salukie

Wow.. Thank you, everyone, for all the input, and Whitepoodles, especially, for the lengthy and detailed explanation. 

I was just musing with the idea of owning a show dog, one day... 

So, how come males are easier to show than females?


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## cbrand

It takes fewer dogs to get a major. Here is the breakdown for my region ( Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Wisconsin):

Dogs vs. Bitches
1 point 2 2 
2 points 4 7 
3 point major 6 12
4 point major 8 15 
5 point major 12 21

So along with this, you see that it is also easier to finish dogs/bitches in certain regions. This is why people often travel out of area. Here is a schedule:

American Kennel Club - Point Schedule


edited to add that it looks like my division requires more bitches to get a major and just about any other division. Joy....


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## roxy25

cbrand said:


> edited to add that it looks like my division requires more bitches to get a major and just about any other division. Joy....


CA point schedule is so high we need 10 dogs to get at least a 3 point major ! Most of the shows i go to are small and only a few dogs show up.


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## cbrand

roxy25 said:


> CA point schedule is so high we need 10 dogs to get at least a 3 point major ! Most of the shows i go to are small and only a few dogs show up.



CA Poodles (Standard) . . 2 2.... 6 7... 10 11.... 12 14... 15 20


Clearly more dogs showing in CA. Interesting. I keep telling you to bring him out here. You would have won both days in Cheyenne.


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## roxy25

cbrand said:


> CA Poodles (Standard) . . 2 2.... 6 7... 10 11.... 12 14... 15 20
> 
> 
> Clearly more dogs showing in CA. Interesting. I keep telling you to bring him out here. You would have won both days in Cheyenne.


We are trying to set this up to get to CO we are worried about Enzo's hair do you think it will matter ? or are the dogs in your area wiggied up ? 

Pm a list of shows in CO maybe I can get there in Nov I plan to rent a mini RV with my sister and her Bf her Bf loves driving so that is good for us hahaha


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## cbrand

roxy25 said:


> We are trying to set this up to get to CO we are worried about Enzo's hair do you think it will matter ? or are the dogs in your area wiggied up ?
> 
> Pm a list of shows in CO maybe I can get there in Nov I plan to rent a mini RV with my sister and her Bf her Bf loves driving so that is good for us hahaha


Unfortunately you missed your window because we are right in the middle of our late summer show cluster. After this, there is Pueblo in November and nothing again until February. There is a 4 day show in Grand Junction. Entries close 9/15. Grand Junction is only a 10-11 hour drive for you. I don't know how many dogs will be entered. It could only be singles. There was only 1 dog in Cheyenne.


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## jonny cash

cbrand said:


> CA Poodles (Standard) . . 2 2.... 6 7... 10 11.... 12 14... 15 20
> 
> 
> Clearly more dogs showing in CA. Interesting. I keep telling you to bring him out here. You would have won both days in Cheyenne.


It is interesting to note the differences in the different regions. In CA it does take a lot of dogs, but the number for bitches is lower than in the midwest. We need 12 bitches for a 3 point major, but only seven dogs.


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## Ms Stella

cbrand said:


> I do a modified ringside my dogs. They don't live with the handler, but they may go up to stay with her a day or two before and after a show. I think it can cost about $400 for a two day show. You have to pay not only handling costs(around $100 a day), but sometimes bathing before and after, grooming, mileage costs, and hotels. If you add boarding to that, your costs go way up.
> 
> It would be considered very, very cheap to finish a Poodle in the US for $2000.


I like this idea...this is what I will hope to do. I was quoted by two well known poodle handlers about 6,000.00 for a good bitch to finish.


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