People would frequently ask me, "what do you think of my dog?".  Having been within the inner circle of the dogworld myself, I have created a reputation of being honest with my assessment when I am being ask of their precious pooch.  I ofcourse wouldn't want to offend anybody BUT.... I do give them a straight answer.  If I think the person asking it wouldn't take the criticism of their dog then I just keep my observation to myself and give him a pregnant smile.  I feel flatered that even if I have been discreditted by alot of people, my opinion is still being ask by others.  They know that I will give them what I think the true picture is.  Now, the constant question always being asked of me is that "would my dog be a winner?".  This is hard to answer BUT having been in this interest for quite so long, I can honestly say that I can give a good assessment whether the dog will be a winner or will just be among the common decidens that would win some and loose plenty.  Judges would ofcourse have their different view on almost everything.  They will have a different interpretation of the standard.  They would give different importance on particular area of a dog.  Some would go for good head, others would be more on bone and substance.  quite a lot of this judges would judges based on movement.  If I would be ask, how would you assess a dog and differentiate a commoners from the winners.  This is easy, the dog should have the IT factor.  what IT factor?  Well, it is hard to quantify this into just one word.  The dog should have Karisma.  It should stand on it's own when inside the ring.  It should have fairly decent movement.  It should be symetrical and balance.  It doesn't have to be the best dog but a dog that would command attention.  So basically, one should look for breed type in a particular dog.  Soundness is of importance and so is balance and the most important thing, specially in the BEST IN SHOW competition, one should have the karisma and showmanship.  This is the reason why we regularly see dogs like "Neo", Mickey, Poppy, Ricardo, the pom of Basilio and the peke of Dr Lo. Because all of this dogs have the necessary advantage for them to get noticed and they would be shown very well by their handler and would always in top condition.  So, if I would be ask, "Is it easy to have to TOP WINNER"?, the answer is no!  It takes alot of hard work and the right MATHERIAL.  the right MATHERIaL means that you gota have the right dog and the right handler to the dog to win consistently.  My advice is for people to observe the dogshow, see for yourself why each one of this dogs wins consistently and make your own conclusion as to why each one of this dog wins over the other.  basically, we are just getting the opinion of one certain individual that got the expertise in assessing a breeding specimen to further the quality of the said breed.  There are also fads in dogs but this would come and go.  The basic principle is for you to adhere to the standard set for the particular breed that you are involved with.  STUDY it and make your own assessment as to why it was written that way.  It was written that way for a reason you know.  If you adhere to the standard of your breed, you will not go wrong.