# stacking advice (complete newbie)



## Ffcmm (May 4, 2016)

so i signed up my 4 month old puppy for 4 baby puppy shows (he's had all vaccinations already etc). it will be the first show ever for me & Monty! 

he is currently high in the rear, and somehow... i feel that when I stack him i make him look worse than he actually does?

all the pictures are from videos, sorry the angle is weird as i put my phone on the floor ( as i don't have anyone taking pics of me when im training him so i have to video it and look back)

do I place his back legs too far back or is this acceptable?
are his front legs still too forward? when i look back at the pics i feel like they aren't right?
do you usually WALK or RUN your puppy during the show? my mentor told me to walk with big wide steps so thats what i've been doing. I tried doing a little run but Monty thinks im playing with him and breaks off into a full gallop!
he bumped his head and there is some swelling in the area. the vet said not to worry as it will resolve itself ( my breeder as well), but he looks ridiculous!!!!!
i'm not too sure about movement or what too look out for, but i added a screenshot of him.
















here is his head bump.. it's Not that obvious when his ears are up.. but i took this picture yesterday.. today he played rough and it looks more obvious now!!


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

First, I hope that somebody with more experience can chip in here too!!!!!!











I put a box in here as 1 guide. Another guide is your dog's legs.

Somebody told me that the front legs - you want them to look like pillars? Straight up and down. Your pup's a little knobby at the knees so I'd probably add vitamin C just one thing going through my head, but the rest is you don't want them slanted like that. Among else, it makes him look like he has flat feet. Front feet need come back.

If you look at the line in front, you don't want the front toes in front of that line or too much in front of the line.


Rear feet are not as bad, but you still see a slant with the hocks. You want them to be straight up and down + you don't want too much extension so it looks like he's too straight behind. In general, front toes should be a straight line down from the butt bone. And use your fingers as a guide to check if the hocks are straight up and down when you place the feet.

If he grows up with more length in the rear - you may place the feet a step behind the butt bone or about. Again, practicing in front of the mirror see what happens to his knees + hocks when you place the feet.


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## Tagrenine (Aug 20, 2019)

Hi there! I'm also a newbie. My boy and I have been attending classes. I went to class last night with my 6mo and they said slowly move up into the gait, long low strides so the puppy doesn't get too excited  I imagine I'm gliding as opposed to running.

Being high in the rear is a puppy thing, I've heard dogs grow butt first.

For his stack, he's stretched too far out. His front legs should be underneath him, imagine a straight line from the top of his shoulder to his paws. And his hind legs, I was given amazing advice by another member on this forum, to put two fingers on his hocks and adjust his legs until the fingers are straight. I find that's with the paw under the point of the hip.









This isn't the best stack because he's half on the rug half off so we could get the picture


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

- OK. I have time to answer the other 2 questions you had.



> do you usually WALK or RUN your puppy during the show? my mentor told me to walk with big wide steps so thats what i've been doing. I tried doing a little run but Monty thinks im playing with him and breaks off into a full gallop!


- Walk 1-3 steps, ease into a slow jog and gradually speed up if need be. Watch your dog and let him lead out. 

When doing a down and back - look up to a target straight out, take 1-3 steps to let your dog start out at a trot, and gradually move out with him. Turn around, look at the judge who is your target going back and do the same relaxed trot back to him. 

This _is _a sporting breed, so you should expect to move them out a little when going around the ring - especially if a bigger ring. But you are not running full out. It's kinda like running with a cup of pop in your hand that you don't want to spill? Ideally, you want your dog to do a nice showy trot going around the ring.

You have a 4 month old pup - so a fast walk and very light jog is about as fast as you need to go for both the down and back and going around the ring. 



> i'm not too sure about movement or what too look out for, but i added a screenshot of him.


Looks like he's trotting - which is the first thing you want. There's some puppy rolling and growing pup awkwardness going on with the back, but nothing really awful. I like his tail carriage. 

I'm not sure what you were doing at the time you took the picture - but one thing to kinda work on is getting him to trot WITH you or even slightly ahead and looking forward. You don't want him lagging behind you when gaiting and you want him trotting forward and confidently. He will get there as you practice and he grows up a little. 

Very cute pup.


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## Ffcmm (May 4, 2016)

Megora said:


> First, I hope that somebody with more experience can chip in here too!!!!!!
> 
> View attachment 870019
> 
> ...


omg that was very helpful thank you so much. these tips you pointed out will be useful.

i didn't even notice the slanted hocks until you pointed out. i am going to get a large mirror to practice in front of as i find it very hard to gauge where to put the front feet especially. like how far back they have to be!

i will brisk walk him with large steps like you & my mentor suggested for the puppy show then as he does trot along quite nicely. the still picture of him in movement was me doing that ( i cut myself out of it as i was practicing in my PJS haha!) you are correct he is not levelled with me and lags behind sometimes! when he gets excited he starts the gallop and pulls ahead instead. finding that balance has been quite difficult ): 











today he was just standing and i took a picture and you can see his really high rear.


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## Ffcmm (May 4, 2016)

Tagrenine said:


> Hi there! I'm also a newbie. My boy and I have been attending classes. I went to class last night with my 6mo and they said slowly move up into the gait, long low strides so the puppy doesn't get too excited  I imagine I'm gliding as opposed to running.
> 
> Being high in the rear is a puppy thing, I've heard dogs grow butt first.
> 
> ...


he's beautiful!!!! i can't wait for monty's topline to level out hahah. 

thank you for the tip for his front legs! i will try that.

i thinkkkkk i understand what you mean by the fingers at the hock and making them straight (i think!!)


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