Originally posted by Suki Wingy
It they were judging the look of the dog then why would the judge feel the dog's cost and bone structure or watch their movement?
sorry, I had to quote you

Actually... yes, conformation shows ARE all about appearance (and structure, but structure is basically within appearance). But, for many breeds, appearance is extremely unimportant and secondary to a LOT of MUCH more important traits. Seriously, let's not try to give dog shows a deeper image ~ because it is basically a beauty show. If it wasn't, why do the handlers spend hours and hours blow-drying, styling, and poofing up a Border Collie that was bred for work, not appearance? I know that the dogs have to conform to a standard, and the dog that fits the standard most wins, blah blah blah. But, that IS judging by looks. How is a conformation judge going to determine the biddability and working instinct of a German Shepherd that is standing stock-still 98% of the time he's in the ring? He can't, even though working instinct IS in the standard. Sooo, he could end up picking a GSD completely void of any herding or working drive as BIS, just because of how he looks. What about Miranda's GSP Heidi? She's an awesome working dog, beautiful, and a great example of her breed. However, when put up against smaller females who potentially (and probably) have NO sporting experience, Heidi could not even place! Simply because her size is not the "trendy" size of GSP females at the moment.. even though she fully conforms to the standard. Anyway, its not fair to say conformation isn't based on looks ~ because it IS!