What it Means to be an NSCA Breed Mentor

Being a mentor means that the NSCA feels you are qualified to train judges in the finer aspects of judging a Shiba Inu.  Your name will be placed on the NSCA website as an approved mentor and you may be contacted via the website by someone interested in being mentored, or the Judges Education Chair may contact you if there has been a request for ringside mentoring at a show in your area.  Most of your activity will center around working with the observers at ringside, but you may also be asked to discuss the breed at other times, or you may get a request to visit your home to see, go over, and discuss your Shibas to help them learn.  Whatever activities or mechanisms that help the judge learn the Shiba are acceptable.  For more information, consult the NSCA Breed Mentor Guidelines.

The question arises whether after mentoring someone for more than just a few minutes or hours, you may show to that judge once they are approved to judge Shibas.  That is up to the judge and the mentor, but there is nothing prohibiting that from occurring.  Judges will hopefully talk to more than one mentor when learning, and form their own opinions.  If you have done a good job of teaching, the best dog will win, whether or not you are showing it.

Application Process

To become an NSCA Breed Mentor, fill out the application form on this website.  The Judges Education Committee will review the application and make a recommendation to the NSCA Board which makes the final decision.

NSCA Breed Mentor Qualifications

  1. Have knowledge of the background, history, and function of the breed.
  2. Must be a member in good standing of the NSCA.
  3. Must be a Shiba Inu breed expert whose ethics, integrity, and devotion to the breed is beyond reproach, and who is willing and able to share knowledge and provide guidance through open exchange of information, ideas, and perspectives.
  4. Must have met the minimum AKC requirements (12-5-4 rule*) to apply for their Shiba Inu judge’s license. Breeder-judges may also be approved as mentors if they do not meet the 12-5-4 criteria, but are approved by AKC to judge Shiba Inu and have judged the breed for at least five years. 
  5. Enjoy interacting with others and able to communicate in an understandable, clear and insightful manner.
  6. Possess the energy and flexibility of a schedule necessary to accept mentoring requests.  Be willing to attend shows for mentoring purposes even when not showing a dog.
  7. Demonstrate a commitment to impartiality and the Breed Standard and the NSCA Code of Ethics, along with the guidelines for approved NSCA mentors.

*AKC's 12-5-4 Rule:

  1. Have 12 or more years experince exhibiting in conformation in at least one breed applied for
  2. Have bred and raised 5 or more litters on your premises in each breed
  3. Have bred 4 or more champions in each breed (whether or not owned or handled by the applicant)

Litters and co-owned litters must have been whelped and raised on applicant's premises. The required four champions must be from litters whelped and raised on applicant's premises.

Forms (PDF):
NSCA Breed Mentor Application Form
NSCA Breed Mentor Rules, Regulations, and Guidelines
Printable version of this page


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