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Colleen McGee

I acquired my first show dog in June of 1982 from an Irish Setter breeder in New Castle, PA with the intention of competing in Obedience and Conformation. With guidance from my mentor and close friend Marita Gravatt who saw my potential I was able to obtain a Championship and Obedience title on Ace and I went on to put Championship titles on six other Irish of hers plus many of my own.

While attending the shows I was asked many times to help handlers cover their clients dogs and this opened yet another window of opportunity for me in the Dog Show World.

I used to assist in basic obedience training classes while an active member of Golden Triangle Obedience Training Club which was over 20 years ago and have been a conformation instructor for at least 12 years with my most consistent position starting with Pawsitive Academy for Canines. Once Pawsitive was taken over by Western Pennsylvania Kennel Association I continued to run their evening drop in classes plus volunteered to instruct on Sunday afternoon classes whenever available. I have always found it to be very rewarding to be at a show and have a person who had attended my classes come up and tell me how well they did in the ring and thank me for their accomplishment due to my words of encouragement and sharing my knowledge.

I have handled a multitude of breeds, but pretty much specialize in Sporting, have put 4 Best In Shows on an English Cocker Spaniel and finished over 50 other dogs. During my time in the ring I have handled many breeds to group placements and just recently became a member of AKC Registered Handlers Assoc #0246 plus have been the President of Golden Triangle Irish Setter Club for the past 4 years.

Showing dogs is a fun sport that anyone who is interested should not be discouraged nor intimidated by the professionals - this is where I differ from most handlers because I make it my priority in teaching an owner how to handle their own dog instead of convincing you to hire a professional.