Consider the word, “station.”

Let us count the ways.  But first, a bluesy bit of mood music in the short video below because that’s how we roll:

 

Penn Station (best pizza we ever had was during Westminster, and it came from a Penn Station pizza joint);

Filling station (what you’ll need a couple of during show or competition season)

One’s station in life…..(Nation Purebred Dog Day’s station is to advocate for purebred dogs)

Battle stations (when you encounter an animal rights activist)…..

To marry above one’s station (Example: When a cat person marries a dog person. Just saying)…..

That train has left the station (read: The judge has decided on the other dog for Best of Breed);

Battle stations (if you belong to a breed or training club, no explanation here is necessary);

Stations of the Cross (ask your Catholic friends);

Train station…Wait what’s a train?

We’ve had a bit of fun with the word, “station,” but in canine lexicon, it has another meaning, and perhaps it’s a dated one, but one we think you should know if you want to be an informed “dog person” (read: nerd).

Why? Because in our estimation,  your most valuable information to learn about dogs comes from two sources: Old hands (read: veterans) of the dog world, and dog books.  Both might be a little on the older side, and both may use terms that are unfamiliar to you, but because we believe in the intelligence of our readers, we don’t “dumb down” terms we use here, and neither do hard bitten dog people.  “Hard bitten,” the way, is a compliment to anyone who fits the description.

When a dog is referred to as being “low in station,” it doesn’t mean the dog comes from an impoverished background (though these days, people paying entry fees for a dog show may feel impoverished).  It refers to the distance between the dog’s withers to the point of his elbow, and specifically, when that distance is greater from the withers to the elbow than from the elbow to the ground. Conversely, when the opposite is true, the dog is said to be relatively “high in station.”

We fully expect you to bandy this phrase about the next time you’re among dog people. Shock and awe.

Image by © Annaav/Dreamstime