I think you show for the love of the breed. You didn't specifically say conformation shows so I'm including ALL shows in my general opinion.
I think it's a wonderful way to network with other people who are in love with a breed and are working to preserve it. You do get an "authoritative" view of your animals good and bad points. It gives the dogs a job in many cases. And more and more are working as well as showing.
It's also very political and has more to do with money than the animals overall. The AKC is simply a clearinghouse. It's seriously lost it's way in today's society and can no longer function as it was intended. Hopefully they will make some neccessary changes and get "up to date". True, many of the dogs in the show ring are simply show dogs and are not pets. Showing is the only thing they do, period.
It's not a lifestyle for everyone either. It's highly competitive and requires real backbone and agressiveness. Fainthearted people will be run over. It can be quite consuming...Es
pecially if you are obsessed with your animals. (Dixie...
) And if you don't live close to major hubs, it can be very expensive traveling to the shows every weekend. However, it can be addictive too.
However, there are also "shows" such as rallys, obedience, etc that are a whole different ball of yarn. And CKC and UKC are also different.