Great point!
I was going to mention this as well, but never got around to it. Pinky & The Brain had a great article on this (can't find a copy), where almost the entire bulldog community has it wrong as to how they apply the 10-count on scratching.
As you said, a dog doesn't have 10 seconds to stand there, suckin air, only to decide at "7" he's going to go. That is NOT what is meant by 10 seconds! The dog must BEGIN AT ONCE to go over there ... and he has 10 seconds to crawl, flop, roll, or do whatever he can do to get there ... but IF HE STOPS (even for a second) he is automatically declared the loser. Which means any dog that takes a 1-count, at the scratchline, or even while in the process of going ... LOSES.
A dog must be continuously trying to get over there, and if for even 1 second he stands, then it's GAME OVER
The truth is, 99% of all dogmen do NOT read the Cajun Rules properly ... which means they do NOT follow the Cajun Rules correctly ...
However, for people who read the rules properly, the can see that entire point of the Cajun Rules is to get the contest over with as quickly as possible, ending things at the first hesitation or "lack of gameness" ... thereby offering the greatest chance of sparing the lives of the dogs involved
Jack