CHAMPIONSHIP SHOW WEEKEND 2007

Working Day, Funday & Companion Show

The morning after the night before dawned much too early for some but we started all over again with our three pronged day sponsored by Cobby Dog and in aid of the worthy Blue Cross animal charity. As a result of the show today a cheque for £250 has been sent to the Blue Cross, thank you to everyone concerned for their valued support whether you were an exhibitor a helper or a donator of prizes. The day is a big thing to organise and the committee couldn't manage without all the help we receive.

The early carting classes were as ever fantastically well supported and the entries were yet again really inventive in their interpretation of the theme.

The Working Carts, Agility and Obedience as well as the Good Citizens (all three levels) and Character Assessment gave the serious workers of their dogs something to tackle and the Companion show, judged by Dog World columnist Eileen Geeson kept the show folk happy. Everyone else could enjoy the novelty events which this year had a real Irish flavour being judged by Andrew Murphy. A really full day with something for everyone and again we received lots of positive feedback which we are very grateful for. Thank you to everyone who helped, supported, or just came and took part in a fantastic day.

(More reports and photos to follow)

The first class of the day, while many were still clearing heads or having breakfast, was the "Decorated Cart Children's Book Theme" with Yvonne Boyd having the completely unenviable task of judging. Her final line up was as below but as usual all the fabulous entries are shown and we are grateful to everyone for all the time and effort they put into these classes.

Judges Report

Thank you to the committee for asking me to judge the carting classes.

A big thank you to all who took the time and effort to enter, having entered these classes I know the work that goes into the finished themes. I had a wonderful day spent with lovely happy dogs and friendly people. My only disappointment was that I couldn’t give a rosette to everyone.

Best Decorated Cart (Children’s Books)

To lots of laughter and loud applause 8 carts paraded into the ring. All the dogs had happy waggy tails joining in with the happy atmosphere. I must admit on seeing the entries my first thought was HELP.

1^st. Ellie and Diane with Bryn - Alice in Wonderland

Ellie made a lovely Alice, Diane was dressed as the white rabbit carrying a large pocket watch. The rabbit informed me that they were late. Bryn looked every inch the Mad Hatter dressed in a very handsome red top hat, red cravat & beautifully fitting green checked suit. The cart was all set for the tea party with pink tea pot, cups, & cakes, all set on a blue check tablecloth.

2^nd Roy with Henry - Bob The Builder.

Didn’t recognise you at all Roy! Looked the part in enormous Bob the Builder head checked shirt & green dungarees. Henry looked as if he was enjoying the whole thing. I certainly enjoyed the cuddles and kisses from Bob. The cart was decorated with ladders, brush, bricks and other  building materials.

3^rd Pauline with Veyla & Lottie - The Elves & the Shoemaker

Pauline was dressed as the shoemaker with a very fetching bowler hat. Veyla and Lottie made super little elves. Dressed in matching red & green outfits and the most adorable little green hats but the ears did it for me. The cart was decorated with shoes, hammers and even 2 cobblers lasts.

4^th Helen with Teal - Peter Pan

Helen was a stunning Tinkerbell dressed in red & black striped tights, little frilly skirt & tiara. The wings looked like she could have flown off to Never Never Land but the wand was magical. Sure she put a spell on me.Teal was Peter Pan wearing a very smart green hat. The cart had a frightening plank on which was sat a little Bernese who was going to jump right into the mouth of a vicious looking crocodile.

5^th Debbie with Charlie - Noddy & Big Ears

Debbie was dressed as Noddy, I loved the red shoes; Charlie was Big Ears wearing a very fetching red hat & certainly had lovely big ears. The cart was decorated really well as the yellow Noddy car, headlights, steering wheel plus passengers.

6^th Margaret with Tilly - Red Riding Hood

Margaret made a very convincing wolf that growled really well at me (Frightening).

Tilly was a pretty Red riding Hood in a lovely red cape. From the front the cart was decorated as the grannies cottage and at the back it had a lovely basket of food.

Alice in Wonderland maybe but who is as mad as a hatter?

Can someone fix him? ............................please!

I loved the ears on the "elves"

Now, I never did find out what children's book this was but I did find out I definitely missed out at school!

Again the ears have it! But then with Big Ears they should have. The dog's are quite good as well!

Now this Big Bad wolf had a severe image problem. I mean, did you ever read the Big Bad wolf saying "Ooooh dear, its a bit windy today" and complaining about Red Riding hood's cape blowing about? Big wussy wolf more like!

The 2nd Decorated Cart class was the Carting Turnout class

Judges Report

Best Carting Turnout

4 entries in this class & the standard was very high

1^st Bruce with Asti. The cart was immaculately turned out and beautifully varnished. Full marks for gleaming brass & spotless harness. Asti looked happy and well groomed & Bruce looked splendid in his Swiss costume.

2^nd Lynne with Teal. A lovely turn out. Teal in very shiny harness pulling a gleaming cart with spotless shiny brass. The picture was completed by Lynn in full Swiss Dress.

3^rd Philippa with Sophie a smart cart with bright red wheels, Sophie was wearing a nice shiny harness & was well groomed. Sadly Philippa was not in costume.

4^th Mervyn with Harvey. Harvey was pulling a very smart 2-wheeled cart & looked very dapper in his matching harness and lead. Sadly again Mervyn was not in costume.

The final Decorated Carting Class was the Swiss Theme

Best Decorated Cart (Authentic Swiss Theme)

What a grand sight they made as they entered the ring. All the flags blowing in the wind and the bells all ringing. This was one class I wished I had more rosettes.

1^st Pauline with Lottie & Veyla. How lovely mum & daughter looked in a brace. The cart looked grand with the big Swiss flag flying & the big bell ringing. Lovely polished churns and Swiss cheeses,  Pauline finishing off the picture in Swiss costume.

2^nd Lynne with Woodie. A well turned out theme, Lynne was dressed in a Swiss style dress, Woodie looked very smart in his Swiss style harness and lead. The cart was decorated with a red and white flowered arch, milk churn & basket with cheese and milk.

3^rd Roy with Henry.A lovely turnout the cart looking bright and cheerful with shiny churn & floral arch .Roy was dressed in Swiss costume and Henry had smart shiny harness.

4^th Andrew with Star. Andrew was carrying and waving his flag with gusto. The cart was filled with straw, churn, cheeses & flags. Lovely flowered arches finished off the picture.  Star was wearing a Swiss style harness and Andrew a bright red Swiss outfit.

5^th Lee with Dexter. A red and white arch and 2 lovely big churns decorated this cart. Lee was in Swiss costume and Dexter completed the picture.

Yvonne Boyd

As we approached the lunch break we were treated to another Heel Work to Music display from Helen Boyd and Teal. This has become a regular highlight at all our Garden Parties and Working Days and this year did not disappoint. Described as a new routine and a "work in progress" and additionally hampered somewhat by the strong wind this nevertheless was a terrific end to the morning and was given a fantastic round of applause by the crowd which, as always, suddenly grew enormously just before Helen's performance. Whatever you thought of it Helen we all loved it!

COMPANION SHOW

The Companion Show held in aid of the marvellous Blue Cross Animal Charity was another well supported success of the week-end attracting not only Bernese but other breeds from the neighbourhood. Thank you to everyone who supported the show. Our judge, Eileen Geeson the writer of the Dog World column "Points to Ponder" kept things moving and there seemed to be a really happy feel to the show ring all afternoon. Our thanks to her and her hard working steward.BIS Judging

Eileen has since made some very favourable comments about her day with us in her Dog World column and clearly enjoyed her experience. We thank her for this and hope to see her again sometime.

Eileen Geeson's Reserve Best in Show, Best in Show and Best Puppy (good job there was a Bernese in there somewhere Eileen or you may have had a point to ponder!!)

Companion Show - Breed.

Class 1 AV Puppy. M. Jones' BMD "Hilda"

2 AV Graduate R. Dickson's BMD " Rothko"

3 AV Toy/Terr/Util. M.Hart's Manchester Terrier " Izzy"

4 AV Hound/Gundog J.Scott's Pointer "Freda"

5 AV Wk/Pastoral D.Edmunds Finn.Lapphund "Nalle"

6 BMD Grad. S.Place's BMD "Stella"

7 BMD Open Butler's BMD "Stanley"

8 AV Open D.Pell's Parson Jack Russell "Hollie"


BIS Parson Jack russell - Hollie

RBIS Manchester Terrier - Izzy

BPIS Bernese Mountain dog - Hilda

Novelty Events Report by Andrew Murphy

I would like to thank the committee for honouring me with the position of judge in the Companion show and also the exhibitors who entered their dogs under me.

My brother and I thoroughly enjoyed our day with you all and were overwhelmed with the size of the entries.

We hope a lot of money was raised for the Blue Cross.

Andrew Murphy (Kinelarty)

Best Veteran

I loved judging this class, my 1^st and 2^nd winners were great. The first although not the oldest veteran in the class was a 10½ year old Bernese Mountain Dog. In Bernese terms this is a good age, in great condition, strode around the ring with drive and enthusiasm. Would put some younger Bernese to shame.

Best Rescue

1^st Collie cross rescued from Antrim now living in Scotland where it is actively involved in agility, obedience and flyball and loves canoeing. It is now useful in the community with involvement in Search and Rescue work. IOt is pleasing to see a dog which was so abused being brought to this standard. A credit to its new owners and such a happy dog.

2^nd BMD Very friendly dog loves taking its owner for walks.

Best Movement

1^st Australian Terrier (Kallie) A very showy character who raced around the ring with its head held proudly

2^nd Bernese Mountain Dog (Yent) Happy dog who moved very steady with owner.

Most Handsome Dog

1^st Finnish Lapphund (Nalle) Cheeky chappie, loads of character and moved beautifully.

2^nd Newfoundland (Murphy) Lovely drop dead gorgeous eyes, like a cuddly teddy bear.

Prettiest Bitch

1^st Beagle (Jasmine) A cute little female, caught my eye immediately she came into the ring.

2^nd St Bernard (Bonnie) This girl let me know she loved me and literally drooled over me.

Best Condition

1^st Beagle (Jasmine) Same as Prettiest Bitch. Beautiful white teeth, clean coat and of good substance.

2^nd Labrador (Missy) Decent size chocolate bitch of good weight and proportion. Clean teeth and good coat.

Irish Brace

This was a wonderful class. A joy to judge.

1^st (Banjo and Storm) Lovely good sized Bernese as big as the young handler. Banjo was of a cuddly toy breed from the adapted dog collection. Very obedient and true, all three together totally and utterly entertained myself, spectators and exhibitors.

2^nd  (Timmy & Kallye) Another very good Irish brace

Another brace made me think I must have been on the Guiness, I could swear I was seeing 2 Bernese & a Yorkie but that can’t be right can it?

Waggiest Tail

1^st Staffie (Meg) Such a show off, continually wagged its whip-like tail. Both dog and handler put their all into it.

2^nd Collie Cross (Cara) A joy to watch with its feather like tail.

This class should be called a keep fit class. They all were so enthusiastic and came out of the ring exhausted.

Dog the judge would most like to take Home

1^st Bernese (Bonnie Blu) This young Bernese which I believe shows potential for the future was at one with its owner. Very affectionate with myself.

2^nd Bernese. Another pretty specimen

Any Dog not having Won a First Prize

1^st Bernese (Darshan) This dog just adored its owner and obeyed every command. Good sized Bernese in good coat, very striking strong dog.

2^nd (Harvey) Another stunning dog.

AGILITY

The Agility Competition and training was ongoing throughout the day under the expert guidance of Nicola Whyte and Pat Nurse.

Working Day Agility Report 

As usual, we had a wonderful set of Agility sessions at the Working day and we came away feeling exhausted but very pleased with the enthusiasm of the dogs and owners who took part. Thank you to everyone who came along. 

We had quite a few new faces, many of whom did incredibly well – both dogs and handlers. All of the dogs seemed to have great fun over the jumps although a couple were understandably a little nervous on the dog walk. The tunnel takes a bit of getting used to as well but once they had mastered it, it was hard keeping them out!

That goes for some of the more experienced ones too (yes, I am talking about you Dolly Boutel and Merlin Munson who both camped out in the tunnel!!!!) although our top agility Bernese gave a stunning performance of 26.22 seconds and a clear round – well done to Teal Boyd.

 The non-Bernese dogs also deserve a mention as they were great fun during the day. We were both delighted to see Hamish Finch, a lovely Greater Swiss boy have a go and show what he could do. But the winner in the beginner’s event was Sandy Green with her young handler Emily who managed the course in 39.82 seconds with no faults.

 The Hellingsworths had a very good day too, coming away with a win each for Asti in Beginner Bernese and Dixie in the Novice Non-Bernese class plus a third in the same class for Rio. And Dixie made the fastest time overall with 23.60 seconds and no faults!

Well done to everyone who took part and we hope to see you all at the Garden Party next year.

Nicola & Pat.

RESULTS:

Apologies to anyone whose name I have spelt incorrectly – my note writing is terrible!

Beginner Bernese

 Beginner Non-Bernese

 Novice Bernese

 Novice Non-Bernese

Nicola tries the "Healing Hands" technique of adjusting the tunnel while Pat just gets on with it!

Its those "healing hands" again!

WORKING CART COURSE

Judged by Rod Hanks

Report and more photos to follow

CARTING MEDALS

After the Carting course had finished calculations were done and the medals for the year's achievements were awarded. These are awarded to the top three Working Cart Course scorers for the whole year including results from all the events. The medals were presented by Coral Denis (from Canada).

The Gold Medal went to Bruce Hellingsworth's Remy with 726 points, Silver to Roy Tom's with Henry (716 pts) and Bronze to Tom Murray's Murphy (715 pts)

OBEDIENCE

Report on the Working Day Obedience 23/09/07

Thanks for inviting me to judge the working day obedience and for the plaque I received. It was a shame it was so windy, it made it very distracting for the dogs with the noise and also for the handlers to hear the instructions from my steward Ann. I must thank Ann for helping me out at the last minute as she has had nothing to do with obedience and did a sterling job despite the odd panic when competitors took the wrong course.

Class 1 Have a Go BMD

1^st Cliff and Charlie _ A steady round with rather crooked sits but he made up for it with solid stays

2^nd Candida and Titch _ In need of some training as she is only 6 months but plenty of enthusiasm

3^rd Sally and Star _ Pleased you had a go but a little more training might help. A good try.

Class 2 Triers BMD

1^st Helen and Teal _ Very good heelwork, she’s keen and bouncy. Glad I didn’t have to sing for her to work well.

2^nd Maureen and Dolly _ A typical Bernese, knows perfectly well what to do but couldn’t be bothered today.

3^rd Elaine and Cinders _ Elaine has only just rescued her and has taken her on a 6 week obedience course, could do well if she carries on as she was keen and eager to work.

4^th Sue and Baz _ Unusually the further he went in the heelwork the better he worked. He couldn’t wait on the recall though.

Class 3 Future Stars BMD

1^st Lucinda and Ernie _ Glad I wasn’t against him as he worked very well, must work better on an empty stomach. His stays were perfect.

2^nd Linda and Willow _ Lost most on the heelwork as she wasn’t paying attention.

3^rd Rosemary and Fleur _ Worked rather wide and lagged, she must have had enough on Saturday.

4^th Maureen and Dolly _ She definitely didn’t want to work this time.

5^th Richard and Dilly _ Worked quite well in the heelwork and the recall but didn’t manage the retrieve.

Class 4 Have a Go Non BMD

1^st Ms Hart and Izzy _ Worked very well and did the stays.

2^nd Emma and Majic _ With some practice she could be good.

Class 5 Triers Non BMD

1^st Heather Ward and Truda _ Worked well.

2^nd Sheila and Connor _ A steady round and lagged a bit

3^rd Bruce and Dixie _ lost most for his heel work and using a tight lead but he was hampered by a dog at the ringside.

4^th Cynthia and Didy _ A very enthusiastic dog when or if he settles down he should be good.

Aileen Barnard

GOOD CITIZENS

The following dogs passed their Good Citizens assessments under the experienced eye of Sandra Gatward

BRONZE- Cara Mattheson (Collie cross), Dilly Price, Mickey Finn Boutel (x breed) Brewster Biggins, Susie Boutel (X)

SILVER - Dilly Price, Storm Foster, Quercus Baldwin (Leonberger)

GOLD- Fleur Price

(All BMD unless stated).

CHARACTER ASSESSMENTS

The following dogs all passed the Character Assessment

Barbara Baldock with Engletal Kyburg Knight (Excellent)

Mrs P Green with Lintock Opium at Pasturegreen (Excellent)

Lucy Denman with Ybsilone from Balihara Ranch & Marbella from Balihara Ranch

Cynthia Bailey with Rimada Dalesman, Perdita from Balihara Ranch & Kenmilfore Charlie

Sally Murphy with Ballymana Begonia (Excellent)

Sally Murphy with Mr & Mrs Benson's Kinelarty Midnight Gaze

Kimberley MacDonald with Genuine Swiss Connection v d Dorfquelle (Excellent)

Rosemary Price with Westlebern Fleur (Excellent)

The following Dog failed the Character Test

Sue Small's Dreambern Ingenious Izzy

Irish Brace winner

More  reports and photos to follow

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