When I went to congratulate both Beth (Co-Co's usual handler) and Peter for accomplishing what I thought to be a handling first—that is, having handled both a Westminster and Crufts winner—he told me that, in fact, this is the second time such a feat had been accomplished. A man Peter called "the greatest fox terrier person and handler ever", Bob Barlow, won Crufts with a Wire in 1963 and. Westminster with an Airedale in 1932. And that sort of praise from the “Master of Fox Terriers” is high praise indeed! And how typical of Peter to be both historically precise and self-deprecating when it comes to his own accomplishments within the dog world. Of interest to me on a coincidental side is that the name of the Crufts Wire was Ch. Crackwyn Cockspur—close but not a cigar to Cracknor Cause Celebre.
The first day of Crufts is Terrier and Hound day, and as usual, most if not all of the morning was spent at the Skye ring, with occasional visits to nearby Airedales, Wires, Smooths and Scotties. The afternoon was spent in Hall 2 watching Norfolks and a Greyhound or two in somewhat nearby rings. Groups went off with the Terrier Group, in my opinion, having little to write home about. Unused was a brother to Mick, which looked handsome. Personally, I liked the line of someone that if it were up to them, Co-Co would have gotten all four group placements. American dogs were placed second and third, respectively—a Smooth and an Airedale, with a German Skye fourth. That must tell you something of what the Judge thought of the terriers from the U.K.
Hound Group quality was superior to the terrier group but not great as far as I was concerned. Nonetheless, there were several good “typey” dogs, or so I thought. The ultimate selection was a Beagle, and as most of you know, the American beagle and the beagles from the U.K. are as different as night and day. That is not to say one is correct and the other incorrect, but the American eye never seems to appreciate nor approve of the British type in that breed, for sure. There looked to be a nice Saluki, a nice Whippet, Irish Wolfhound and Scottish Deerhound, some of which made the final cuts, some of which did not. Typical day at any dog show, eh what.
Next day was Toys and Utility. Watched Charlies, of course; some Cavaliers in nearby rings, as well as Griffons—what a beautiful smooth that won the breed; some Pekes, Poms and Bichons too. The Toy Group was just magnificent, I thought. The Maltese magnificent; an Italian Pap to die for; and a fabulous smooth-coated Chihuahua, which won the group. The judge's shortlist could have gone to any of those she pulled, including the Shi-Tzu. This was a great group for me to watch. Next came the Utility group, which contains such breeds as Dalmatians and Schnauzers (both mini and Standard). Unfortunately, last years group winner, a TT, freaked at the TVs in the ring. The ultimate winner was the Shiba Inu, about which last year I wrote I could have given the group. He has matured terrifically with an additional year behind him. I just wished the lady who showed him would walk him rather than run. Overall, this group looked decent and better than the Terrier and even the Hound Group, but not on a par with the Toy group, which just took your breath away. Oh, yes, from the stands, the Tibetan Spaniel looked very much the part also.
Now comes Gundog Day, and by now everyone who elected to stay all three days is exhausted beyond belief. We got to the show later than usual and watched some Spinonis, which looked magnificent. I watched English Springers, which I love in the U.K. I definitely think the time has come for America to split the breed into English Springer Spaniels and American Springer Spaniels. The breeders' interpretation of what they want and what the judges are looking for in the U.K. and the U.S. are just totally opposite from each other. While the Standards may be close, those interpreting the Standards are coming to different conclusions, and if you think a "julie" Springer looks similar to what they are showing in the U.K., you need to rethink this breed. A very British English Setter that was not my cup of tea won the Group, but once it walked in the ring I thought it would win, as it was very British in type. Second was the English Springer, which I fell in love with, and the Spinoni was fourth and easily could have been higher. The Brits' concept of Wei's and mine are so far apart that I won't go into it.
There was a black cocker bitch I think you would have taken home, even with her tail! The overall quality in the group, on a scale of 1 to 10, I would place at a high 7, which is higher than usual for me for a British Gundog group.
Now comes the final exhausting and crowd packed day—Working and Pastoral. Watched some lovely Bernese Mountain Dogs, some Great Danes and then Poland Lowlands, which size-wise were all over the place. I spent some of the day finally visiting the concessions to bring home some gifts and then headed to the group rings. Working was stronger, I thought, than ever, with the Giant Schnauzer (I believe it was last year's winner) heading the Group. The dog looked far better to me this year than last. The Dobe with uncropped ears was most competitive, while the Alaskan Malamute truly caught my eye. The Pastoral group was awarded, surprisingly, to a Belgian Tervuren that looked quite nice, with a lovely OES second. The rough Collie, which was third, was my easy winner, but what do I know about Collies? This group, too, looked stronger than I remembered last year's to be.
After that was Best, and quite frankly, had Co-Co not won, I would have been really disappointed, as she was obviously the class of the night! There was the usual attempt at a demonstration, which was nipped in the bud during Best. It was a great night for us all, and you can bet one thing—all things being equal, we'll be back in Birmingham for the sixteenth consecutive year in 2006. It's hard to believe that this is the fifteenth year since Crufts left London, and I still miss that venue to boot. One word of warning for Americans—if you bring your dogs to Crufts, when you come into the country, don't overvalue the worth of the animals. You get taxed by the Brits accordingly, with some people having to pay as much as $1,700 per dog. I think you get the money back after you leave the U.K. but when and how much I'm not too sure of. And lastly, every dog that won a CC at Crufts was given a certificate of entry for the AKC-Eukanuba Dog Show. Nice touch, I thought, and very effective too for AKC and America. •
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