Nancy Resetar's Australian Shepherd, Ch. Caitland Isle Take A Chance, the number two Herding Dog all-breed for 2005, was awarded the coveted title of Crufts Best in Show for the year 2006. Expertly handled by Larry Fenner, this American-owned dog brought the house down at the NEC in Birmingham, England. He is Canadian-bred. Cathy Bishop, of Caitland Aussies, is his proud breeder. Clearly, the crowd favorite and certainly the number one choice of English judge Brenda Branbury, this extroverted and beautifully conditioned and presented exhibit wowed both the breed judge and the Pastoral Group (our Herding Group equivalent) judge. This was the first time CCs were awarded in this breed. The event, of course, is hailed as “The World's Greatest Dog Show.” What a great and deserved honor for the dog and his breed, to say nothing of his longtime owner and supporter, Nancy Resetar, and his very capable handler, Larry Fenner. It's nice to see this kind of recognition given to as hardworking and professional a person as we all know Larry to be. This was Chance's final show appearance. And yet the cream on the cake at Crufts was the awarding of the Reserve Best in Show to an American-bred Wire Fox Terrier bitch. Bred in Washington State by longtime successful Wire breeder Barbara Decker, who co-owns her with P. Davies. Her name is Am. and Eng. Ch. El-Rays Snowtaire Iceni Payback. And what an apt title in the use of the word “payback.” When one considers all the WFT imported to the United States from the U.K., it's about time our breeding programs were recognized in the U.K.!
Really, this Wire bitch—which, I may add, contrary to the naysayers, who are either ignorant or merely jealous of her—never puts a foot down incorrectly. She moves beautifully, is perfectly marked, has an eye and stare most WFT breeders would die for, and is conditioned incredibly by the talented, young Andrew Goodsell from Wales, who I have known and liked for years.
And how about some more icing when I tell you the Toy Group was won by a Pomeranian bred in the States and owned by the Dane Miss V. Jacobsen, Ch. Finch's Ovations For Me. Hot on his heels was the American-bred-and-owned and number six Toy All-Breed 2005 and number one Maltese, Ch. Divine's Marc of Friendship at Delcost. Owned by Mrs. C.R. Gilles and shown expertly by Tonia Holibaugh, I would have been hard-pressed, had I been the judge, not to award this exhibit the Group. And I guess Mr. Thorn was so pressed, even though a Yorkie from Italy was second, since a third in this competition was not a mean feat whatsoever!
Indeed, overall, all foreign dogs had a heyday at Crufts, although the American-bred Bloodhound, among a few others, did not fare as well. He was second in his class, and I must say, either should have won it or have been left out of the ribbons altogether. He just looked that different in type from all the other class exhibits. Also defeated was the American Smooth Fox terrier, which had been one of the top dogs in the U.K. for 2005. I was not too surprised at this decision, as the breed judge who also did BIS at Montgomery put up, in the U.S., a totally different type dog than is the smooth competing in the U.K. Returning home for the first time was the American Cocker that was number one dog all-breed in the U.K. for 2005. Linda Pitts handled him, and he easily won the breed.
As for the other groups, Working was won by a Bouvier—yes, Bouviers are in Working, not Herding or Pastoral, as they call the group—while Utility was won by a Miniature Poodle. The Bouvier was from Belgium and the Mini from the U.K., as were the magnificent Welsh Springer (what a beauty he is) and the Norwegian Elkhound (a very sound, good mover and typey dog he is). Overall, I thought the Group judging to be above average, but some of the Groups were weaker than expected. Terrier and Working were not up to par quality-wise. The Toy Group was good but not as great as one usually sees there. Utility was surprisingly good and Pastoral was above average, as I saw it. Hound was Hound, with an extremely nice Beagle, of all breeds, which usually is not the case for the American eye in that breed. The Group Four I neglected to mention was in the Hound group, an American-owned Mini Daschund. In Gundogs, I thought the four top-placed breeds were the cream of the crop. And while the Am. Cocker could have fit into the Group placings after that, the pickings were slim.
How do you describe the event itself? You just have to go at least once and then four or five times again to appreciate the significance of the event. It is top-notch and unique to the point that anyone interested in dogs must go there. Over 145,000 people were in attendance, and the final night was marked very well, with a recognition of hero dogs that brought the first standing ovation to Crufts I have ever seen and left not a dry eye in the house. Will I be back next year for all four days? I hope so. You should be there, too.
As an afterthought, I wanted to say that Brenda Banbury did an outstanding job in judging Best in Show. Her performance was a lesson in judging procedures. It was understated yet precise and basically flawless. Her attire was extremely suitable (no top hat and cane here), and the nonsense of having each dog freely stacked left out totally. Some of the group judges looked at side movement, whilst others either ignored it or put heavy emphasis on the up and down. But, of course, that’s basic to British judging, isn’t it!
As to the elections, here’s my reaction. I was surprised it went three ballots. I was shocked at the lack of Ashby’s strength and amazed at Keene’s support. I felt sorry for Marden. Never having been his fan, I can’t say I was upset about his loss, but after hearing about his performances in the question and answer period and then his alleged inept speech, I was not surprised at his having been defeated. I thought Marden suffered greatly because of his Strand ties, particularly on the third ballot, where he failed to pick even one vote after Meisels withdrew and Ashby’s vote fell to nothing. I do think the two new faces on the Board are refreshing. Not since the late and great Herman Cox’s time has Texas had any representation whatsoever on the Board. Geographically, Keene’s election comes at a very good time. I expect Newman to be progressive, while Schaefer happily marches to her own tune. The thing about Nina I like is her ability to say her piece and then be able to negotiate from there. All in all, the results were most satisfactory. Congrats to the Delegates and/or the Member Clubs on this vote, for sure. •