NORWEGIAN BUHUND
The weekend before Crufts several Buhunds took their owners to shows to have a practice before strutting their stuff on the big green carpet. On Saturday 4th March Jenny Shorer- Wheeler took Muchly aka as Ch Koromandel Tusen Takk (ai) to Wath & West Melton Canine Society open show, held on the Newark & Notts Showground, Newark where he was Best AVNSC and PG1 under Richard Kinsey. The next day further south and west into South Wales there were Buhund classes at Bridgend & District Kennel Assoc Premier Open show, held at the Cwmbran Stadium, Cwmbran, Torfaen where it was a day to remember for Lucy Beatrice Gilbert with her Zuki aka Leggatts Fly Like An Angel, who under Steve Atkinson first won the PG class then the Open class and ended up BOB & BP, and was later PPG4 under Tina Holman so qualifying for Crufts for 2024, not bad going to do it before this year’s Crufts has taken place. In Premier shows the 1-4 in the Adult and Puppy Group are Crufts qualifiers.
In the run up to Crufts the main concern as I said in last week’s notes was the weather, having had relatively calm warm weather for some weeks it all started to change in the days before, with even the forecasters not sure whether the warmer weather from the south would win over the cold weather coming down from the North. Of course, it started to snow on the Wednesday, just as many were making their way to Crufts with the amount of snow depending on where you lived. On Thursday first thing several Gundog entries were missing due to the weather but it improved during the day, and we had no snow on the roads driving up from London later in the day, just very heavy rain. The next day was Friday and Pastoral Day and the snow returned with a vengeance, many had come up the day before as we had, but others decided to make the journey in the early hours only to be met with blizzard conditions, and although we were only a few miles away a journey which would normally take about 15minutes, with the snow and the traffic it took an hour. I am glad to say everyone arrived safely it was only our judge who was late, thinking he had a 10am start not 9am.A special mention to our friends from Eire who not only had to battle the weather, but in one case car problems, but thankfully all made it safely compared with LKA when their ferry being cancelled at the last minute.
Crufts 1973 marked the centenary year of the Kennel club although the KC was not involved with Crufts until it bought the brand during the second World War. That show was at Olympia with an entry of 11,203 dogs. Prize money was £4 £2 £1 with an entry fee of £1.75 no extra passes with an admission cost of 50p.Judging started at 10.30am and you could not go till 6.30pm! That year a Cavalier King Charles Alansmere Aquarius was BIS at not quite 17months old. This year it is the Kennel Club’s 150 Anniversary and as well as breed classes there are numerous competitions with an overall entry of over 24,000,not counting the dogs that take part in Discover Dogs. The show moved from Olympia due to lack of space to Earls Court where again the capacity was limited and the parking non-existent, so in 1991 it moved to the NEC where it has gone from strength to strength.
As I said earlier, we were first in the ring, our judge was the all-rounder David Cavil judging the breed for the 10th time, his previous appointment was at Bath in 2019. He gives CCs in 31 breeds across 5 groups, and over the years he and his wife Angela have been known for their kennel of Finnish Spitz, with his wife Angela writing a book about the breed which has been translated into Finnish. For years they have also been known as Mr & Mrs Southern Counties Champ show. He made it a day to remember for Marie Corrin and Adam Camm with their Kligenthal Almuric (Bergen), who is by Ch Arnscroft Di Na Mo Farah Of Koromandel JW ShCM x Koromandel The Lily. If you are going to win your first CC with BOB what better place to do it than Crufts. Many congratulations. Bergen already has 4 RCCs and numerous BOBs and Group placings at Open Shows, so is well used to the group ring and although he may not have been placed or short listed in the group, he certainly did the breed proud. RDCC his 6th was my and daughter Debbie’s Ch Rikarlo Gable JW L5ex (Time)handled by Debbie he also has 7CCs and is by Ch Koromandel Best Served Cold at Knytshall x Kimura’s Vera with Tapui (ImpNor). BDP & BP Nancy Kent and Jacque and Michael Cobb’s Leggatts Dakota at Knytsahll (Toby) he is by Time x Knytshall Noor Ul Ain. BCC her 2nd went to a delighted Kirsty Irvine with her Blackcombe Bodil At Tapui (Imp Aus) she also has a RCC and is by Aus Ch Kynon’s Urban Legand x Nor/Aus Ch Rennedal’s Brynhild Skjoldmoy .RBCC her 4th Michael Patrick & Leigh Ashman’s Tapui Starla (Freya) she is Time’s younger sister and also has a CC.BBP Lucy Beatrice Gilbert’s Leggatts Fly Like An Angel(Zuki)who is Toby’s litter sister.BV Sue Crocker’s Knytshall Noor Ul Ain she is by Knytshall Diamond Ted x Trollheimen Elske To Knytshall (IMP US).These were the main winners but I would also like to mention Marinda Taylor Smith whose Ch Ailort Just In Time (Bulah) was second in the VB class. She belonged to Marinda’s late mother Jean Platt and was originally shown by Celia Vines, Bulah is now 15yrs young but you would never know it watching her move round the ring, showing how long lived the breed can be. The other one is young 8yr old Bethany Guillod-Rees who handled her parents Draccus Obsidain (Ruby) qualifying her for next year’s Crufts. The last successful junior handler we had was Isaac Shorer-Wheeler who used to handle Ch Arnscroft Di Na Mo Farah Of Koromandel JW ShCM for his mother, before that it was Debbie Penniston Fleming’s son Findlay. Ruby needs more confidence in being gone over by different people but once she is happy with this, I am sure she and a Bethany will have a great future together.
I am sure most of you know that Time and I compete in Scent work trials based on detection nose work, practised by customs and excise bomb disposal and medical detection dogs. We attend weekly classes and my trainer did a demonstration on the Friday in the Good Citizen Ring at Crufts, to explain to people how scent work can be a fun activity for your dog. I was very pleased to be asked to join her team of dogs with Time, our exercise was to find the scent hidden in a row of containers which he did perfectly, only a couple of hours after competing in the breed ring showing the versatility of the breed.
We had a fantastic picnic at the benches with a great variety if food. It was a very enjoyable day with a lovely atmosphere, and great company and at the end of the day we all took the best dog home.
Next week I will talk about the lovely people who gave up their time to daily man Discover Dogs with their dogs.
Keep safe everyone.
Margaret Deuchar margaretdeuchar@gmail.com
The views expressed in Margaret’s Breed Notes are hers and hers alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Norwegian Buhund Club of the UK
.