Top Dog 2009 is Ruby
24 Dec 2009 08:01
THE IDENTITY of the UK’s Top Dog of 2009 in the Dog World/Arden Grange table has been known for a while, so Andrew Goodsell and his Wire Fox Terrier Ch/Ir Ch Blackdale Carousel were able to fly to California to try their luck against top winners from many other countries, rather than stay at home to try to accumulate more points at LKA.
Ruby has had a spectacular show season, taking seven BIS awards at UK championship shows, but perhaps her most exciting success was when she returned to her native Ireland to compete at the European Winner Show in Dublin, where she was Sean Delmar’s choice as BIS.
She was bred by Harry O’Donoghue in Dundalk,one of the world’s most experienced and successful
breeders of Wires, and comes from many generations of careful line-breeding. She is by Blackdale Magic ex Blackdale Sunshine, both of whom are by Ch/Ir Ch Blackdale Ringmaster, and half-sibling matings are a feature of her pedigree.
Originally she was not destined for the show ring and she was one of Harry’s team of brood bitches. In her first litter was Ir Ch Blackdale Celtic Queen. Afterwards Harry was about to clip off her coat when he thought that there was something rather special about her, so she was got into show form and promptly won the CC at Belfast in 2006. Subsequently she came to England where she is handled and now owned by Andrew Goodsell, who in recent years has proved himself as one of the country’s most successful young terrier handlers.
Quickly
His best known charges have been BIS and Crufts group winner Ch Fairwyre Commander at Grambrae, and BIS and Crufts RBIS winner Ch/Am Ch El-Rays Snowtaire Iceni Payback. She quickly gained her UK title and was top Wire in 2007, winning groups at Driffield under Dave Scawthorn and Midland Counties (Michael Quinney).
In 2008 she was again top Wire and won the group at Leeds (Roger Crooks), going on to BIS under Kari Wilberg; Paignton (Gerrard Morris, and RBIS, Robin Searle), Richmond (Tom Johnston), and Darlington (Hans van den Berg, plus RBIS). During the year she broke the long standing bitch CC record for the breed.
After a slow start to 2009, she then came into her own, proving that terriers can still win in their mature years – she was six years old in June. Her group wins came at Bath (Ben Nolan-Dale, and BIS, Dianna Spavin), Southern Counties (Jeff Luscott, and BIS, Brenda Banbury), Windsor (Carla Molinari, and BIS), East of England (John Bunting, and RBIS, Ken Hogg), Paignton (Ferelith Somerfield, and BIS, Steve Hall), Bournemouth (Jane Miller, and RBIS, Maureen Micklethwaite), Scottish KC (Hans van den Berg, and BIS, Dagmar Kenis-Pordham), City of Birmingham (Sue McCourt, and BIS, Albert Wight), Darlington (Roger Crooks, and BIS, Peter Bailey), Belfast (Michael Quinney) and Midland Counties (Philip Greerway).