Maintaining the Standard by Sheila Atter
The day before Crufts, the latest issue of the Assured Breeder Newsletter dropped through my letterbox. With just time for a quick look, I didn’t realise that I would be bombarded at the show and by email with comments from furious ABS members...
The week following Crufts is always a tricky time for commentators on the world of dogs as copy has to be submitted before the event has taken place. Whatever is written with regard to the show will inevitably be out of date, especially if...
Crufts! Love it or hate it, this is one show you just can’t ignore – and for most exhibitors, not just in the UK but in many other parts of the world too, qualifying for Crufts is something to aim for every year.
The Kennel Club has always been first and foremost a gentleman’s social club, which may have given it a certain standing in some spheres, but the very values that underpinned the setting up of the registration system, the stud books and even the...
Are you a front to back person, or a skimmer? In other words, do you start on the front page of Dog World and read every page until you get to the end, or do you skim through the articles, pausing to read the relevant breed notes, searching for...
Much is written about social networking sites, but when used positively they can be of great value. My minority breed is realistically so numerically challenged that even in the country of origin there are probably not enough dogs to maintain a...
You will have to excuse me if my column is somewhat disjointed today. It will be because my eight-month-old puppy is outside amusing herself on this very windy day by chasing leaves that have blown into the dog yard from the nearby trees.
Many column centimetres have been used up commenting on the appointment of judges and the importance of the judging panel to the success of a show. But what about the training of those judges, and the way in which they progress up the judging ladder?
In last week’s Dog World Comment column, the phrase ‘cautiously optimistic’ was used to describe the possible results of the latest Associate Parliamentary Group for Animal Wealfare (APGAW) meeting.
The winter months are when the open shows come into their own. We can usually find one that isn’t too far away and, with lower costs, we can go for a day out, without getting too worried about the enormous amount of money that we are throwing away...
A week before Christmas, the KC announced that there would be a high profile breeds education day, to which judges of the 14 high profile breeds, and veterinary surgeons who monitor these breeds at general championship shows, will be invited.
As the clock ticked towards midnight she was nodding off, but for old times’ sake felt that she had to at least stay awake and see the new year in.
