There were no CC’s on offer at Bournemouth Ch show where Keesie judge Sally Pointon had 8 dogs entered. We were second in the ring after 60 Bulldogs (with 18 absentees), so it wasn’t a long wait for exhibitors.
Best Dog was Joan Miles and her daughter Sarah’s Ch Neradmik Kiss Chase with Lekkerbek (Ch Neradmik Family Affair with Lekkerbek x Ch Neradmik Miss Holly Berry) with Reserve Best Dog going to Tyra Church’s Shelderon Stemmig Sage with Tykees (Venway Blow Then Away x Eastkees Foxy Lady at Shelderon)
Best Bitch with Best of Breed was Jean Sharp Bale’s Ch Neradmik Berry’s Swan Song (Ch Samkees With Love to Neradmik (imp Mlt) x Ch Neradmik Miss Hollyberry) Reserve Best Bitch with Best Puppy was Dawn Gregory’s Amikirs Lovealicious (Ch Neradmik All About The Boy for Watchkees x Ch Amikirs Bubblelicious) and judging was all over by 12.15pm.
The Kennel Club has recently announced that for 2024 -2028 each Keeshond breed club can hold two Ch shows a year as long as one is held in partnership with or back-to-back with a general Ch show. We already have 20 sets of CC’s from General Ch shows plus the 2 existing breed club Ch shows and from 2024 we’ll also have an extra set for Scottish Utility Breeds.
The KC in their wisdom, reckon that with an average entry of between 40 – 45 dogs per show (taken over the past 5 years) that we warrant an extra 2 sets of tickets making 25 in total. In 3 years’ time we’ll be lucky to get an average of 25 dogs per show the rate we’re going. Me personally, I think that we should be losing CC’s not gaining them – the number should be more like 10 sets not 25! What do you think? Do we warrant more CC’s? Will it attract more exhibitors or just create ‘cheap champions’?
Mind you, to attract more exhibitors the general Ch show societies are going to have to have a rethink about their entry fees. No benching, smaller & fewer marquees for many of them and yet still charging the same price? Especially for dogs entered NFC – £10 per dog for what, a couple of lines in the catalogue and the 20p KC charge – really? I suspect that many exhibitors have found other, better things to do with their dogs and money during the past 18 months.
The Kennel Club’s Find a Judge is finally up on their website after an absence of almost a year. Keeshonds have a total of 111 judges approved to award CC’s, which comprise of: 28 x Breed Specialists, 49 x ‘All Rounders’, 25 x Overseas Judges and at least 9 people who either haven’t judged within the last 7 years or who no longer wish to judge, but are still on the list. Also included are 10 ‘new judges’ who haven’t actually awarded CC’s yet have been passed to do so.
Anji Marfleet