Suddenly it was time. I was finally stepping onto the green carpet and I was going to judge at the worlds greatest dog show! So how did it feel? 

Well in some ways it was a bit surreal. It was almost as If someone else was the judge and I was simply a spectator.

A number of old friends had turned up to visit Crufts, some of whom I had not seen for many years as well as some of my family many of whom were at their first dog show. The bull terrier ring was, as is usual at Crufts, several people deep, and I did feel a little nervous at first when I stepped out from the crowd. But as soon as the dogs came into the ring any nerves melted away and I found that I was able to concentrate easily on the task in hand.

The fact that dogs need to qualify for Crufts ensures that the entry is very different from any other show. Many of the earlier classes are filled with dogs that have not been shown at many shows during the year. Yet the later classes contain the more well known and more successful dogs, the champions and CC winners and the overseas dogs. This makes the judging task quite tricky as whilst there may be a significant gap in the quality from each class, each class contains many dogs of very even quality with not much separating them.

I could not help being aware of the importance of the occasion for all the exhibitors and handlers and therefore I was determined to make sure I did not make any mistakes or make any rash decisions’ that I may regret later. As a judge, once you have made a decision there is no way of going back and changing it.

My time in the ring went very quickly, it seemed that no sooner had I started than I had finished. Yet when I checked my watch yet I found that I took far longer to judge that than I would normally have expected too. This was partly because at Crufts the judge is required to write a report on each of the first 3 dogs in each class, whereas at most shows it only the first two dogs that are required. Also I found that because the ring was much larger than is usual at dog shows, the handlers were using all the available space to make sure that I got a good chance to study the dogs’ movement. In fact it was the ring that made the significant and noticeable difference in judging at Crufts. With the expanse of green carpet, the lights and TV cameras it certainly felt very special.

Then of course three were the dogs. I was lucky to have dogs from 10 different countries entered, 15 of which were Champions either here or abroad so there was no doubting the quality of the animals. Of course as a judge you have no idea which of the dogs are from overseas and the first indication is when you ask the exhibitor a question, perhaps “how old is your dog” or “can you please show me your dogs mouth?” and they look at you blankly, but I found that a few hand signals would quickly suffice.

So did I enjoy it? Absolutely! Judging good dogs is a great pleasure and despite the added pressure it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Would I do it again? Well as a specialist judge, it is highly unlikely that I will get a second opportunity, but I am seriously hoping to be back at Crufts next year- but this time as an exhibitor.

Now that is even MORE exciting…………

Author:

Bill Lambert

Publisher:

The Kennel Club

Date:

14-Mar-08

Last updated on:

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