Posts tagged ‘Championship Show’
Stellar show weekend.
Django’s Saturday rosettes.
Evidently saving their best for last, this very memorable weekend saw three of the Belatarr Puppies excel in the showring:
Django moving for the judge in the Gundog Group.
On Saturday our own Django headed off to the Okehampton & District Open, where he dodged the intermittent heavy rain showers to take Best of Breed & Pest Puppy in Breed under Ms N. Walker, before heading indoors where he scored an amazing Gundog Group 2 & Gundog Puppy Group 1 under judge Simon Luxmoore. Remarkably this is the exact same result that his father, Mingus, achieved at the same show 2 years earlier, and the third year out of the last 4 that Belatarr HWV’s have been awarded Best Gundog Puppy in Show at Okehampton, following Phoenix’ win here in 2009. Many thanks to Nige Small for taking these great shots of Django in action!
Django stacked for Best Puppy in Show.
Not to be outdone, the next day saw Django’s siblings Gryphon (Belatarr Dizzie Gillespie) and Billie (Belatarr Mahalia Jackson) head off to the South Wales Kennel Association Championship show. There judge Mick Howes awarded 1st Junior Dog, Best Puppy Dog and a terrific Reserve Best Dog to Gryphon, and then 1st Junior Bitch and Best Puppy Bitch to Billie, leaving brother and sister to compete against one another for Best Puppy, eventually taken by Billie:
Billie & Gryphon’s SWKA awards.
Many congratulations to both, as well as to handler Irene for a job very well done!
Puppy Updates.
It seems hard to believe that the Belatarr dozen are approaching 12 months old, but next month will see them celebrate their 1st birthday. Meantime it’s been as busy as ever in the lives of the pups:
Django, with his ever more luxuriant facial furnishings.
After a slightly delayed start in the ring our own Django is finally now becoming quite the showman and has racked up a series of Champ Show 1st places from his handful of appearances so far. His (usually!) superb carriage even won him a Best Puppy and then Best in Show award and the local DHK Pedigree Charity Dog Show where he beat approx 60 other (mostly adult) show dogs to collect his first ever trophy.
Like Phoenix & Mingus before them Django & his brother Finley also successfully completed their Puppy Gurus Advanced training this month, during which time Finley developed an evident love for agility – a whole new string to the Belatarr bow!
Their brother Otis lives with his Hungarian pack over at Nansavallan Vizsla in Cornwall. Much like his father before him he has rapidly developed a superb deep red harsh wire coat and is proving to be a complete natural at gun dog training:
Otis demonstrates his new skills.
Otis at 11 months.
Meanwhile, in a well-earned break from the show-ring, brother Charlie Parker has been enjoying the sights and sounds of rural France along with his big brother Oz the Chocolate Lab:
Charlie learns a new skill.
…and another.
A happy boy.
and a well-earned snooze.
Back on this side of the channel, and following their successes in the show-ring, brother and sister act Gryphon (Belatarr Dizzy Gillespie) and Billie (Belatarr Mahalia Jackson) have also been learning new skills as they try out for both working and obedience tests:
Gryphon, who has clearly learned to read.
Gorgeous head-shot of Gryphon (courtesy of Sharon Newman)
Billie, demonstrating her retrieve from water whilst showing off her perfect top-line. (courtesy of Sharon Newman)
….and the dried-off version.
Gryphon & Billie awaiting their next adventure. (courtesy of Sharon Newman)
Bristol resident Milo (Belatarr Thelonius Monk) has also been over to France this summer, and looks to have picked up a new interest of his own:
Milo waiting to be served at the pub.
Starting with his muzzle Milo now has a super, tight wire coat developing over his whole frame.
Milo on top of the world (well, the cliff, at any rate).
Across town is Digby (Belatarr Oscar Peterson), another Bristolian Belatarr with a super red wire coat:
Digby at the beach, back in summer.
Whilst down near the south coast are two of the Belatarr girls, Ruby (Belatarr Nina Simone):
Ruby says hello.
Ruby, keeping up the family tradition.
and last, but most definitely not least, is our very special little girl Ella (Belatarr Ella Fitzgerald):
Ella, in full bloom amongst the heather.
Ella with hew new big sister Ilka.
Ilka showing Ella the ropes….or is it the other way around?
Much more Puppy action coming to the blog very soon with a report/ photo-montage from the Belatarr litter reunion day…
Mingus hits the big-time!
This last weekend saw Tim & crew set off on the 950-mile round trip to the Scottish Kennel Club Championship Show at the Royal Highland Showground on the outskirts of Edinburgh. Mingus was up against the big boys in his first Champ Show Open class, presided over by breed expert Jonathan Parry. Despite being the youngest in the class Mingus well-and-truly rose to the occasion, driving round the ring in great style, and we were absolutely thrilled when he was awarded 1st Open Dog – beating the Crufts 2012 Best of Breed, along with the only UK male Champion HWV plus the only male currently with 2 CC’s in the process.
Moments later things got even more exciting when Mingus was awarded Best Dog and won his first Challenge Certificate – given to HWV’s at only 8 shows each year, these are the ultimate accolade in showing:
The CC means that Mingus is granted a Kennel Club Stud Book Number and an entry in the revered Stud Book, which in turn means that he is also now qualified for Crufts for life and is one third of the way to becoming a champion, and all at just 2 years of age! We were delighted that his breeder Jacqui could also be at the show (en route to a working test with Mingus’ sister Love) to witness her baby all grown-up and hitting the big time in the show ring! We’re just so very proud of our beautiful boy.
Mingus back on home ground – wet and muddy in the garden.
A little later in the show Phoenix (who had most definitely never looked better – motherhood certainly becomes her!) also put in a great performance and qualified for Crufts 2013 at her first Champ Show for nearly a year, and also her first since her humongous litter of 12.
…and speaking of the Belatarr Twelve, Charlie Parker was the first of the baby boys to take to the ring, and went straight in at the deep end earlier in the month at the National Championship Show, where he thrilled Tim and also attracted a lot of other attention ring-side with his ultra-stylish and ultra-sound movement, not to mention his super-affectionate personality and beautiful head. Owners David & Jenny’s hard work and dedication certainly paid off when Charlie also qualified for Crufts at his (and their) very first show – cue excited squeals all round! Charlie took the whole thing in his stride and proved that he’s definitely made for the ring…his journey is only just beginning!
Belatarr Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker will always be a very special boy to us – he very nearly stayed on as part of our pack, and it was a considerable wrench to part with him, and a very emotional time when he left us for pastures new.
He now has a wonderful life with his new family of David, Jenny and (very importantly!) big brother Oz the Lab, who definitely takes a leading role in teaching young Charlie the ropes. This extremely handsome boy now looks uncannily like his dad, Mingus, and will also be the first of the Belatarr Babies to hit the show ring – very exciting for all concerned! Many thanks to David and Jenny for allowing us to share these fabulous pics of their boys:
Charlie & Oz hit the beach.
Aged 5 months.
The team!
Rewind back to 3 and a half months old, and Charlie meets snow for the first time.
Mingus scores Hat-Trick. Four-in-a-Row.
UPDATE:
Following hot on the heels of his 1st at Crufts and then again at last weekends HWVA Championship Show, Mingus scored another first Junior Dog under judge Pam Blay at today’s W.E.L.K.S. Chamionship – giving him a hat-trick of three 1st places at three consecutive Champ Shows.
Mingus pre-show - looking quizzical in the garden.
Today wasn’t Mingus’ best performance and he was unusually fidgety and distracted in the ring – probably due to close interaction, immediately before entering the ring, with a bitch who’s kennel mate was in season …we won’t be making that mistake again!! – but, luckily his movement was as solid as ever and the judge took little time in awarding him 1st place.
Practising stacking with Mingus.
AND THEN…8 days later it was the National Dog Show Championship, another big entry of 67 HWV’s and Mingus’ final ever appearance as a Junior. Following the previous weeks rather unsatisfactory/wriggly behaviour in the ring we took a different approach with Mingus’ pre-show preparation. The result was one of his best ever performances; he stood immaculately, showing total focus and requiring just the lightest of touches to maintain his position – a total joy for his handler this time out!! – and his movement was as powerful and animated as ever, all of which brought him his 4th Champ Show first place in a row. The perfect way to exit Junior and move up amongst the big boys!
Belatarr wins Top Puppy of the year… again!
Mingus strides out in the ring.
Yesterday saw the long-awaited first ever Hungarian Wirehaired Vizsla Championship Show, judged and extremely well presided over by Frank Kane – one of the country’s most senior judges, and possibly the ONLY British judge who could be said to be a household name outside of show households. This was the second ever show (the first being last months Crufts) at which CC’s (Challenge Certificates) were being awarded to the breed. The combined draw of Frank and the CC’s attracted a phenomenal 164 entries from 126 HWV’s spread across 23 Classes…without question the largest gathering of the breed anywhere in the world, which ably demonstrated that Wires have most definitely “arrived” in 2011!!
Hot dog (& handler) preparing the stack and nicely showing one of the secrets of his success - Mingus' powerful shoulders & upper arm.
...and stacked in the Junior Dog class.
The day was blisteringly hot, which certainly caused ongoing problems for both dogs and exhibitors, many of whom were wilting to various degrees.
First!
Mingus was up in Junior Dog – at 10:50 AM, but already boiling in the ring. Frank certainly put the class of 6 young dogs through their paces, moving them on four occasions to examine structure & movement from all directions, but we were absolutely thrilled to be awarded 1st place once again, consolidating on Mingus’ 1st in the same class at Crufts.
Mingus' 1st Junior Dog award.
We like a bit of silverware and Mingus received a natty engraved silver platter for his win too, but, much like the temperature, things were only just hotting up for him…
The annual awards were announced at lunchtime. At last years awards ceremony our Phoenix took Top Puppy and Top Scoring Puppy Bitch for the year. We knew that there was some very serious competition this year from, amongst others, two superb young bitches (from Herlinga & Morganna Kennels respectively) both of whom had excelled through the year at Championship and Open shows and who we knew would have amassed substantial scores….
Mingus & Handler having a team-discussion whilst awaiting their results...
As the tally of points was pinned up and the awards announced it became clear that one of these bitches had beaten the existing Puppy Show Points record by quite a large margin…but Mingus had managed to go ever further and, with his score of 581 points, took Top Puppy Dog, winning the Leiborschy Tankard, and then Top Puppy of the year, allowing Belatarr to retain the Leiborschy Flask that Phoenix won for us last year. In the process Mingus also set a new record for the highest score ever attained by a UK HWV show puppy. Needless to say we were brimming over with pride at our boys amazing achievements – what a day to remember!!
The two award certificates and more 1st's!
1st at Crufts!
The 3:15AM start could mean only one thing – it was the “Big Day”…..yep, Crufts had finally arrived.
A huge HWV entry of 104 – surely the largest gathering of the breed that has ever taken place outside Hungary? – converged on Birmingham’s NEC, with us amongst them.
Mingus hit the ring at around 09:15, keenly watched by his “Grandmas” (Jacqui of Morehay & Caroline of Starshot HWV’s) and did both them and us proud by winning his class and being awarded 1st Special Junior Dog, from a class of 6 dogs. All very exciting!
Another wonderful result to add to his tally, but also a real milestone in his Show career:
Mingus stacked in Special Junior Dog class.
Being awarded 1st in Class.
Mingus on the move
...and in the Best Dog Challenge.
Seasonal Tribulations.
The lonnnnnng absence of any new blog entries can be attributed to Phoenix coming into season – her second, just shy of her 2nd birthday, and almost exactly 12 months from her first. How very orderly.
The big difference this time ’round, though, was that she was no longer the only canine in the household. Entering into unknown territory with an intact male and female living together, Phoenix (somewhat unexpectedly!) came into season just 24 hrs. after being awarded 2nd Limit Bitch at the Gundog Society of Wales Champ show.
We had been as prepared as we could be for the whole male/female excitement interface, and the possibility of having to separate the dogs from one another for a while, but in the event it all went relatively easily, and aside from two occasions when Phoenix was caged to allow Mingus to get some daytime snoozing done, they remained together throughout the whole time. Having said that we didn’t take our eyes off them at any time when they were awake, and obviously they slept in different rooms too, but the howling/screaming/hysteria that we were expecting (and that’s just from the humans) never came to pass at all.
They ate and exercised together just as normal, and, as soon as they were out of the house, they were invariably both far more interested in food/running/tug-of-war/swimming/chasing stuff etc. etc.
Vole hunting = business as usual.
Phoenix herself was pretty unaffected in terms of mood, but once she entered her receptive phase Mingus became much more tense and unsettled, finding it difficult to relax or rest no matter where he was.
Although this only lasted for a few days unfortunately the very peak of the season coincided with Mingus’ final Champ show as a Puppy – Midland Counties – where our boy was incredibly and unusually needy (howling if Tim so much as glanced at another dog!) distracted & fidgety and as a result was very unsettled and lean-y in the ring, temporarily forgetting how to stand or move properly…we think that’s what judges refer to as “throwing it away on the day.”
Then, after just 19 days, it was all over, and, as if someone had flicked a switch to off, both dogs immediately returned to their normal patterns of behaviour.
Of course Mingus (now 11 months old) is just a young-ling, and no doubt things will be a tad more “intense” next time around, but show-ring appearance aside, it couldn’t have gone more smoothly. A big relief!
Day 7 of Phoenix' season - on the trail with Mingus.
Richmond, take two.
Last Sunday saw us heading back to the Richmond Championship Show, held at Loseley Park, a venue deep in the heart of Surrey that is famous (to us at least) as the origin of Loseley Ice Cream (yum). This was also the scene of one of Phoenix’ Best Puppy awards in 2009, and 2010 saw the HWV classes judged by Eileen Hughes, who had awarded Phoenix another of her Champ Show Best Puppy awards last year….all of which seemed to bode well for Phoenix, at least.
The cold, breezy morning that we left behind in Devon had been transformed into a bright, sunny and rather-too-hot show day by the time we landed in the Far East (well, the environs of Guildford). Luckily the benching marquees were pretty cool and also featured very large, under-cover exercise areas, so, for once the heat was no problem at all for either dog – though the same can’t be said for their handler who became a mite over-heated after trotting round the hot ring all be-suited.
Mingus was first up and thrilled the crowds* with his excellent movement and nifty standing – this last being much improved over the previous weeks efforts in Birmingham. He was rewarded with 1st Puppy Dog, which was very pleasing.
Some time later Phoenix took to the ring in the Post-Graduate Bitch class and looked particularly commanding* stacked in the ring, resulting in the judge awarding her 1st place too, which was even more pleasing. This result pips her 1st Graduate Bitch at last months National Gundog to become Phoenix’ newest most-senior-award-at-a-Champ-Show-so-far.
What’s more the whole shindig was all wrapped up by lunchtime – how very civilized. So we headed for home elated, well fed and in daylight too! All in all an excellent show day for team Belatarr.
* probably
Shows and Siblings.
A few results, some new pics, and some *hot news* definitely warrants a new blog entry.
A pair of moderate Champ show results for Mingus (both under less-than-favourable-to-our-type judges) were punctuated by a much more exciting third Best of Breed for our boy. This came at the Newton Abbot & South Devon Open, where Mingus gave what was probably his best ever performance in the ring, both standing and moving to perfection. As a result he was awarded 1st Open HWV, being placed above a 2 times Champ Show Best of Breed winner.
Last Sunday also saw the second Hungarian Wirehaired Vizsla Association show of the year, this time at the Kennel Club Building near Coventry. A 5 AM start (in total darkness) left both the dogs and the humans a bit discombobulated all round, and Mingus was evidently still a bit confused when he hit the show ring 4 and a half hours later since, at first, he appeared to entirely forget what the command “stand” was supposed to mean…a few gentle reminders from Tim eventually had him back on track and he trotted away with a respectable 2nd Puppy Dog award.
Phoenix stacked at the HWVA show.
Phoenix, as usual, had no problems whatsoever when it came to standing and she seemed positively delighted to be in the ring too, ending up with 3rd Graduate Bitch.
The judges examination...
...and the final stand.
Speaking of Phoenix, and saving the *hot news* to last…….drumroll please………….. we’re delighted to report that she now has 8 new full brothers and sisters, as mum Flo safely delivered 4 new boys and 4 girls back at Tarndair HQ on Saturday. Many congratulations to David, Jane & Flo as well as to proud Leiborschy Dad Mallard – we’re looking forward to watching these babies grow!
Belatarr Hungarian Wirehaired Vizsla. 