Many seasoned showgoers have seen numerous hilarious “Oopses” in the ring; ladies who drop their underwear and deftly kick them out of the ring; gentlemen judges who are unzipped. I saw one judge at an indoor show on a warm day wearing a raincoat. “I split my pants” was his answer when I asked him why. I noticed another judge was wearing odd colored shoes. I pointed it out to him and he exclaimed, “I know, I have another pair at home just like them!”
It’s believed Danish and Norwegian Vikings who organized marauding expeditions to the British Islands from the 8th till the 11th century took Mastiff-like dogs home with them to Scandinavia, as stolen goods. A dog skeleton found by archaeologists in an old Viking village on the Island of Fyn had the form and shape of the Broholmer dog of today. Because local dogs in that time were far smaller and of a Spitz type, the theory about the ‘Viking dogs’ is considered correct. Additional proof is the so-called ‘Dalbo dog’, also a Mastiff type. This type of dog lived in Sweden until the end of the 19th century – another reason the Broholmer is considered a distant descendant of the dogs the Vikings took home with them ages ago.
Can you name late and great judge pictured handling a Wire Fox Terrier circa 1957? Find out later this afternoon during Will Alexander’s new video, Will’s Time Capsule on The Canine Chronicle!
By Lee Canalizo To read the complete article click here 210 – September, 2012 From the archives of The Canine Chronicle, September, 2012 Sometimes I have a“plan for my next article and sometimes someone’s name just pops into my head and I say, “Where did he/she/that come from?” I seldom question the who, what or [...]
By Deborah Wood It’s the most famous story in the history of dog shows. It was Westminster in 1969. New York was in the grip of a horrific snowstorm. The streets had grown icy as the weather had gotten colder. Walter Goodman was stepping carefully through the ice and snow outside the brand new Madison [...]
“A judge new to any breed is unable to recognize that the current winners may be of a far different type than those of another era. . . . Frequently today we hear exhibitors and judges say a certain dog is the greatest living example of that breed. Unfortunately, this dog may be very showy and sound but is not, in reality, the true type of this breed as were the winners of 20 or 30 years ago.
Many breeds today have lost their true type. . . We must realize that true type is the quintessence of any breed. A healthy farm dog trotting down a country lane has all the attributes that are found in most standards of most breeds – all it lacks is type!”
Once upon a time in the Northeast, there was a group of dog show ladies, the best of friends, who happened to call themselves the “ANJELS”. No, they were not like Charlie’s Angels, not so young or tall and certainly not crime fighters! They were all very involved in the dog world, mostly as judges or wives of judges.
The group (in ANJELS order) was comprised of Angela Popura, the “A”, Natalie Stebbins, the “N”, Jean Fournier, the “J”, Estelle Cohen, the “E”, I was the “L” and Sheila Balch was the “S”!
The moment the first loser stalked out of the first dog show judging qualifications became the central controversy of this sport. Not only has it defied resolution for well over a century, the surrounding furor has never dropped one decibel.
Many of the keenest minds whose opinions you prize will freely admit much of what they learned (and more importantly…carry into their judgments on a regular basis) were gifts from this great sportswoman. Bea started in dogs in the early 1930s with her “Coastwise” Newfoundlands. She also had success in other breeds which included German Shepherds, Golden Retrievers, Shetland Sheepdogs, and both Sealyham and Dandie Dinmont Terriers. When I say “success” in these chosen breeds, I say it as humbly as Bea would have; she won National Specialties in each of those breeds over her years of her involvement.
It will come as no surprise that I choose to write about Sunny Shay. It might be more of a surprise that she wasn’t the first one I wrote about…she undoubtedly has to be the most influential person to my life in the sport, as this was the start of a lifelong obsession.
