"RETRIEVER 2022"
INTERVIEW
Dear organisers and exhibitors,
I wish to express my sincere thanks for the kind invitation to be the breed and BIS judge on 'RETRIEVER 2022' show and for the fantastic number of breeders, handlers and spectators who came on the day to enjoy the show, with very few absent dogs across classes. A truly admirable achievement.
I would.like to start with my main impression of this excellent two day event.
First, the atmosphere was truly amazing, with everyone showing huge enthusiasm and genuine interest in the event which made it all even more enjoyable.
Second, the organisers went out of their way to organise a successful event and to cater for each and every need of everybody who participated, with an amazing range of gifts, trophies and award for the winning dogs. It was a pleasurable sight to see the wonderful display of awards which, I am sure, will serve as a much treasured memento of this show.
Further, I was totally impressed by the level of professionalism and expertise of owners and handlers in their presentation of dogs; every single person who was in the ring presented their dogs to perfection!
They were all in top condition without a single overweight dog and wonderfully groomed too.
Besides, I salute to all of you for absolute absence of any nasty comments or display of dissatisfaction or negativity regardless of placement. Your manners are a credit to you and I am totally impressed by that. Well done on your courtesy and politeness which made us judges very welcome.
Now for the most relevant part : the dogs!
I would say that generally all retriever breeds on the day were real representatives of their breed and true to type and temperament. I even got some sweet doggy kisses while going over them, in particular by flatcoats who were very affectionate and seemed to really enjoy the day.
There were very few shy dogs, perhaps one or two, which is not bad considering the number of over 200 entries.
As for shortcomings, I would say that the general impression was that goldens, labradors and some of the flatcoats had the problem with moving too close behind and not having enough reach in front or drive from the rear end. This has resulted in some very nice dogs being placed behind those that had better movement. I think this is something to work on in the future and to realise that its not just a shape that's important but also proper construction in both muscle and bone skeleton, which both enable the dog to move correctly. This being said, those that did have that weakness also lost their topline when at full speed and it ruined their placements.
Luckily, my main winners such as golden retriever BOB , flatcoat BIS , some puppies, juniors, and veterans which were in top honors had wonderful movement. Strangely, all dogs in veteran classes (labradors, goldens , flats) moved really well.
There were also several dogs with plain heads, not enough stop or with untypical expression across several breeds (labs goldens).
In goldens I had some really beautiful typical specimen across classes, but I also had those really well made bitches that were too tall or too big and had masculine shape and head. I really have to point out to breeders how important the distinction of sex is and that if its a male or female dog it should be obvious from a mile distance. As a judge and breeder, it was my responsiibility to find the best female that was well made, moved well and was, above all, feminine.
As for curlies, chessies and tollers I have to say I really thought they were good dogs, and , although in the minority , they were representatives of ther breeds and true to type.
All in all, it was a very nice show , professionally organised , welcoming and pleasant. I was happy to be a part of it and to have been given an opportunity to express my point of view on dogs and their quality, which is , overall, on a good level.
I hope we might be seeing each other again in several years to witness another great event with certain improvements in areas I have pointed out above.
