I was greatly honoured to be awarded this appointment by the members and enjoyed my day immensely. I would like to thank my stewards, Karen Bradbury-Hall and Anne Turner, who are not Dalmatian owners but who willingly gave of their time to help the day along. I had been trying not to watch the dog classes at any shows that I attended over the last 12 months or so (not easy on the odd occasion when stewarding!), so as not to have a preview of any dogs that I have not had the chance to judge before. All dogs that were initially moved on a tight lead were asked to repeat with a loose one, usually moving at least as well and often better on the repeat. The entry contained many quality exhibits and the top classes were a joy to judge. On the downside, I was surprised at how quickly my hands got dirty while going over the younger dogs and it was disappointing to find one reverse scissor bite. Only one dog was difficult to examine due to nervousness. There was a significant number of handlers who stood their dog four-square but over-stretched, causing either straightened stifles or a "rocking horse" profile. A second pair of eyes or a full length mirror when practising can be invaluable for showing your dog to its best advantage!

Special Junior Veteran Dog (3 entries, 2 abs)

1. Neath-Duggan's Tumbril True Blue Buffrey JW, nearly 10 y.o. b/s with good shoulders, excellent bone, nice feet, a lovely ribcage and good hindquarters, good tail carriage, still has an active action but showing his age a little more standing than the bitch when challenging for Best Veteran.

Special Senior Dog (0)

Minor Puppy Dog (4, 0)

1. Dodds & Pearson's Kelevra Hudson Hawk, 6 m.o. b/s, very raw baby with a slightly plain head, good shoulders and upper arms, lovely bone, good depth of chest, excellent tail, good large spotting, would prefer slightly more defined stifles and was naughty on the move.

2. Webster's Tynevale Truly Talented at Dalmarno, 7 m.o. l/s, nicely marked head, excellent ribcage, outline not quite in balance at the moment, being up at the back end, good quality coat, would prefer a slightly darker eye. Novice dog and owner, both need time.

3. Townson & Pardoe's Buffrey Follow That Star, nearly 7 m.o b/s, happy, cobby type of puppy, nice breadth of skull, good bone, moved very well, slightly ticky markings and still needs to drop in chest.

Puppy Dog (4, 0)

1. Croft's Doubtwell Show Stopper, 9 m.o. b/s, very mature looking, broad skull, good depth of chest, spectacular spotting on lovely coat, moved very truly and freely, slightly short in back for the ideal outline. Best Puppy Dog.

2. Gates-Raw & Garton's Dalendale Quiet Riot, 9 m.o. l/s of good colour, quite a contrast in outline to 1, to me he is slightly too long in loin, still needs to drop in chest and is certainly not a full-on showman, but positives were his attractive expression and eye colour, good feet and very sound and free movement.

3. Burrows' Daedalus Deacon Blue at Shacarlu, 11 m.o. b/s, lots to like about this substantial, well boned puppy with deep chest and great spotting (including tail!), good low hocks, he is all quality but moved without the desired freedom, I feel that he would benefit from slightly more angulation of upper arm and more better turn of stifle.

Junior Dog (7, 0)

1. Christie's Sophtspot Abracadabra, 14 m.o. b/s, slightly longer coat on this one, good depth of chest but still far from mature in head and body, good front but his handler needs to guard against him pillaring his neck, won the class on his excellent tail carriage, good stifles and lovely free striding movement.

2. Goodswen's Tamilanda Pink Vigilante from Alphadal, 14 m.o. l/s, good head, nice front but still slightly underdeveloped in chest, good stifles and low hocks, lovely coat, slightly proud of his tail, never stood still which made him very difficult to assess.

3. Story-Taylor's Major Tornado at Kesteven, 16 m.o. b/s, lovely head and great substance, excellent tail carriage, correct unexaggerated stifles, lovely spotting, a very nice youngster but just a little too square in outline and slightly upright in pastern.

Yearling Dog (3, 0)

Difficult class – three lovely exhibits in different ways, I could have made an argument for any order of them on the day. All had excellent profile movement.

1. Quayle's Buffrey The Shaded Sun at Cubalibre, nearly 2 y.o. b/s, excellent pigmentation and bold markings, good forechest and shoulders, nicely balanced outline with lovely stifles, low hocks and excellent tail carriage, handler needs to watch for over-stretching when standing.

2. Tingey's Holderness Hillbilly By Dallyador JW, 20 m.o. l/s, good substance and bone, not quite the pigmentation or balanced outline on the day of 1, but close up.

3. McCarthy's Kilndandy Old Copper, 19 m.o. l/s, on the initial move round I thought that he would likely be my winner, but every time I looked at him standing he was slack in topline, the most immature of the three but may well finish the best, at the moment he looks slightly lacking in body, which makes him look a little long, his head still needs to finish but a very elegant and attractive dog.

Maiden Dog (4, 0)

1. Major Tornado at Kesteven, scored on maturity in this class.

2. Kelevra Hudson Hawk.

3. Kaal's Dalmark the Sandman at Shunikka, 9 m.o. l/s, lovely outline, moved very freely, good expression, nice front and topline, a little proud of his tail and rather underdone all over but time is on his side.

Novice Dog (1, 1)

Graduate Dog (8, 2)

1. Precious' Holderness Henry Higgins By Lupiac, 20 m.o. b/s, had a temporary facial coat problem due to injury which rather detracted and made my decision more difficult, without that would have been an easy winner of the class, but quality had to tell and I forgave it, a well balanced and free moving dog with excellent upper arm angulation, lovely depth of chest, good stifles and correct topline and tail carriage, just moving a little close behind today.

2. Swindells' Pjasdals Cwite Starstruck, was VHC in Junior, 13 m.o. l/s, substantial cobby dog of lovely colour, very good coat, I would prefer slightly less pronounced stop and his tail is set slightly low, wish his handler would not use his lead halfway up his neck, as it makes it look short.

3. Moate's Major Sheer Will at Sundown, 2 y.o. b/s, good expression, long ribcage, his stifles maybe could be more pronounced but it was difficult to tell much about his angulation overall as he was constantly leaning back.

Post Graduate (7, 1)

1. Adderley's Leiahart Chicago Bear, 21 m.o. b/s, very elegant and clean lines on this one, a lovely head and expression, good length of neck, correct upper arms, still needs to mature fully in ribcage but excellent topline, hindquarters and tail, good sized spotting. Another who tended to stand over-stretched at times, which lost the curve in his stifles. Really covered the ground to take the ResCC.

2. Willis' Cibrith Cosworth, 2 y.o. l/s, totally different type to 1, being cobbier in outline, not quite the expression of the winner, has a lovely depth of chest and well balanced hindquarters, his tail flowed well off his back, lovely colour on a clear coat, moved slightly close behind.

3. Alcock's Mapplewell Chocolate Box for Dalspartan, 3 y.o. l/s of good colour, good bone, lovely front, excellent topline and good stifles, neck maybe a little lacking in elegance, not interested in proceedings.

Limit (12, 1)

Some lovely dogs in this class, I was hard put to it to select just five to place.

1. Goff-Leggett's Washakie Nutcracker Prince, 20 m.o. b/s, stunning quality and handled to advantage, so sound both standing and when moving, which he did very freely, superb topline, perfect stifles, lovely head and expression, just failed slightly on upper arm and pastern angulation not being quite as good as the rest of him, but close up in the challenge for the ResCC.

2. Jubb's Dalmark The Double Agent JW, nearly 3 y.o. l/s, slightly dark colour on a good coat, dark eye, excellent head and neck, good ribcage and front, croup falls away a little, one I have judged and placed well before but today he did not move well behind.

3. Kembrey's Jabbawock The Conquistador at Dalmark, 6 y.o. l/s of good colour, cobby type, less elegant in neck and shoulders but well boned, a very sound dog, would prefer slightly more turn of stifle.

Open (8, 2)

Cracking class, I was especially pleased with the good fronts on view.

1. Hoie, Ivarsson & Jacobsen's Multi Ch Bell-A-Mir's Elegant Envoy, nearly 5 y.o. b/s, beautiful head with correct breadth of skull, has the best of fronts with excellent forechest, great depth of chest, a real stallion dog, the way his neck, shoulders and back fit together is exemplary, super long ribcage, maybe slightly less turn of stifle would be perfect, excellent tail carriage, tight feet, he was very fidgety and often stood over-stretched in the class, but on the move he drove freely and flowed round the ring, he stood away from the rest to take the CC with something to spare and BIS on the Referee's decision.

2. Quayle's Ir Ch Cubalibre Top Spot Sh.CM, 5 y.o. b/s, this dog frustrates me because he is another who often leans back, which spoils his front, he has a good head, lovely neck and super angulation of upper arm, excellent topline and correct stifles, deep pigmentation with large spots, would prefer slightly stronger hocks.

3. Hartley & Griffiths' Ch Creaganbrec The Favourite At Miragua JW, 2 y.o. b/s, unlucky to meet the above, as he is all quality and his spotting is to die for, really tight coat, beautiful head, another with a lovely front, super feet, very lively and happy, I just felt that he was a little squarer in outline than those ahead of him.

Special Beginners (6, 0)

1. Ayers' Elaridge Evolution, 2 y.o. b/s, good bone, excellent flow of neck into shoulders, long, deep ribcage, solid dog who tended to stand "rocking horse" at times, good stifles, hocks could be stronger and head could be a little more refined, good bold spotting on excellent coat.

2. Major Tornado At Kesteven

3. Major Sheer Will At Sundown

Brace (9, 0)

What a sight these braces made all together in the ring!

1. Neath-Duggan's b/s bitches, well matched in all regards, both are well marked and superbly matched for size and expression, moved so well together, my co-judge and I had no hesitation in giving them the class.

2. Tingey's l/s dog/bitch combination, good pairing with correct size differential.

3. Dinsdale's b/s bitches, again well matched for size.

Progeny (4, 0)

1. Johnson's Tynevale Tranquility, l/w bitch with substance who has stamped her qualities on her offspring, won this class on the even type and excellent relative sizes of the dogs and bitches in the four progeny presented.

2. Ch Hebe Aleatory In Holderness JW Sh.CM

3. Ch & Ir Ch Tollwood Lionel at Kilndandy JW

Breeders (1, 0)

1. Rance's group, alone but of good, even type.