A great pleasure to judge one of my favourite breeds, nothing hidden on the Dalmatian, construction, balance & movement all there to be seen, I do like to watch them go in profile which gives a good indication of conformation, croups & tailset & carriage detracted from some otherwise very good exhibits.

P 1 Kelevra Hudson Hawk, 7 months, balanced b/s with good length of stride, good coat. Needs time to tighten generally but carried himself well. Good skull, eye & pigment. Just needs to let down a little in rear now; 2 Dalmark The Sandman at Schunnkka, 10 months l/s, elegant outline, good reach of neck. A little upright in shoulder. Good legs & feet but rather choppy action & high tail carriage detract.

JD 1 Daedalvs Deacon Blue at Shacarlu, b/s full of quality & excellent carriage, well made in front which shows in his front action, liked his head & eye, carries himself well. I would prefer just a touch more leg for perfect balance. Beautiful coat condition & spotting; 2 Tamilanda Pink Vigilante from Alphadal, l/s, liked his balance & length of leg, refined head. Not as fluent on the move as 1. Good angulation in rear. Tailset & carriage a little too high. Full of quality, in excellent condition, good spotting; 3 Perditas Right As Rain at Caldecacre.

YD 1 T Pink Vigilante from A; 2 Sophtspot Abracadabra, b/s in excellent condition, lovely coat, skin & spotting, balanced clean outline. Head needs time to strengthen. Good stride. I preferred head & topline of 1.

PGD 1 Repeat; 2 Buffrey The Shaded Sun at Cubalibre, lacks a little size & substance for a male & is heavily spotted. Construction & movement are good & he carries himself with a good topline & tail carriage & these qualities won him this place; 3 Kaytian One Kool Kat.

LD 1 Smart Boy Prince, 5 years, best mover & topline in the class, refined dog who could use a little more bone & chest but balanced & well made. Good coat & spotting. Set of eyes could be better to get softer expression; 2 Dalleaf Mulberry, l/s, elegant outline, preferred his head & expression to 1. Not the front assembly of 1 & could be wider in rear movement. In excellent condition; 3 Takesti Moondancer.

OD 1 Ch Dalmark The Shaded Moon at Nospar, l/s, in perfect condition & had the fill in finish of chest & body, quality all through, good front action. Could use his hocks more efficiently. Balanced, combines the correct amount of substance with elegance. CC; 2 Ch Creaganbrec The Favourite at Miragua, b/s, looked my winner at first glance for his scope on the move but I found him a little light in body & a little loose in front. However he is a young dog & with maturity of body will be a big winner. RCC; 3 Ir Ch Cubalibre Top Spot.

PB Three good puppies. 1 Djovica Voulez Vous, 9 months b/s, lovely shape & balance which she holds on the move. Head needs time to develop & she is still a little puppyish on the move but full of quality, very much her mother's daughter for shape, size & balance. BP; 2 Kelevra Mercury Rising, 7 months, similar type & size, very true mover. Just a little soft over topline than 1. Good bone & feet. Feminine head which would be better with a few more spots but she is well decorated on the body, a lot of promise; 3 Buffrey Gift Wrapped.

JB Good line-up full of quality. 1 Tamilanda Pretty In Pink, elegant & feminine but with enough bone, excellent forehand with good chest, clean quality head, good balance, well spotted & caries herself well, great quality & promise, I liked her a lot; 2 Portunes Enchantress, elegant but does not have the chest of 1 & can tighten in feet & pasterns. Moved well & has a lovely shape to her. Just a touch light in bone. Good stride & carriage; 3 Tamilanda Lily The Pink.

YB 1 Marrisdale The Gold Digger of Dalamanti, liver, balanced & feminine, sound free mover, good legs. Feet could be a little tighter. Good coat & spotting; 2 Chandhally Chantilly Charm from Cannable, b/s, pretty head & expression, rather long for balance & looking a real teenager in body at the moment. Good spotting & a very accurate mover; 3 Baileys Irish Cream.

PGB 1 Creaganbrec Raven Black, made a good picture standing for her balance, good leg length & depth of body. Croup could be a little better on the move but has good stride. Very good head & lovely dark eyes & expression; 2 Boutonneux Belle Of The Ball, feminine bitch of good size & carries herself well & moves soundly. A little too cut up in underline but I liked her balance & carriage. Both dog & exhibitor need a little more schooling but well worth it as she has a lot to lie; 3 Frankish Desert Wind at Kingpippin.

LB Good class for depth of quality. 1 Dalpettro Desdemona, lovely size, balance & movement, carries herself well, lovely feminine head & eye, good spotting, excellent chest, legs & feet. Nearly through her chances away being a little skittish but settled in time; 2 Mapplewell Double Take by Clarkson, 5 years lovely moving bitch & of a slightly bigger mould than 1, excellent spotting. Just preferred the femininity of 1; 3 Marricdale The Goldigger at D.

OB Best class of the day & I had to let top quality bitches go cardless. 1 Ch Marchand Choc Chip Cookie for Fincham, liver, beautifully coloured & spotted, feminine, elegant & absolutely accurate on the move, not the flashiest but just full of quality & type, good reach & drive, lovely front & chest, in the group her handler kept her on her toes & she looked super. CC, BOB & G2; 2 Ch Camargue Gucci Envy, lovely quality bitch, in immaculate form, good head & eye, excellent chest, balanced all through & very well put together, good reach & drive, clean in her action. In season on the day & carrying her tail too high, however her chest & clean front action just got her ahead of another lovely bitch in 3 Ch Lady Of Light from Shulune.

FRANK KANE