Date: 5/12/09 |
The Dutch Obedience Society
Open Obedience Show
Saturday the 5th of December 2009
Thanks to the Dutch Obedience Society for the invitation to judge. The Dutch have built a reputation for producing motivated dogs and today we didn’t see one dog that showed any apathy or reluctance to work. Well done to all concerned. Thanks also to Guus and Vincent for stewarding and Timo and Lenie for keeping the scoreboard. This was the first time that Vincent stewarded a C and let’s hope that it will be the first of many.
Those that are familiar with Dutch Obedience know that UK judges judge two classes per day and although the classes are normally smaller than UK classes it still makes for a very full day. It is essential that everyone keeps to schedule. This is one of the main reasons that there is always a full running order and it is unusual to be kept waiting for the next competitor. It was therefore extremely disappointing that an otherwise very enjoyable day was spoilt by one competitor who seemed to be of the opinion that the judges, the show management, the fellow competitors could be kept waiting until she felt that she was ready to honour us all with her presence in the ring. This behaviour showed complete lack of respect for all concerned. To utterly ignore a steward who twice took the time to leave the ring and find her and then to turn up and get angry when her training round was curtailed showed complete lack of respect for all involved. To make matters worse she complained to anyone who would listen (and even to some who didn’t want to) that she had been treated unfairly. Had the same happened in England at a show with a full running order the competitor would not have even got a call (let alone two calls) and would have missed her chance to work.
Class B:
1st. Annelies van de Velde met Di Luka (Border Collie)
Nice lively heelwork done at a good pace and almost faultless set exercises put this team streets ahead of the competition. Very well done to you both.
2nd. Jose Flierman met Nice of You to Come Bye be Clever (Border Collie)
Minor faults in heelwork with points lost for hesitation from both dog and handler. Never the less the exercises were all completed with no major errors and I am sure that confidence will come with experience.
3rd Joke van der Hoop met Sleepy ut Fryslan (Kruissing)
Well he didn’t look sleepy today Joke, in fact he looked very lively indeed. Wide turns were the main heelwork fault and a naughty down in the sendaway cost a higher place.
4th Anneke Hollemans met Quellyane Benvenida (Border Collie)
Hesitation and loss of position at the start of the heelwork was very costly. Wide turns were also accumulatively expensive.
5th Nicky Spengler met Elegant Maxel O'the Little Lodge (Sheltie)
It is always extra work to keep a small dog in position during heelwork and today there were points lost for drifting. A very expensive sendaway prevented a higher place today.
6th Joke van der Hoop met Ngali of the Two Chestnuts (Australian Kelpie)
Joke had two dogs in the line up today, so this must have made the long trip to the show worthwhile. As with so many dogs today the sendaway was expensive and ruined any chance of a higher placing.
7th Rick van Veeren met Sealight It's a Magic Miracle (Border Collie)
Despite getting a card I think that this dog is not ready for this class and at times looked worried. I would concentrate on getting your novices and A wins. Once this has been achieved B will come.
Class C
1st Brigitte van Gestel met Twice as Nice Twizzle v. Benvenida's Joy (Border Collie)
Attractive, motivated heelwork complimented by the handler attacking the round with lots of speed and a good attitude made this performance today’s winner. Very well done on your first C win.
2nd Mia Bosschaart met Mamamia's Tyke (Working Sheepdog)
Uncharacteristic inverted crabbing was the most prevalent of fault today. There weren’t any heelwork faults that cost more than a ¼, but there were more mistakes than one would normally see from this team. By any standards still a very creditable round.
3rd Danielle de Jonge met Mikey (Border Collie)
Broken sit stays cost this team the red card today. This wasn’t the best round that I have seen this team do and if I was to hazard a guess I would say that Danielle lacked a bit of concentration as Mikey lost position in more than a few turns. The errors were minor but never the less markable. Most unusual from this very professional pair. It just shows the quality that this team is still placed even when they have an off-day.
4th Lenie Kasteleijn met Colliewood Caballe "La Layla" (Working Sheepdog)
Very attractive heelwork, perhaps even the nicest to watch on the day. The whole round worked at a good pace which showed Layla off well. However a missed ASSD position with handler help took away any chance of the top honours.
5th Melissa Vercauter met Demma of the Action Farm (Tervuerense Herder)
I believe that this team is fairly new to this class. Attention needs to be given to the turns. Most heelwork points were lost on slow pace as the turns were completed at a much faster speed than the straight line work.
6th Tiny Bouchaut met Twinkle's Kathmick (Working Sheepdog)
Missed positions in both ASSD and DC made this a bit of an “if only” day today. The other repetitive error was crabbing in heelwork.
7th Rick van Veeren met Sealight Flash of Lightning (Border Collie)
One can only admire Rick’s perseverance and optimism. Main faults today were walking on after steward commands and missed positions.