door Karl DonvilCharleroi 2005.
Franco-Belgian affair
It is already the 42nd Edition of this show now and after a serious drop down of entries a few years ago, the interest is slowly growing again during the last few years. Compared to last year there is an increase of 5% again to 1226 dogs. Those were in hands of 702 different owners, which means that most owners averagely enter two dogs.
Besides the majority of Belgian exhibitors (618) this show attracts a lot of French entries (416) compared to the Dutch (92) and Germans (9). Luxemburg had 25 entries. The United Kingdom had 8, which is very high for this show, and 4 came from Switzerland.
This show is mainly a Franco-Belgian affair and this is also seen in the selection of judges.
Belgium had 12 judges while 8 were invited from France. Once judge was from Ireland, one from Portugal, one from Italy and two from Switzerland. It is funny to see that the proportions between the French and Belgian judges are almost exactly the same as the proportion between the French and the Belgian exhibitors. I would suggest increasing the spread of nationalities a little more, if the budget allows it, to find out if this results in more entries. Compared to most other shows in Belgium, I am almost sure that this must end in higher scores.
Renovated halls
Since a few years the halls are being renewed, but it looks like it is a long term plan. Anyway they are much better then let say 5 years ago. Anyway, there is plenty of room and the rings are spacious. As usual, this show is popular to the people of the town and neighbourhood as a lot of visitors come to have a look around. The agility contest is very popular and the main ring is followed by many eyes until the very end of it. The high panorama windows alongside the main ring add to the pleasant atmosphere and allow the autumn sunlight to shine in.
Consideration about the German Shepherd
Only 4 groups were presented on Saturday, the others were shown on Sunday. Most breeds were represented by a few specimens and therefore there were no remarkable records to report except perhaps for the 22 German Shepherds which is unusual for a regular dog show. They were judged by Mr.Thibaut from Belgium. German Shepherds have their own shows and special way of showing and hardly enter on regular dog shows, which is in fact a pity. I always have wondered why the most popular dog breed in the world must be shown in a different way with double handling and unnatural poses. I applause the fact that they are tested for endurance in their rings, but when in show pose they look so unnatural to me. I can hardly imagine a dog herding cows or sheep in a pose that must overload their hips. Look at the Belgian Shepherds and the Border Collies and all the other sheepdogs! All are known for their ability to work many hours a day, but none of them are shown in such a position. Even the German Shepherd will not stand in such a way if not handled. I see it as a mere fashion and a way to add elegance while shown, but I wonder if we don’t destroy the natural construction of this breed by turning it into a caricature of itself. And isn’t this breed too often taken as the prototype of dogs. The biggest danger for the future of the breed is that most judges of German Shepherds only judge this one breed and only at show specialities. German Shepherd judges should be at least licensed to judge other shepherd breeds before they are allowed to judge the German Shepherd in order to prevent that they loose sight on the construction of dogs in general and Championship should only be given to dogs with good results in international all breed shows. The situation like it is now is critical as already now
it looks like the German Shepherd is no longer a subspecies of the Canis Familiaris but a separate branch of the Canidae.
Unusual breed wins BIS
Although the number of entries was not spectacular the spread of breeds was very good and a few rare breeds -at least for Belgium- added to the interest of the show. If you were looking for a Volpino, an Ogar Polski, a Hannoverischer Schweisshund, a Mudi or a Braque St-Germain, Charleroi was the place to be. Even the BIS was a breed that doesn’t belong to the top 50 of the most popular breeds and this was a pleasant surprise. The Eurasian “Bleu Creek’s Jet Set Jacomo” from France ended Best of Day on Saturday under judge Pollet from Belgium. Earlier that day he was made BOB from 12 entries by judge Mrs.Mery from France. The dog was bred in Finland and owned and presented by Mrs. Martineau Patricia from France. A nice and well balanced dog always catches the eye of experienced judges. One Sunday he had to compete for BIS against another dog chosen by Mr.JJ.Dupas, the Pug “Patsgang Sir Easonite” to be Best of Saturday. He was made BOB from an entry of 13 also by the very same judge Mrs. Mery from France. Patsgang was bred in the United Kingdom and owned and handled by Ellis-Dickmann-Velten from Germany.
It was up to Mr.Norman Deschuymer from Belgium, to make his choice for Best In Show. His heart went to the Eurasian and this can be called a surprise at least. The fact alone that a less known breed as this one is chosen to be BIS says something about the exquisite quality of this dog.
Feel encouraged to enter your dog next year on 7 and 8 October, even if your breed is not amongst the popular breeds. Charleroi has proven that there is no excuse not to come, you have a fair chance to win, always!
