CRUFTS CH SHOW, 10/03/16 - Mastiffs

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1 CRUFTS CH SHOW, 10/03/16 - Mastiffs Mastiffs What a day. To be asked as a foreigner to judge at Crufts is something one can only dream of, to be invited for a second time (the first one was two years ago Dogue de Bordeaux & Neapolitan Mastiff) & then for what I consider my own breed, the Mastiff, is extra... difficult to put it into words. Looking forward to the occasion did not mean I did not have any worries. The Mastiff listed as a category three breed for example. On former occasions judging the breed in the UK I had noticed definite improvements in type & soundness, but still. Now I can write that my worries were not needed. Based on this Crufts entry I dare to say that the Mastiff never looked better. The vast majority moved really, really well. Overdone heads with too much wrinkle, affecting skin & eye condition have almost disappeared, what also counts for temperament issues. Totally unexpectedly I came across head qualities I considered something of the past classic details that underline what is unique for the Mastiff. A real treat. Interestingly enough it occurred much more in dogs than in bitches. Comparing dogs & bitches, the total entry of dogs was twice as high as that of bitches pretty remarkable in itself so one would expect that the overall quality of the first lot was better. It was, much better I have to say. Something which puzzled me, as normally it is the females that win. From a breeder perspective I value it as holy of holies ; no more complaints like can t find a suitable stud dog for my brood bitch. Certainly after studying the catalogue with so much new blood imported in the UK, the message should be: spoiled for choice. All in all I could not feel more positive about the future of the breed. I want to show my gratitude to all Mastiff owners that have entered for this special event, including the ones that had to travel overnight to get to Birmingham, & a big thank you to my ring stewards for their support. VD (1) 1 Miller s Cyberus The Phantom of Brindaree, nice type & size, in a very good condition for his age. Well developed head with excellent skull shape, earset & carriage, delicate wrinkling, decent

2 definition of stop, gentle eye, sufficient strength of muzzle. Long cast body of decent width & depth, angulation front & behind balanced. Starting to show his age on the move, not helped by the impression that he prefers to stay at home. PD (3,1a) 1 Coulman-Hole s Faynad Fifty Shades, very nicely balanced puppy of very good type, well developed for his age. Well developed head with excellent eye, stop, wrinkle & mask, large open nostrils. Nice length of body, angulation front & behind balanced, excellent tailset, excellent bone & strong feet, typical coat texture. Effortless movement, of course rather puppy-like still, but with an impressive length of stride already. BP; 2 Knight s Kumormai The Vision, big boy of nice type, every inch a puppy still, sufficiently balanced. Typical head with small eye, nice wrinkles, sufficient stop & excellent mask. Quality bone, decent length of body, front angulation OK, excellent ribs, tailset could be better. Movement still very puppy-like. JD (7) 1 Zadeh s Faynad Frankincense, full of quality, very nicely put together, hard to fault. Well developed head, excellent balance between skull & muzzle, typical in all parts at the same time not overdone in any way, gentle expression. Beautiful proportioned body, again not overdone in any way. Excellent top & underline, angulation front & behind balanced, quality legs & feet, coat texture perhaps a bit rough, excellent condition & quality of muscles. Moves with a slight roll, easily to forgive in a dog of this age, certainly considering what he has to offer when standing & on the move: plenty of drive & an impressive length of stride, highly correct coming & going. RCC; 2 Boylan s The Pride Of Erin, big boy of excellent type, decently balanced given his age. Strong masculine head, lovely stop, large open nostrils, excellent wrinkles, slightly open eye, but which does not affect the expression too much. Excellent bone, lovely front, well angulated & solid, decent quality of hindquarters, excellent coat, superb condition. Moves with decent drive; 3 Lingrun s I m The Lucky One Debra-Damo, excellent bodied, sufficient masculine dog. Well developed head with a nice eye, sufficient strength of muzzle, could do with more stop. Angulation front & behind balanced, strong bone & feet, typical top & underline, excellent spring of rib, excellent condition. Can move really well, with a powerful long stride, but some (more) ring training would not harm. PGD (6) 1 McKevitt s Glaciers Edison The Inventor

3 at Tyketarn, special, extra masculine dog with plenty of type. Very strong head with plenty of stop, delicate wrinkling, small excellent set & carried ears, small decent coloured eye, muzzle should not be any shorter. Superb length of body, lovely top & underline, plenty of bone, well angulated front, could do with a bit more forechest, but plenty of rib length, spring & depth, lovely tailset, very strong hindquarters, extra hard muscled condition, plenty of pigment. Highly typical on the move, slightly narrow behind; 2 Le Courtois & King s Just Jagger Brull , quality dog of excellent type, not finished yet. Well developed noble head with excellent wrinkles & eyes, broad muzzle with large open nostrils, stop rather sloping. Long & deep bodied with a proud head carriage, excellent angulation front & behind, clean bone & strong feet, excellent coat & condition. Shows even more quality on the move; 3 Oosting s Seaside Mastiffs Excanaba, middle sized dog with excellent body proportions. Very good developed head, excellent wrinkles & ears, nice stop, a bit large & just sufficient dark eye, decent strength of muzzle, well angulated front & behind, extra strong topline, nice spring of rib & underline, very good bone & feet, hard muscled condition, abundance of pigment. Balanced mover with sufficient length of stride. LD (9) 1 Radondy s Jorgen Made Of Steel Du Ranc de Bannes, oozes Grandeur & Good Nature. Never have I come across a male of this impressive a size with this noble a type & balance based on a 100% correct construction. The only fault I could come up with was: not finished yet. Fault as he is well developed for his age, in fact I would hate to see more of him at 20 months as it supports the high quality dog he is, slow maturing as a Mastiff should be with the best possible guarantee that he will stay around much longer than the finished article at 2 years of age (or even younger). His noble masculine head is excellent in all parts with a textbook expression of wrinkles & the most beautiful small, dark gentle eye even. O yes, I found another fault : a bit more mask would have been even nicer. Prefer to remember how utterly breath taking he was on the move; I like to think of the lion when seeing a Mastiff move, well, what he showed taking the ring was better than that. Together with is owner, who obviously looks after him so well, he made a picture never to forget. So nice to see him selected in a very strong working group.

4 My apology for this kind of differently composed critique. Never have I put up Mastiff of this size. CC, BOB; 2 Clarke s Gator Debra Damo, well developed masculine dog of excellent type. Strong head with excellent skull shape & deep stop, slightly open eye but which does not affect his expression too much, large open nostrils & excellent depth of muzzle but could do with more work under the eye. Broad deep set body with excellent spring of rib, decent strength of back & loins, angulation front & behind balanced, very good bone. Surprisingly easy going on the move; 3 Norris Darkling Muddy Waters at Hexnorden, middle sized, long & deep bodied dog of excellent type. Well developed head with typical stop & nice balance between muzzle & skull but covered with a maximum of lip & wrinkle. Excellent top & underline, excellent bone & strength of feet, angulation front & behind balanced, would prefer more spring of rib, typical coat texture, plenty of pigment. Giving a typical movement in profile, but could do with more strength behind. OD (13,4) 1 McKevitt s Ch Mulaloo Maximus at Tyketarn, high quality dog of lovely type & a true athlete. Very strong, masculine head, truly excellent head in all parts, except for eyes rather round, large, light & slightly open; it shows the abundance of other qualities that gave him this strong class. High quality bone & feet, well angulated front & behind, excellent ribs, top & underline, extra strong quality of muscles & texture of coat, superb condition. It took him some time to settle, after which he showed a first class Mastiff movement, highly typical & sound as a bell, very impressive indeed; 2 Whelan s Fragilis Firework, masculine dog of excellent type. Strong head, excellent in all parts. Strong clean bone & well knuckled feet, well developed ribs, angulation front & behind balanced, strong topline with excellent tail set & carriage, hard muscled condition. An honest mover showing type, balance & strength; 3 Vlajkov s Multi Ch Danube Titan Lonely Little Wolf, high quality dog of lovely type which would have got higher placed if he was not that overweight. Strong head piece, truly excellent in all parts with a most beautiful eye. Impressive length, depth & width of body not needing the extra weight in any way. Extra strong topline with excellent tailset, lovely front angulation, excellent behind, strong bone & feet. Still showing how strong typical he is on the move too, but with an unsightly roll of too much condition, a

5 real shame. GCD (3) 1 Miller s Mullak Handsome Hugo of Brindaree, well proportioned dog of very good type. Well developed head with excellent wrinkles & stop, wide muzzle with excellent lip. Well off for bone, strong topline, angulation front & behind balanced, excellent condition. Easy going balanced mover; 2 C The Phantom of B; 3 Smith s Alonzobar Victory for Dubunni. VB (2,1) 1 Edwards Kumormai Platinum, in principle nice type of Mastiff, truly feminine & with the right balance & proportions, if she was not overweight. Well developed head with excellent balance between muzzle & skull, quality stop & dark gentle eye, should be more dry overall. Excellent legs, feet & angulation in front, well angulated in knee & hock, tailset could be higher. Difficult to examine her movement. Why I was so soft on her? One reason only: 8 year old veteran. PB (3,2) 1 Herring, Dodd & Dodd-Utting s Faynad Annie For Ya Nanny by Heffalump, every inch a puppy still, truly feminine, pleasing type. Decent developed head with a small & dark eye, nice wrinkling. Very good bone, angulation front & behind balanced, but still overbuilt, excellent condition. Movement very puppy-like. JB (6) 1 Zadeh s Faynad Black Rose Brindle, truly feminine bitch of excellent type, very well developed for age. Strong head already with excellent balance between muzzle & skull, well defined stop, dark well placed eye, well off for wrinkles already. Strong bone, excellent body proportions & angulation front & behind, but still a bit soft in topline, excellent condition. Easy going movement with an impressive length of stride but still a bit loose overall; 2 Bowdery s Sherwood s Aspen For Adventure at Morganlefay, smaller sized female with excellent body proportions. Sufficient developed head, a bit plain in type still but with a most beautiful small & dark eye, full of Mastiff expression. Well knit frame with decent quality of bone, strong feet, excellent condition, outgoing temperament. Truly excellent on the move; 3 Gittens Cwmtysswg Nellgwyn, feminine bitch with plenty of substance already. Well developed head, typical but would prefer more stop & a less open eye. Broad set legs with excellent bone & feet, lovely ribs, topline has to strengthen, which she also shows on the move. Impressive length of stride. PGB (2,2). LB (6) 1 Allen s Fenrir Du Ranc De Bannes, feminine bitch of truly excellent type. Lovely head, truly excellent

6 head in all parts, with the best muzzle in this bitch entry all jaws. Long, deep & broad body with excellent top & underline & angulation front & behind, disappointing muscletone on hindquarters, lovely bone & spring of rib, typical coat texture, condition a bit rich. Moves with a typical length of stride & decent drive; 2 Hennepeaux s Smoothie s Je Suis Charlotte, truly feminine bitch of nice type, not overdone in anyway. Well developed head with excellent skull shape & stop, quality wrinkling, lovely dark eye full of expression. Well constructed body, deep & long, could do with more bone, excellent feet, gleaming condition. Easy going movement; 3 Le Courtois & King s Isadora Iris Brull , truly feminine bitch with plenty of size & with excellent profile. Well carried, sufficient developed head with excellent eye & wrinkle, but rather plain in stop & weak in muzzle. Truly excellent top & underline & angulation front & behind, nice width of body & quality of bone & feet, excellent condition. Best movement in this class. OB (7,2) 1 Pass Ch Quicksilver Of Seven Oaks, a lot of Mastiff & a rare combination of all that power & femininity. Impressive head with beautiful balance between skull & muzzle, quality stop, lovely eye & furnishing, excellent ear carriage. She is broad, deep & long in an impressive way, but still would not mind to see a bit more daylight, or at least a bit more strength of pasterns, excellent bone, nice feet, surprisingly strong topline, angulation front & behind balanced, condition a bit rich. Balanced mover. CC; 2 Harding s Ch Mulaloo Midsummer Magic, extra strong build female with plenty of size. Plenty of skull, dead flat with superb earset & carriage, lovely eye & wrinkle, plenty of work under the eye, but would prefer more definition of stop & a blunter finish of muzzle. Decent length of an extra solid body, lovely bone & feet, angulation front & behind balanced, excellent tailset, superb quality of muscle & dry, hard condition. I love modest handling, especially in this day & age of idols, but this special female definitely deserves a less introvert presenting. When asked for it I got it resulting in an honest easy going movement showing a real nice length of body. RCC; 3 Williams & Wilkes Sandos Heavenly Wings Of Love, feminine bitch of excellent type. Strong, almost square head from all angles, regretfully the amount of wrinkle gives her a rather melancholic

7 expression. Well constructed, broad, deep & long body, nice bone & feet. Typical balanced mover. BAS BOSCH