Championship Show 2023
Old English Sheepdog Club of Victoria
Critique - Championship Show 2nd December 2023
This year marks my 51st year of owning Old English Sheepdogs and my second time judging the breed for the OES Club of Victoria. I’m honoured by both the invitation and the entry at this time, when around Australia normal showing numbers are quite low. I sincerely thank the Club and exhibitors for the opportunity. I had some difficult decisions, with such a highly competitive field but give here my observations of the dogs on the day. I'd also like to thank all those who worked to put the show together and worked hard on the day to make it a pleasure to attend. The Fleming family deserve special thanks for their photographs, presented here.
The presentation was excellent and the overall quality of the exhibits very good, across the board. While there is more scissoring and spraying than I like to see, it wasn't as excessive as I've seen at other times and I thank exhibitors for that. I hope to see more OES being bred and sold without restrictions on their being bred, to strengthen the breed numbers as it seems that our beautiful, sedate, funny, tolerant, gentle breed is at risk of disappearing.
1st & Best Baby Puppy in Show: Olensha Lucky That Way
Level bite Capacious nose Nicely proportioned head for his age & should develop well Good neck length and arching
Quite good shoulders Chest and loin developing well; reasonable topline Good rear angulation Moves freelyWell balanced, very promising baby
1st & Best Puppy in Show: Perfu Mr Goodfellow
Tall puppy Head developing nicely, quite good stop & arching over the eyes Level bite Reasonable length of neck
Slightly rising topline; reasonably strong loin Open anglulation front & rear Good feet – right rear foot turned out a little
Nice coat coming through Movement balanced - could have more reach and drive
Intermediate Dog:
1st: Perfu That Darn Cat
Scissor bite, strong teeth; lovely nose, truncated muzzle; reasonably dark eyes; well defined stop & good arching over the eyes; reasonably square head, still maturing; reasonable forechest; reasonable neck length
Could have more arching over loin – withers quite high relative to the loin; a little more angulation in rear than front; quite high hocks; nice coat developing; moves quite evenly but more power from rear than reach in front.
Open Dog – two quality dogs - not much between them and could change places on another day.
loin with slight arching over a strong loin; good body proportions; quite open angulation in front; quite good angulation in rear; nice low hocks; lovely coat colour, could have more texture; movement quite good but would like more reach
2nd & Reserve Challenge Dog:
Aust Champ Malizioso Let's Go Dutch
Larger dog; pleasing outline; capacious nose, correct bite; strong, truncated muzzle; eyes could be a little darker; head a little longer than wide;
Good neck length and arching; nice forechest; withers higher than loin; arching over loin not clear; very good coat texture & good colour
Balanced, quite good front & rear angulation; good hocks; a little more power in the rear than the front
Baby Puppy Bitch:
1st: Perfu Extraordinary Show Girl
A lot to like - nicely balanced baby
Nicely shaped head
Good muzzle & teeth; lovely dark eyes
Reasonable neck; good topline
Quite good angulation front and rear
Moved freely; higher in hock than I’d like
2nd: Olensha I Should Be So Lucky
Quite a large puppy for her age
Lacking the overall balance of number 1
Head developing nicely; good teeth and eyes; lacking
a little in neck and arching over loin - rising topline; could have a longer upper arm; proportionately longer in body; reasonable rear angulation; nice low hocks; not as settled in movement as number 1.
1st & Minor Puppy in Show:
Perfu Goodness Gracious
Nice bitch; nicely balanced front & rear
Lovely eyes; well shaped skull
Good mouth, reasonable underjaw
Reasonable forechest; good topline
Nice coat coming through
Good reach & drive; slightly longer hocks
2nd: Woolebull Xpressionable
Taller bitch; relatively shorter in body; bit short in
upper arm; a little steeper in rear angulation; quite good reach & drive; coat a bit muddy at the moment – should clear; moved evenly.
1st & Runner-up Best in Show, Inter in Show &
Reserve Challenge Bitch: Aust Champ Malizioso Eyes of an Angel
Nicely balanced bitch
Reasonable head – would like a bit more capaciousness but she's still young; nice muzzle, lovely bite; lovely dark eyes; lovely long neck; slight forechest
Correct topline; loin slightly higher than withers as required
Very good front & rear angulation
Best natural coat texture I’ve seen for a very long time; intermediate coat coming on beautifully
Nice low hocks
Australian Bred Bitch:
1st & Best Aust Bred in Show: Waloes Don't Dream It Be It (AI)
Nice outline. Would like a squarer head; reasonable neck; nice eyes; good teeth; reasonable stop & arching
Correct topline
Could do with more angulation front & rear but balanced; nice low hocks
Coat a bit muddy - quite good texture but needs to clear
Flows on movement but would like more ground
coverage; good coming & going
More feminine than number 2
Larger bitch; flighty temperament; good head & teeth; nice eyes; nice forechest; open angles front & rear; withers higher than loin – sloping topline; quite good coat texture, nice colour
1st & Best in Show, Open in Show & Challenge
Bitch: Aust Supreme Champ Bagatelle Moonlight Garden (Imp Can)
Feminine bitch; lovely balanced outline, strong appearance; correct body proportions & strong body Good teeth; correct head shape; dark eyes; reasonably capacious nose; nicely arched, quite long neck; correct topline; strong loin; nice coat colour, reasonable texture; good angulation; nice low hocks
2nd: Aust Champ Woolebull Wollemi At Snodragon (AI)
Larger bitch; capacious nose; correct teeth; strong
muzzle; dark eyes; would like a more capacious head for size; fairly long, arched neck; lacking a bit in forechest; a little longer in body; balanced angulation but a bit open front & rear; correct topline; strong body; lovely textured, clear coloured coat; moved with good reach & drive – overall lovely length in movement.
Neuter Dog:
1st & Best Neuter in Show: Olensha You Were Made For Me
Large dog; clipped but with enough coat to see good colour
2 blue eyes; good teeth & muzzle; lovely head Reasonable neck; little forechest; OK topline; a bit unbalanced in movement – more angulation in rear than front; open angulation front & rear; reasonable hocks
Best in Show: Supreme Champ Bagatelle Moonlight Garden (Imp Can)
Moved beautifully, flowed around the ring with an excellent ground-covering stride; lovely reach & drive; looked all OES; a strong, compact-looking, thick-set bitch with great symmetry, as the breed standard asks for.
Runner-up Best in Show: Aust Champ Malizioso Eyes of an Angel
Also flowed beautifully around the ring, showing correct construction throughout; still young but with great promise.
Photos and critique of the 2023 Championship Show coming soon.