Manchester 2015 Judged by Ms J Kitchener
MANCHESTER CH SHOW 15 Dalmatians

My thanks to exhibitors for a lovely entry & your applause to all the winners, it is always a pleasure to judge the breed. Type in the males right now seems very mixed however I was impressed with many more of the bitches & thought my line up for the Bitch CC managed to demonstrate a good degree of uniformity in size & type. Temperaments were good on all but two who displayed a degree of nervousness, I found a few level bites but was surprised at a new fault which seems to have crept in which is a lack of bone going right down to the pasterns. High tail carriage remains a problem & many lacked the breed's typical freedom & outline on the move, this above all else affected my decisions on the day.

MPD (3)

1 Goff's Washakie Shoshone Chief,
calm & quietly confident baby, well balanced for his age, lovely head & dark eye, flowing neckline & well laid shoulder with good length in upper arm. Good front & feet, lovely round bone, well ribbed up & level topline, well set tail which he carries correctly & good hind angulation giving fluent driving action. Well spotted on brilliant white coat. Giving away a lot in maturity to the PD winner, particularly in muscle, but still ran him close for BP. Sure to have a bright future;
2 Noble's Shulune Celtic Firefly, liver, slightly taller than 1, good front with depth of chest & well sprung ribcage, flowing neckline & well defined withers. In good coat& condition. A little wayward on the move but carries his tail well & shows promise;
3 Smith's Alphadal Ask Me Why.

PD (6)

1 Page's Winflash Hugo Boss
, very well marked & full of quality, outgoing & enthusiastic showman but nicely schooled & handled to advantage. 10 months, clean head, dark eye, excellent pigmentation all giving soft but intelligent expression. Straight front with decent forehand angulations, well sprung ribcage, flowing neckline, good bone & strong at pastern. Short coupled & strong in loin with well set tail & well muscled hindquarters. On the move sound, very fluent & rhythmic with powerful action & holding his head & tail correctly. BP in good competition;
2 Alexander's Offordale Picasso, liked this one a lot, pleasing in head with good neckline, front & strong well ribbed up body. Lovely for type & balance, just a touch wayward to start but as he settled showed good drive, reach & tail carriage, covering the ground well. More lightly marked& could not match pigment of 1 but certainly has much promise for the future;
3 Richardson's Mapplewell Dynamite.

JD (8,1a)

1 Talbot's Rapanooey Moai
, this (& the second placed dog) won their places on their movement, both flowed around the ring with great freedom & excellent carriage of head & tail. He could be a shade narrower in skull but liked his dark eye, his ears are well set & marked & has a lovely expression. Very correct in front with tight feet & good bone, short strongly muscled loin & well let down in stifle with good tailset& carriage. Well marked & handled & in good coat & condition;
2 Hopkin's Rapanooey Rasul, giving away a lot in maturity, rangier than 1, preferred him in head but would like more substance & a tighter front. Good round bone & tight feet, well set tail which he carries well, strong hindquarters used to advantage. Showed good profile movement, at 13 months maybe just needs more time to develop & settle;
3 McCArthy's Domdallino Je Suis Kilndandy.

PGD (2,1)

1 Gardinor's Jamelsley Pyracatha at Dakata
, upstanding liver, has quality & substance all through& well balanced, though I would prefer a little less of him for higher awards. Pleasing in head with good pigmentation, well laid shoulder, round bone& good depth of brisket. Nicely arched neckline with well defined withers, good forechest & ribbing carried well back. Strong powerful couplings & really well angulated hindquarters which he uses well on the move. Tail set on& carriage very good. Nicely marked on gleaming white coat, moving well up & back with strong rhythmic profile action.

LD (7,2) Difficult class as very mixed in type & I appreciated the first three in completely different areas.

1 Eden’s Dalens Hot Gossip, happy & natural showman, ideal for type, size & very well balanced, excellent markings on bright white coat, presents a typical flowing outline & excels on the move where he has such freedom & fluency. Like his head properties & expression, perhaps eye could be darker, strong neckline, well defined & clean at wither, round bone, good front with decent shoulder & length in upper arm & very well ribbed up. Lacking a shade in hind angulation, although I could not fault how he used his hindquarters in action, this came to bear when considering him for higher awards;
2 Farrell's Shandhally Coed Cyfareddol, liver, taller & very masculine all through, pleasing in head, not at all coarse with clean skull & well set ears. Pigment not 100% which spoiled his expression today. Strongly made, well ribbed & decent front, well let down in stifle with good width to thigh. In gleaming white coat & excellent muscular condition, excellent tailset, sound, strong & powerful mover;
3 Green's Tolutim Yves St Laurent at Judally.

OD (9,2)

1 Whincup's Tamilanda Panther Lilly
, on the one occasion I have seen this dog before my one thought was that he should be handled slightly differently. To her credit his handler did as I asked & for me the change in this dogs outline was dramatic. Up to size but not overdone, he is masculine without being at all coarse. Appeals in head with good dark eye, well set ears & lovely intelligent expression. He is so well made with decent layback in shoulder & length/return in upper arm, a lovely forechest& deep capacious ribcage, good front, round bone, tight feet & strong pasterns, flowing neckline with clean muscular loin. Tail is well set & firm well angulated hindquarters give good drive. Very nicely marked on gleaming white coat. On the move sound up & back & covered the ground with long easy strides, good reach in front & holding his topline & tail well. A comfortable winner the CC today;
2 Harrison Stratford's Dalkareve Dark Dragon, thought this liver had a great deal of quality all through, of good type & size, liked his head properties, dark eye & soft expression, well arched neck, good width & depth of chest, has good bone & substance in body. Well angulated strong hindquarters & carries his tail well. Sound mover but caught my attention most in profile movement where he is fluent & has good forward reach & hind extension holding a strong level topline. Not so good in feet as 1 but just a touch better in that area than the veteran which gave him the RCC;
3 Burrows' Daedalus Deacon Blue at Shacarlu.

VD (2)

1 Lamb's Dalpetro Dettori
, lovely boy in superb body & coat condition, have done him well in the past & he still has it all, type, size, movement & a really lovely head & expression. Excellent pigmentation, flowing topline & so very well balanced all through with strong round bone & substance. An outgoing natural showman with good angulations & bold markings on brilliant white background. Very close up for the RCC & in retrospect (after listening to my tape again when I listed his virtues at length) maybe I should have given it to him;
2 Alcock's Mapplewell Chocolate Box for Dalspartan, very nicely marked liver with broken ears & spots to his tail, coat a touch off white & not in full pigment, appealing in head, good chest, feet, bone & ribbing, well muscled & firm hindquarters which are well angulated. Enjoying his day out, showed well.

MPB (7)

1 Thorne's Duchess Of Mohave at Castletop
, delightful baby, a touch raw of course but lovely for type, of ideal size & totally feminine. Excellent round bone, tight feet, lovely head with good spotting & a natural showgirl, showing off a well arched neck, well defined at withers & a well developed ribcage for one so young. Smooth free mover in profile, yes she can tighten up yet coming & going, but shows a lot of promise for the future;
2 David & Saunders' Dalticino Interlagos from Dallydyl, what a poppet. More of her all through than 1, clean head & soft expression although she could be a shade narrower in skull, she is balanced throughout. Has good substance in bone, tight feet, deep chest & decent front. Well angulated, carrying her tail a little high in action & needs to settle coming & going but time is on her side;
3 Noble's Shulune Celtic Snapdragon.

PB (9,1)

1 Alexander's Offordale Larissa
, quality all through, ideal for size & has excellent type & balance. Brilliant white coat with very good spotting, broken ears & spots on her tail, good round bone, tight feet, very feminine in head with dark eye, well set ears & melting expression. Clean flowing neckline, decent shoulder & upper arm, very well ribbed, good front& hind angulations which mean she moves really well up, back & in profile. BPB;
2 Tingey's Dallyador The Enchantress, taller & longer cast, appealing head with good skull, dark eyes & excellent pigment, clean throat, good neck, straight front & strong level topline, well angulated with good bone & muscletone. Moved & showed well;
3 Page's Winflash Vera Wang.

JB (11,3).
Lovely class.

1 Eden's The Ice Queen at Dalens, comfortable winner of the class & one I seriously considered in the challenge. Very feminine in outlook & has a really lovely head, eye & expression. Appealed to me on every level, in basic correct construction all through, ideal size, so well balanced & very much the symmetrical outline I was looking for. Really well marked, excellent bone & neat feet, free & consistent mover carrying her head & tail well, covering the ground & looking like she could go on all day. One whose future I will watch with interest;
2 Burrows' Elaridge Hawks Phoenix at Shacarlu, taller bitch, lovely bright white coat & well marked, straight front & neat feet, deep well developed ribcage, could not match the layback& length of shoulder/upper arm of 1. Powerful, fluid & sound on the move but carrying her tail a touch high which spoilt her profile outline but a quality bitch who will do useful winning;
3 Petersen's Daedalus Cliff Angel.

PGB (13,5)
Very nice class with some quality bitches going down the line with much to like about them.

1 Quayle's Cubalibre Follow On, feminine all through but having desired substance & depth in body, lovely head with flat skull, correct stop & definition in front of ears, really dark eye & full pigmentation. Excellent bone carried down to strong springy pasterns which show just the right amount of angulation missing in many & tight well padded feet. Strong level topline, well defined clean wither, flowing neck which is nicely arched & very good shoulder/upper arm angulation. Well spotted on lovely white coat, a calm but happy showgirl, loved here attitude & expression. Moved out well, very sound up & back, covering the ground & maintaining a good topline in profile. Higher awards sure to come her way soon, certainly I considered her today;
2 Neath-Duggan's Buffrey Hey Diddle Diddle, quality bitch, lovely type with many of the same attributes in body as 1. Excellent flowing neckline, well defined withers, good bone & feet. Strong well muscled hindquarters, with good width in thigh & well let down in stifle, carrying her tail well, in a bit of a rush at times on the move, but once settled showed excellent drive & carriage;
3 Dawson's Washakie Endless Summer.

LB (13,2)
Another strong class, I was spoilt for choice between these 3 & suspect on another day could change places.

1 Dodds & Pearsons' Kelevra Classic Cliché, beautifully balanced & feminine, lovely size & stands so squarely with an eyecatching outline. An attentive showgirl, never let up for a moment. Loved her front, good round bone & neat feet, has strength in muzzle, a super skull & well set ears which she uses well, lovely dark eye, well broken ear markings & all in all just a delightful expression I found hard to resist. Really well ribbed up, strong well muscled loin & couplings, good hind angulation which match her front giving her really good soundness & straightness on the move. Carrying her tail just right & covering the ground with powerful effortless strides. Close up for CC in a really strong line up, worthy of a title certainly;
2 Gardner's Dvojica Black Again at Wrendragge, lovely type, full of quality, just a shade taller & longer in loin than 1, though I do not criticise her for this, for me it is a preference not a fault. Appealing in head, very feminine, with good dark eye, full pigment & of lovely demeanour, nicely arched neck & well laid shoulder with decent upper arm. Good spring of rib, well muscled with good turn of stifle & well set on tail, though she carried it a touch higher than 1. Another strong rhythmic mover whose turn for the higher awards should be just around the corner;
3 Philip's Dvojica Bubble N' Chic at Nordalset.

OB (10,2)
Another hugely competitive class, appreciated them all, right down to several who left the ring cardless.
1 Page's Winflash Born To Be Wild, very smart, typy with a lovely clean well balanced outline. Of ideal size she has substance, good ribbing & excellent bone without losing her femininity & shown in hard muscle & good coat condition. Lovely head with dark eye & well set ears, intelligent expression & I really appreciated her outgoing but sensible temperament, well schooled but still displaying a lively personality. Excellent mover from every angle, very good tailset & carriage. Nothing exaggerated & so little to fault, the longer you look at her the more she appeals. Pleased to give her the CC, for BOB I thought her a shade shorter in the couplings than the dog but pleased with them both in the final run off;
2 Emmett & Simon's Dalliviro Reba Mac at Ellemstra, full of quality & in sparkling nicely spotted white coat which positively gleamed with wellbeing. Lovely size, appealing head, dark eye & excellent pigmentation, good front, well boned & good feet, well arched neck & deep ribcage, giving her good width in chest & depth of brisket. Strongly muscled & really excels on the move, absolutely sound up & back, flows really well in profile although today I would have liked her cleaner across the neckline & shoulder. RCC;
3 Alexander's Offordale Amethyst.

VB (2)

1 Neath-Duggan's Buffrey Spring O Mint
, a favourite of mine & belying her 9 years, still so feminine in head, still carrying herself beautifully with a strong well arched neck & lovely forequarters. She is beautifully balanced all through, everything a Dalmatian bitch should be, really good bone, straight front, excellent feet and strong well sprung pasterns, in lovely condition and a gleaming white coat which is nicely spotted. Not for the first time she featured high up in my thoughts in the challenge, just giving away something to the bloom of her more youthful competitors now but a credit to her owner. BV;
2 Barrett's Marricdale The Gold Digger of Dalamanti, liver with a strong topline, excellent deep well sprung ribcage & lovely front. Pleasing head & expression, good neck & showing well. Rather outshone by the quality of her competitor but displaying nice type, a super temperament & clearly having a great time in the ring.

JACKIE KITCHENER