Show Placings
West of England Ladies Kennel Society
25th Apr 2025
Judge: Mrs J Guvercin (Glebeheath)
Thank you to everyone who entered on a Friday and gave me the biggest entry of the two groups on the day and the forth highest in the whole show! Pat and Paul my stewards were great and helped me to get through the dogs in an efficient way.
We were lucky enough to be outside on a perfect dog showing day weather wise.
Some super quality classes with hair splitting decisions and even lovely dogs unplaced. Whilst essentially a working terrier was a priority, I wanted my males, to look like males and my bitches easily recognisable as females, it sounds obvious but with some they could’ve passed for either.
Some really lovely dogs looked super stood, but failed on the move, not just coming and going, but more importantly to me, the side gait.
I think we need to be careful of mouths, I was surprised to find several with teeth out of line. Level bites, although allowed and not penalised on the day, some were in very young dogs and it makes me wonder if they will last.
Having said all that, I enjoyed my day and the dogs, who also seemed to enjoy being outside.
Junior - Bitch /
First Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
very feminine grizzle of nice size with a typical head and correctly balanced body. Good neck set into narrow, lithe body with super topline and short carroty tail correctly set on. Racy quarters which she used well on the move and covered the ground with an easy stride. In super condition, I’m sure we’ll hear more of her.
The Midland Border Terrier Club Partnership Championship Show
8th May 2025
Judge: Mr John Bainbridge (Risdene)
Many thanks to the Midland committee for this appointment which l thoroughly enjoyed, despite the weather which sent us indoors after bitches. Many thanks to my stewards. As an aside l was pleased to see that moderately short tails are coming back! I was also pleased to find that three of the youngsters from the previous time l judged had developed as hoped and received top honours today. The exception was the outstanding dog which took BIS, my first time judging this one and what a treat! This blue and tan dog meets the standard so well, essentially a working terrier, the most important requirement of our breed, but with the quality of a top show dog .
Junior - Bitch /
Reserve
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Birmingham National Dog Show
8th May 2025
Judge: Miss Katie Hamilton (Cromlechs)
Firstly I would like to thank the Birmingham National Dog Show committee for inviting me to judge the Border Terriers for them. It was a great honour and I was so pleased to recieve a super entry and overall a lovely quality of exhibits to judge on the day. Special thanks also goes to my stewards that helped my day run so smoothly and efficiently.
Junior - Bitch /
Third Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Scottish Kennel Club 206th Championship Show
17th May 2025
Judge: Mr J Gilpin (Otterbobs)
I would like to take this opportunity to thank each exhibitor for providing me with an excellent entry, and l would like to thank the Scottish Kennel Club for inviting me to judge at their General Championship Show, unfortunately l never got my ring stewards name but a massive thank you to you for keeping things flowing.
Junior - Bitch /
First Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
16 months old, a well-constructed bitch, shown in a harsh coat, she has a good proportioned head, straight in front, very good top line & tail set on high, she also has a nice undercarriage profile giving her that racey outline.
Scottish Kennel Club 205th Championship Show
17th May 2025
Judge: Mr Ian Hopper (Esyntona)
Thank you to the following.
SKC for inviting me to judge after my two previous appointments at Driffield were cancelled due to corvid restrictions and the storms.
The stewards who helped keeping the classes running smoothly at times we had to wait for exhibitors who were showing in the SKC Champ show in the adjacent ring.
To all the exhibitors who entered their dogs under me, I was looking for dogs that were fit for function for what they were originally bred for even though very few get the chance to carry this out.
Junior - Bitch /
Second Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
red grizzle pleasing head, scissor bite strong muzzle spannable. Harsh coat moved out well close decision first 2 could swap places on another day.
Bath Canine Society
24th May 2025
Judge: Mr Euan Castel (Flutorum)
My thanks to the Society for their kind invitation and to the exhibitors for their support. Special thank you to Liesel Thorner for her efficient stewarding.
Junior - Bitch /
Second Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
light grizzle, nice head and expression. Built on narrow frame with good length of body, level topline with carroty tail well set on. Good harsh jacket. She moved well fore and aft.
Class Critique
A strong class.
Darlington Championship Show
13th Sep 2025
Judge: Mrs. Carolyn Richardson (Staynorwood)
I would like to thank Darlington Championship Show Committee for inviting me to judge my first appointment to give CC's. Thank you to my very capable Stewards, Katrina and Margaret, for keeping everything moving and running to time.
Generally the condition of the dogs today was very good with many missing out on the top spot due to the strength of quality present. In the Bitch classes, I had some difficult decisions to make as several classes had many quality exhibits with lots of promise, splitting hairs at times in more than one class. I was very pleased with my principle winners on the day.
Yearling - Bitch /
First Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
Nice type of bitch, narrow throughout. Typical head with flat skull and neat ears. Strong jaw and big teeth. Good reach of neck and shoulders. Harsh jacket with loose pelt. Good topline and short tail. Narrow rib and good rear angulation, moved well with a good length of stride.
Belfast DSS Championship Show
27th Sep 2025
Judge: Mr David Shields (Wilholme)
Graduate - Bitch /
First Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
Another good one from this kennel. Typical in appearance and built on clean lines. Good head shape, well balanced, neat well placed ears and an alert expression. Clean over her neck and shoulders and narrow throughout and easily spanned. Strong level topline that she keeps on the move. Pleasing hindquarters. Good jacket, sound on the move.
Scottish Border Terrier Club Championship Show
8th Nov 2025
Judge: Mrs Janet Lee (Tythrop)
Thanks to Scottish Border Terrier club for inviting me to judge at their 2025 Ch show , hospitality as ever was excellent . My two Stewards kept things running smoothly , so thanks to Judy & Pam too .
I enjoyed my day with some very nice borders and only one or two folk were obviously unhappy , the rest took my decisions sportingly & I thank all for coming .
Overall the good dogs & bitches pleased me a lot , but some were simply not workmanlike enough to easily get to ground and back out again . Feet were very flat and thin in quite a few , one kinked tail , 2 rather poor bites & several lacking any muscle …. Active and game , capable of following horse or hounds , with the lithe build to enable earthwork in tight places is what we need …. I found a few good quality males & slightly more top quality females that could do the job if given opportunity , some however were too big in rib & wide in front and weighed well over standard . So some adjustment in future breeding plans may be necessary I felt , to return to a smaller narrower frame .
Limit - Bitch /
Second Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
Another typy & light framed grizzle with good head , who picks up very light & moves soundly . A shade more compact than winner & not quite as much “ finish” as yet , but she too could easily do a days work I felt .
East Anglia Border Terrier Club Championship Show
18th Apr 2026
Judge: Mr Stewart McPherson (Brumberhill)
Unexpectedly judging, this year, being brought forward a year, due to the incapacity of the scheduled Judge. Best wishes to Dave for a speedy recovery. My thanks to the Club for the invitation and to my stewards, Andy and Rob, for keeping everything running smoothly and to the exhibitors for a super entry, which I enjoyed judging. It was a super large ring, giving dogs every chance to really move out and the weather, although a bit nippy at times, held out.
Now to the dogs, themselves. On the whole, heads were good, most having the “moderately broad skull” asked for in the Standard, very few being overly broad, with deep stops, more reminiscent of the Asiatic otter, rather than the native River otter.
Necks, into shoulder, were, on the whole ok, the main problem, as ever, being short upper arms, giving a front construction, set too far forward, on the body, rather than under it, more Fox Terrier than Border Terrier, meaning that the elbow was the widest part of the dog, not ideal on a dog bred to go to ground.
Bone varied, while we don’t want heavy bone, a few were too light, those with straight fronts and quality bone, down to small feet, with thick pads were a joy to find.
I’ve got hands like shovels, so the majority were spannable, but even I struggled with one or two! A few were, to my mind, short in rib, lacking the carry back, giving an untypical cut up underline.
Topline and tailsets were in the main good, just a few “not quite” sloping in croup. Tails, in the main, were good, not too many long ones. A few could have been thicker at the base, but none curled over the back.
The majority had good racy hindquarters, very few showing the stilted rear action that seems to be creeping in to the breed, totally incorrect in a breed that should be capable of “following a horse” as there’s no length of stride, driving from the hocks.
The main point of concern, I found, is an alarming number, whose back legs are simply not on the same track as the front ones, when moving, I assume, due to a slight imbalance between the front and rear construction, the angles not matching, to give efficient movement.
Coats and pelts were pretty good, even those short of coat, had, in the main, evidence of harshness. Given it’s pretty much the start of the show season, none were unduly penalised, my view being coats are transient, construction is a constant.
Open - Bitch /
Second Place
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
Placing Critique
Grizzle and Tan. Typical head and expression. Super neck and shoulder. Straight front with good feet. Narrow all through. Excellent topline and tailset. Good tail, well carried. Racy hindquarters. Shade short of coat, but what she had was harsh. Sound mover, keeping her outline on the move.
West of England Ladies Kennel Society
24th Apr 2026
Judge: Mrs. Liz Wright (Totherend)
Open - Bitch /
Very Highly Commended
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
National Dog Show
8th May 2026
Judge: Diane Bullen (Fevstone)
Open - Bitch /
Very Highly Commended
Name at show: Comberdown Roisin Dubh
