First Place in Open - Bitch, Judge: Miss Lisa Jenkins (Badgerbeck)
Firstly, please accept my apology for the lateness of this critique, unfortunately I had problems with my PC which crashed and lost my first , almost complete report, leaving me with no option but to start again. Thank you for an excellent entry. I was very pleased to find that most of the exhibits were of a workable size & spannable, had big teeth with good strong muzzles/jaws, all males entire, only 2 very minor tail kinks, and temperaments were excellent. On the down side I had few in good deep double coat and a really thick pelt was hard to find, the true otter head seams to be being replaced by a squarer skull giving more of a teddy bear look not helped by over long moustaches/beards and big bushy eyebrows. Ribs were frequently too short & deep resulting in whippety underlines. Front movement is still a problem due to a lack of balance between front and hind angulation with dogs either having good hindquarters but short steep upper arms or they were correct in front but over angulated behind, this resulted in them either throwing their fronts about coming or dropping their withers in profile in an attempt to balance their stride. There were a handful with crowded incisors or missing a first or second premolar.
Strong class with little to separate them.
feminine bitch of correct size and proportions, refined otter head with short, strong muzzle, shallow stop and flat skull, could be slightly deeper in under-jaw. Lovely reach of neck into narrow, well laid shoulder, upper arm of good length and correctly angled, her ribs are carried well back and the loin is strong giving a correct underline, nicely angled hindquarters. Straight front, good pasterns & tight feet, harsh topcoat and dense undercoat with a thick pelt, her topline tends to fall away slightly when stacked but she is level with very good tail carriage on the move, very sound on the move with balanced strides front and rear showing good reach & drive, and one of the few to flex her hocks. She?s a lovely stamp for hunt work due to her size, athletic/flexible build, and soundness, Best in Show.