A competition for borderline Large dogs...

The 4th Height Jumping Cup, sponsored by DogFest, is continuing for a further year in support of the introduction of a 4th height in Kennel Club tests. The competition is open to dogs measuring into the KC Large height (i.e. over 430mm).  There will be ten heats around the country during 2015/2016, culminating in the Grand Final in the main arena at the dog-centric public event DogFest 2016 at Great Park on 25-26 June. This exciting competition is your opportunity to try your smaller Large dog over a lower height, so please do give it a try.


 

Grand Final Weekend at DogFest Windsor

 After less than ideal weather during the build up to DogFest on 25th-26th June, the organisers, helpers and finalists who had come from all over the country were relieved to be installed in a picturesque and reasonably dry camping area set just away from the main site of the show, within Windsor Great Park.  It was certainly a lovely experience to wake up in the early morning to the sight of a herd of beautiful and slightly bemused roe deer – not quite what we are used to at agility shows!

The organising crew were also running an agility demonstration and have-a-go ring at the festival and many of the finalists took the opportunity to give both their competing and non-competing dogs a chance to stretch their legs in the busy environment.

During the afternoon on the first day the sun soared overhead and everyone paraded en masse to the main show arena, where they entertained the huge crowd with a fast and fun Knockout Jumping competition judged by Christine Bailey and Penny Cockerill. Pat Conibere and Chilli were runners up, while Veronica Hill and Spy were declared Knockout Champions – both received prizes awarded by Natural Instinct and Gemsdale Photography. It was a great treat to see an agility celebrity pair in the form of Bernadette Bay and her Agility Champion Sheltie, Zaz who ran against the very sporting Amy Stanford and her gorgeous little Spitz Amos, as 'white dogs' before the hurdles went up to 550mm for the Large dogs.

It was such a fun and busy day, but there was still time for most to listen to the inspiring Noel Fitzpatrick speaking on the main stage, enjoy looking around the festival and have a stroll down The Long Walk before an early night and preparations for the Steeplechase warm up and the Grand Final of the 4th Height Jumping Cup the next day.

Judge’s Report: Christina Williams

What a lovely venue Windsor Great Park is with rolling grassland, broadleaved woodland, mown rides and plenty of open space for dogs. When I had a look around the event on Saturday, the amount of space surprised me. It seemed a huge area within a ring of trade stands.  On Sunday, it became clear that it had been very carefully thought out with the visiting dogs' welfare in mind as, even though there was a sell-out crowd, there was plenty of space for the dogs and owners to walk around without the dogs being forced into meeting and greeting situations that might be stressful for them.

Heavy rain on Thursday and heavy showers on Friday and Saturday luckily didn't cause any harm to the ground in either ring which stood up well to the use.

The Finals Day started off with a Steeplechase course in the Agility Demonstration Ring to give the dogs (and handlers) a chance to acclimatise to the venue.  All the dogs were at least Grade 5 but maybe nerves on the day played a part and there a few eliminations.  Dogs got pulled off jump 8, there were a few sent into the wrong end of the tunnels and a few poles from others. There were some fantastic clear rounds too. I had expected the handlers to send the dogs round the outside wing at 15 as the line from this to the finish was far better than the line from the inside wing but very few opted for this (the line looked far better than the diagram shows).   It was a bit tricky to get into a position to handle well and a fraction longer so maybe this played a part in the decision making process.

 
Steeplechase Results
Sponsored by Natural Instinct

For the Final itself, I wanted to set a course that would be exciting to watch, pleasing the spectators who may not know what agility was all about, but still testing the handler/dog teams.  I had more or less decided on the course in December just after being invited to judge and, apart from a couple of tweaks on the day, it ran as planned.  For most, it proved to be not too much of a problem. Some serpentined 5-7; others opted for a couple of front crosses, and handlers opted for turns around both wings at 10.  The tunnel at 15 was intended to be more of a trap off jump 10, but with the ring less deep than the plan allowed, it had to be moved to the position as shown in the diagram. Again, there were a few unlucky poles and eliminations, but the clear rounds were all within a few seconds of each other, thus making guessing the winner very difficult until the results were in. 

The winning run from Pat Conibere and Devongem Hot or Wot (Chilli) looked effortless. I know Chilli had taken a rather nasty tumble the day before in the Knockout and, despite a check by a physio and having been given the all clear, Pat was worried about her all day, but she showed no signs of being any the worse for wear in either this or the earlier steeplechase run where she was 2nd. 

Congratulations to Emmy Figg with Emmy’s Willo the Wisp and Christine Brown with Lymwood Gem Mischief’s Magic for their great runs to come in 2^nd and 3^rd also with fast, clean runs. The time split was minute between the runs from all the placed dogs, a fractional difference in the turn into the weaves probably divided them.  Pat turned Chilli left at 10, whereas Emmy and Christine both turned their dogs right, after those decisions it was a sprint for home.

Grand Final Results
Sponsored by DogFest

Thank you to...

• Christina Williams for setting the courses and judging the main events

• DogFest for sponsoring the 10 qualifying heats and the Grand Final, and to Ali Atkinson from DogFest for presenting the awards

• Norton Rosettes for their amazing rosettes at the heats and Grand Final

• Natural Instinct for sponsoring the Steeplechase warm up event

• Becky Layphries from Fun with Fido who presented the Best Rescue award to Emmy Figg, and Fun with Fido treat pods to all the Finalists

• Dean Lindsay from Gemsdale Photography

• The hard-working helpers and organising crew

• And of course the Finalists – congratulations to them all!

Dog Vegas

Results of the final heat of the 4th Height Jumping Cup 2016, held at Dog Vegas at the end of May. Congratulations to the qualifiers and thank you very much Dog Vegas for hosting the heat. 

Qualifiers

1. Marie Cooke with Dovemere Wickenstone Chief

2. Lesley Wilks with Catch a Dream AW/G)

3. Jackie Bromwich with Moel Fern at Foxtwist AW/B

4. Laura Sivell with Cefyn Kite AW/G

We are looking forward to seeing them all in the Grand Final at DogFest on 25-6 June at Windsor Great Park. Come along and support them if you can. It should be a fantastic weekend!

Blackdown Report
Judge: Marie-Louise Parker

I set a fast, flowing course, expecting some exciting runs and I was not disappointed.   Sue Stock set the pace with a blistering run with long distance handling. This was followed by superb runs from Pauline Pearce and Patricia Conibere. It was impossible to predict the eventual winner, with only a second splitting these three.

Qualifiers

1. Patricia Conibere with Devongem Hot or Wot - 25.739

2. Sue Stock with My Dashing Dapple Baby - 26.419

3. Pauline Pearce with Dusters Special Edition AW/G - 26.622

4. Tracy Runyard with Darkside of the Moon at Twizzlemyst - 28.302

• Course Length:  120 metres

• Course Time:  40 seconds

The Best ABC award, sponsored by the Lagotto Romagnolo Association, went to Lucy Waldron with her Kelpie, Exmoor Kangaroo Kid.

Very many thanks to Blackdown for asking me to judge this prestigious event, and to First Contact for their first class equipment.”

This was the penultimate of 10 qualifying heats and we now look forward to what promises to be a very exciting Grand Final in the Main Arena at DogFest South, at Windsor Great Park on Sunday, 26th June.

Woodside Report
Judge: Kevin Mackintosh

It was a little cold and wet for the 4th Height Jumping Cup heat at Woodside on 1st May, but it was a great competition with over 100 dogs taking part.  There were some fantastic runs and the top six were only separated by 0.8 sec!

As the class covers Grades 1-7, I tried to set a course that would be a challenge but was also suitable for everyone.  The pace was set from the very first run by Sharon Reeder who had a great run and turned out to also have the winning time of 23.012 sec.  

Well done to the other qualifiers Peter Crozier, Donna Kerse and Lisa Duggan. 

Qualifiers

1. Sharon Reeder with Hacesol Storm Trooper AW/S - 23.012

2. Peter Crozier with Melbreak Jack of Hearts - 23.126

3. Donna Kerse with Try ‘n’ Fly Amazing Grace - 23.134

4. Lisa Duggan with Sherebridge Kismet - 23.272

• Course Length 127.5 metres

• Course Time 47 seconds

The Best ABC award, sponsored by the Lagotto Romagnolo Association, went to Rachel Thomas with Misty MacMooMoo.

The recipients of the two Best Junior awards, sponsored by Tick Tock the 4^th Height Dog, were Kerry McCullough with Greenhill Jessica AW/G (age 12-16) and Olivia Milne with Milly Molly Mandy Candy (under 12).

Many thanks to Woodside for asking me to judge this class and providing me with a great ring party. Well done again to all the Qualifiers, and I wish everyone good luck in the Final.

Wallingford Report
Judge:  Iain Davey-Smith

The weather didn’t look too bad on the morning of 16th April at the Wallingford Show. Although the sky was grey and the ground sticky, my phone app told me we’d just have a few spots of rain later on.

The course was set up, and I had an enthusiastic ring party. I was ready to start judging 141 Grade 1-7 dogs for the 4th Height Jumping Cup Qualifier, sponsored by Dog Fest.

I wanted my handler / dog teams to enjoy a smooth, flowing course and I’m so glad my course worked how I wanted it to. I was also glad that I had brought my waterproofs because the app was wrong!  A few spots of rain became great big splodges of snow falling on the course, competitors and everything else.

Because it was the 'wrong type of snow' we had to bring in manual timing as the timing gates thought the big snowflakes were dogs!  Thanks to the spirit of the competitors and the ring party we managed to continue on, with all in good humour, to the end of the class.

Huge congratulation to the top four qualifiers:-

1. Daniel Gee

2. Belle Howlett

3. Rory Tidmarsh

4. Jill Matthews

Belle also won the Best Junior award, sponsored by Tick Tock the 4th Height Dog.  Congratulations also to Gemma Swann with her JRT Harry for winning the Best ABC award, sponsored by the Lagotto Romagnolo Association.

I would like to thank Wallingford for asking me to judge this very enjoyable class and my excellent ring party the Merry Mutts.

Golden Valley Report
Judge: Richard Ascough

On a lovely sunny morning in Monmouth, a further round of the 4th Height Jumping Cup competition was held. More than 100 dogs from Grades 1-7 enjoyed the lower 550mm height, especially those just into the Large height category. From the positive feedback, the competitors enjoyed a flowing course, which ran well in good, dry conditions.

My thanks to Golden Valley Dog Training Club for inviting me to judge at their show and I look forward to the continuance of this competition.  I would also like to thank Tuffley Agility Club for their excellent support in running the ring party.

Congratulations to the top four qualifiers

1. Samantha Allbut with Braximum Impact

2. Judith Doble with Tumble's Gaelic Charm

3. Emma Warneford with Kylan Magic

4. Sophie Macbeth with Stillmoore Stawberry Ice

The winner of the Best ABC award, sponsored by the Lagotto Romagnolo Association, was Angela Bendall with Sedgwick Weisstayzen.  

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/4th-Height-Jumping-Cup-830539536977104/

Website:     http://areyou4it.org.uk/

Photo courtesy of Ifan Griffiths

Vote for Bilbo the Multi-talented Cockapoo

Meet Bilbo Baggins, the Cockapoo. Bilbo and his owner John Cadge were the proud winners of the 4th Height Challenge trophy, awarded to the best performing dog over all the 4th height classes, at the Lagotto Romagnolo ABC KC Show earlier this month. Bilbo is a member of Pachesham Agility Training club.

In addition to being an agility dog, he is a Pets As Therapy (PAT) dog who visits a children’s respite home and a care Home with John's wife, Philippa. The Children’s home nominated him for the PAT Dog of the Year Competition and he is one of only six Finalists at Crufts Dog Show in March 2016!

Bilbo is the only dog that has got through to Crufts from Surrey and would love it if people could vote for him at Yours Magazine

New ABC Award Announced

We are delighted to announce that there will be an award, sponsored by the Lagotto Romagnolo Association, for the highest placed ABC dog at each of the six remaining heats being held in the lead up to the 2016 Grand Final.  We thank them for their support.

The Lagotto Romagnolo Association comment: 'The LRA fully support the campaign for the introduction of a 4th height for agility at KC shows.  We feel that the inequitable increase in jump height at the Medium/Large transition means that smaller Large dogs, such as male Lagotto - max 19”, are having to work at heights that may cause injuries over the long term.

Whilst we appreciate that they could compete elsewhere at other shows at more appropriate heights, we feel it's disappointing that the KC have not yet recognised the benefits of a 4th height and therefore continue to disadvantage the intermediate sized breeds.'

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Suffolk Five Rivers
Judge's Report -  Heidi Totesaut

Suffolk Five Rivers was my last show of the season. I had been invited to judge the Fitzpatrick Referrals 4th Height Jumping Cup on the Saturday and really looked forward to it.

Designing the course took me a while as I wanted it to be flowing but not boring and, as it was Combined G1-7, achievable for all grades. I was surprised at the large entry of 237 dogs and handlers, amongst them a great variety of different breeds which is always nice to see.

All dogs negotiated the 550mm height jumps very well, and it was especially beneficial for those who measure just above Medium and some ABC dogs. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, some fantastic runs, lots of clear rounds and happy dogs and handlers.

Hopefully more show organisers will schedule heats for the Fitzpatrick Referrals 4th Height Jumping Cup in the future. Perhaps, in time, it can become a graded class with winners from each grade being represented in the final.

Well done to all competitors and many congratulations and good luck to those who qualified for the Final, specifically Denise Wilkinson, Eve Leach, Kate Sutton and Gill Thomas.

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The Agility Club
Judge’s Report - Pete Richardson's
27 July 2015

I would like to say how enjoyable it was to judge this class. The competitors were all keen and very sporting, and I had excellent support from my ring party, led by Andrea Russ. Thanks to the Agility Club for asking me to judge.

My plan was to have a fast, flowing course with some handling, giving all grades a chance in this G1-7 qualifier.  It was great to hear supporters cheering some people's first clear rounds and applause in recognition of good rounds.

Very few dogs took poles which may be significant due to the lower 550mm jump height, but also might be due in part to the flowing nature of the course.  The turn out of the first tunnel was well managed over 7 and 8 to 9, and it was great to see handlers sprinting down to get a tight turn on 13.  Here, it was that  some dogs, especially the higher grade ones, couldn't believe there hadn't been a back of jump yet so chose now to do one!  There was no time for the handlers to relax as the dogs flew into the tunnel before having to choose how to collect and work 17,18 and the finish.

The most amusing moment for me was that there was a massive gap and lead out at the start, so an older gentleman with a stick obliviously 'walked' in front of a dog on the start line – happily not causing a problem!

I was most impressed by two things during this class – firstly the happy dogs and handler attitude, and secondly the performance of the youngest qualifying dog,  Simon Peachey’s Mr Red, 'speaking' his way round.  

Rules & Regs

The 4th Height Jumping Cup, sponsored by Fitxzpatrick Referrals, is open to all dogs measuring over 430mm at the withers (i.e. over Medium height) and with jump heights set at 550mm, there will be six qualifying heats held around the country this agility season. The top six dogs and handlers in each heat will qualify for the Grand Final, being held in the main arena at Fitzpatrick Referral’s own dog-centric public event, DogFest.

The competition will consist of 10 heats held at agility shows around the country:

Rules & Regs

1. Competitors may enter more than one dog in a heat and qualify more than one dog for the final.
2. Qualifiers may enter further heats for competition, providing they are eligible.
3. Handlers who gain a place in a heat with a previously qualified dog should inform the Show Secretary on the day of the show. In the event of someone qualifying more than once for the Final, or a handler being unable to attend the final, reserves may be invited.
4. The Fitzpatrick Referrals 4th Height Jumping Cup heats and final will consist of hurdles set at 550mm, weaves and tunnels only.
5. The Fitzpatrick Referrals 4th Height Jumping Cup is open to all grades of dog measuring over 430mm at the withers.
6. Competitors entering the competition are deemed to have agreed to abide by the rules and regulations of the host club.
7. Rosettes to 10 percent in each heat, up to 15^th place.
8. Trophies 1st to 3rd place in each heat.
9. Should a heat need to be split, the prize allocation will be decided by the host club and event organisers.

Contact email address for queries concerning this event: fourth_height@yahoo.co.uk. Website: http://areyou4it.org/

Join us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fitzpatrick-Referrals-4th-Height-Cup/830539536977104

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