A competition for borderline Large dogs...

In support of the introduction of a 4^th height at 550mm in Kennel Club Agility tests, television’s 'Bionic Vet,' Noel Fitzpatrick is sponsoring a brand new and exciting event for 2015 - The Fitzpatrick Referrals 4^th Height Jumping Cup. This is your opportunity to try your smaller Large dog over a lower height, so please do give this event your support. Entering a heat will not prevent you from entering all the classes your dog is eligible for at a show.

Check the schedule for restrictions as usual.

The Final
Christine Bailey's Judge's Report

I felt very honoured to be invited to judge the Grand Final of the Fitzpatrick Referrals 4th Height Jumping Cup. The final was held on June 21st as part of the huge public event DogFest – and huge it was, with literally thousands of visitors and their dogs of all shapes and sizes enjoying themselves. Finalists qualified at six heats across the country, and 23 from the North, the South and the Midlands travelled to the Final. Two even crossed the border from bonny Scotland. I hope we gave them a day to remember!

These dogs had nothing to prove. They had already proved themselves some of the best agility dogs in the country by qualifying. The Final was about dogs and handlers having fun and showcasing these lovely ‘smaller Large’ dogs over jumps of a suitable height. We held a simple steeplechase in the morning to get dogs and handlers warmed up, and the Grand Final took place in the Main Ring at 2pm.

We had just 50 minutes to get the course set up, walked, run, awards presented, equipment cleared and a lap of honour – no mean feat, but we did it! The course needed to be easy to remember from a plan and a five minute walking time so I set a simple grade 4-ish course that hopefully achieved this. The main ring itself was very large, and I did my best to fill it to show off the dogs to the huge audience. This resulted in a lot of running and some superb handling from these wonderful handlers. They were a joy to watch, with their dogs really stretching out over these 55cm jumps.

The 'go round' at Jump 2 caught out a handful, the dogs being perhaps over eager to just get on with it please! The wonderful commentary by Chris Garrett got the public in the mood. They urged on the dogs. The atmosphere was electric. I heard gasps from behind me whenever a dog picked up a fault and huge cheers for every dog, clear or not.

The first two dogs to run were unfortunately eliminated. Christine Brown, running third with Meg the Mischief, set a stunning time of 28.856. Donna Kerse running seventh with Try 'n' Fly Amazing Grace beat her into 2nd place in a time of 28.180, and there the places stayed until Jenny Kimber, running number 13 with Jenny Lovegrove's superb Raeannes Falcon, beat them both with a fantastic time of 27.250. That time proved impossible to beat, though the following dogs did their level best, and Christine Brown’s second dog, Lynwood Gem Mischief Magic, beat her first into 4th place by getting round in 28.422. Out of 23 dogs 12 ran clear, three had faults and eight were eliminated.

All in all a fantastic day! Huge congratulations to all the wonderful finalists for getting there and for showing the public how brilliantly these dogs can perform over the 4th Height.

 
L-R Donna Kerse, Jenny Kimber, Brian Wright (Fitzpatrick Referrals), Christine Bailey (Judge), Moira Plowman, Janice Short,
Judfge Christine Brown (in front)

Grand Final Results

The finalists
Steeplechase Results
Sponsored by Natural Instinct

Good Luck to All the Finalists

Introducing Christine Bailey
Grand Final Judge

My first dog, Airedale Terrier Tasha, was born in 1995. We started fun agility at a breed club, and we both loved it. Airedales are not a breed you usually associate with agility, and it was certainly easy to spot my dog on the exercise area at shows! In 2000 another Dale, 19-month-old Ben, joined the family, and I bought a tent. Then three years later, a caravan. I was officially an agility addict. Although my Airedales were never fast enough to win, they amassed literally hundreds of clear round rosettes.

I acquired WSD Danny in 2004. I was looking for a small, non-shedding dog, but he needed a home! Unfortunately Danny was a 'Friday afternoon' dog, and only competed for half a season. He needed spinal surgery, and who better to perform it than Mr Noel Fitzpatrick? Danny did eventually have a few years enjoying Allsorts classes, until he required further surgery five years later.

I started running a friend's dog, a Springer called Smudge, who measured just a fraction out of Medium height, and who jumped so much better at 55cm. Later I trained his housemate, CKCS Coby, a little rescue dog, and i competed with him until he died at the tender age of seven.

The Kennel Club introduced the judging exam for all new judges in 2004, and I sat the very first one, held at Longleat. Since then I have judged a few times a year, but decided to take a break in 2015 – until I was invited to judge the final of the prestigious Fitzpatrick Referrals 4th Height Jumping Cup.

The introduction of a 4th height at KC shows is a cause very close to my heart. I feel that many dogs who, like Smudge, measure just out of Medium would benefit so, if you’ll pardon the pun, I jumped at the chance.

I am currently running Della, a small dog belonging to a friend, and training my young Mini American Shepherd, Heidi, who lives with me, my long-suffering husband, 11-year-old Danny, and terrier mix Pandy. I spend my time walking and training my dogs (though you would never guess!) and on my counselling work, both for a local charity and in private practice, specialising with two colleagues in pet –related issues www.pawstoreflectcounselling.co.uk

Wallingford DTC
Judge's Report

Judge Hilary pictured with the six qualifiers from the Wallingford heat
L-R Sarah Young, David Elliott, Jenny Kimber, Lee Windeatt, Jill Lowe and Janice Short.

Hilary Bowden, Judge at the Wallingford heat of the Fitzpatrick Referrals 4^th Height Jumping Cup. said, 'It was more than a pleasure to be able to judge the first 4^th Height Jumping Cup heat. From a Judge’s - and trainer’s - point of view, I felt the smaller Large dogs ran exceptionally well. It was noticeable that they did not struggle and were able to round over the jumps. All in all, I think this height should be considered but, of course, the implementation will need a lot of thought.

Well done to Wallingford and the sponsors for introducing this Special class. It was very enjoyable to judge as all the handlers and dogs were running with big smiles. From a dogs point of view, it was a great success!”

New Qualifier for 'Smaller' Large Dogs

The Fitxzpatrick Referrals 4th Height Jumping Cup 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, at Loseley Park, Surrey on Sunday, 21^st June 2015.

The competition will consist of six 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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