SUSSEX SPANIEL ASSOCIATION

NEWS AND VIEWS - SUMMER 2010 DATES FOR YOUR DIARY 2010

July

CLA Game Fair

August

National Gundog Champ show, Malvern

Bournemouth Champ show

Sussex Spaniel Society International @

Welsh Kennel Club, Builth Wells

September

City of Birmingham Champ show

Richmond Champ show

SSA Championship show

October

Driffield Champ show

South Wales Champ show

Gundog Society Of Wales Champ show

Midland Counties Champ show

Clumber, Field and Sussex Spaniel Match

SSA Field Trial

SSA Breed Seminar

Check the following websites for details on championship shows:

• www.fossedata.co.uk • www.highampress.co.uk SSA NEWS AND VIEWS SUMMER 2010

It is hard to believe that this time last year I was planning my wedding! This is now my 5th newsletter......

As always, I have lots to report on in this edition. Many events have happened since the winter including; Crufts, The Fun Weekend and The Sussex Gathering all of which are written about further on in the newsletter.

I have a judges profile with Sally Leslie (Risdene). Sally will be judging our Championship Show in September so I thought it would be a nice idea to get to know her! This feature will hopefully continue in the next newsletter if we have the space!

Grace Brown of Rangatira is our breeder in the hot spot and Sheila has also written a piece about the future of Sussex Spaniels.

Mr Wakefield and Jane Graham have also contributed to the newsletter this Summer with articles about the Yorkshire Game fair and Judging abroad respectively. Many thanks.

There is some lovely artwork towards the back of the newsletter which Catey Bates sent through to me. It would be interesting to see some more Sussex art if anyone has any they would like to share.

Simon Henshaw has been arty for us and supplied a line drawing of a Sussex with a full tail. A question was asked at the forum of the fun weekend as to whether the SSA logo should now be a full tailed Sussex, what do you think? It would be great to know thoughts on this subject......

The showing scene is almost becoming a ‘rich’ persons’ sport at the moment with the price of fuel and entries going up. Despite this there was a lovely atmosphere at the Windsor Championship show recently. I thoroughly enjoyed this show, something I have not said for a little while. I hope the Kennel Club and show societies themselves think of a way of reducing prices in the near future as I for one cannot continue to enter so many shows.

So the next question, what else can we do with our beloved breed? I have had articles about Pat dogs, agility and truffle hunting, has anyone else got something interesting they do with their Sussex Spaniel. I have always wanted to try the dancing with your dog, has anyone tried this?

I look forward to hearing some more stories and suggestions from you all.

See you soon

Kelly

Kelly Jefferies - [email protected] (01872 863076)

Disclaimer: “The views expressed in this Newsletter are not necessarily those of the SSA or its officers and committee.” SECRETARY’S LETTER

Winter has long gone and here we are with good summer weather. I’m writing late June and there are still many Dog Shows and Game Fairs being held throughout the rest of the year.

News is always in the Breed Notes (Dog World and Our Dogs weekly papers) and thanks to Daphne and Shani who write these regularly each week and keep us up to date.

This time at Crufts in March we were in a different Hall and quite warm compared to other Halls. The Stand was pretty quiet but Discover Dogs was a popular as ever. Thanks to everyone who helped there over the 4 days.

AGM At Crufts our stewards had been confused with the BOS trophy and thought it was for BOB. Thanks to Pat Leslie who searched through our old trophies, and found the Golden Jubilee Perpetual Trophy 1953 presented at Windsor years ago. At the AGM, Liz Bowe who with her dog was BOB at Crufts, was awarded this trophy. From now on this will be awarded to the BOB on the day at Crufts.

The members agreed that it was time to increase our subscriptions for 2011. There had been no increase since 2004. Details are further on in the Newsletter.

We have seen our memberships decrease to 170 members (from 220) at January 1st and we are asking everyone to encourage people they know with a Sussex to join us; also for breeders to give out an application form when they sell a puppy. The Form is on the website.

The members also agreed to be affiliated with a new European Club called Sussex Spaniel Society International known as SSSI. We hope there will be a true spirit of co-operation between us all.

Open Show At the Open Show we were lucky again with the weather and we were out on the lawn enjoying the Show in warm sunshine. June Walsh (Millcroft) had a good entry and her BOB was Katherine’s Edge’s “Niriti Lady’s Mantle”. Congratulations to Katherine. I think everyone enjoys being at Baginton and being outside makes all the difference. Many thanks to Chris House and Lizzie, who ably catered for us in the ‘long awaited’ new kitchen.

Fun Weekend We were at Liz and Ken Bowe’s farm this year and we’re quite spoilt having their generous hospitality plus a place where we can relax and enjoy ourselves. We also enjoy having the space to let our dogs run free. Many thanks to Liz and Ken for everything they do for us. Kelly has an article for you further on in the Newsletter about the weekend. It was great fun for us all!

Sussex at the Sussex This was a unique and historic weekend, with Paul Keevil claiming a world record for us of the largest gathering of 73 Sussex Spaniels, who with their owners took part in our special Sunday parade at the Sussex Country Fair, Parham House. Many thanks to Paul Keevil of British Heritage Breeds our media man and Countryman Fairs who hosted the event. A huge thank you to Jeremy Hackett for his support and sponsorship. Together with his two Sussex, he raised our profile and gave the Club and the breed much appreciated extra publicity. We are still basking in the glory!

We had lots of interest and gained several new members. Thanks to everyone who came and helped over the weekend. It was very hectic and we all agreed afterwards that it was a fantastic experience.

The ‘meet and greet session’ in the ring was a great success. We were all very proud of our Sussex Spaniel ambassadors. An article follows further on in the newsletter.

WKC – SSSI weekend I understand everything is on track for the SSSI event at WKC 21st - 22nd August and I’m sure Chris Wakefield will have news for the next Newsletter.

Working Bill Cadwell is arranging a Field Trial for us in October, and hopefully the weather will be much improved. The heavy snows of last January meant the Trial had to be cancelled. Bill had a large group attend his training session at the Fun Weekend. He is always there to give help and advice with training.

Puppies First quarter registrations were 33 (7 Litters) with 4 of the litters born late last year. Congratulations to John and Paula Wood down in Sussex with their first litter of 5 Sussex puppies. A few scary moments at times when Spangle decided to carry the pups around by the head!

Biennial Book Your copy of the 2010 Biennial Book will be ready to collect at the Championship Show on Saturday 25th September. Sally Leslie is our Judge and the schedule is enclosed. If you’re not there your copy will be posted to you, but why not come along and enter your dog ‘not for competition’? You can collect your book and this will save us the postage!

Thank you to everyone for all their help throughout the year. We have a happy group of members, always volunteering to help with whatever is needed. Many keep in touch if they can’t attend events.

We’re very lucky to have these special people and their Sussex Spaniels. Thank you to Kelly who always does such a great job with the newsletter.

Enjoy the rest of the summer and see you all soon.

Sheila Appleby Honorary Secretary www.sussexspaniels.org.uk Email: [email protected] WORKING REPORT

The shooting season will soon be upon us and we should all be hard at it training for the season ahead.

We are looking to run a field trial this year at the Bryn Shoot thanks to the gamekeeper Roger Keenan.

The date has been confirmed as the 30th October and approved by the Kennel Club.

The usual date has been bought forward due to the unpredictable weather conditions in late winter. Last year the SSA field trial was cancelled due to the snow and ice and we would like to try and avoid this happening again as we had lots of interest in our trial. Once again, a big thank you to the gamekeeper whom did not charge for the cancelled day.

We are hoping to have a walked up day on the 29th October before the trial if any one in interested, please contact me before end of September. Also, any guns interested in shooting at the trial, please contact me as soon as possible. All parties must have insurance cover or be a member of a club that has, i.e., BASC.

A mock trial is being arrange as well during the season, I will keep you posted on this. If anyone has any ground that they think would be suitable, please let me know.

It is important that minor breed field trials go ahead and are fully attended as without these, minor breeds would no longer be able to take part. Please try and make it to one of our trials.

Upcoming events The Welsh Kennel Club is the next venue for training tips. I will be their on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday for anyone wishing to discuss training methods.

I will be doing a demonstration on the Saturday, so please come and see how not to do it!

If you would like any information on future working events, please contact me.

Happy hunting

Bill

Bill Cadwell [email protected] WORKING TEST REPORT

We recently attended the field spaniel working test with two Sussex puppies and a Clumber. Picking Jill Sillence up on the way we trundled up from Cornwall.

Although the puppies were a little behind on their training, we made sure we entered as we thought we may be the only sussex. To our surprise, when we arrived, we were met by Sally and Matt with Wrigby and Julia Lewis with Nellie making 5 sussex entries.

The only Sussex to let the team down were the two handled by Dad!! Betty got through to the second round but found the dummy too exciting and ran in on the puppy test and the novice test. Doris unfortunately made the journey minus her brain cells and didn’t even get through one round!

Results: Best in Puppy: The Sussex Spaniel Jubilwell Miranda owned and handled by Julia Lewis. VHC Puppy, Sussex Jubilwell Beast of Bodmin Owned and handled by Sally Vowles 3rd in Open was the Sussex Jubilwell Betty Stoggs at Rythebrook Owned and handled by Jill Sillence

Comments from one of the Judges on the day - Chris Page Thanks to the FSS for asking me to judge their Working Test. It was very well run with a super atmosphere. 37 entries makes for a very full days judging. Super grounds making the handlers and dogs work for the awards.

The dogs gave quite a good account of themselves despite their handlers! My criticism if any, was that the handlers were letting the dogs down by a series of basic errors, this then caused the dogs to go wrong and consequently put the handlers under more pressure. The dogs even found pheasant and rabbit (so we wouldn’t have gone hungry) but if the basic handling is sharpened up we’ll do even better.

The dogs in the awards were in the main handled better and thus gave a better account of themselves, the handlers allowed their dogs to hunt with a certain amount of freedom and these dogs impressed both Stan and I the most. As Stan and I had agreed that the majority of the marks should be for hunting, we marked out of 60 points for both Puppy and Novice tests and 75 for the Open and so those who allowed their dogs this freedom obviously gained the marks. Retrieving in the main was OK however one or two dogs were a little reluctant to retrieve cleanly and this led to the handlers lunging at the dogs to receive the retrieve, this lost marks.

There is a bright future for the new crop of puppies coming through which has to be good for the future, the scores were very close 1st to 4th only separated by 5 or 6 points which shows how tight the competition is in that test. The novice test was a little more open as regards the points, we had decided to mark the novice hard, as a win in this class qualifies the dog to the open, we had also decided, if necessary to withhold first place. This thankfully did not happen as the winner was worthy of the win.

The open test was run in the afternoon on ground which had game and thus good scent, the dogs performed well but one or two stood out as seasoned campaigners, there experience gave them the edge and the points. The standard was good and by that time in the proceedings the handling had improved, probably due to handlers being more confident in the dogs ability.

Well done to all that made the effort to enter, without these entries the society could no longer run these events. Kelly Jefferies RESCUE REPORT (Liz Bowe)

Fortunately we have had a quiet six months in rescue, with only one dog and one bitch being rehomed.

The bitch was one I knew and I was able to put her new owner in touch with the owners, so that everyone was happy with the arrangement. She was only available as, like many older Sussex bitches, she had taken a dislike to the younger dogs in the household. As a single pet she has been fine.

The dog was returned to his breeder as the family circumstances had changed and everyone was out at work. He couldn’t cope with being left on his own and has gone to a home where he will always have company.

I hope this year will remain quiet. I know families have changes, and dogs take dislike to other dogs, so sometimes rehoming is the answer, but sometimes there are other solutions.

The Sussex Spaniel Committee members are always there to give advice when problems start to occur, before problems get too big to solve.

If anyone is having problems with their Sussex, and they are a breed who like to test our patience, it is better to contact someone earlier than later.

In the first year of any dog’s life it is better to establish rules of behaviour, just as it is with a young child.

If your puppy doesn’t want to be brushed or have it’s feet trimmed, don’t give in, just firmly perform the task in hand. You wouldn’t not trim a child’s toenails just because it protests, so why give in to a dog protesting.

Once the dog knows you have the upper hand he will let you brush his tangles etc. If he gets the upper hand you are building problems for the future when he is an adult strong dog. Some of the rescues we have had in the past, come with enormous mats and tangles in their coats.

They growl and expect you to back off just as their owner had. To make things simple I pop a muzzle on and they can growl all they like. By then doing their coats every day they learn that their behaviour is not going to stop things being done, and they quickly learn to accept what is happening.

If more people taught their puppies how to behave in the first few months, instead of excusing their behaviour because they are puppies, they would have less problems as the dog grows up.

As many of you know, Ken and I held the last Fun Weekend here for Rescue a couple of weeks ago. It was very special to us as several of the dogs we have rehomed came, and to see how happy they were in their new homes was a lovely reward.

We will carry on doing Rescue for a while yet, but the Fun Weekends are very tiring for me and my condition doesn’t get any easier to live with.

But a BIG thank you for everyone who has supported the weekends here at Low Farm, and it will be lovely to go to one I haven’t had to organise. HEALTH MATTERS

Health Sub-Committee (HSC) Report Sheila Appleby – HSC Secretary

Thankfully there is little to report on Health Matters, everyone received the Health Survey information in the last Newsletter and the main issues raised were Skin problems and ear problems plus simple advice for Owners has been put on the Health Page of the club website. The Health Committee were concerned about incidences of Bloat and a link to more information on the subject is now on the website. Although there were few reports of epilepsy shown in the Survey, last year we had reports of 2 Sussex dogs, 4 ½ years and 5 ½ years old, with this condition. I’d like to thank Andy Height for his help and advice given to one of the Owners.

At the recent Sussex weekend in Sussex, we were all delighted to see several Sussex attending aged between 14-16 years old and all paraded around the ring. The oldest was Jeremy Hackett’s Charlie at 16 years. Richard Becher in Alresford reports that his Chilsham Sussex is still going strong with her 17th birthday in December. We wish them all well.

Kennel Club & British Veterinary Association HIP DYSPLASIA SCHEME Sussex Spaniels hip scored during 2009 Taken from the KC Breed Records Supplement

The Score is given for each hip (right: Left) and a total. The lower the score the less degree of hip dysplasia.

Eaakha Bewitched 21:27 = 48 Jubilwell Thor 7: 9 = 16 Rangatira Gladstone 40:38 = 78 Quarr Topaz 23:29 = 52 Nyliram Ruby Star For Kykesow 18:11 = 29

The SSA Health Committee recommends hip-scoring for all breeding Stock.

For more information regarding the scheme: http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/item/313

Thank you to Simon Henshaw for this lovely line drawing of a Sussex with a full tail. CRUFTS 2010 (Judge: Joy Hartley)

I found some of the lower classes in both sexes quite difficult to judge. So many different types in such a numerically small breed for me does not bode well for the future. Some exhibits lacked bone & substance whilst others were very high on the leg and I feel is something that a lot more attention should be paid to, please be very careful or you will soon lose breed type. However that aside I was very pleased overall with my entry.

VETERAN DOG - 1.Graham’s SH.CH.NYLIRAM NIGHT ON THE TILES SHCM Full of breed type.Super dog from any angle,Lovely masculine head & expression,lovely bone & body,correct length of back & topline,Shown in good coat & condition.Excells in movement.A pleasure to go over. 2.Perkin’s QUARR WOODLANDER AT QUINTIC A little longer cast than class winner. Another quality dog with a super head, lovely substance. Very sound mover . 3.Hay’s SH.CH.GAELCOURT MR.STRIPES JW SHCM Sound, well bodied dog showing lots of breed type.Good coat and in super hard condition moves well. 3 lovely dogs all with much to like about them.

SPECIAL PUPPY DOG - 1.Shankland’s JUBIWELL MARS – Nearly 12 months old good head, neck, shoulders and front. Good bone & coat. Looks a little long in the leg at the moment I am sure he will come together with maturity – Best Puppy.

SPECIAL JUNIOR DOG - 1.Vowles JUBILWELL BEAST OF BODMIN – Very much a baby. Pleasing head & expression. Moving a little wide in front. Just needs time.

POST GRADUATE DOG - 1.Ashcroft’s TORSHCA TEDDY READY GO - lovely type, good head, well muscled neck, good shoulders. Well sprung ribs. Good colour .correct length of back. Moved well, just needs more coat to complete the picture. 2.Moon’s DEANWAY STORM WARNING – Again another nice type of dog but not as mature as 1.Super head & bone. Moved very soundly both front & rear. 3.Swietalski’s BELCAM KINGSMARK OF BOSWIZZLER – Nice type but not the substance or maturity of 1 &2. Needs time.

LIMIT DOG - 1.Harrison’s GLENBROWS SCRUMPY JACK – My type of dog, has so much to like about him, not overdone in anyway and full of breed type.Super head ,lovely expression,excellent bone and coat ,good front,well muscled neck,good shoulders.well bodied correct length of back. Lovely hindquarters which he knows how to use. Excellent movement. Looks as if he could do what he was bred for. Just lost out on maturity to the Open Class winner. Reserve CC. 2.Bailey’s NYRILAM OLD EMBER AT DAELYB – Very typical, lovely masculine head, Good front neck& shoulders, good well ribbed body, good strong hind quarters. I just preferred the movement of 1. 3.Alderson’s MEGGAMOOCH OZZY OSBORNE – not the maturity of 1&2 and a little high on the leg for my liking but I feel with time & more furnishings he could look the part.Moved well,

OPEN DOG - 1.Bowe’s SH.CH.BELCAM WILLIE GOFAR ShCM– the answer to that is yes he will & has done. Joking apart this boy commanded my attention as soon as he entered the ring – he dares you to put him down!!! Full of breed type he has the best of everything from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail.He is not over exaggerated in any way whatsoever. Lovely bone & substance, good coat & colour, correct length of back. Like the previous class winner he has a super head with a lovely gentle expression. Lovely neck & shoulders .Good strong hindquarters Which he knows how to use to his advantage. A privilege to go over. I had no hesitation in awarding him the CC & BOB. 2.Hasting’s SH.CH. BARDINGS BROWN BEAR JW ShCM– lovely type & a worthy champion.Well put together shown in good coat & condition. Super movement. 3.Alderson’s Meggamooch Legend completed a trio of lovely dogs – well put together, good bone & body ,good colour & coat. Moved well

GOOD CITIZEN DOG - 1.Moon’s DEANWAY STORM WARNING, 2.Swietalski BELCAM KINGSMARK OF BOWSWIZZLER, 3.Judge’s DEANWAY DARK SKY

VETERAN BITCH – 1.Edge’s NIRITI LADY’S MANTLE OF TAWNYKA – lovely typey bitch with feminine head & expression. Correct colour, in good hard condition.Moved soundly. 2.Appleby’s QUARR TANYWOOD – Of similar type to 1, in good coat & super hard condition, excellent movement. I just preferred head of 1. 3.Brown’s RANGATIRA EXQUISITE – Again another one full of breed type,well put together all through. Moving close behind. 3 nice bitches all true to type.

SPECIAL PUPPY BITCH - 1.Kenyon & Smith’s JUBLIWELL MASHONA – Litter sister to puppy dog class winner. 11 months old, lovely type. Super head & body for age.Very sound on the move. Should do well with maturity.

POST GRADUATE BITCH - 1.Moon’s DEANWAY DAY LILY – won this class with ease. Full of breed type. Super feminine head with lovely soft expression, lovely bone & body, correct length of back. Super hard condition. Moved well, a pleasure to go over.

LIMIT BITCH - What a problem I had in this class.My first 3 were all super bitches (from the same kennel!!) and I am sure on different days will change places.Overall a very nice class. 1.Boswell’s MARQUELL IMPULSE – What a super girl, lovely head,with soft melting expression Lovely bone and substance throughout. Lovely depth to ribs, lovely hindquarters with correct hind angulation. Excels in movement. A pleasure to award her the reserve CC. 2.Bailey & Boswell’s MARQUELL JIBBY BEAN – another lovely bitch with similar qualities to one, unfortunately today I just preferred the movement of 1. 3.Boswell’s MARQUELL KITILLA ICE – similar type to 1&2 unfortunately not in her best bib and tucker today but the same type & quality throughout.

OPEN BITCH - Another super class –the overall quality was very good. 1.Graham’s SH.CH.NYRILAM OLD PECULIAR JW SHCM – lovely quality bitch all the way through, has everything I like to see in a Sussex Spaniel. Well constructed & presents a balanced picture. Lovely feminine head & expression. Lovely bone & substance, just the right amount of body,correct length of back & colour. Lovely hindquarters which she uses well. Good hard condition, super coat. A pleasure to go over & award her the CC. 2.Boswell’s SH.CH./NED/LUX Ch Marquell Genevieve - Unlucky to meet 1. Lovely bitch, quality throughout, good bone & substance. Correct colour in good coat & condition. Just preferred the movement of 1. 3.Ashcroft’s SH.CH.MEGGAMOOCH LUCKY FOR TORSHCA – lovely bitch but of a different type but quality throughout. Shown in good coat & condition. Worthy of her title. I just preferred the movement of 1& 2

GOOD CITIZEN BITCH - 2 - 1.Swietalski’s BOWSWIZZLER HEIRESS BOUDICA – Lovely bitch in super condition. Moved well, 2.Judge’s DEANWAY FOXTAIL LILY. OPEN SHOW 2010 (Judge: June Walsh)

Puppy Dog - 1st. Milligan Daytripper To Mountdown owned by Mr IR & Mrs RR Deans. When he behaved you could see a good head that is balanced. Clean Eyed. Has neck, good length of back, good back end. More mature than the second. Must not grow on. 2nd. Papplesett Marquis Vsop At Narddamway owned by Mr PJ Maddran.

Junior Dog - 1st. Jubilwell Mars owned by Mr J & Mrs G Shankland. Smart young dog. Has width of skull to foreface. Clean eyed. Good front and length of back. Good hind angulation, movement needs to tighten. 2nd. Jubilwell Beast Of Bodmin owned by Mrs S Vowles. No disgrace to be second. Just lacked the condition and maturity of first. Two nice youngsters.

Graduate Dog - 1st. Belcam Percy Verance owned by Mrs E Bowe. Stood alone but a worthy winner. Has correct head with width of foreface. Good front and shoulders, has length of back. Strong quarters, moved well. Also Reserve Best Dog.

Post Graduate Dog - 1st. Belcam Kingsmark At Bowswizzler owned by Mrs C Swietalski. Good width of skull and foreface. Good front and length, strong rear end. Good colour, moved well. 2nd. Narddamway Mack The Knife owned by Mrs C Gasher.

Limit Dog - 1st. Meggamooch Jester At Narddamway owned by Mr P J Maddran. Nice boy, good head and expression. Has length and hind angulation, moved well. 2nd. Jubilwell Thor owned by Mr & Mrs WA & J Cadwell. One I have judged before just lacked maturity of first.

Open Dog - 1st. SH CH Bardings Brown Bear JW SHCM owned by Mr & Mrs C Hastings. Masculine with no coarseness. Has width of skull, square muzzle, well set ears. Good front, well ribbed and good rear angulation. Moved well. Also Best Dog in show, Reserve Best in Show, Best Opposite Sex. 2nd. SH CH Belcam Willie Gofar SHCM owned by Mrs E Bowe.

Bred By Exhibitor Dog - 1st. SH CH Belcam Willie Gofar SHCM owned by Mrs E Bowe.

Not Bred By Exhibitor Dog - 1st. Nyliram Captain Morgan For Sovaroma owned by Mrs V Bennett. 2nd. Narddamway Mack The Knife owned by Mrs C Gasher.

Veteran Dog - 1st. Quarr Woodlander At Quintic owned by Mr & Mrs J & P Perkins. Quality head and expression. Has length and depth of body. Moved soundly. 2nd. SC CH Gaelcourt Mister Stripes JW SHCM owned by Mrs G L Hay.

Puppy Bitch - 1st. Quarr West With The Night owned by Mr & Mrs J & S Appleby. Lovely baby, well put together with correct head shape, square nuzzle. Good front neck and shoulders, length of back and strong rear end. Lovely coat and colour. Moved very well for a baby. Also Best Puppy In Show. 2nd. Papplesett Remy Martin To Narddamway owned by Mr P J Maddran.

Junior Bitch - 1st. Belcam Miss Demeanour owned by Mrs E Bowe. Quality bitch, correct head with width of skull. Good front, topline and length. Moved very well. 2nd. Jessemyns Brighthelmstone owned by Ms H Smith.

Special Yearling Bitch - 1st. Quintic Damson owned by Mr & Mrs J & P Perkins. Has width of skull with sweet expression. Has length and depth of body, good coat and colour. 2nd. Quarr Sapphire Quartz owned by Mr & Mrs S Robins.

Novice Bitch - 1st. Joy Out Of Rainbow owned by P & G Ware. Well bodied with pretty head, good front and quarters. Good coat and colour, moved well. 2nd. Duets Golden Magnolia owned by H Smith.

Graduate Bitch - 1st. Quintic Damson owned by Mr & Mrs J & P Perkins. 2nd. Quarr Sapphire Quartz owned by Mr & Mrs S Robins.

Post Graduate Bitch - 1st. Quarr Topaz owned by Mr & Mrs J & S Appleby. A feminine bitch. Has correct head and foreface. Good front neck and length. Good coat and colour, moved well 2nd. Narddamway We’ll Go Dreamin owned by Miss H G Prince.

Limit Bitch - 1st. Jubilwell Teazer Of Stoweridge owned by Mr & Mrs AW & VA Watts. Quality bitch. Correct head shape, good front, neck and shoulders. Length of back and good hind angulation. Good coat and colour. Moved very well. 2nd. Marquell Jibby Bean owned by Mrs DE Bailey & Mr M Boswell.

Open Bitch - 1st. SH CH Belcam She’s The One owned by Mrs E Bowe. Quality bitch. Correct in head, good front kept topline on move. Strong muscled quarters. Good coat and colour. Moved well. 2nd. SH CH Meggamooch Lucky For Torshca owned by Mrs D Ashcroft 3rd. SH CH Sovaroma Ruby Tuesday owned by Mrs V Bennett.

Bred By Exhibitor Bitch - 1st. SH CH Belcam She’s The One owned by Mrs E Bowe. Also Reserve Best Bitch. 2nd. SH CH Sovaroma Ruby Tuesday owned by Mrs V Bennett 3rd. Lux CH Norriss Yea Gretel owned by Mr & Mrs CB Wakefield.

Not Bred By Exhibitor Bitch - 1st. Jubilwell Teazer Of Stoweridge owned by Mr & Mrs AW & VA Watts. 2nd. Waldmeister Abracadabra Of Belheddon owned by Mr PJ Maddran.

Special Beginners Bitch - 1st. Narddamway We’ll Go Dreamin owned by Miss HG Prince. 2nd. Duets Golden Magnolia owned by Ms H Smith.

Veteran Bitch - 1st. Niriti Lady’s Mantle Of Tawnyka owned by Miss KD Edge. Lovely quality bitch. Feminine head, sweet expression. Good front, neck and shoulders. Has length of back, strong rear end. Good coat and colour. Moved very well. Also Best Veteran, Best Of Breed, Best In Show. 2nd. Waldmeister Abracadabra Of Belheddon owned by Mr PJ Maddran. JUDGING ABROAD (Jane Graham)

This year so far, we have been travelling the world as part of our ‘hobby’ that took us overseas to Judge.

We set off to New Zealand at the start of April, and were taken to stay with our hosts Lavinia & Tim who had kindly offered to look after us and the other two judges from the USA. The first couple of days were spent sightseeing and shopping! The Auckland Spaniel Club had arranged 4 shows over the weekend; Tom was to judge the Championship Show on the Saturday morning, with Meghen Riese-Bassel (Statesman WSS) judging the Open show in the afternoon.

Meghen’s mum Susan who was judging the Champ show the following day and myself the Open show were not allowed to watch either event so were taken out by our host Tim for the day to see the sights of Auckland.

Tom had a lovely day judging and awarded his ‘Best In Show’ to a young Clumber Spaniel. Sadly there are no Sussex shown in NZ now, but all the other Spaniel breeds were well represented, a total of around 65 dogs which is a good entry for them.

Tom with his ‘Best In Show’

Just as the previous day I wasn’t allowed to watch any of the judging so turned up at lunchtime to face my task. The judging system is similar to ours, except they run into the ring at the start in numerical order and set the dogs up. They also have a ‘baby puppy’ class for ones aged 3-6 months !

I worked through all the breeds, (no Clumbers as they had a long drive home). Finally I chose my ‘BIS’ the English Springer!

So the weekend was over far too quickly, our next few days were to be spent exploring the North Island, which was a fantastic experience. Thursday came around and we said goodbye to our new friends from the States, and off we went to the airport to fly on to Australia. At this point we heard there was a problem with the flights to the UK but thought no more of it !! We arrived in Melbourne and stayed at a hotel in the heart of the city. We soon learnt our way round and did plenty of sightseeing including the famous ‘Neighbours’ tour and a trip up the Eureka Skydeck with the World’s only ‘Edge’ experience. Tom & Jane meet ‘Lucas’ from Neighbours!!!

Next stop was the Cocker Spaniel Club of Victoria Championship Show, held at KCC Park, the most amazing venue built specially for dog shows. They have thought of everything there, you can even pay to have your own parking space so you don’t have to rush to the show. It was immaculate and could host a few shows at a time.

Tom judged around 60 Cockers and the standard was very high. His BIS was the Dog CC winner with a very happy owner who had flown to the show ! Part way through the judging I was met by two brown faces that certainly didn’t look like Cockers ! Pauline Grutzner (Sunfire) had come along with two of her Sussex, Boofer & Dollar when she heard we were to be there.

Tom with his BIS Cocker Spaniel

The committee had prepared a lovely buffet meal for us all and then the presentations were done. The shows get massive sponsorship and exhibitors go home with all sorts of goodies. We moved out to the country next where the Secretary of the Cocker Club hosted us at her beautiful 10 acre home with 16 Cockers !! Yet again we were treated to lots of sightseeing and beautiful walks on the beach with the dogs.

We were by then quite aware of the Volcanic Ash cloud over Britain but set off to the airport with high hopes of returning back home. How wrong could we be ?? Our flight via Dubai was scheduled to leave but as we were flying on to the UK they decided not to let us board as there were so many people stuck in Dubai Airport (9300 people in total) they were running out of accommodation ! We made a decision to stay in an Airport hotel so we could leave at short notice. After various calls to the airline they put us on a flight in 2 weeks time…. So what were we to do next ? We decided to go back into Melbourne, the next few days were spent moving to different hotels and phoning the airline to get us back sooner. The next problem was Anzac Day; the whole place seemed fully booked with tourists. I had reported our saga on my Facebook page. Very kindly a friend in Welshies had contacted a couple in Melbourne who were more than happy to have us to stay. Youlla picked us up from the hotel and took us to their home and made us so welcome, we were taken to a wildlife reserve on the edge of the Bush and saw many native species. I finally managed to get us a flight back to London via Dubai and Singapore and a shuttle to Manchester.

Volcanic Ash Part 2 ! A fortnight later we were off to judge in Sweden at the Skokloster show near Stockholm (all the Judges were from the UK). I was judging Welsh Springers and Tom was to do the English Springer Males, American Cockers and Sussex. The judging procedure here is completely different so lots of studying required beforehand. Tom had prepared me an ‘Idiots Guide’ to judging here, all the other judges liked it so much the Club have decided to use it for future shows ! As a rule you have to judge each dog, and dictate the critique to the steward. Except for Puppies, Champions and Veterans (who are placed 1-5 in usual manner) the dogs are graded ‘Excellent’, ‘Good’, ‘Acceptable’, ‘Untypical’ or ‘Can’t be assessed’.

The ‘excellents’ in each class come back in and are placed 1-5 and awarded CK if you think they are of CC quality. These later come back in to compete for the CAC ! You place the dogs with CK’s as Best Male 1-4 although 1st place doesn’t necessarily get the CC, depends if it is already a Champion.

This is repeated for bitches and then a Best of Breed is declared.

Best of Breed was Belcam Keep The Faith with Skokloster Castle in the background

All the judges had a ‘Special’ to judge at the end of the day, I was thrilled to have Best Puppy In Show and Tom judged Best Opposite Sex in Show.

All too soon the weekend was over … off to the airport when I got a text to say our flight had been changed. Would you believe the Volcano had flared up again and flights to Manchester had been cancelled? We were transferred to a flight to Heathrow and even mid- air we were unsure whether or not we might have to turn back to Stockholm. We landed on time and had to board a coach to Manchester … Many hours later we arrived home wondering what would happen on our third trip … Finland We set off Thursday afternoon to Southern Counties where Tom was to judge our other breed, Welsh Springers on the Friday. I had a lovely day sat in the sun socialising.

Back to Manchester Friday night, ready to fly to Finland early Saturday morning. This time it was a Springer Speciality and I was judging English Springer Puppies, Juniors & Veterans, and Welsh Springer Puppies and Veterans. Tom was judging the rest of the English Springers, with Debbie Roberts (Cwrt Afon) judging the remaining WSS. We spent a night in the city and were treated to a lovely dinner on a lake cruise. The location was the beautiful area of Tampere, the weather was perfect and we set about our days work, the rules were slightly different again so more revision was required !

After the main judging but before Best In Show, there were more special classes including a fancy dress class, which was judged by all three judges !

Me judging Best Junior In Show

Another lovely meal was arranged for us after the show, then back to the hotel. We were not flying home till the following afternoon so our host took us on a shopping trip in the city until lunchtime then we all went to the airport … just wondering would there be any problems getting home this time ? Lucky for us everything went smoothly and we arrived home safely with lovely memories of all our trips abroad.

In the space of two months we have visited 11 different airports, stayed in so many hotels I have lost count, judged dogs in 4 different countries and most importantly have made so many new friends along the way. We were treated incredibly well everywhere we went and all the shows were well-run, friendly events. FUN WEEKEND

So, another well organised and eventful fun weekend has gone...... On behalf of SSA members, many thanks must go to Liz and Ken for the brilliant job they did on making the weekend another successful fundraiser.

As usual for us, the event started on the Friday night as we made the trek from Cornwall to be at the weekend. Liz made a superb lasagne for dinner and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Including Ivor who fell off the sun lounger and wife, Carol who ended up with a large headache the next day!

Bright eyed and bushy tailed, Kat and I went off to Tescos for Liz with a list to get the finishing touches for the BBQ. Unfortunately we could not read Liz’s writing very well and ended up with 44 whole tomatoes when we were only suppose to get a dozen!

After the arrival of a few new and old faces, the events got underway.

Ringcraft I managed somehow to get out of doing the ringcraft to find that dad had been nominated to do it!

Despite the short notice he did a very got job. Many new faces were giving it a go including a young handler which is very rare in the world of Sussex at the moment. Lots of encouragement got all dogs and handlers onto the lawn to give the ringcraft a bash.

IMPORTANT NOTE: I must stress to all handlers on the day - it is very rare for a judge to ask you to do a figure of eight instead of a triangle and to say that you are moving better than your dog!

I must say a big well done to all those who took part and I hope to see a few more of you in that ring and maybe a few at Crufts next year?!

Grooming Next stop was the grooming with Daphne Bailey, Dee and Shani. I unfortunately missed this however I am told that it went very well with many dogs looking quite a few pounds lighter after having lots of dead hair removed!

If you missed this too, Dee is doing a demonstration at the Welsh Kennel Club event in August. This will be a great chance to get your dogs trimmed nicely ready for the show on Sunday. Once the grooming was finished, everyone made good use of the lovely weather and sat out on the lawn having a good old natter and catch up.

Forum Later on, there was a short forum where everyone got the chance to ask a few questions to a few experts. Many questions were asked including ‘how can I stop my sussex howling?’ The short reply was, ‘you cant’! Another was ‘don’t have a sussex’ and the last one to finish the question was ‘a 12 bore’!

On a more serious answer, a few people discussed the methods of spraying water, special collars etc, however none of these seemed to work with a Sussex!

A couple of other questions were asked about the docking ban etc and a few questions about the future of the breed regarding youngsters in the breed and working interest. These were questions that proved almost impossible to answer...... but something worth thinking about perhaps?

How can we encourage younger blood and how can we get more people interested in the original purpose of the Sussex Spaniel? Any suggestions welcome!

Toast So another short break before the BBQ and Dee took advantage of the weather and champagne and conducted a well earned toast to her ‘Tee-Jay’ who did very well at a championship show a few days before by winning a group placing. This is very rare for a Sussex so well done to Dee and Tee-jay for this.

BBQ Shortly after this was the very much anticipated BBQ.

As always the pork was fantastic and the puddings were also brilliant, Sally nearly took a whole dessert home with her! The spread was brilliant and despite everyones best efforts, there was enough for lunch the next day.

I went around with the donations tin and collected lots of dosh for the SSA rescue before going back out to the garden for some more socializing.

Many people were doing last minute adjustments to there tents whilst letting their Sussex and honorary sussex play in the field.

I must say, the temperments where brilliant all weekend and no cross words were said.

Well, apart from the Clumber who got told off by me for eating almost the whole field of horse poo and getting covered in it!

As the evening came in, the days events started to take their toll on everyone and a reasonably early night was had by all. Sunday The next morning was another busy one as we had an early start for the gundog training. As the training was early, we didn’t expect a brilliant turnout. However, we were proven wrong. It was a very positive sight at 930am as many new faces took their hand to training with lots of people and dogs looking very promising.

It was lovely to see the Mitchell’s with their new Sussex showing off their training skills!

The training started with some basic obedience and then went on to some hunting and some retrieving. It was particularly nice to see Carol with a gleaming smile on her face after her little girl retrieved a dummy to her.

Kat Edge and I helped with the hunting by splitting into a couple of groups to make the session go a little quicker as we were soon running out of time!

Well done to all that attended, it was very good to see so many interested in working their Sussex and there are alot of very able dogs out their. Keep it up.

Whilst the training was going on a scavenger hunt was happening and the eventful winners were very happy with their prize.

With the whole morning gone, it was lunch time where sausage and bacon rolls cooked by Peter Bailey and Ken were available. Lots more people turned up for the afternoon and the fun show which was lovely to see.

Agility & Fun Show After lunch everyone made their way up to the field for the agility and the fun show. There were some very good Sussex in the making for agility. It just goes to show that there are many things our good breed can do!

The fun show was also very well attending and lots of effort went into the fancy dress including a bride and groom, a football team and robin hood!

Waggiest tail went to Meg AKA Sh Ch Belcam Miss Defying owned by Teresa Arnold.

Catey Bates also won a few prizes with Harley. So well done to all.

Unfortunately, we had to leave before everything had finished as we had a long journey home and work in the morning.

Once again, thank you to all that attended and helped raise money for rescue. I am told that we raised over £100 over the weekend so well done everyone in this hard climate.

The fun weekend will no longer be at Low Farm but a massive thank you to Liz and Ken who have worked tirelessly in making these events successful.

See you all next year...... More Photos

A couple of our committee members sunning themselves NIGEL DISTEMPER

The SSA Fun Weekend was once again held at Low Farm by kind permission of Ken and Liz Bowe. It took place on the 12th/13th June and we were blessed with beautiful weather.

On the Friday evening the usual old faces appeared around Liz and Ken’s dining table for Lasagne, washed down with plenty of Red and White wine...The family Cadwell/Jefferies were taking the part of the mad relatives in the Attic as that’s where they were sleeping. Pete and Daphne Bailey and the WW with TOWIK had both brought their Caravans and had set up camp, along with Kat Edge and her posh new tent. Darling Chris W had made his own arrangements(!) and had made his way up from Three Counties which was handy for Liz, as she dragged him off around Tesco’s for provisions. Of course the last to arrive were Annie Ashcroft and Shani H who said they’d been stuck in traffic on the M1 for over an hour...however they had a novel way of entertaining themselves, they sang Beach Boys song as the tops of their voices, which cause a large Post Office lorry to back into the one behind him!!!

As it was such a lovely evening we all went outside to enjoy the air...much laughter and chatting accompanied by copious amounts of wine made the evening go with a swing. At one point Annie A thought that Pete had lost his head...but happily it was a trick of the light...god knows what’s in those fags she smokes! Shani needed some help as she couldn’t pull her mattress out and luckily Bill came to her rescue...she’s always had trouble with her mattress!!

Eventually as at all the best gatherings, we ended up in the kitchen, either with wine or whisky or hot drinks..or both!....Bill just has both in one cup...saves on the washing up! Ken always has a wonderful array of Liqueurs which are always well sampled and send everyone to bed in a very jolly mood!!

Saturday Morning saw everyone up and about and none the worse for wear...years of practice! After breakfast there was a committee meeting as well as lots of members arriving for the events which were to take place in the afternoon. There were groups of people who had never met before, all chatting about their respective dogs who were all happily mixing with one another. There was an impromptu Buffet Lunch where everyone just mucked in and donated whatever they had which made for a very tasty and varied menu.

After Lunch the first event was Ringcraft which Bill took charge of. He had everyone doing all sorts of manouvers and putting their dogs through their paces and a lot of the dogs who had never done it before aquitted themselves well. The rest of us just sat in the Sunshine throwing in helpful and,the odd sarcastic comment!

Grooming was next on the Agenda...with Daphne taking charge, helped by Annie and Shani. Daphne had a huge variety of implements with her which came in very useful as the Sussex who were very patient were trimmed and plucked to within an inch of their lives!

Last of the Afternoon events was the Sussex Forum, with questions being answered by the WW Grace Brown and Daphne...with Shani H trying to act as Chairman. Many and varied questions were thrown at the panel and I hope some were answered successfully...but we still don’t know if the 52B Bus runs at the top of the road!

While all this was going on, Ken was cooking big joints of Belly Pork for the evening’s BBQ and Liz was arranging the Barn that we were to eat in...she had made a fantastic assortment of puds including Strawberry Pavlovas, Banoffee Pie and Tiramasu.

Pete was put in charge of Sausage cooking and everyone helped themselves to beautifully cooked pork, sausages and various salads as well as more wine. It was another lovely evening and quite a few of the members went for a long walk with their dogs whilst the less active sat and chatted. We all ended up in the kitchen again with Sheila Appleby regailing us with stories about when she crossed the Atlantic wearing her Bikini!

As usual lots of stories about the old days and characters long gone were talked about... Dot Gardner seemed to be mentioned more than most!! We had a slightly earlier night as it all caught up with us and your diarist made his way to bed with a cup of tea!

After Toast and Tea/Coffee on Sunday Morning there was either a Scavenger Hunt or a Training Class with Bill. TOWIK took her youngster Hattie along and she acquitted herself really well, showing some real promise which TOWIK was delighted with. There was Bacon and Egg Baps for lunch along with assorted bits and pieces left over from the night before which again everyone did justice to.

The Fun Classes took place after lunch and everyone entered into the spirit of things. A Sussex along with his young owners won the Fancy Dress competition all kitted out in an England Football strip...quite apt as the evening before they’d drew with the USA.

There was a class for Handsomest Dog which although he tried his best, the WW couldn’t win even though he was on all fours and had Shani as a handler, he just didn’t have the melting expression that was needed....the trouble came when he couldn’t actually get up!!!

Although the Caravanners were staying until the Monday, everyone else started to leave for home late Sunday afternoon....and leave all the Mess for Liz and Ken to clear up!!

Everyone agreed that it really had been a Fun Weekend....and as usual had entered into the spirit of things. Thank you to LIz and Ken for the hospitality, they both work so hard and of course we made a bit of money for Sussex Rescue which was brilliant so well done everyone!

Here’s to 2011! THE JUDGE’S PROFILE WITH SALLY LESLIE (RISDENE)

I have been involved with Sussex Spaniels since 1977. My mother, Pat Leslie, and I were at the famous Shipden Spaniel Kennel to collect the new longed for English Springer Spaniel puppy we had booked. It was a very sad story as his dam had died during whelping and the surviving litter had been reared by a Sussex Spaniel with her own litter. Still a youngster I was fascinated by the sleepy brown bundle I was allowed to cuddle while my mother fussed our new boy. What a spoilt brat I must have been, despite my lovely new lad I still shed a tear at leaving that Sussex puppy, Fourclovers Maco, behind and determined that my next dog would be one of these unique, toffee coloured charmers come what may.

We went away and did our homework and soon learned just how hard it was to obtain a good puppy of this breed. Accordingly, as you did in those days, we waited patiently and thanks to the kindness of the Muirhead family eventually made the journey to Norfolk once more to collect the eccentric SH CH Shipden Finial and the rest as they say is history. Bruin was full of character and as all enthusiasts know this is not an unusual feature of the breed.

Bruin was a son of SH CH Tibeash of Fourclovers and we were lucky to visit Joy Freer and I corresponded with her regularly over the years – she was always interested in what was going on and continued to hold forthright views. It was wonderful when the club was able to hold a show at Fourclovers but I digress and must get back to my questions!

I have been judging Sussex Spaniels since 1981. My first appointment for this breed was at Shropshire Gundog Open Show.

Past CC Judging My first CC appointment was at WELKS in 1990. I gave the Dog CC, his third, to SH CH Norriss Boss Hogg owned by Chris and Vivienne Wakefield. My Bitch CC winner and BOB was the Bexon’s SH CH Harvest Glow of Oldfield I wrote “Headed a trio of quality bitches. Today was in top form. In the past I have penalised her for a degree of stuffiness over the neck and shoulders detracting from her overall clean and pleasing lines however today looked just right. Feminine throughout but no lack of substance, strong legs, deep chest, good rib, excellent quarters – no exaggeration here. Pronounced frown and good eye colour. In terrific bloom but not over done. CC. Made a splendid picture with my Best Dog for BOB the epitome of the breed for me in male and female terms, edged into the BOB spot on the move.” Harvest Glow was a truly lovely bitch and I wonder whether her photos really do her justice as she was very special go over.

Judging the SSA Championship show I think it goes without saying that any judge must deem it to be a huge honour and privilege to judge at the premier show of the parent club. However for me it must be extra special. In 1978 the Association held it’s first Open Show. Before that we had always enjoyed our events in conjunction with other shows so it was a huge step for the club and I will never forget the sunshine dancing through the windows at Binley Woods Village Hall near Coventry and playing on the golden coats of 61 Sussex gathered together for the first time. Both Mr and Mrs Freer were present and it asw more magical than I can possibly put into words. Suffice it to say as a youngster I went up to George Lancaster to try to express how I felt and ended up blubbing with pleasure. He never let me forget it! The judge that day was Reg Gadsen who subsequently awarded my mother and I our first double of dog and bitch CC – another exciting occasion, but still not as memorable as that first proper show.

It is 30 years since the first ever Championship Show held by the Association in 1980 where Ifor Williams awarded BIS to the wonderful SH CH Creswelshaw Hannibal a dog very much admired by all knowledgeable exponents of the breed as illustrating the standard well. BOS was SH CH Topjoys Sussex Nutmeg, a bitch I did have the pleasure of judging along with her kennel mate SH CH Topjoys Sussex Harvester both great high quality examples of the breed.

I served the SSA for many years first on the committee and writing the breed notes for Our Dogs in the days when the breed club appointed the representative to each paper. I was a teenager then but was good at shifting chairs and loved being able to talk and learn from the elders of the breed. Then I was Treasurer for 17 years before taking the office of Secretary in 1998, a post I held until 2003. It is therefore a longed for indulgence to perform this ultimate task for the club and I am looking forward to it enormously.

Current Sussex We all keep a close eye on the breed and love to hear of them breaking new ground both on the bench and in the field. However we lost our special, once in a lifetime, boy SH CH No More Gemstones at Risdene three years ago and it is hard to fill the void left by such charming and classically made Sussex. To own a dog who wins the ultimate accolade of BIS at the Club Championship Show in 4 consecutive years is indeed a momentous thing and he is a very hard act to follow. Nevertheless we do still have Molly, a pensioner from Ann Moon, who keeps us on our toes and you can never say never can you?

Over the past years I think we have owned twelve Sussex if my memory serves me well. All huge characters and very individual and much loved for their sense of fun.

True Sussex Examples The fact is we were fortunate in past times in that we would ask and the elder statesmen were happy to answer all our questions and allowed us to visit their kennels and handle their lovely dogs. During my youth I spent many happy times with my mentors. Visits to Creswelshaw, Topjoys and Shipden were much enjoyed and apart from the supreme dogs mentioned above I also knew lovely Sussex like the last of the true Fourclovers rated by Joy Freer namely SH CH Tibeash of Fourclovers and the full champion CH Sahoni of Fourclovers and their other splendid kennel mate at Shipden the full champion CH Ambassador of Shipden. These were heady times but of course the most perfect days were the times I spent at Fourclovers sitting at the feet of Joy while she told tales of the great Sussex Champions of the past like Okimat and Hiawatha and also ones like Uncas who although not made up was a great favourite of hers. Jack and Joy were spell binding story tellers and the stories of the adventures over the years to keep the breed going and the characters involved in the story were always intriguing and fascinating.

What I look for in a Sussex Exhibits must illustrate the standard and be fit for the purpose they were bred for first and foremost which means they must have the make and shape required and be sound as a pound to work all day. Our special breed has certain points which make them instantly recognisable and distinct from any other breed and apart from the height to length ratios, substance with activity and glorious coat when the texture and colour are correct there is also the characteristic movement and superb head pattern. I am really looking forward to finding all these things.

Other judging Experience I award CC’s in English Springer Spaniels and Border Terriers. I prefer to be an expert and specialist judge and know what it is like as an exhibitor to have folk disinterested and worse still not knowledgeable enough about the breed which is dear to your heart.

I am really looking forward to my entry. I understand that it is a great treat to assess exhibits which breeders and competitors have chosen to showcase in your ring and entrust to your examination often at significant cost and involving extensive travel. I concentrate hard when I am judging but despite being very focused I still feel that judges should be considerate and that shows should be enjoyable for both exhibitors and their dogs and I hope I never forget what it is like to be on the end of the lead! It will be marvellous to officiate at the SSA Championship Show surely the Mecca for all Sussex enthusiasts.

SUSSEX SPANIELS AT THE SUSSEX COUNTRY FAIR

Back in August 2009 I had an email from Paul Keevil of British Heritage Breeds; he had been talking to Countryman Fairs about having the Heritage Breeds at their Game Fairs. He suggested to them that the Sussex Country Fair might be an excellent one to promote the Sussex Spaniel and said in a moment of weakness that it might be possible to put together a very large number of Sussex together for a main ring parade! They loved the idea and asked him to explore this possibility. Only then did he contact me!

After a lot of planning we were finally ready, with John arriving the night before to set up the Marquee. It was of course raining heavily and our Team of campers were struggling to put up their tents and get on with making their dinners. Julia apparently had arrived at some unearthly hour and as they wouldn’t let her in, slept in the car overnight at the entrance. When I arrived early Saturday morning with the dogs, some tired bleary eyes and damp faces greeted me in Camp Sussex. But by now it was bright sunshine and dry - and dry it stayed all weekend. Camp Breakfast over, John and I with a bacon butty apiece, we all began to put our dogs in the pens provided, but as they are for sheep and not dogs, they had escaped in moments. We put panels inside and all was settled except puppy Esme, now nicknamed Houdini. Wherever we put her she escaped, finally the crate arrived and in she went! She was loved and cuddled all day and did us proud. All the dogs were great; the odd pushing and shoving, but soon settled down.

Saturday’s parade began and I was surprised and pleased to find we had 39 Sussex in the Ring. The owners loved it all and spent ages chatting in front of the marquee to each other. There were old and young as were the Sussex. The visiting public were fascinated – many not knowing that their County had a Sussex Spaniel breed. There were lots of children on both days and some would just rush in and fling their arms round the dogs – eek! – Phew! – all okay. One young boy called Nathanial fell in love with Wrigby and later went off with Sally and Wrigby to take part in the Junior Handling and agility. He kept coming back during the day, with his Mum and of course is now down on ‘Wrigby’s’ list for a puppy. The Marquee was busy all day and we seemed to do better than the stall holders around us, who were quite bemused by the whole thing. Later in the afternoon it had eased off, most of the marquee dogs had crashed out and we sat down for tea and Van’s Apple Cake.

John and I left the campers about 6 pm, planning their evening, with Chilli for all, and with donations of a barrel or beer and a large container of cider, they were going to have fun. It was drinks and food all round. They were nicely organised with a dog crèche, so no dogs to worry about. We were off home for the night and back again Sunday morning.

Next morning it was very cold indeed and the campers now joined by Ian and Kay were shivering, but the day warmed up and it was back into T shirts. Sunday’s first parade was 11 am and it began to get very hectic at the Marquee, with people signing in and getting their Sussex badges, with me sometimes saying - can you please take your dogs outside! At times we couldn’t move for people and dogs, I was climbing over them! Really quite manic at times. Christine was multi-tasking as was Sophie, looking after paperwork, merchandise dogs and people. Christine was also the Sheriff put in charge of the water- squirter for those noisy Sussex who quickly learned to stop when they saw her coming. Heather and Matthew manned the Sussex marquee, during our many absences and thanks to them. There were owner profiles to write out for the Commentator and about six of us were able to talk about Sussex in the ring to the general Public. Mark Roberts was excellent as our commentator and we left him a bottle of bubbly at the end, as it was well deserved. At one stage we saw young Sussex Bertie Ryan racing across the ring, much to everyone’s amusement; where he was going he didn’t know! Jeremy Hackett arrived with his two Sussex, one is the famous Charlie and she is now 16 years old, happy to potter along. After the parade she went to our inside crèche for a quiet sleep with Bertie, Pete and Debbie’s 14 year old Sussex. Jeremy had sponsored all the extra items we needed, the posters, badges, leaflets and anything we required. We were very grateful for his help and support. On the day he brought leather Sussex Spaniel bookmarks for each family to commemorate the event and all dated. They’re cute and very special. Our group photo Shoot was at 12.30 and believe me trying to get everyone in the right place at the right time wasn’t always easy. Photos over, I was then able to present a gift to Clare of Countryman Fairs. This lady had believed we would achieve this all along and had just been so good and helpful. They had provided the marquee and everyone’s free passes and all the support we needed. Also Jeremy Hackett received a gift as a thank you from us all

Just as we were thinking about lunch and I was sending everyone away until 1.30 before the 2 pm parade, Paul Keevil arrived albeit a little late having been stuck behind a motor cycle event with 100,000 taking part. He quickly got us organised and we were off to have another photo shoot with Jeremy and the Sussex nearby Parham House. He managed to stand waiting with 17 Sussex on leads for quite some time, as the dogs fidgeted and had the odd mumble at each other. At one stage he was almost pulled to the ground but coped very well and was okay. Back to the marquee and once again our team was involved talking to the visitors about the Breed. We were already getting a bit tired and still the next parade to do. When our steward James came for us, my voice wasn’t having much effect, so James gave a very loud whistle and shouted – We’re off, this way everyone….! Away we went in a very large pack to the Main Ring. Dan took a video (now on Utube) for us, of all the Sussex going round the ring- all 73 of them! I have a feeling it could have been a couple more. Two people came up to me in the ring and said they were at the Fair and saw what was going on and joined in with their Sussex. It was all quite amazing to see and to be part of and of course very enjoyable. Back at the marquee, we cracked open a few bottles of champagne and had a little celebration and still visitors were coming in to talk to us, some returning with their kids who wanted to cuddle the dogs again.

Truly a historic and unique event for the Breed - The weekend will not be forgotten for a long time. Thanks to everyone who came along to support and help, the team, the owners and all those lovely Sussex Spaniels who came to make it all so very special. Sheila THE BREEDERS PROFILE WITH GRACE BROWN (RANGATIRA)

I first came into contact with Sussex because of Mavis Lancaster!! We first saw Sussex at a gundog parade in the mid 1970’s when Mavis and George had Hannibal and Oakmoss Ruff.

I fell in love with the breed primarily for their character. They looked like a good match for our other breed “aristocratic” Weimaraners. Sussex have a great sense of humour and of course the endearing grin from ear to ear.

We wanted a Sussex mainly for our children to enter in Junior Handling classes and as a member of the beating line on local shoots.

Our first Sussex was Nordahl Nuance of Rangatira (Sh Ch Quintic Joby ex Creswelshaw Hannah) from the Dalebos in Penkridge. We had waited over two years for a bitch to be available from the few pups born each year.

In 1984 the SSA Diamond Jubilee year, we had 8 puppies from Nordahl Nuance of Rangatira sired by Novacroft Jason.

Having always had a farming background the stockman’s desire to breed a better “Next Generation“ was paramount, we also wanted to keep a puppy for ourselves.

Past Greats - Mavis and George Lancaster were excellent mentors for new owners, plus around the shows Faith Gilham, Ifor and Carole Williams, Margaret Scarr and Mary Harris. Undoubtedly Dot Gardner and her sayings come to mind often, with our litter being one of the few sired by Novacroft Fleck before being exported to Australia.

My Sussex - We have always been better at selling our best dogs rather than keeping them ourselves but have had Reserve CC’s with R. Abbie in 1987 and later with R. Exquisite.

I have bred two show champions; Sh Ch Rangatira Astra of Torscha owned by Dee Ashcroft and Ch Rangatira Delta owned by Chris and Shani Hastings.

In my opinion the dog that I have bred which best fits the Sussex Spaniel breed standard would have to be Ch. Rangatira Delta ( Nova Croft Fleck ex R Abbie) who was the first male Sussex to gain his full champion title since the war for success in the show ring and at field trials.

Health - We have always found Sussex to be a pretty healthy breed with few major problems. Since the change in docking regulations many younger Sussex have full tails. As we adjust to seeing them we may need to amend the wording in the standard as to how they are best carried. We did not seek to dock our last litter and now have our first long tailed bitch that will join the beating line when she is old enough.

Good Breeder - To be a good breeder the most important aspect has got to be persistence, as Sussex put so many obstacles in the way of breeders trying for a litter.

Advice - The most important advice I can give to future breeders would be, Don’t give up! Sussex are such a great breed with much to offer as show, work or pet dogs and it would be a shame if an established breed like them were to die out through lack of interest.

We make the effort to do several “Discover Dogs” displays at Game Fairs each year to keep promoting Sussex as good working gundogs. YORKSHIRE GAME FAIR

On the 29th of May I travelled to Bath to transport the Golden Retriever[Bitch]judge down from Yorkshire. To keep myself out of mischief I entered Olympas[Jonah] and Mark Boswells Kitilla Ice[Gladys Mae].It was a long day and with Gladys going BOB and having to go into the main ring I have to say by the time I arrived home, my legs were giving me great pain and I was having difficulty moving around even with my sticks.

However I managed to get up by 6.00am and after a quick cup of tea loaded Jonah and Gladys into the car. It was a great help Mark lending me Gladys as Gretel was on maternal duties and Mobie is now nearly 13. We arrived on site in good time and found a place to pitch a dog tent and park a car which we reserved. By 8.30am the dogs and I were firmly installed on Discover Gundogs ready for the start of a busy day.

It was great to be visited by K.C. vet Gill Simpson who informed me her Jubilwell bitch was working very well and amazing many gundog people on the local shoots. This is splendid news for the breed in Yorkshire and credit must be given to Bill Cadwell who has worked so hard to create a real honest to goodness working strain and proves how much his hard work is paying off from Cornwall to Yorkshire and all over Europe.

Just before 2.00pm the call went out for the Gundog Parade.I’m afraid that even after several painkillers and 3 beers the legs would still not work and I must thank Ann of Welsh Springers who left me watching over her Scottish Deerhound while she took Gladys into the ring for me and made sure Sussex were represented while a brief history of the breed was announced.

I have to say that when we closed at 4.30pm I was all done in and then having to put the dogs tent up in a heavy breeze just about finished me! Luckily there was plenty of room for Jonah and Gladys to have a good run. After they had had their tea I managed to make myself a corned beef hash,washed it down with a bottle of red,put the bed down in the car and soon fell asleep.

I struggled out of the car at 6.00am,the sun was shining and I managed to get the dogs out for a run in the top field. Dogs were fed in good time and after listening to news and sport on 5Live we arrived at the marquee by 8.15am. It was a great relief to see Ian & Renee Deans already there with their two sussex,ready to go. It meant I could put the car down by the ring to watch the various events and the dogs could get laid out for a well deserved rest in the cars shade.

Before our ring got going I took a few painkillers and made my way up to the main ring where I settled down to watch an 8month old Labrador being put through his paces whilst I had a 12inch Lincolnshire sausage in a roll with a large cup of tea. I staggered around a little of the show but soon gave up and made my way back to our ring.

I took out my folding chair and settled down to watch the first event but fell straight through it! I have to say it is not easy struggling out of an alloy frame with your bum firmly lodged in it and your feet and arms so sore that you cannot get the leverage you need! However I eventually succeeded,found a folding chair around the ring and settled down in warm sunshine to watch the events and listen to the 5th day of the first test against Bangladesh.

Just after mid-day the Henshaws arrived with the two young boys they often foster over week-ends along with their 3 sussex. They were soon joined by other members of the family with their Spinone,GWP and Giant Schnauzer so we were an ever growing group. Jackie supplied me with cake and I supplied a few cans of beer. Shortly after Renee arrived with a lunch bag for me so all was well with the world. We were then joined by a visiting couple with a 2yr old sussex bitch bringing our sussex strength up to 8 on site. I was sad to hear this bitch had been spayed because of a rather complicated phantom litter. She was the result of a half brother/sister mating,I know of another one from this litter where the owners have experienced problems. Whilst this was an accidental mating and was not from any of our recognised breeders,it shows we must all be vigilant and try not to allow these matings to happen. I also think it will not be long before the K.C. refuse to register litters bred this close,mistake or not,so be aware. At 2.00pm the gundog parade took place,it was great to see 6 of our sussex taking part giving the best turn out of the day. It now means that over the 3 years of this fair we have not missed one parade. Long may it continue.

After the parade one of the young boys took part in the Tail Waggers musical chairs. At the end,with one chair remaining,’Brown Son of Henry’ and his young handler landed on the chair at the same time as another young boy and his Labrador, a brawl then ensued. Fortunately the lady running the event was a headmistress and she soon managed to separate the boys whilst the dogs looked peacefully on.

The sussex pairing were given the nod[two falls and a submission I think] and left with the victors frisbee. The frisbee proved to fly very well but unfortunately got picked up in the breeze,floating down into the lake and started to sink! Brown Son of Henry,being part owner the said article was having none of this. He jumped straight into the lake,swam to the area where the frisbee landed,disappeared under water,surfaced complete with frisbee and returned covered with weed and triumph to the bank, much to the amazement of all. It really was a fine effort from this young dog who has only received a modicum of working training. A few beers were then ordered and drunk to toast this great Game Fair Sussex water triumph and although having to give Ian & Renee a yellow card for packing up 5 minutes early, I judged the week-end to be a great success.

Jonah,Gladys and I returned to our little camp although I was still in pain, I was in good spirit. The dogs had a good run followed by a large tea. I made some sandwiches,drank a bottle of red,listened to the single wicket competition on the Archers and slept until 7.00am the following morning.

Discover Gundogs is organised by Louise Bailey and friends who have working Irish Water spaniels. It is also well supported by working clumbers and fields. Have to say it is fantastic to see the minor spaniel breeds so well represented. Well done Louise, you’re doing a great job.

DONT FORGET!

Sussex Spaniel Society International at WKC 21st -22nd August 2010

• Grooming Demonstration • Breed Standard Seminar • Working Demonstration • Championship Dog Show

Contact Chris Wakefield Tel: 07932 848666 BERNOPHER KAWDIFIELD’S SPOOF

My love of sussex spaniels and their people has led me to write a spoof of everyday life in the sussex world. My own life has been enriched by these marvelous creatures and meeting so many great characters,past & present,during my time in the breed. All the characters in this spoof are of course fictional and any similarity to people or dogs,past or present,is of course pure coincidence.

The Birth of Super Suss. P.C Robin Xoneb was sitting out in lovely warm sunshine in the back garden of his police house,browsing over the latest copy of ‘Rabbit & Terrier’.Robin had been based in the little village of Much Wittering,on the outskirts of Sharewood forest for the past 26 years along with his wife Marion who is the present chairwoman of the local Womens Institute. Their two daughters,Scarlet and Little Joan,had both been born and brought up in the village but had now flown the nest.

Robin was just dozing off when he was disturbed by the distant sound of the doorbell.’I’ll go’shouted Marion,pleased to be interrupted from preparing the potted meat sandwiches for that evenings W.I. lecture at the church hall on ‘Woodland Mushroom Gathering’. Marion opened the door and there stood Tizzy Bowels,panting a little and still clutching her bicycle.’Sorry I’m early’ she said’got a bit of a spurt on going through Higher Dicker!’ ‘No problem’said Marion ‘you go through and see Robin in the back garden and I’ll bring us out a jug of iced lemon barley water’.The Xonebs and Bowels had known each other for many years,they all shared a love of sussex spaniels and had first met at an Open Show at Bognor Regis in 1984,judged by the well known Wing Commander John,sadly no longer with us.

Robin and Tizzy also shared a love of cycling and Tizzy had pedaled across from her home on High Meadows Farm just outside the village of Western Lordit to stay the night with the Xonebs. Robin,like most policemen,only worked a four day week and was going to cycle through to the other side of the forest,with Tizzy,to visit their mutual friend Shiny Stings. Shiny,also a sussex spaniel breeder had just conquered Anorexia and was now up to five stones so Robin and Tizzy wanted to give her all the encouragement they could muster. After joining Marion at the W.I. for a most interesting mushroom lecture Tizzy returned with Marion to the house where along with Robin they enjoyed a scrumptious mutton stew washed down with some of Robin’s delightful Buttercup and Daisy homemade wine before they all retired to their rooms ready to rise for an early morning ride. Breakfast was taken at 7.00am,eggs from Robin’s free range chickens,Marion’s homemade bread washed down with herbal tea.Robin and Tizzy were on the road shortly after 7.30am.Marion had packed the baskets on the front of their bicycles with homegrown vegetables along with jars of her famous pickles and preserves to keep Shiny on course to put on her next stone.Marion would have liked to join them but she had a full days work marmalade making with the W.I.

Robin and Tizzy made good progress.’Who are the newly appointed sheriffs of the forest?’asked Tizzy.’They’re called Hansel and Gretel Snead’ said Robin.’There’s not enough work any more for two so she’s stayed on part-time as a clerk at the timber factory in Mossoak and he’s based up at Humber Park at the top end of the forest’. The two of them soon reached Sunbeech Clearing in the centre of the forest.It was a beautiful spot but they both had mixed feelings on reaching it.It was only three weeks ago they had buried their good friend Blodwin Nergard,better known to her friends as Blod. Blodwin had been a lady of a quiet disposition who had lived as a recluse in the only cottage in the clearing with her Flatcoats,Greyhounds and Sussex Spaniels.Blod’s dogs had been taken in by various breeders across the forest after her death but her Champion Sussex bitch Croftnova Goodbye Mistletoe was mysteriously missing. Rumour had it that Blod had mated her a few weeks before she died but no-one knew for sure.Robin had often visited the clearing in his capacity as the forest bobby.He suspected the local poacher Casey Conem was squatting in Blod’s now boarded up Croftnova Cottage and he also strongly suspected him of the theft of Mistletoe but inspite of all his efforts,even with the help of sheriff Hansel Snead and his men,Robin had been unable to apprehend the devious Casey Conem.

Robin and Tizzy drank a little freshly squeezed orange juice from the bottles attached to their cycle frames,then went off to relieve themselves.Robin went behind the old Beech tree and Tizzy crouched in the ditch at the end of the now overgrown vegetable garden. Unbeknownst to Tizzy,two little eyes were watching her from the undergrowth by the trees. Poor little Mistletoe was very near her time.She had been living in the forest since escaping from the clutches of Casey Conem.Killing rabbits and drinking spring water but as she had grown ever bigger,hunting had become more difficult and she had grown progressively weaker. Tizzy thought she could hear panting from afar but could not be sure.On returning to her bicycle Tizzy said to Robin,’You know I could swear I could hear heavy panting’.’Sorry about that’ said Robin ‘I was having a bit of pain,I think I might be getting a touch of prostate trouble!’ ‘Oh’ said Tizzy ‘come on I’ll race you up to Shinys’.

Robin and Tizzy soon reached the little village of Much Dizzering.’Which one is Shinys cottage’ said Tizzy.’It’s in the middle’ said Robin ‘you can’t miss it,it’s the one with all the gnomes and windmills in the front garden’. The gate to the garden creaked open.Tizzy and Robin gingerly pushed their bicycles through.The garden was rather overgrown and the route down to the front door was somewhat hazardous.Robin led the way ,wending his way through various sized gnomes and windmills. He had just thought that he had successfully navigated a path through when he tripped over a pair of copulating plastic gnomes in the long grass and shot headfirst into a thorn bush. Shiny thought she could hear a bit of a commotion in the garden so she put down her tumbler of sloe gin and opened the front door to be greeted by the sight of Tizzy Bowels trying to yank a well wedged body out of the thorn bush. ‘Who the hell is that’ said Shiny.’It’s Robin’ said Tizzy,’he tripped over those copulating gnomes and flew straight into the thorn bush’.’Good lord’ said Shiny’ I’ve been meaning to move those for ages,let’s grab a leg each and pull him out’. With a firm pull Robin dropped down into the long grass,fortunately he had still been wearing his Lincoln Green cycle helmet and apart from the odd scratch,Robin seemed to be none the worse for his flying experience. ‘Come along in’ said Shiny.

Shiny led them through to the back of the house into the kitchen.’ I was expecting you about this time’ she said ‘ so I’ve made cucumber sandwiches and a pot of tea,let’s take it out into the back as it’s such a lovely day’. Tizzy and Robin made their way out followed by Shiny with a tray of tea,sandwiches and another tumbler of sloe gin. They sat down at the table at one end of the pond. Tizzy stared up at the other end where there stood a four and a half foot high green and orange stone fountain gnome holding his appendage and weeing into the pond.’ That’s rather different’ said Tizzy.’Isn’t it’ said Shiny ‘my Sidney bought it for me as a well done present when I got the letter from the hospital saying I had got over the anorexia. It’s amazing at night, he glows in the dark’. ‘Every bit of him?’ enquired Tizzy. ‘Yes’ said Shiny ‘ he looks great on a moonlit night when the under water pond lights are on’. ‘Where did you get him from’ said Robin. ‘We couldn’t get one in this country’ said Shiny ‘ so Sydney imported him from a mail order factory in Khazakstan’.

By this time Robin had a broad grin on his face, he was imagining the looks on the W.I. ladies faces at Marions annual garden party next month if he was to install one of these gnomes over his garden pond. He knew,of course, that Marion would never allow it. There had been an awful commotion at last years W.I. dinner at the Ferret and Polecat. Rickie Raisin who owned the local bakers shop,The Bun in the Oven, had offered to bake special rolls for the dinner.It was only when they were all out on the side plates it was discovered he had modeled them all as phallic symbols causing considerable uproar amongst many of the ladies. Some of whom still boycotted Rickie’s shop to this day. However it had done him very little harm as after the local Wittering & Bogington Gazette had carried the story, he was getting orders from villages and towns all around the forest for rolls in all shapes and sizes. ‘Do they do other models as well?’ said Robin. ‘Lots’ said Shiny ‘ I’ll lend you the catalogue to take with you when you go’. JUDGING LISTS FOR 2010/2011

Mr F. Kane A1 Breed Mrs P Lester B Non-Breed C List Specialists Mrs S Marshall Specialists continued...... Mrs S Alderson Mrs J Miller Mrs D. Ashcroft Mrs D. Mowbray Mr B Bunce Mr E Lockett* Mrs D.B. Bailey Mrs T. J. Short Mr L Cox Mrs C McDonald* Mrs C A. Bexon Mrs Somerfield Mrs V Day Mr C.B. Bexon Mrs M Mr D Miller* Mrs R Sowton Mrs C Page* Mrs E. Bowe Mr J. Thirwell Hathaway Mr C Holgate Mr C Page* Mr C.M. Brown Mr G.Williams Mrs A Pamment Mr M Howes Mrs G. Brown Mr C Woodward Mrs J Park* Mrs E. Hughes Mrs C.A. Coode Mrs M Pearson* Mr T Graham A3 Breed Mr W Ironside Mr J M Phillips* Mrs J. Hartley Specialists Miss B Johnson Mrs J Revill* Mr C. Hastings Mr E Lockett Mrs P Rowlands* Mrs G. Hay Mrs C Brooks Mrs F N Mrs C Swietalski Mr R.H. Jones Mrs J Graham Marshall Mr H Taylor* Mr A W Jury Mrs E. Harper Mr R Morris Mrs S Taylor* Mrs C M Jury Mrs K Kenyon Mr M Quinney Mrs L Mrs K. Keely Mr M Keely Mr G Talbot Thorogood* Mrs P.C. Leslie Mrs A Webster Mr G Underwood* Miss S.A. Leslie A3 Non-Breed Mr F Whyte Mrs M Waddell* Specialists Mrs J.E Minns Mrs S Mrs A. Moon Woodbury- C List of Mrs E.J Moore Mrs E J Caddy Smith* Mrs C. Muirhead Mr J Horswell Judges Mrs P. Perkins Mrs J Holgate * Non Breed Mrs B. Purkis Mr R. Mosedale Ms K Amey Specialists Mrs Sevastopulo Mrs A Moss Mr J Appleby Mrs P Butler- Mr C Wakefield Holley* Mrs C. Williams, Mr P Carpenter* B Breed Mr I.G. Williams Mrs S Specialists Connolloy* Mrs S Appleby Mrs L Cooper* A1 Non-Breed Mr M Boswell Mr I Deans Specialists Mr J Butkus Mrs H Fry * Mrs J Cadwell Mr R Garner * Mr M.Armstrong Mr J Goodwin Miss J Gill Mrs Arrowsmith Mr P Harper Davis* Mrs B. Banbury Mrs G Mrs S Goodwin* Mrs D. Barney Shankland Mr G Haran* Mr A. Brace Mrs G F Simpson Mr T Harrison Mr G.D. Clarke Mrs J Walsh Mrs G Horrocks* Mrs V.O. Foss Mrs C House* Mrs A Howes* Mr M.L.Fowkes Mr L Hunt* Mr M. Herwin Mrs K Jefferies Mrs P Hollings Mr I Layfield* PUPPY REGISTRATIONS FOR 2009 (Taken from the Kennel Club Breed Records Supplement)

Mrs E Bowe 3 dogs, 2 bitches 27/12/08 Quarr Woodlander At Quintic x Sh Ch Belcam She’s The One

Mr & Mrs Cadwell 3 dogs 24/11/08 Sh Ch Bardings Brown Bear JW ShCM x Sh Ch Jubilwell Godrevy

Mr & Mrs Currah 2 dogs, 1 bitch 14/11/08 Meggamooch Jester at Narddamway x Nyliram Ruby Star For Kykesow

Ms J Gotts 3 dogs, 6 bitches 13/12/08 Deanway Storm Warning x Sovaroma Rainwashed Gold

Mr P Maddran 1 dog 30/12/08 Quarr Woodlander at Quintic x Waldmeister Abracadabra Of Belheddon

Mr & Mrs Miller 1 bitch 07/02/09 Sh Ch Belcam Willie Gofar x Quarr Fortuna Of Emberberry

Mr J & Mrs S Appleby 1 dog, 3 bitches 10/05/09 Jubilwell Thor x Quarr Tanywood

Mr & Mrs Cadwell 1 dog, 4 bitches 15/03/09 Jubilwell Thor x Jubilwell Phoenix

Ms H Smith 4 dog, 4 bitches 18/03/09 Sh Ch Belcam Willie Gofar x Duets Golden Magnolia

Mr & Mrs Wakefield 1 dog 24/01/09 Sh Ch Ir Sh Lux Ned Ch Zaphod Of Tonispada at Norriss x Norriss Yea Gretel

Mrs A Ward 1 bitch 19/03/09 Sh Ch Belcam Willie Gofar x Sovaroma Diana Might

Ms B Husbands 5 dogs, 3 bitches 23/07/09 Waldmeister Milligan x Niriti Sing a Rainbow

Mrs A Moon 3 dogs 30/07/09 Deanway Storm Warning x Millcroft Firefleur At Deanway

Miss H Prince 2 dogs, 1 bitch 02/08/09 Quarr Woodlander at Quintic x Narddamway We’ll Go Dreamin

Mrs N Giles 4 dogs, 1 Bitch 24/10/09 Marquell Issey Miyake x Quarr Forest Cherry

2009 Puppy Registrations – 60

John & Babbette Williams in Coventry

NEW MEMBERS Robert & Paula Wood in Wivelsfield 2009/10 Neil & Tracy Riddolls from Selsey The Sussex Spaniel Association Andrea Palfreman in Nottingham would like to welcome their new members for 2009/2010. Sharon & Adrian Hughes in Darlington Ann Basey in Great Yarmouth Jeroan and Chantal Van Vucht in the Netherlands Emma Boulton & Adrian Franks from Loughborough

Alex and Jacqueline Boriczewski in Kent NOTICE Increase in Membership Subscriptions Kay Davis & William Sleigh from St 2011 Neots New Subscriptions: Donna Dowson in Northumberland Single Membership £12.00 Elizabeth & Gordon Dunraven from Joint Membership £15.00 Sheffield Overseas Membership £20.00 Tany & Neil Fraser - welcome back! Please remember to change your standing order forms. We have printed one here Philip Gadsby in Arundel for you, or you can go on the website and download one. Dr and Pam Gordon in Balcombe

Rosalind & Robert Ham from Wareham

Linda Heath of Dereham

Mr & Mrs Howell in Oswestry

Beryl Husbands in Flintshire

John & Linda Kettley from Rayleigh

Jenny Ladd in Sherborne

Tim & Barbara Little from the Wirral

Stu and Susan Medlycott in Littlehampton

Richard & Ann Pamment – Welcome back!

Louise & Gary Scothern from Shrewsbury

James & Lynne Smithers in Worthing

Nick & Julia Turner in Grimsby LOOKING FORWARD

It seems to me after being at ‘Sussex at the Sussex’ that there were quite a few Sussex who were old and elderly. How lucky we are that our breed is long-lived as in old age they are still delightful and very precious. Those owners will in the next year or two be looking forward to having another puppy after their ‘old’ one has gone. I think regular breeders should be aware of this and make their plans. We only have a small number of experienced breeders, and some don’t plan to breed again.

As a breeder I think that we should encourage our ‘puppy’ owners to have a litter, provided they own a decent Sussex. It’s important to those newcomers reading this that they don’t rush out and obtain a mating for their bitch with any Sussex who lives down the road; you need to find a quality dog. People should talk to their Sussex breeders and find out if their bitch or their dog is suitable. Always contact the breeder, or if you can’t locate them, contact another experienced breeder for help. What newcomers and pet owners don’t always realise is that all Sussex Spaniels should match or fit as closely as possible to the Sussex Spaniel Breed Standard (see Kennel Club website). My view is that it is important that new stock is hip scored before a mating is considered. See the Health page of the SSA website. It is also very important that your bitch or dog should have an excellent temperament.

Those of you with young puppies please don’t rush out and have your dogs and bitches spayed just because your vet thinks you should. The vets should be made aware that Sussex numbers are low and that the breed is very special and unique.

I am not on a quest to get more numbers bred, I’m simply trying to get us thinking, moving forward and not be standing still! It is often said that we don’t want the breed to become too popular – but on the other hand we can’t allow the Sussex Spaniel to die out altogether. We have plenty of sensible and good people out there and they should be encouraged. However please be aware that breeding Sussex is not that easy and you may need to have good help on the end of the phone! It is also very time consuming.

A couple of fellow breeders said last weekend they’d noticed, some very nice Sussex that were new to them, but were disappointed to find they’d been neutered or spayed. Remember our gene pool is small. It’s most important that we breed good quality healthy dogs that fit to the Breed Standard and we don’t simply breed brown dogs. We should try to breed quality for the future. Those of you who are not show people may not understand that although your dog is a “Super Star” in your eyes, the breeder may not be that impressed. Please speak to your breeder, send them some good photos, or take your dog to see them and ask for advice. If you can’t locate the breeder contact me, as I keep a database of Sussex registrations. I must point out that these are my views and not necessarily those of the Committee nor that of the Association. This is said without my Secretary’s Hat on.

Sheila Appleby [email protected] SUSSEX ART OPEN DAY ADVERT

The Border Fine Arts Open Day OFF the Wall is a unique and distinctive gift shop and gallery in Hereford’s St Owen Street, where you’ll find an extensive range of giftware carefully selected to offer a choice not found everywhere else, including Border Fine Arts Classic and Studio figurines, quirky colourful clocks, Willow Tree figurines and wonderful prints.

This month, Derek and Ginny and their dogs Dillon and Nell, are delighted to present the first Border Fine Arts Open Day with special guest,

Rozanne Robb, who will demonstrate the fine art of painting Border Classic Collection sculptures.

The open day offers one of the first opportunities for BFA Society members to see the new annual figurine (if you’re not already a member you can join on the day) and to buy the eagerly awaited Hereford Bull from the Studio Collection.

The range of Border Fine Arts figurines stocked by Derek and Ginny are characteristic of their commitment to sourcing unique and unusual gifts and offering ranges exclusive to Off the Wall.

“Our customers come to us again and again because they like our sense of humour, our locally sourced gifts, jewellery and prints and our dogs who are generally on duty Tuesday to Saturday;’ say Derek and Ginny on their highly browseable website at .offthewallgifts. co.uk. “Dillon is in charge of .customer relations and Nell is in charge of security. She is particularly vigilant when the man who collects our cardboard comes in:’

Derek and Ginny look forward to welcoming customers old and new to Off the Wall on Saturday, June 12 for an unmissable event, the first of its kind presented by Border Fine Arts in Herefordshire for many years.

Advert found by Daphne Bailey in a local paper in Hereford - thanks for sharing! SUSSEX ART

Thank you to Catey Bates who has sent in this Sussex artwork.

If anyone is interested in these items, please let me know and I will giveJ you further details on them. ..

o . • Sussex• Svaniel" by:Gill Evans

Contemporary British Artist, Gill Evalls started painting after a varied career, which included being a Police Photographer, Art College Lecturer and two years as an AirHostess, based in Chicago. Back in Britain, Gill worked in

London on 'Tile El'ellillg News' and 'Vogue' before becoming Press Officel \ for 'Jaeger'. Gill is a totally self-taught artist, painting animal and huma

portraits. We are delighted to be able to offer collectors Limited Editions te

:

I I be published after her work. These are faithful reproductions of her pastel

0 \ drawings, printed to the highest of standards. Her work is very reminiscent

. the past masters of canine pastel studies, Liley Dmvson ("Mac") and Mabe Gear, with perhaps, just a dash of Cecil Aldin thrown in for good measure!

..

Sir My particularwas Rut. favourite nd ndowne is the Eliz. er 1e 1830. ~ ~ Sussex'SUSSEX Svaniel" SPANIEL'by:Gill Evans onei Lo-d top Willou left. } y e t tIe nd 6 es in theo 's he in Rut:- Contemporary(Hand British Printed Artist, Gill Line Evalls Engraving)started painting after a varied career, f m11y .1 cures Let me know whichtr nsferra. one to you which included beingBy a Henry Police Photographer, Wilkinson Art College Lecturer and two

like and why?fctl1 e The point\ or" import nee ~'tbollt this ;s yearsted as an Edition AirHostess, of based 250 in Chicago. Artist Signed/NumberedBack in Britain, Gillth workedt i w: s inted in about th rtl' ye rs be \,' ~«-vvll.«.. (?ro "Stone he g ", the for most utho on #, London on 'Tile El'ellillg News' and 'Vogue' before becoming Press,,,;ot Officelbout the bre d, c lmln to h t't? '1'" W'W"" : 10" x 11" (26 x 29cm) Inc Border (approx) It is always lovely to see old

for 'Jaeger'. Gill is a totally self-taught artist, painting animal andthe first huma to i cot' r its e.'('st nee.

PRICE: £57:50p. : pictures/drawings of Sussex, if

I portraits. We are+ delighted to be able to offer collectors Limited EditionsI te Postage & Packing:- Designedyou ond Prlnled byhave Berlc TempoSI any& Co. LId .. 51.that Ives, Cornwall. you would be published after her work. These are faithful reproductions of her pastel Each Limited Edition comes in its own ivory window mount, with e

)p U. K. - £3:ODp Europe - £4:SOp Else\~here, air) like to share,"Certificate please contactof Authellticatioll", signed by the publisher, in addition to Gill'5

drawings, printed to the highest of standards. Her work is very reminiscent 0

\ own signature. in pencil, on the actual Edition. The mounted size is (+/-) 11' . me. the pastVISA masters* ACCESS of canine* pastelEUROCARD studies, Liley* MASTERCARD Dmvson ("Mac")* and Mabe x 12" (27 x 31cm) and the Editions are limited to just 850 copies, worldwide Gear, with perhaps, just a dash of Cecil Aldin thrown in for good measure! The cost of each of these charming studies is just £24:50p + £4:00p for U.K lccepted for mail and telephone orders. Obviously,postage these are and packing.actually (Europe £6:00p, Elsewhere, Air £7:50p.) In addition to:- in colour, if you wish to see the r.HFrJlJFS * FliRO CHErJlJES * MONEY ORDERS * full colour picture, please letV rr.lm ~r1 Ph; 1r.I"'~1;PC me know and I would be happy to send it to you.

I look forward to receiving more like this! 'SUSSEX SPANIEL' (Hand Printed Line Engraving) By Henry Wilkinson ted Edition of 250 Artist Signed/Numbered \,' ~«-vvll.«.. #, (?ro : 10" x 11" (26 x 29cm) Inc Border (approx) '1'" W'W"" PRICE: £57:50p. + Postage & Packing:- Each Limited Edition comes in its own ivory window mount, with e )p U. K. - £3:ODp Europe - £4:SOp Else\~here, air) "Certificate of Authellticatioll", signed by the publisher, in addition to Gill'5 own signature. in pencil, on the actual Edition. The mounted size is (+/-) 11' * * * * x 12" (27 x 31cm) and the Editions are limited to just 850 copies, worldwide VISA ACCESS EUROCARD MASTERCARD The cost of each of these charming studies is just £24:50p + £4:00p for U.K lccepted for mail and telephone orders. postage and packing. (Europe £6:00p, Elsewhere, Air £7:50p.) In addition to:- r.HFrJlJFS * FliRO CHErJlJES * MONEY ORDERS * Vrr.lm ~r1 Ph; 1r.I"'~1;PC Sussex Spaniel Association

www.sussexspaniels.org.uk