ObedienceUK News

The Kennel Club has announced the winners of its annual Dog Photographer of the Year competition. Now in its thirteenth year, the international competition received almost 10,000 entries from over 70 different countries around the globe, including China, Israel, Russia, Argentina and South Africa. 

Monica van der Maden from the Netherlands has been chosen as the overall winner of the competition with an image of Noa the Great Dane seemingly alone in a forest, which placed first in the ‘Oldies’ category, the first time an image from this particular group has been picked as an overall winner. Monica began taking photos of dogs eighteen years ago, and has been professionally snapping man’s best friend for the best part of a decade.

After finding out she had won the world’s largest canine photography competition, Monica said: “I am very grateful to be the overall winner of the Dog Photographer of the Year competition. Photography is what I love doing the most. I always try to capture the image of a dog in a way that you can see the emotion in their eyes, when I took this picture in the forest early one morning, Noa looked at her owner and you could feel the love between them.”

The Kennel Club’s Dog Photographer of the Year competition comprises ten categories: Portrait, Man’s Best Friend, Dogs At Play, Dogs At Work, Puppy, Oldies, I Love Dogs Because… (for entrants aged between 12 and 17 years old), Young Pup Photographer (for entrants aged 11 and under), Assistance Dogs and Rescue Dogs.

The other category winners were: Elinor Roizman from Israel, who won the ‘Dogs at Play’ category with a photo of Lili the Pomeranian chasing a giant bubble on the beach; Klaus Dyber from Germany, who won the ‘Puppy’ category with a beautiful image of Ceylin the 3 month-old Italian Greyhound; Carol Durrant from the UK, who won the ‘Portrait’ category with a stunning image of three Flat Coated Retrievers; Tracy Kidd from the UK who won the ‘Dogs at Work’ category with a group shot of spaniels and retriever dogs after a day of working hard; ‘Man’s Best Friend’ winner Joana Matos from  Portugal; ‘Young Pup Photographer’ winner, Mariah Mobley from the United States; and Tamara Kedves from Hungary who won the ‘I Love Dogs Because…’ category.

The winner of the ‘Assistance Dogs’ category was Dean Mortimer from Castle Combe, Wiltshire, who captured the unique bond between man and dog as German Shepherd Dog, Rocko comforted his ex-soldier owner who suffers from PTSD. Sonya Kolb from New Jersey in the United States was named as the winner of the ‘Rescue Dog’ award for her intimate portrait of a rescued Labrador and his loving new owners. The Kennel Club Charitable Trust will donate £500 to the charities of both winners’ choice, Service Dogs UK and Monmouth County SPCA respectively.

This year’s Dog Photographer of the Year competition is sponsored by SmugMug, the dog-loving photo sharing site for professional photographers, and Nikon School, a photography training establishment that aims to educate and inspire photographers. 

SmugMug’s European Manager, Alastair Jolly commented: “Once again, SmugMug are delighted to be sponsors of the Dog Photographer of the Year competition. It really is a pleasure to be able to judge this competition again this year, even if as always the decision gets harder and harder. It is a highlight of the year for me. I always enjoy seeing such a wonderful range of images of some truly beautiful dogs. Congratulations to all of the winners. I am sure everyone will enjoy seeing the winning images this year and I am already looking forward to next year."

Neil Freeman from Nikon School added: “Nikon School is proud to support the Dog Photographer of the Year competition and looks forward to working with the Kennel Club on future photography collaborations and projects.”

The overall winner will receive an original oil painting of their image by award-winning artist Sara Abbott. All category winners will have their images on display at the Kennel Club in Mayfair, and will win a SmugMug photography website to showcase their work online and a one day photography course offered by Nikon School UK, as well as a trophy and exhibition print from Loxley Colour presented during an award ceremony.

The judges for this year’s competition were commercial and editorial dog photographer, Elke Vogelsang; Nikon UK representative, Neil Freeman; SmugMug’s European Manager, Alastair Jolly; Technical Editor of Amateur Photography Magazine, Hollie Latham Hucker; British professional dog photographer Martin Hill; and Kennel Club representatives  Rosemary Smart, Chief Executive; Simon Luxmoore, Chairman, and Pauline Luxmoore-Ball.

Rosemary Smart, Kennel Club Chief Executive said: “The judges and I were thoroughly impressed by the quality of this year’s competition entries. Selecting only ten winning images from thousands of remarkable photographs was an incredibly hard task. All of the photographs entered portrayed dogs and their many wonderful characteristics beautifully. Congratulations to all of the winners and finalists and well done to everyone who entered.”

All of the winning images plus the photos that placed second and third for each category will be on display at the Kennel Club in London from 16th July until 5th October. The exhibition is open to the public and free to visit by appointment. Anyone wishing to visit, should contact the Art Gallery office artgallery@thekennelclub.org.uk.

To view all the winning images visit: www.dogphotographeroftheyear.org.uk.

Following consultation with the Dog Health Group, the Kennel Club has confirmed that, from 1^st August 2018, any DNA health test result submitted for inclusion on its database must have at least two forms of identification on the result certificate.   

It will be mandatory to include the dog’s microchip or tattoo number along with either the dog’s registered name or registered number. Any test results that do not carry these identifying features will not be accepted.

This brings the recording of DNA test results in line with those health tests carried out by the British Veterinary Association.

The Kennel Club is calling for anyone interested in becoming an Obedience Accredited Trainer for the judges’ training programme to get in touch.

This judges’ training programme has been developed over a period of time and follows the requirements already in place for those involved in judging other canine activities. It underlines the Kennel Club’s commitment to maintaining and improving the standard of judges and judging at official Kennel Club licensed events and, in so doing, ensures the quality of dogs and the value of awards they receive at these events.

As part of the training programme, the Kennel Club has a number of Accredited Trainers for each discipline, who are responsible for delivering each seminar and conducting the examination. All of the Accredited Trainers are established judges of long standing and have attended training and assessment sessions prior to their appointment in order to prove their own knowledge and competence in delivering the seminar syllabus. There is a good geographical spread of trainers to ensure that each area of the country is covered to minimise distances for those attending seminars.

The Kennel Club is now inviting applications from interested parties who would like to be considered for the position of Obedience Accredited Trainer. Any candidates interested in applying need to meet the following criteria:

• Five or more years of regular judging experience.
• Be eligible to judge Championship Class C.
• Good presentation and teaching skills are essential.
• Have attended and passed the exam for the Obedience Regulations and Judging Procedure seminar and attended the Test Design and Practice of Judging Seminar.
• A willingness to travel to deliver seminars.

Those interested should send their applications to the Working Dog Activities Team, The Kennel Club, Clarges Street, London W1J 8AB or via email to obedience@thekennelclub.org.uk by Friday 22^nd June 2018.

Assessments for all applicants will take place on 10^th July 2018 at the Kennel Club Building, Stoneleigh. More information will be sent to those who apply.

The Kennel Club has recently approved changes to the regulations for obedience, agility, working trials, heelwork to music, rally and flyball.

With effect from 1^st January 2019, the following regulations have been amended to encourage clubs to give careful consideration to circumstances before withdrawing a judging contract, and to ensure that they had a clear rationale for doing so.

Amendment to Regulation G34.b

TO:

…You should note that we reserve the right to cancel the contract before the date of the appointment if there is a change in your circumstances, which in our reasonable opinion would adversely affect your ability to fulfil the appointment. Clubs may cancel a judging appointment where there is clear evidence that the judge’s ability to fulfil the appointment has been adversely affected, or in consultation with the judge.

(Insertion underlined.)

Amendment to Regulation H18.b

TO:

…You should note that we reserve the right to cancel the contract before the date of the appointment if there is a change in your circumstances, which in our reasonable opinion would adversely affect your ability to fulfil the appointment. Clubs may cancel a judging appointment where there is clear evidence that the judge’s ability to fulfil the appointment has been adversely affected, or in consultation with the judge.

(Insertion underlined.)

Amendment to Regulation I27.a

TO:

…You should note that we reserve the right to cancel the contract before the date of the appointment if there is a change in your circumstances, which in our reasonable opinion would adversely affect your ability to fulfil the appointment. Clubs may cancel a judging appointment where there is clear evidence that the judge’s ability to fulfil the appointment has been adversely affected, or in consultation with the judge.

(Insertion underlined.)

Amendment to Regulation L17.b

TO:

…You should note that we reserve the right to cancel the contract before the date of the appointment if there is a change in your circumstances, which in our reasonable opinion would adversely affect your ability to fulfil the appointment. Clubs may cancel a judging appointment where there is clear evidence that the judge’s ability to fulfil the appointment has been adversely affected, or in consultation with the judge.

(Insertion underlined.)

Amendment to Regulation S20.b

TO:

…You should note that we reserve the right to cancel the contract before the date of the appointment if there is a change in your circumstances, which in our reasonable opinion would adversely affect your ability to fulfil the appointment. Clubs may cancel a judging appointment where there is clear evidence that the judge’s ability to fulfil the appointment has been adversely affected, or in consultation with the judge.

(Insertion underlined.)

Amendment to Regulation V18.b

TO:

…You should note that we reserve the right to cancel the contract before the date of the appointment if there is a change in your circumstances, which in our reasonable opinion would adversely affect your ability to fulfil the appointment. Clubs may cancel a judging appointment where there is clear evidence that the judge’s ability to fulfil the appointment has been adversely affected, or in consultation with the judge.

(Insertion underlined.)

The next meeting of the Kennel Club Obedience Liaison Council will be held at the Kennel Club in London on Thursday 19^th July 2018. Proposals for inclusion on the agenda should reach the Obedience Liaison Council Secretary by Friday 20^th April.

Each eligible society or an individual may submit items for the agenda, through a council representative. Proposals must be concise and, if an amendment or an additional regulation is proposed, the regulation number must be given. All submissions must be signed by the society/individual and the representative.

All items for inclusion on the agenda should be sent to Working Dog Activities Team, The Kennel Club, Clarges Street, London W1J 8AB or by email to obedience@thekennelclub.org.uk.

A full list of Obedience Liaison Council representatives can be found at www.thekennelclub.org.uk/activities/obedience/obedience-liaison-council.

Dog lovers can look forward to a record-breaking 14 hours of television coverage when Crufts returns to Channel 4 and More4 this March to celebrate the world’s largest dog show. This is two and a half hours more than the 2017 show which was then a record in itself.

With Clare Balding at the helm, Channel 4 and More4 will broadcast all the action from the show, leading up to the grand finale on Sunday when Best in Show will be crowned.

This year Channel 4 will be broadcasting an extra one-hour programme from the show in the afternoon on all four days, including a new show on the Wednesday before Crufts begins.

WEDNESDAY 7^th MARCH

1500-1600 – Channel 4 Crufts Daily Show

THURSDAY 8^th MARCH

1500-1600 – Channel 4 Crufts Daily Show

1830-2000 – More4 Crufts

2000-2100 – Channel 4 Crufts

FRIDAY 9^th MARCH

1500-1600 – Channel 4 Crufts Daily Show

1830-1930 – More4 Crufts

1930-2100 – Channel 4 Crufts

SATURDAY 10^th MARCH

1630-1730 – Channel 4 Crufts Daily Show

1900-2100 – Channel 4 Crufts

SUNDAY 11^th MARCH

1630-1730 – Channel 4 Crufts Daily Show

1900-2100 – Channel 4 Crufts Best In Show

Clare will host daily highlights of the world's biggest dog event live from the NEC and will be joined by Alan Carr, who will be presenting the afternoon show with Clare, and Channel 4’s ‘Supervet’, Professor Noel Fitzpatrick. The presenters will be supported by vet, health and welfare expert Nick Blayney, as well as dog reporters and breed experts, Jessica Holm and Frank Kane.

All of the Arena action from the show will also be shown every day live on the Crufts YouTube channel which can be found at www.youtube.com/crufts.

Caroline Kisko, Secretary of the Kennel Club, which runs Crufts, said: “We are delighted that Channel 4 and More4 will be offering viewers at home the opportunity to enjoy even more of this year’s Crufts. The event holds such a special place in dog lovers’ hearts because it celebrates everything that we love most about dogs, and the programmes will reflect on the benefits dogs bring to our lives and the many fascinating aspects of Crufts.

“The enhanced TV coverage will not only bring exciting sports such as agility and flyball into people’s homes, but will enable people to see the diverse range of wonderful dog breeds, including some of the more unusual breeds that are not often seen in the streets and parks across the country, through the dog show aspect of Crufts. It will also cover topics about choosing, caring for and enjoying life with dogs, as well as different issues affecting dog owners in the UK.”  

Channel 4 and More4’s coverage of Crufts will be produced by Sunset + Vine.

The minutes of the Kennel Club Obedience Liaison Council meeting, held on 11 January 2018, have been released and can be found on the Kennel Club website at the following link:

www.thekennelclub.org.uk/activities/obedience/obedience-liaison-council/.

The Kennel Club has issued a Code of Conduct addressed to all Kennel Club members, committee members and volunteers.

The code will sit alongside the already-established Kennel Club Code of Ethics for breeders who register litters, Code of Best Practice for Kennel Club Judges, Codes of Conduct for participants at Kennel Club licensed events, as well as codes in respect of the welfare and safety of dogs.

The new code can be viewed on the Kennel Club website at www.thekennelclub.org.uk/our-resources/kennel-club-code/.

Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary said: “The Kennel Club appreciates that Kennel Club members, committee members and volunteers do sterling work on behalf of the club, and overwhelmingly uphold the principles enshrined in the code’s various clauses. However, we felt that it was important to encapsulate these principles formally for the benefit of everyone who chooses to take on these vital roles in the future.”