Birmingham Dog Show Society Ltd

BIRMINGHAM NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP SHOW 26th September 2021

TIBETAN MASTIFF Judge: Lyn Hall

Having owned a Tibetan Mastiff for twenty two out of the last twenty six years I have seen a lot of ups and downs in the breed. Unfortunately if this entry is anything to go by, we are now on a down and quality has declined since I last judged four years ago. Having said that, this was a small entry made even smaller by a high percentage of absentees, so perhaps it was not representative of the breed as a whole. There was a huge divergence of type and soundness is a major issue.

When awarding a CC, a judge has to sign a statement to the effect that having assessed the dog with regard to type and soundness they are clearly of the opinion that the dog is of such outstanding merit as to be worthy of the title of champion. Regrettably I did not feel able to sign such a statement in respect of any of the three males presented today. The decision to withhold the CC was not taken lightly and I realised it would cause disappointment, consternation and perhaps outrage, but, and especially as this is a working breed, I felt it would be very wrong of me to overlook basic unsoundness regardless of how good a dog was in other respects. My best dog may have demonstrated excellent movement in the past, and hopefully will do again, but on this occasion his movement fell short of a standard I consider acceptable for a CC winner. The other two exhibits were not bad dogs, but they did not, in my opinion possess outstanding merit. Bitches were much better and although there was a clear winner, there were another three in contention for the RCC.

PD (1,1)

YD (1,0)

1st Lowes’ Koskay’las Vinnstan (Imp Rus) 21m B/T. Excellent bone, handsome masculine head, well angulated front and rear, thick coat, good tail set, correct proportions. Movement looked okay in profile with good reach, although without the drive I would have expected. Coming towards me the pasterns were slightly loose and flapping. Going away the hocks appeared weak and he was moving close behind, so close that his hocks were all but touching. He is a young dog so hopefully this is a temporary looseness that will resolve with maturity and muscle development. BD

PGD (1,0)

1st Jung’s Leon Nanda Deva Mistic For Hyjal (Imp Pol) 2y 7m B/T. Good outline but finer boned than I would like for a male. Slighty narrow in the head. Good angulation front and rear. Well muscled. Out of coat which did detract from the overall appearance. Moved very freely with good reach, so presented a good outline in profile. No issues coming towards me but moved close behind.

LD (1,0)

1st Love’s Showbull Country Bumkin 3 ½ y B/T. Strong masculine head, although I would prefer a slightly less abrupt stop. Good bone. Correct body proportions but needs a bit more length of neck to complete the outline. Good coat. Good shoulder angulation but could do with slightly more bend of stifle to match. This imbalance may have contributed to him moving very wide behind, although he looked good in profile. RBD

OD (3,3)

PB (1,1)

JB (1,0)

1st Porteus’ Legenda Tibeta Evelin at Shellonbear (Imp Rus) 17m B/T Lacking a bit of confidence at first, but did settle. Pretty girl with a feminine head and pleasing expression. Good bone. Well balance with good angulation front and rear. Moved nicely, just a little loose all through at the moment. Very promising youngster.

YB (2,0)

1st Asquith’s Richearon Poso of Baarnayotms. 20m B/T. Very sound bitch, shown in well muscled condition. Enough substance to meet the standard. Correct strong and sloping pasterns. Feminine head, sweet expression. Balanced angulation resulting in very smooth movement. Good reach and drive and parallel action coming and going. RCC

2nd Jung’s Dokhyi Valentine Lungta Peg Into Hyjal 19m very finely built bitch. Bereft of coat so nothing to hide. Good angulation and moved well once settled.

PGB (2,0)

1st Towers’ Callowdale Desert Sand almost 4y gold. Good size and bone. Well balanced angulation. Strong, but feminine head and expression. Good profile movement although rear movement just a little loose. Unfortunately she was somewhat lethargic in the challenge.

2nd Corfield & Morgan’s Wilsontus Uma at Morganridge almost 4y gold, but very pale. Finer built than 1 but adequate bone. Head okay. Moved reasonably well. Overall not the presence or outline of 1

LB (1,0)

1st Lowes’ Callowdale Hermione 3y black. Sound construction with balanced angulation. Movement true coming and going and showed reach and drive in profile. Head is of the correct proportions but a tad plain. Markings are incorrect – the amount of white on her chest is far more than the white star which is permissible.

OB (3,1)

1st Asquith’s Wangdak Cherry of Barnayotms. 3y B/T. Such a sound example of the breed. Has enough substance to be within the standard. Shown in super muscled condition and powered her way round the ring. Her proportions are correct and she has excellent angulation front and rear. True movement coming and going and showed reach and drive in profife, moving with power and purpose. Her lovely feminine head and expression complete the picture. Pleased to award her the CC and BOB.

Lyn Hall