KENNEL CLUB - NEWS RELEASE VULNERABLE BREEDS COMPETITION TO BE LAUNCHED IN 2015 The Kennel Club is launching a new competition for dog show exhibitors who show vulnerable British & Irish breeds, to raise awareness of these breeds and to recognise those who are dedicated to their survival and prosperity. The Kennel Club Vulnerable British & Irish Breeds Competition, which will be open to all vulnerable breeds competing at Open and Championship Shows, will enable dogs that are on the Kennel Club’s vulnerable breeds list to collect points for awards at dog shows. Points can be claimed for Best of Breed or Best Any Variety Not Separately Classified (AVNSC) and also for Group placings at Championship shows. The aim of the competition, which is sponsored by Eukanuba and run in conjunction with media partner Our Dogs, is for dogs to collect the highest number of points for their breed in a calendar year. At the end of the year the top scoring dog from each breed will be invited to compete at the competition’s Crufts final and the inaugural final will take place at Crufts 2016. Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary, said: “The Kennel Club’s list of vulnerable breeds includes some of the nation’s oldest dog breeds that have played an important role in this country’s history. The list includes breeds such as the Smooth Collie and the Irish Terrier which were used to carry messages between trenches in the First World War, to the Manchester Terrier, which received a Royal Warrant for rat catching for Queen Victoria. “We are thankful to those dedicated and passionate owners who use their knowledge, care and expertise to ensure that these breeds continue to be a part of our society and we have launched this competition to give them the recognition and prestige that they deserve.” The Kennel Club encourages show societies and breed clubs representing vulnerable breeds to work together to ensure that as many people as possible enter the competition, which is running on a one year trial basis in order to gauge its popularity. Caroline continued: “The Kennel Club has ensured that there is no extra administration or management required by already busy show societies in order to run this competition and make it a success; it simply requires dog owners to enter the appropriate breed or AVNSC class scheduled at any Open or Championship show. “However, we do encourage show societies to work with breed clubs of vulnerable breeds to explore offering Breed Club Supported Entry Classes. This will enable breed clubs to mobilise their membership to enter the classes and give their expertise in recommending the number of classes and judges to use, whilst the show society benefits from increased entries. The Breed Club Supported Entry model ensures that if, for any reason, the classes fail to attract the hoped for entry, the society does not need to include them in their class average calculations.” Throughout the year, competitors can track their success on the official leader board which is published in the monthly competition feature in Our Dogs. Anyone taking part is reminded to regularly log their points with Our Dogs by submitting the completed point tracker form, available on the Kennel Club website, either by email to [email protected] or at the Our Dogs stand at general and group championship shows. To take part in the competition, owners simply need to download a Kennel Club British & Irish Breeds competition claim form, which will be used to record their points throughout the year. At the end of the year, the completed form needs to be submitted to the breed shows team at [email protected] and the Crufts finalists will be notified by the Kennel Club. The claim form, an FAQ document on the new competition and further information. is available at thekennelclub.org.uk/vulnerablebreedscompetition The Vulnerable British & Irish Breeds Competition replaces the Kennel Club Breeders’ Competition, which will hold its last final at Crufts 2015. ENDS 18th November 2014
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 19:05:42 +0000
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