par Yossi GuyAt which show would you find donkeys and a Bedouin tent? One that is held in the desert, of course. And that is exactly what visitors to the Hunting Dogs Show saw, among other things. The Best In Show, however, was far removed from a donkey – an impressive German Short Haired Pointer.
Israel's second largest show, after the CACIB shows, is the Hunting Dogs Show organized by several clubs from groups 4, 6, 7 and 8. This show has already become somewhat of an "institution" and takes place on a Friday in the holiday of Hanukah, usually coinciding with Christmas.
This year's show was no exception. The outdoor venue in Lehavim in the north of the Negev Desert is usually rain-free even in the wettest months. Last year's show was held in absolutely sweltering weather but this time a cold wind blew throughout the day keeping most exhibitors, judges and even some dogs in their coats. This, of course, is wonderful for dog shows and one could not help notice the energy most dogs at the Lehavim show exuded.
In rings one and two, Mrs. Moa Persson from Sweden and Mr. Frank Kane from England judged American and English Cocker Spaniel, Golden Retriever, Labrador, Flat Coated Retriever, German Short Haired Pointer, English Pointer, Rhodesian Ridgeback, Dalmation, Viszla, English Springer Spaniel, English and Irish Setter, Basset and Dachshund.
Mrs. Moa Persson judged Best In Show and put up German Short Haired Pointer, locally bred and owned by Hagit Dadia. An English Pointer, Chief, locally bred by Alex Makarov and owned by Natalia Kalenariov was first runner up. Third in the lineup was 8 year old Labrador Retriever dog, Ch. Givenchy Gentleman Morhead, locally bred by Limor Paldi and owned by the Berger family. This dog was earlier placed first in the Best Veteran competition.
Says Miss Hagit Dadia, the owner of the BIS pointer: "I am delighted – I really believe he deserved to win. He is not an import, I bred and raised him. His dam is an Israeli champion with whom I flew to Germany and mated to a German champion. His sire is a dual champion. My boyfriend is a hunter who hunts ducks, quail and pheasants with the dogs."
Surprisingly, the dog is 2.5 years and this was the first time he was shown in open class. "I didn't bring him earlier because I have his two brothers as well and decided not to show Richie before his brother finished his championship," explained Hagit.
"I am impressed with the heartfelt Israeli hospitality," commented Mr. Kane, on his first visit to Israel. "The overall quality of the dogs was quite all right and despite handling that requires lots of improvement there were some very good quality dogs. I was particularly impressed with the English Pointers. Although there were only two, these dogs could win at shows in England."
"Both dogs are fruits of the labor of love I have invested for years and of course I am delighted with the results," says Orna Hayoun, owner and breeder of the English Pointers. "Sadly, we do not have enough dogs here to be able to reach the results we aim for. We have been attempting to breed such dogs for some years now. There are some other dogs of the same quality but their owners just don't want to show them, and that is a shame."
A lovely Labrador puppy, Kochav Beit Affikim, bred by Yaniv Ossem and owned by the Abramovitz family, was the Best Puppy. A Golden Retriever, Shony Matthews, bred and owned by Natalie Omer was Best Junior.
In ring 3, Mr. Hans van den Berg from the Netherlands was busy judging the Toy Club show. His BOB was a sweet Pug.
Dr. Agnes Ganami from Israel judged a Terrier Club show. She put up a Cairn Terrier owned by Dorit Lissak (herself in the last week of pregnancy). The second place went to a Black Russian Terrier while third place in this show was an Airedale Terrier.
Mr. Jose Navarro from Spain judged a Boxer Club show while Mr. Yochai Barak (Israel) judged the preliminary heats of junior handling.
The show attracted about 250 dogs and a nice gate from the surrounding towns and elsewhere. The atmosphere was quite relaxed and the chilly wind made some people do unusual things like burst into a spontaneous dance in order to beat off the cold.
Mrs. Persson, who judged the Best In Show, was quite in her element. I was told she had brought an entire Christmas dinner she had cooked in Sweden and shared it with some of Israel's lady judges the night before the show. She said the quality of dogs was mixed, some excellent dogs and some that were not so good.
A single dog arrived from abroad, from Moscow to be exact. This was Ch. Tina Trading Brighton, who was first in champion class and won an Israeli championship title by doing so.
