ROLL ON 2022!
With Crufts cancelled this year, we reflect on some past highlights and look forward to 2022.
Crufts might not be happening this year — but the world’s greatest dog show still offers a vast array of unforgettable moments, while we all look forward to next year’s event.
● Crufts was suspended during the two World Wars, but this year’s show is only the second time in its history that it’s been cancelled; the other occasion was due to an electrician’s strike in 1954.
IT ALL STARTED WITH A BISCUIT…
At the age of just 14 years, Charles
Cruft talked himself into a job with a manufacturer of dog biscuits, and within 12 years had become office manager of Spratt’s Dog Food Company. During the course of his work he became involved in running dog shows and in 1886 decided
to launch his own terrier show, which in 1891 expanded to include all other breeds and is regarded as being the first ‘proper’ Crufts show.
Despite publicly claiming to be a cat owner — perhaps anxious to avoid any accusations of bias — Cruft’s memoirs relate that he owned German Shepherds and Borzois and at least one St Bernard, while other sources say he also had Schipperkes, Fox Terriers, and Pointers. So which breed was his favourite? Quite possibly that St Bernard, whose head appeared in the original show logo, which Cruft designed himself.
BEST IN SHOW
The grand finale of Crufts is the Best in Show class; not introduced until 1928, the first to receive the accolade was Primley Sceptre, a fawn Greyhound owned by Mr Herbert Whitley, an early conservationist who founded Paignton Zoo. Since then there have been 78 Best in Show winners, with 43 different breeds taking home the trophy. The most successful breed to date has been the Cocker Spaniel, victorious seven times — six of them with the same owner/breeder, Herbert S. Lloyd. There have been four double winners, including three of Herbert Lloyd’s spaniels and Bramshaw Bob, a Labrador Retriever owned by Countess Lorna Howe.
Winners do not get to take home the huge, ornate silver Keddell Memorial Trophy they are presented with in the ring, but instead receive a replica plus a modest cash prize of £150.
RECORD-BREAKING
The year 1991 was a special date in Crufts history; as well as being the centenary of the event, it was officially recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest dog show with 22,973 dogs entered that year.
In 2005 another record was set at the show when Pedigree made the longest
dog lead at its exhibition stand, measuring 686m (2,250 ft) in length.
FAMOUS FIRSTS
Several popular canine activities got their first big break at Crufts. In 1978 a canine showjumping display was conceived purely as a way of keeping the audiences in the main arena entertained during the gap between the end of the obedience championships and the start of the group breed judging. It proved so popular that it was repeated the following year and in 1980 the first official agility competition took place.
Having already established herself as one of the top agility handlers, trainer Mary Ray went on to introduce ‘doggy dancing’ to the world when she first demonstrated a heelwork to music routine at Crufts in 1992. Her performances captivated audiences and became a regular highlight of the show until 2018.
Another great crowd-pleaser is flyball where two teams of four dogs and handlers race against each other over hurdles to retrieve a tennis ball. It was showcased in the UK in a demonstration at Crufts in 1990, and like agility quickly gained a following among owners with active dogs who wanted to try something different.
MEMORABLE MOMENTS
A streaker interrupted judging during the 2010 show, but ultimately it’s the dogs who provide the most memorable moments. Everyone has their favourite — but one of the most priceless surely has to be Maisie, the Wire-haired Dachshund who wowed audiences and judges before being awarded the coveted Best in Show title in 2020. Completely unfazed by the honour bestowed on her, and in need of a bathroom break, she stopped for a poo during her victory lap, which was broadcast live to millions of viewers.
Another dog who stole hearts and raised smiles was Kratu, the Romanian rescue dog who returned for a third year by popular demand in 2020 to turn in an unforgettable round on the agility course. Past occasions had seen him taking a rest in the tunnel and ignoring jumps, but last year he excelled himself by actually stealing part of the course and running round the arena with his handler in pursuit.