In pictures: 25,000 dogs line up for Crufts (and 'Scruffts' for mongrels) as officials bow to pressure over hairspray
Thursday 07 March 2013
VIEW GALLERY
Related articles
Crufts, Britain's annual festival of all things canine, opened today with a distinctly international flavour, with more than 2,000 dogs from overseas joining their British counterparts in Birmingham.
In total, more than 25,000 dogs will take part in this year's show. London 2012, with its meagre tally of 11,000 athletes, pales in comparison. Competitors from 41 countries will take part, with dogs from some countries as far afield as India, Indonesia and Malaysia being represented for the first time.
And like the Olympics, Crufts has its controversies over “performance-enhancing” substances.
A blazing row between competitors and the Kennel Club, which manages Crufts, over whether dogs entered into “beauty” events should be allowed to be doused in hairspray, or even touched up with chalk, threatened to derail this year's competition.
Competitors have claimed that a little bit of spray around the head to stop long hair getting in a dog's face was standard practice at other dog shows, but officially it is against decades-old Crufts rules that ban artificial enhancers.
Opponents who organised themselves into a group called the “Elnett revolutionaires”, after a brand of hairspray, said that sending a poodle into competition without hairspray was “like Miss World being made to go on without her make-up.”
In a bid to catch cheats, judges introduced spot-checks in 2011, but have now bowed to pressure and suspended testing. A new code of practice is expected to be in place by next year, for the first time officially permitting hairspray to be used sparingly around the head and face, and for white dogs to be cleaned with a chalk.
In another first, this year's show will be the first to showcase the best of Britain's mongrels, hosting the final of the “Scruffts” competition for cross-breeds for the first time. With pedigree dogs not allowed to enter, the alternative Kennel Club competition has celebrated the more humble qualities of temperament and character in family dogs with mixed heritage since 2000, but has never been a part of the main Crufts show.
Four dogs – the winners of national heats – will go head-to-head for the prize of Scruffts champion tomorrow.
The inclusion of cross-breeds comes five years after the RSPCA withdrew its support for Crufts, responding to a wealth of scientific evidence to show that the selective breeding of pedigree dogs perpetuates inherited health problems. Around one in four pure-bred dogs suffer from congenital defects such as epilepsy, heart disease and hyperthyroidism. Other breeds develop health problems associated with bred-in features. Dachsunds, for example, a particularly vulnerable to spinal problems, while Cavalier King Charles spaniels, which are bred to have skulls that are nearly flat on top, often suffer from syringomyelia, a condition caused by their skull being too small for their brain.
Crufts says that judges are “trained to ensure that only healthy dogs win prizes, which in turn encourages the breeding of healthy dogs.”
-
Feat of engineering: Incredible photographs show construction beneath New York's Second Avenue
-
Charles Saatchi accepts caution for assault over incident in Scott’s restaurant when he put his hands on throat of wife Nigella Lawson
-
Special Report: US troops are stationed in Japan to protect the nation. But to sex workers in Okinawa, they bring fear, not security
-
Police examine photographs of Charles Saatchi with hand on Nigella Lawson's throat
-
Iran to send 4,000 troops to aid President Assad forces in Syria
- 1 Breaking the Silence: In the reality of occupation, there are no Palestinian civilians – only potential terrorists
- 2 Charles Saatchi accepts caution for assault over incident in Scott’s restaurant when he put his hands on throat of wife Nigella Lawson
- 3 Anatomy of a waiter: Service staff spill the secrets of their trade
- 4 Exclusive: Cristiano Ronaldo advised to stay at Real Madrid for another 18 months before making possible switch to Manchester United
- 5 Iran to send 4,000 troops to aid President Assad forces in Syria
Get your summer started with British Military Fitness
BMF is the UK’s biggest and best loved outdoor fitness classes
How will you make today delicious?
Tell us how you plan to make today delicious and you could win a £50 M&S gift card.
Learn a new language
Add another string to your bow with Rosetta Stone, whether it's Spanish, Italian or Mandarin...
Making reading fun for kids
Nook is donating eReaders to volunteers at high-need schools and participating in exclusive events throughout the campaign.
Introducing the 'Get Reading' campaign
Get the latest on The Evening Standard's campaign to get London's children reading.
Enter the latest Independent competitions
Win anything from gadgets to five-star holidays on our competitions and offers page.
Business videos from commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Independent Dating
iJobs General
PR Manager - Renewables
£32000 - £33000 Per Annum: The Green Recruitment Company: The Green Recruitmen...
Regional Sales Manager - Renewable Energy
Negotiable Depending on Experience: The Green Recruitment Company: The Green R...
Senior Property Solicitor - Mayfair
Excellent Salary Package: Austen Lloyd: We have an outstanding opportunity for...
Room Leader NVQ Level 3
Negotiable: Capita Education Resourcing Permanent Team: Room Leader NVQ Level ...
Day In a Page
Scandi-geeks descend on Nordicana for fan-convention
Female aristocrats battle to inherit the title
In pictures: JFK's visit to Berlin in 1963
Mark Hix gets creative with English peas
Seasoned to taste: Food institutions







Comments