Is no contest safe? Crufts is dogged by drugs scandal

Claims that a prize-winning dog was drugged by rivals at Crufts last week in Birmingham are being examined by the Kennel Club.

Claims that a prize-winning dog was drugged by rivals at Crufts last week in Birmingham are being examined by the Kennel Club.

Clive and Nancy Evans, the owners of Kerri - who was last year's runner-up in the dobermann pinscher puppy section at the dog show - allege that their bitch might have been fedmeat spiked with a sedative. The dog was withdrawn from the show ring after she started wobbling and appeared much more subdued than normal. The two-year-old dog made a full recovery within 90 minutes.

The allegations, if proved, would be a severe blow to the credibility of Crufts, the biggest event of its kind in the world. Such claims have been made before by owners in the bitterly competitive world of dog shows, but none has been proved at Crufts, now in its 101st year. The most likely sedative which could have been given to Kerri is ACP, an animal tranquilliser used by vets.

The Kennel Club will consider the claims alongside a report from Trevor Turner, the show's chief veterinary officer, who examined the dog.

Mr Evans, a dog warden from Tewkesbury, who has been showing at Crufts for almost 20 years, said the couple had kept their dobermann in their van until judging. "While waiting to go into the ring, somebody walked past and gave her, maybe, a piece of meat with a sedative drug on it. When my wife took her to the ring, Kerri was listless and she just got worse and worse. If you had just pushed her gently she would have fallen over.

"It's just jealousy at the end of the day. These incidents have happened in the breed before."

The couple have no other evidence to back their claims because at the time they decided not to have blood tests taken or the contents of her stomach examined.

Mr Turner said: "The bitch was not behaving as a young exhibition dobermann would be expected to behave, which is lively and excited. But her heart beat and temperature were normal. Doping is a possibility but... not a probability.''