KC Breed Standard

WELKS 15 Judge

STAFFORDSHIRE BULL WELKS 15

Judge(s): MR TERENCE NORTON

DCC RAMBELSTAFF COS I COULD (MR D BUTLER)
RDCC MITZSTAFF FUN TO FLEX (MR M & MRS T MEMBURY)
BCC NETTLEWORTH NO NONSENSE JW (MR A & MRS G DUNCAN)
RBCC KROSREN NANNIE DEE (T & R CUNNINGHAM & ANDERSON)
BOB RAMBELSTAFF COS I COULD (MR D BUTLER)
BP ELITEBULL NIGHT MISSION (MR K A BALDWIN)

STAFFORDSHIRE BULL JUDGE WELKS 15

Staffordshire Bull Terriers

Firstly thanks to the exhibitors, predominately b/br owners & this obviously showed in the various line ups. I last judged (male) dogs way back in 2006 & so I did notice a difference in size today compared with then – tending to the more Standard weight. I was pleased that there are now a lot of dogs with correct (as per Alan Mitchell’s unwritten Standard) muzzle/skull proportions, round eyes, distinct stops & now we have tight lips thrown in as well. I didn’t find the poor toplines that the doom & gloom merchants have been espousing for a while now & ditto for movement – the argument that toeing in at the back is typical for a Stafford I find acceptable so long as there is no crossover. That said, the tendency to hop, skip & jump, shake the head, pull on the lead & sniff the ground makes this assessment somewhat difficult.

Overall the quality of today’s Staffords is very good, the top winners exceptional in my view. The following critique is based on my comments on the day with a minor bit of editing.

VD (2)

1 Summers’ Jewelstaff Kubla Khan at Warriorstaff, nice Standard b/br dog, typical head, strong powerful (i.e. large) the heavy lip a let down but I like the stop & top skull & along with those round eyes gives a super expression. Slightly tight on the front & well muscled around the elbow/upper arm areas, in fact well muscled overall, as they should be. Good hind placement, short backed, moved quite well, good winner today;

2 Roberts’ New Holland at Jamborob, tiger/br, totally different type head than 1 with regards to shape. For instance he hasn’t got the depth of stop of 1 but he does have very clean muzzle (for me a must have). This dog is no longer in back than 1 although to me he looks balanced with his height, he actually has strong looking rear quarters & a good bend of stifle. An acceptable front, but not as good as 1. A couple of essential items missing from the nether region.

MPD (5)

1 Baldwin’s Elitebull Night Mission, b/br, quite an outstanding dog, top size, good front with plenty of bone. Looks a bit long in back but balances OK with height. Deep brisket & enough spring of rib at this stage. He has a superb head, one that breeders strive for (I would hope). Clean cut, classic shape & muzzle/skull proportions, this one actually has tight lip, good ear carriage, round eyes, distinct stop etc etc. Movement OK. Yes a very smart dog. I liked him loads. BP;

2 Harris & Rowe’s Illori Azizi, b/br, on first glance I wasn’t impressed but looking down at him now he has a really good front & a very pleasing expression. He is nice & short & also moved OK when he got going. Good bend of stifle, actually quite a nice puppy;

3 Rowe & South’s Illori Akinlana.

PD (0).

JD (8)

Not a good class, a lot of heavy stuff, short muzzles, big heads, lippy.

1 Hawken’s Carfury Bal Dhu, this was one of the better ones, still a bit lippy but not excessive. A fairly short muzzle but not overdone. Short in body by virtue of a short coupling, good front. A bit wider than 2 & 3 making it more desirable. Pleasing expression, good temperament, wagging his tail all the time I am doing this, strong rear;

2 McDermott’s Macadermus Midnight Caller, another with typical expression, spoilt a tad by some wrinkling on the muzzle. That said this dog hasn’t got a particularly heavy muzzle. A quite well balanced dog, good bone & strong back end. Not overdone, ribwise;

3 Hirst & Bibby’s Taraiel Busta Rhymes.

YD (8,1)

1 Butler’s Ramblestaff Cos I Could, a really outstanding b/br/w dog, flashy even. I actually preferred the head shape of 2. A word of explanation here – if we are just judging heads then positions might have been reversed. That’s not to detract from the head on this dog, he has a very attractive expression, muzzle & skull proportions spot on & tight lips as well. As for the rest of this dog, well he has everything. For instance, good bone & a front to die for, you couldn’t stand this dog wrong if you tried, very sound. Good bend of stifle, in fact good everything, a well balanced dog, short coupled, strong rear quarters, well developed rib, level topline. A good friend of mine & now an icon of the breed once said of one of our puppies “a sure fire Champion” – well these sentiments apply in good measure to this dog. Well done to the owner & the breeders. Today I had no difficulty in awarding him the CC & BOB;

2 Lavington’s Caymenstaffs One In A Million, b/br, a terrific head on this dog as I have already said above. Another one which is clean cut with no hint of wrinkle & very tight lip. Another outstanding dog, the front on him looks fantastic, really strong bone. This dog is slightly longer in the back compared to 1 but has a well developed body. However he is rather over angulated at the back, not much you can do about that, have forgiven this in the past but up against 1, not today;

3 Booth & Grimwood’s Ramblestaff Just Like Eddy.

ND (2,1)

1 Tiezelstaffs Moonshine Bay, VHD in MP.

PGD (12,1)

1 Membury’s Mitzstaff Crazy Cuz, b/br, Standard sized dog, typical pleasing expression, rose ears, good front, nicely balanced dog with enough rib, good back end, good weight of bone;

2 Shepherd’s Smokemonts Back To Black, b/br, I actually liked this dog the best but the topline was a bit of a let down although it looks alright as I am doing this. (Hope I’m not mistaken). Another of those heads with super expression, muzzle/skull in proportion & even more pleasing, clean in the lip/muzzle. Good strong bone, good front in fact. Body wise matches his height, rear quarters spot on, well let down at the hock;

3 Hanford’s Ginstean Black Bomber.

LD (7)

Difficult class this with a mixture of virtues & faults.

1 Muir & Quinn’s Diamonds Of Blanch Rium Black Steel, in the end I plumped for this Standard sized all black dog with a good front, slightly fleshy muzzle. He has a reasonable expression, well sprung rib, short backed;

2 Fulford’s Elitebull Heartbreaker for Regalbull, not entirely suited with the expression. Would prefer a rounder eye. Very similar to 1, a cleaner front on this dog if anything but not as much rib;

3 Ryan’s Rubericla Black Starscream.

OD (11)

1 Membury’s Mitzstaff Fun To Flex, another Standard sized b/br dog. Well boned, this dog is not overdone in any shape or form. Good head shape & expression, ears a bit flighty. Good spring of rib, short coupled, acceptable rear quarters. RCC;

2 Davies’ Ch Eclypstaff Cuz I Can, seen him better. Good weight of bone, nice tidy dog, good bend of stifle, well sprung rib & depth of rib, really strong back end, pleasing expression. Looks at you all the time;

3 English’s Engstaff Hey Joe.

GCD 1

I Azizi.

VB (2)

1 Funnell’s Ch Kewaunee Pocahontas for Powerpack, b/br, not a difficult decision this, excelled in this class. Fantastic back end, in good condition at age 7. A really pretty face, petite size, compact, nice front, worthy ch at the end of the day;

2 Roberts’ Denbright My Precious at Jamborob, red 10 years old, carrying some extra weight (too many puddings). Quite alert.

MPB (4,1)

Three very different contrasting puppies in this class.

1 Johnston’s Ginstean My Girl Lollipop, b/br, very pleasing 6 months puppy, well made & well balanced, nice front, good weight of bone, beautiful face & expression, excellent;

2 English’s Pantycelyn Star Choice, b/br, top size, upstanding bitch. Totally different head shape to 1 (not the stop & top skull) but a very clean muzzle, hard expression, good weight of bone, good back end, balanced for her size;

3 Thomas’ Sunnystone Bit Of Brimstone.

PB (6,2)

I liked all these puppies making it difficult to choose.

1 Lindsay’s Aldwych Moon River, b/br, nice front with good bone, good size, hard expression, good clean lip, nicely balanced, stifles well bent. BPB;

2 G My Girl Lollipop;

3 Barke’s Felkirkstaff At Starhaze.

JB (8)

1 Duncan’s Nettleworth No Nonsense, b/br, I was bowled over by this girl, what a superb looking bitch this is. Really straight front, super head, the usual superlatives apply – expression, eye placement, correct muzzle/skull proportions, I could go on. Same sentiments apply to her body – well balanced with a deep brisket, well sprung rib, short coupling, strong back end. And sound as well, yes, altogether fantastic. CC;

2 Meek & Hale’s Pridesdale Spanish Delight, r/w, deceptive this one, she grew on me as the class progressed. Quite a strong head, fantastic mover, black nails (always looks good on a red), rich red coat, topline not brilliant (can’t have everything, can we). Good strong back end, front on looks very similar to 1 (except for the colour of course). Bit too much weight on her;

3 Turner & Birchall’s Dinostaff Red Tiger Lily.

YB (6)

1 Wilks’ Mishdar’s Special Order for Jevaces, b/br, a bit low down for me but in this class I thought she was the best one. A wide looking front (meaning too wide, maybe she could be stood narrower). Quite a pleasing head & expression, quite compact, looking down on her plenty of rib & depth of rib, short coupled, good bend of stifle;

2 Dyer’s Cadarnbull The Sixth Sense, br/w, I thought her expression is spoilt a bit by her ears (although my photo of her has her ears perfect). This is one of those dogs that you have to look at again to see the best of her, as on balance she is a very nice bitch. She has quite a clean head, good front with good bone, slightly long cast, good strong back end, deep brisket;

3 Hirst & Bibby’s Taraiel Lorde.

NB (3)

1 T Lorde, couldn’t resist this head I’m afraid, its fantastic. A worthy winner in this class;

2 Green’s Jewelstaff Miss Chief at Fromestaff, b/br/w, different bitch altogether. Quite strong bone, compact, short backed, good bend of stifle, maybe a bit over angulated at the back. Deep brisket, ear placement tends to detract from quite a pleasing expression;

3 Funnell’s Lackyle Oiche Eiri for Powerpack.

PGB (8,1)

1 Cunningham & Anderson’s Krosren Nannie Dee, another fantastic head on this b/br. Standing too wide but a good sound front nonetheless. Back to the head I was going to say its near perfect but really it is perfect – don’t think I have to say any more. Bodily she has it all – well balanced rib & height matches body length. Presented in really good nick, well done for that. Would like a bit more strength in the rear, perhaps there is just enough. RCC;

2 Rainsford & Stevens’ Raynstaff Didia Ever, b/br/w, had some trouble moving as she tried to hoover the grass. A smart bitch, pleasing expression verging on the pretty. Nice bend of stifle, good front, enough bone;

3 Booth & Grimwood’s Dalstaff’s Razzmatazz With Ramblestaff.

LB (15,3)

1 Johnston & Brown’s Revelry Custom Made, b/br, active & agile is the keyword here. She is in really good condition, attractive head, not overdone in any way shape or form. Good spring of rib, well angulated at either end, good front. Yes, very nice;

2 Rogers’ Berrystock Charlies Angel, b/br/w, a different type again. Strong headed bitch, very attractive. On first examination I had her first, so this was very close. Compact, strong back end;

3 Desmond’s Elitebull Elegance.

OB (10,1)

1 Stanway & McCulloch’s Waystaff Sea The Stars, b/br, very smart bitch, she looks really well today. Another attractive head & expression, balanced body, nice front & weight of bone, outstanding;

2 Wilson’s Eclypstaff There You Go at Kalverin, b/br/w. A bit of a fidget but even so she shows really well. She has a pleasing head & expression, good front with plenty of bone, very impressive powerful rear quarters. Slightly over angulated though, you can’t have everything. She is looking at me now & she looks beautiful;

3 Rainsford & Stevens’ Raynstaff Do You Know Who I Am.

TEC NORTON

Go To Top Of Page