Judging the Dutch Championships

Karen and Kath were honoured to be invited to be the judges of the Dutch Championships in October.  It was a busy weekend with 4 levels of Junior Classes to judge and 5 levels of "adult" classes to judge each day.

The journey there was arduous with two lengthy delays on the 50 minute flight and a packed train journey from Amsterdam during the Friday evening rush hour with change of train across many platforms!!

But they were greeted at the station by Rene Delsink who whisked them off to meet with his wife Marina at the venue of the competition. Both the British judges had done a lot of homework before travelling to make sure that they were familiar with the Dutch rules and had a live marking sheet to be able to note all the points in the correct category.  There are several differences from the UK rules, the main one being that the Dutch have 18 (yes, 18) heelwork positions as opposed the UK’s 8.  

 Lots of awards on offer for the talented winners.  The organisers were very pleased with the entry which was a large one for Holland; 46 teams on Saturday and 47 teams on Sunday.  Kath and Karen were the only judges for the weekend but were well taken care of with regular breaks.  The day had an old fashioned feel to it from when entries were smaller in the UK and everything went along at a stately pace.  However, with marks to give and comments to write on each participant’s sheet it was a busy day for them.

Karen and Kath were well positioned behind the desks inside the ring away from all distractions with a good viewpoint for the routines on the AstroTurfed ring area .

During their many breaks it was good to be able to wander around the village where  the Championships were being held.  

The houses in Holland all seem very well kept with so many having a duo of ornaments in the windows or in this case a pair of identical trees and identical flowering shrubs.

Their accommodation was at a splendid Bed and Breakfast Steppenstijn which was run by a wonderful host called Stijnie. Each evening on arrival at the B and B there was always something a little special left for them from Stijnie.  A small bottle of wine, some home made brownies and little cakes typical to the region. 

The very attractive main house.

 This was where Karen and Kath spent their evenings after the competition. 

They were well looked after with huge separate bedrooms, a sitting area and a sauna!

The view from the bedrooms!

No wonder they slept well - it was ideal being so quiet!

At the end of the competition, all the Club members who had worked so hard to make the event run smoothly joined the judges for dinner.  Gifts were exchanged with Marina and Rene with thanks all round and then Kath and Karen were driven back to the B andB for their final night in Holland.  Stijnie, their host at the B and B was to drive Kath and Karen to the railway station to start their homeward journey. 

During breakfast Stijnie ensured that they would be taking a direct train to the airport to save them having to change en-route.  Fond farewells were made at the station and happily the train that arrived had lots of room and a choice of seats all the way into Amsterdam.  Kath and Karen chose to sit upstairs on the double-decker train where they could relax and enjoy the views on their journey. 

Kath and Karen would like to thank Marina and Rene Delsink for inviting them to judge and to all the competitors for making it a very enjoyable weekend.

Success for Dewy

Dewy, one of the youngest members of Top Lodge Dancing Dogs, has started his career with flying colours this year.  He has moved up the classes from Novice to Intermediate HTM with his first two competitions, gaining a 1st and a 2nd place, and now done the same with his first two Freestyle competitions, gaining a 1st place - and then a 1st place again!  Which moves him up from Novice to Intermediate Freestyle too.

This young dog is showing great promise and together Lesley and Dewy have already been described as "The Fred Astair and  Ginger Rogers of Freestyle"!

Top Lodge Dancing Dog Promotional Video

Click the picture to watch some past performances from the Top Lodge Dancing Dog Team.  

Check out the website for contact details www.dancingdogs.co.uk
Thanks to Nicci Hindson for making this video.

Top Lodge Dancing Dogs Are In TEAM GB

The Top Lodge Team of dogs and handlers have been so busy this year training and teaching their dogs as they had five of the 9 dogs representing Great Britain in Team GB at the European Championships held in Holland in September. 

Here is Kath with HTM Team member Amber and Freestyle Member Spice and Denby who went for the journey.

This is Karen with Freestyle Reserve Erin and her new pup Midge.  Sadly Fly should have been with the HTM Team but had to undergo surgery too close to the Championship to be able to compete.  Happy to say she is now recovering very well.

And here is Lesley with her Beardies Hamish in HTM Team and Dewy who like Denby went for the journey!
For more information, photographs and results visit the Open European Team GB Blog

A Day At The Dogs!!

The Top Lodge Dancing Dog Team were invited to entertain during the lunch break at the huge annual gathering of Retired Greyhounds at Nottingham Race Course for a Greyhound and Companion Dog Show and Family Fun Day. 

The weather was superb for late September and the crowds were arriving well before opening time.

Lots of Trade Stands selling toys, dog food, dog wear including some superb ornate greyhound collars -  which really do look very nice around their slender necks.

The Horse Racing Parade Ring was used for the different categories to be judged and was the area where Top Lodge would be dancing.

This is one of the Top Lodge supporters - he pops along with his Barn Owl to see them whenever they are in Nottinghamshire.  He used to breed owls - now just keeps this one as his pet.

A line up of the "Black Bitch Class"

Lesley with Hamish and Karen with Kes and Midge and Kath with Amber ready for the lunchtime dancing.

Top Lodge parade around the Parade Ring!!  

Kath with Amber had new partners for the duet!  As Fly is recovering from surgery, Lesley stepped in with Hamish as they performed HTM to "I Was Born To Love You" by Freddie Mercury.

 Looking good in step with each other.

 Well Done Lesley and Hamish - they learnt the routine in just one week.

Next in the ring was Karen with Erin - her Irish rescue.  Erin is the dog most like a greyhound in the Top Lodge "Pack" and the audience was particularly impressed with how well she worked and danced with Karen.

Lots of smiles from the audience - they were probably wondering if a greyhound could possibly do as well as Erin.   (There were some huge greyhounds at this gathering - one was visibly 2 inches higher than the average height and weighed in at 45k - not a dog to teach to jump onto anyone's back!)

Denby took to the grass next with Kath to "dance" freestyle to "You Give A Little Love" from Bugsy Malone"

 Yes, looking at those eyes - definitely a sheep dog!!!

 Denby loves his jumps!

After Denby had finished, Lesley took over the ring with young Dewy to perform his freestyle routine to "The Night They Invented Champagne"

Well Done Dewy - his second Public Appearance and loving every minute.

And another first for the team - Spice had to stand in (well actually Stand, Sit, Roll, Beg, Crawl, Jump etc etc)  for Fly on the "Beat The Dog" with children invited into the ring.

 She did really well with great directions from Karen and cues from Kath!!

A lovely little beg from Spice who used the time with the children as her warm up for the final routine.

Spice and Kath finished the Top Lodge display with their old favourite "Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines".

The ground was so lush it made for hard work for such a fast routine!

 But they reached the finish without needing oxygen. 

 The first of the "Novelty Fun Classes" was Fancy Dress for Dog and Handler.

 The Lion Trainer with the lion and lioness.   "Super-dog" and his pack!

 Bo-Peep with her Sheep.

 The Surgeon Greyhound with Nurse.

 The Winner - Alice in Wonderland and the Mad Hatters Tea Party.

 Harry Potter - dog!!

Thank you to the Retired Greyhound Gathering 2013 for inviting the Top Lodge Dancing Dog Team to entertain you.  It was certainly a very good venue and the team received great feedback from many of the audience.

The Essex Dog Day

The Essex Dog Day - raising funds for PARC - the first time Top Lodge had performed at this show.

Plenty of attractions in the Main Ring for the visitors.

 David Seamark Sheepdog Demonstration

 Karen and her new puppy Midge had a family gathering with her siblings and relatives.

Fly's brother came along with uncle, aunty and many more - it was a "Border Collie Fest"!!

 And puppy Midge met other puppies - it was a very busy day for her!

 The birds of prey were a wonderful sight.

 Jemima Parry Jones gave a wonderful display with her many birds.

 And of course Top Lodge Dancing Dogs were busy with two performances in the Main Arena.

 Young Midge again featured strongly showing how she is learning Heel Work.

 A very happy puppy.

  Denby also showed some Heelwork positions.

And he completed his first demonstration routine!!   He did all the moves but not necessarily in the order that Kath had planned!

 Denby does like to jump and makes it look so easy!

 It was a début for Dewy too, Lesley's young dog.

They both enjoyed their freestyle routine to "The Night They Invented Champagne".

Thank you to the PARC Chair, Sarah Courage, and all the PARC Committee for inviting the Top Lodge Dancing Dog Team to entertain at this super event.