Click below for Results from the 5th Bullmastiff Nationals

(c) BMCVIC 2010

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Bullmastiff Club of Victoria Champ Show 2010

Glenn SPARHAM: Gameguard Bullmastiffs

Firstly I would like to thank everyone involved in the show, it is always an honour to judge your own breed, especially in your own country and also receive a decent entry. My decisions were received well and the sportsmanship was first class. I must admit I had a harder time of things than expected, the style of dog varied greatly and it was sometimes hard to stick “to type.” Even within kennels there were some specimens I placed high and others that may have a similar appearance I over looked all together. I hope this critique goes some way to explain my reasoning.

I found two things disappointing in Victoria, firstly front assembly and secondly length of back. I can’t sugar coat it…and put simply the fronts overall were poor. It’s not just a Victorian issue, quality fronts are almost non existent around the world, my kennel is no exception and I spend a lot of time searching the web hoping to introduce new blood that excel in this area. It is very easy to get depth of front and straight front legs, but when you add width to the equation, things become tricky. Even more so when you want a good length of upper arm and sloping shoulders. Only then will a prominent pro sternum be seen out the front of the point of shoulder when viewed in profile. I could count the number of excellent fronts on one hand and only a few more who needed a little work. Amongst other qualities, good fronts allowed my top winners to stand above the rest.

The other main issue which is creeping into the breed is long backs, it is such a problem that even short backed dogs are probably a tad longer than the standard requires, people are just so used to seeing long ones. The standard says “short” and when viewed against other breed standards this translates to “off square.” My personal interpretation is no more than a few inches longer in total length than height. Long bodies is a trait that used to be the sole the domain of USA bred dogs but this is no longer the case. Incidentally on the day there were a few dogs with USA blood that were also quite acceptable in this area. You may have noticed that I did reward a few longer dogs but in the end you are judging the whole animal. I could not discard an animal with one of my pet hates (Even if it is a threat to breed type) if it excels in a number of other areas. But this needs to be addressed urgently.

Head type was varied too, small triangular ears are rare and so is a clean expression. A number of over wrinkled heads with large rounded ears are creeping in. This gives a foreign expression. I must admit temperment was exceptional, none looked as though they wanted to take my throat out and the majority were easy going. Most animals were well boned with well sprung ribs. A correct turn of stifle with strong second thigh and short hocks was typical. A number of years ago rear assemblies were atrocious, so well done on this improvement. Apart from most animals being overly long, outlines were far better than other States. Toplines were quite good which is difficult to achieve. The combination of well arched necks flowing into level toplines and then smoothly over the rear is a pleasant surprise. The frames of some bitches were impressive as they were strong whilst being feminine. While I try not to be negative I feel this is the only forum where you can reasonably express your opinion in the hope things may be addressed, so I grab the opportunity with both hands!