26th November 2021

 
 Hilary Davies has kindly sent the following: “We held the BAD on 13th November at Tankersley Welfare Hall near Barnsley. As most of the candidates were originally booked for our previous date in 2020 which had to be postponed due to COVID, it was not widely advertised this time round. Mary and I organised it on behalf of the NSC, and we had 6 helpers. We had 22 candidates booked, although a few were not able to make it at the last minute. This was a manageable number for the hall, the number of helpers and COVID social distancing.
The morning started with homemade cake and tea/coffee as everyone arrived. I asked everyone to bring an extra layer in case it was cold because we were leaving two windows open for ventilation. What I hadn’t reckoned on was the warmest, sunniest day in November for ages! We finished up with the door wide open, never mind the windows!  Mary Sanders Parker was introduced as our speaker for the morning. She started by giving a brief introduction on the history of the breed followed by a detailed illustrated talk on the breed standard based on the booklet she has written on the subject and which she presented as a webinar earlier in the year. She also included several historical videos of the Saronas and top salukis from the 70’s/ early 80’s at a show. There was also a section on how ‘ to go over a saluki’ as a judge and then everyone went outside to watch 4 or 5 salukis move, followed by the opportunity for the candidates to gain some hands on experience. Lunch followed - all main course food home cooked and prepared by myself and desserts supplied by Adele Walton Haddon. Everyone had a choice. Mary had organised to borrow some archive material from the SGHC which was on display for people to enjoy during the lunch break. All 17 candidates present took the MCE in the afternoon and 8 of them passed. Certificates were handed out and all candidates received a copy of Mary’s booklet.”
 
In this week’s ‘Our Dogs’ Afghan Breed notes John Bloor has written about his attending the NSC BAD.  I have been given permission to reprint it: “Last  Weekend I spent an enjoyable day with the Northern Saluki Club where Mary Sanders Parker (Classicus) delivered an excellent and insightful presentation covering the Saluki Breed Standard.  She also arranged an excellent display of achieve photographs and magazine article depicting the breed throughout the last century or so.  It was interesting that the Salukis of 100 years ago were broadly similar to the Salukis we see in the ring today. Contrast that with photographs of Afghan Hounds from 100 or even 50 years ago and even if we take account improved nutrition, grooming methods and grooming products, can we honestly say the same about our breed?  As Mary stated so eloquently, we are simply the custodians of our breed and we should hand them over to the next generation just as they were handed to us.  The Afghan Hound Breed standard is quite specific about a number of unique breed points and breeders and judges should have these fixed in their minds to ensure we remain on the right track.
 Hopefully the Judges Education Programme provides an opportunity for some of this to be put across to prospective judges, just as Mary did so well about the Salukis during her presentation, but it does none of us any harm to look to the past as a reminder of the origins of our breed, the job it should be capable of performing and to review whether the dogs we are breeding or placing in the ring today still conform to the template agreed almost 100 years ago and which has remained largely unchanged since 1946.” John then asks if there are any comments on this
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Reminder that dues for the Saluki or Gazelle Hound Club and the Northern Saluki Club are due on the 1stJanuary of each year.  The Clubs cannot function without their members and their dues.  The SGHC has invited members to nominate judges for the Club’s 2024 Championship Show and Open Show in 2023.  The special criteria for judges at Club shows are that judges for the Championship show must be Breed Specialists for the A1, A2 or A3 lists.(see SGHC Yearbook)  Judges for the Open Show may be Breed Specialists or non-specialists from the A or B lists only.  As 2023 is the Club’s Centenary year, the Kennel Club has granted them 2 sets of CCs.  In view of this the Committee has decided not to hold a Limited show in 2023.  There will be three shows, an Open Show and two Shows with CCs. The usual October Championship Show and the Centenary Show in June.  (As the KC has now deemed the Club can have two sets of CCs each year, does that not mean the Club could have three sets in the Centenary year?)
here to edit.