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 I have owned pure breed dogs for most of my life; a Yorkshire Terrier and an Afghan while still a teenager and then after my children were born, I ventured into conformation showing, purchasing my first Shih Tzu in the late seventies. However, it was the Lhasa Apso that became my preoccupation and early in the eighties, the first Lhasa Apso joined my household. Since then, I have shown , bred and judged this breed both in Australia and overseas.
There have been many highlights in my showing/breeding career but having owned and bred an Australian Grand Champion, Grd Ch Kailasa Fantasy On Ice , would have to be one of the most memorable. For a number of years, she dominated breed wins and took a good share of group wins as well, becoming an invitee to the prestigious Contest Of Winners.
The first group in which I attained a judges licence, was the Non Sporting group. Having owned and bred both Shih Tzus and Lhasa Apsos, this was the most obvious. However, my love of the Löwchen and my interest in Toys led to the attainment of my Toy licence as well. I first came across the Löwchen almost twenty years ago and have been enamoured by their charm and personality ever since; taking the odd one into the ring from time to time and now regularly campaigning the breed.
I have judged both in my home state of Western Australia and on the east coast. I have also been fortunate to have been invited to judge both National and International shows in Europe where I have adjudicated a number of breeds in the FCI Groups Two, Five, Eight and Nine . I was also honoured to be invited to judge the Shih Tzu Club of Victoria’s Ruby Anniversary show in 2004. As an extension to my judging , I have also been invited to deliver lectures to trainee judges , in particular the Lhasa Apso, Shih Tzu and Tibetan Terrier.
I believe in giving something back to the canine world and have worked on several committees over the last decade. I am currently the secretary of the Canine Fund Raisers committee and the Oriental Breeds Society of WA. I am also a committee member of the Non Sporting Dog Club and the All Breeds Dog Club.
I have been a columnist for National Dog magazine , now National Dog The Ringleader Way, for a number of years and in this capacity, have also written features including those on judging the Lhasa Apso, the Hungarian Puli and also on progressive retinal atrophy; an eye disease which has taken my interest since its discovery in the Lhasa Apso in the 1990s. I am currently one of the two Australian delegates to the International Lhasa Apso Congress, an organisation interested in monitoring this and other diseases in this breed.
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