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Fianlly it was all over. He had performed so well that we began to think that maybe we had a chance of being shortlisted. All we had to do was wait until the Dalwood Dog of the Year was judged before they announced the final 10. The PA crackled again. The annoucement was being made. Suddenly "467 Samoyed" was being called. We'd made it. What a buzz to have got this far. The final judging would be under a panel of four jduges and each dog would be scored out of 25 points. Now all we had to do was wait till dinner was over.

It was getting dark. The lights were switched on. Fantastic! Samoyeds look lovely under lights. The judges emerged and the finalists were called into the ring. Would he continue his performance or was he tired and hungry and fall in a heap. I couldn't belive my eyes. He was getting better and better. The final score sheets were handed to the steward. Another wait until the Dalwood Dog of the year fianlists were judged and then the presentations.

The room was filled with people and dogs. The scores had not been added up. The Compere was telling jokes, trying to keep the nervous crowd occupied. The prises were announced. What a trophy table! Not your average show. The announcments were being made for the Dalwood Superpup 1995. My hands were sweating, my heart was beating so loudly I'm sure the lady next to me could hear it. Third place ......................., second place ....................., first place "467 Samoyed". The tears were pouring down my face. I was so proud, proud for our boy, proud for the handler, proud to represent the Samoyed breed.

This could only happen once in a lifetime.

Previous \| Brians Home Page \| Next	"Once in a Lifetime" By Vicki Ullman, 1995
	The weekend of the Dalwood Superpup 1995 finally arrived. What a change, no early morning rising as the show did not start till 2pm. Plenty of time to take everyone for a nice long relaxing walk and run on the oval. The trip to Sydney was uneventful and we arrived in plenty of time to find our ring and set up at ringside. Two pm arraived, the PA crackled. The announcer introduced the panel of twelve judges. TWELVE! I nealy died then and there. The process was simple. The entrants were split into three rings, four judges per ring. The dogs would move from one judge to another until each of the four judges had examined each dog. The judge would then examine each dog on the move. Each judge would score each dog and hand the scores to the steward. The judges would then rotate between the three rings and the process start again until all 12 judges had scored all the dogs. The enstrants with the top 10 scores would be selected for the final judging. My heart was thumping. What had we let ourselves in for? How would the boy handle all of those people going over him? How long would he be out there? It was getting so hot! Thank goodness I was not on the other end of the lead. The next hour and a half was a bit of a blur. I was trying to stay calm. He was hehaving so well, four feet planted firmly on the ground, ears up and alert, moving around the ring like a little trooper. I started to wonder what had happened to the puppy I loved so much.
Fianlly it was all over. He had performed so well that we began to think that maybe we had a chance of being shortlisted. All we had to do was wait until the Dalwood Dog of the Year was judged before they announced the final 10. The PA crackled again. The annoucement was being made. Suddenly "467 Samoyed" was being called. We'd made it. What a buzz to have got this far. The final judging would be under a panel of four jduges and each dog would be scored out of 25 points. Now all we had to do was wait till dinner was over. It was getting dark. The lights were switched on. Fantastic! Samoyeds look lovely under lights. The judges emerged and the finalists were called into the ring. Would he continue his performance or was he tired and hungry and fall in a heap. I couldn't belive my eyes. He was getting better and better. The final score sheets were handed to the steward. Another wait until the Dalwood Dog of the year fianlists were judged and then the presentations. The room was filled with people and dogs. The scores had not been added up. The Compere was telling jokes, trying to keep the nervous crowd occupied. The prises were announced. What a trophy table! Not your average show. The announcments were being made for the Dalwood Superpup 1995. My hands were sweating, my heart was beating so loudly I'm sure the lady next to me could hear it. Third place ......................., second place ....................., first place "467 Samoyed". The tears were pouring down my face. I was so proud, proud for our boy, proud for the handler, proud to represent the Samoyed breed. This could only happen once in a lifetime.

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