Isn't it funny  how we all just jump out of bed at any time of the night or early morning to get to a show in time? I had entered Blondie (T Bit of Class) to the Swedish Spaniel and Retriever Club Ch show in Hammarö just outside Karlstad. It isn't that far off from where I live, 270 kilometres one way, but since there are so many speed limits along the way it still took us 4 hours to get to the show. The venue was good but since it was being held in a stable house the sorrounding area was very dirty and moddy due to the rain. After the judging had been completed we went upstairs to have some lunch in the restaurant. We got a really plentiful good meal for a fair price - how often does that happen? I am glad every time it does!

Judge on the day was Mr Vidar Grundetjern, Watch-Out's Labradors. He awarded the DCAC and BOB to a  Mallorn's Impulse from intermediate.  BCAC and BOS was won by a yellow, also from intermediate, Poster's Sweet Juliet. That made this day a really Scandinavian day since the judge was from Norway, BOB from Finland, BOS from Denmark, both Swedish owned!

Blondie was placed 3rd with CC quality in Open out of 17 entries.

Before the 1960's, not alot happened in Labradors in Sweden, but there were a few breeders before then whose efforts made a difference and one of those were Irma Brusewitz-Ohlsson, kennel av Oppensten.

It was in the 1930's Irma decided she wanted a good Labrador bitch. That would  not have been easy but Irma was an ambitios lady. In those days everything was more difficult with travelling or even to get in touch with someone over the phone. I am far from sure you would be able to phoning someone youself in the 30's without having to ordering the call in advance. Because of those difficulties, the connections with the outside world were more restricted and certainly writing was the way to staying in touch with anyone abroad up until fairly recently.

Irma used the services of an UK agent called Mr Bishop of Watford Heath, Herts. On 17th April 1936 he replied to a letter from Irma:
"Dear Madam, Many thanks for your letter. I am active in negotiation for the Labrador, and will let you know immediately I succeed in obtaining the right one".

After that things must have happened fast since the next letter is dated on 23rd of April, that same year. Probably they have kept in touch through telegrams as he then writes:
"Dear Madam, Many thanks for your letter. I have today bought the Labrador - Betty of Tibshelf. They are expecting her in season any time, and I have asked them to let me know immediately".

After that nothing happened as is often the case when you desperately are looking forward for your bitch to due in season but at last, on June 18th,  Irma receives the following delightful news:
"Dear Madam. I am pleased to inform you that the Labrador Betty of Tibshelf was mated last week /3rd-4th of June/ to a well known winning dog, Broom of Tibshelf. Please send by Air Mail the Export License and I will notify you when she will arrive".

Mr Bishop received good news from Irma and wrote her on August 11th;
"Dear Mrs Ohlsson. I am delighted with your good news. I am always ready to do my best and help anyone in Sweden. I said Betty was one of the best Labs that ever went out of the Country"

Mr Severn of Tibshelf Labradors is not mentioned in any of the letters so obviously Betty had been sold on to someone else. Pictured is Betty with her lovely litter, Irma must have been so proud and thrilled to have them.

 Friday 21st, I set off early in the morning to attend the Swedish Terrier Club's judge's conference and Derby show in Borås, an hour drive north east of Gothenburg. It turned out to be a very exciting and pleasant week-end and the Terrier Club certainly deserves credit for a work very well done. It is so easily done to forget a detail or two but here everything was thought of to perfection and I am convinced everyone enjoyed themselves to the full.

There were of course some very interesting lectures. Mr Peter Eva from the UK started off with his breed, the Manchester Terrier and was followed by Mr Terry Burgess who held the lecture on the English Toy Terrier. After the presentation of those two breeds some very interesting discussions followed and the vital points that seperates these breeds were pointed out very clearly.

Siv Jernhake then took over to present the Nihon Teria and the Terrier Brasiliero - again a very interesting lecture and some interesting photos on overhead on view.

Following the last presentation we retired to our rooms for a while before  dinner was served. The meals  were all very good and is a natural meeting point for further discussions on the day's topics.

After having a good night's sleep, it was time for Saturdays presentations which was started by Dr Brian Hill who spoke on the Bull & Minatyre Bull Terrier. Dan Ericsson then took over to lecture on the Irish Softcoated Wheaten Terrier before we had lunch  and then went on to Mr Michael Camac lecture on the Silky Terrier. Next breed on line was the Deutscher Jagdterrier (Tysk jaktterrier) and Ann-Christin Molin did that presentation before the whole conference was rounded off by Dan Ericsson, Nina Karlsdotter and Eva Lejdbrandt.

Obviously I can only speak for myself, but at least my brain was pretty 'loaded' after all those interesting lectures and there wouldn't have been any room for more! Again it was a very pleasant dinner and I was looking forward to doing Skye Terriers the following day at the Derby Show.

The venue was excellent and it is, as it was in this case, a definate advantage for long coated breeds to have a reasonable clean ground for the coat to fall on to. In Sweden stable houses are frequently used for shows and they are of course allright for Labradors and other short coated varietys but for a breed like the Skye Terrier those kind of venues are not ideal. I also had the great advantage to do something that in Sweden is known as passiv student judging on the Scottish Terrier. That basically means you go beside the judge when he/she handles the dogs, watch carefully how they do it and sometimes we are even allowed, depending on the judge and the exhibitors, to go over one or two dogs overselves. In this case Ann-Christin Molin was the judge, the entry was a good one and well worth studying.  I then met up with my sister Ann-Marie and brother in-law Thomas and their border terrier Budda to chat over a cup of coffee before it was time to take on the task of judging the Skye Terrier entry. The photo is of Ann-Marie and me.

I had been looking forward to this assignment for a long time and felt very honoured to having been asked to do it. The quality was very good and the well presented Skyeomania's Hugh from intermediate was awarded the DCAC, best dog and BOS. Ch Finnsky Acasia, a top quality bitch from veteran on very good form won best bitch and BOB followed by Ch Skyeotts Chantelle, another very nice bitch, from the champion class. In the final later in the afternoon, Ch Finnsky Acasia was placed 4th in best veteran in show, judged by Dan Ericsson. Unfortuantely I don't have any photo of the best of breed competition as the hall was too dark to get any descent photos, at least with my camera.

Pictured is the black bitch Ch Isolde (Ch Nattens Domino x Puhs Sissone) and her owner Ingrid Carlsson. Here she is seen winning BCAC and BOB under Norwegian allrounder Tore Edmund at SKK Borås 1976. Later that day she was also placed 4th in the gundog group.

Ingrid Carlsson stopped showing Labradors in the beginning of the 80's but Isolde became part of an important Labrador family in Sweden.

She had several litters by Ballyduff Maroon (Ch S Mark - Ch B Marina) and from the first of those came the black dog Imperial. In Bat Brulin's (Puhs) ownership he became Ch Imperial. Bred to Puhs Cardemon, he sired the important sire Ch Puhs Imp. Ingrid Carlsson had a bitch from the litter, Ch Puhs Imphala and Ewa Wumer's Puhs Impertience was the dam of Ch Rodarbal Xedous.

I found a couple of photos taken when Mrs Broadley (Sandylands) judged the breed at SSRK Kungsbacka in 1976.

Mrs Gwen Broadley (1906-1999), Sandylands Labradors, is our grand old lady in the breed and known throughout the world for her  super Labradors, knowledge and kindness.

In the photo I'm showing Mallards Cow Dong -by Sandylands Geoff out of Kamrats Charade. He had a brother who won 2 CAC in his career and he was Mallards Bloody Butcher.

The yellow dog below is Proud Fänrik Stål, he won the DCAC at this show but was beaten for BOB by Licithas Poppet, dam of Blizzard. No photo of her unfortunately.  Fänrik Stål was sired by Ch Nattens War Cry out of Ballyduff Zephyr.

Above are two photos of two lovely black Labrador dogs.

Ken Burton is showing Ch Keysun Teko of Blondella born 1974 (by Ch S Mark) at over 13 years of age. Just look and take notice of how beautiful this dog is in condition, as well as in make and shape obviously.

Hazel Burton is showing Blondella Bally Who JW born 1982, litterbrother of the better known Sh Ch Blondella Ballerina, both by Ch Charway Ballywillwill ex Blondella Mollywog. I had the great privilege to own Bally Who, 'Duffy', in partnership with Hazel and Ken from 1988 when he was brought over to Sweden. He lived to be 13 1/2 years old and was put to sleep in 1995. Duffy was a gentle dog, so affectionate and very easy going. It is a pity his tail somewhat vanishes in the photo but other than that it gives a fairly accurate picture of what he looked like. He had the most beautiful head and expression. Ken and Hazel said his head was the best they had ever bred.

My first British Labradorbook was 'Labradors' by the late Mrs Miriam Kinsella 'Brentchase'. I found it simply by coincidence in a bookstore in Gothenburg. To say I was thrilled would be an understatement and I couldn't stop reading it. My grades in English went straight up!

By this time I already had a couple of British penfriends, but they had one snag: they didn't care much about dogs. So I wrote to Mrs Kinsella, expressed my admiration of her book and asked her if she knew anyone about my age that would be interested to write to me.

After a few weeks I got a letter from Mrs Kinsella, yes, she knew a lad whose father bred and showed Labradors and he often joined him to help out with the dogs. This was Murray Parsons, and his father was of course the Reverend Michael Parsons. Their big pride was 'Tex', Sh Ch Melfin Half Guinea, he had been made up and he got tickets under names like Gwen Broadley, Jessie Taylor, Michael Boothroyd, Jean Waring and Peggy Rae. Mrs Broadley brought Sandylands Buzy Liz to him but unfortunately it didn't result in any surviving puppies. We bought a lovely son of his who unfortuantely only lived to be 9 months old due to bad hips, those things were much more frequent in those days and many un-xrayed Labradors were being bred from.

My parents and me visited the Parsons when we once stayed for a week in London in 1977, they lived in Ipswich so it was an easy journey . I did enjoy writing to Murray but he wasn't as interested in Labs as I was, so his father Michael and I became penpals instead. There are no such things as ages in the world of dogs! Eventually Michael and his family went to live in Texas, USA, where he passed away in 2002.

Raya was my first Labrador and was born on 30th April 1973. She was bred by Charlotte Lindell and was sired by Int Ch Powhatan Sentry out of Roydwood Right In Line, so that was a very nice pedigree with some top class British Labradors close up in the pedigree. Right In Line, 'Lina', lived with me the last year of her 13 year old life.

Raya and I did everything together, she was a wonderful Labrador and my best friend.

We went to our first show, Michael Boothroyd was judging,who placed Raya 2nd in a big puppy class. Following year she again gained  2x2nd placings, one under Margareth Clayton (Ardmargha) and another under Margot Woolley (Follytower). She also got CC quality awards under judges such as Jessie Taylor (Whatstandwell) and Miriam Kinsella (Brentchase), got a blood tracking award and also did well in obedience. On top of all this she was the dam of some succesful sons and had a very good record for hips.