Fen leads the way for third time at Kennel Club Working Trials Championships

WT Ch Glenalpine Fen CDEx - TDEx, an eight-year-old Border Collie owned by Pat Herbert, has won the Tracking Dog Stake for the third time at The Kennel Club Working Trials Championships. The Patrol Dog Stake was won by Jo Quick’s Falkenwald High Places CDEx- TDEx, PDEx, a six-year-old German Shepherd Dog.

Fen had won the Tracking Dog Stake in 2017 handled by her owner, but at the 2019 event there was a last-minute change of handler as Miss Herbert had broken her leg a few weeks prior to the Championships. This time, Fen’s owner was back in the frame.

Yorkshire Working Trials Society hosted the Championships for the fifth time. The event was sponsored by The Kennel Club and held at the Church Fenton Cricket Club in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire.

The Championships, which were not held in 2020 due to the pandemic, this year saw highly talented working trial dogs put through their paces via a series of exercises to determine the top dogs for both the Tracking Dog (TD) and Patrol Dog (PD) Stakes.

TD judge, Mike Williams, selected the following winners:

• 1st & WT Certificate, Pat Herbert’s Border Collie, WT Ch Glenalpine Fen CDEx - TDEx (195.5 points)
• 2nd & Reserve WT Certificate, Chris Theobald’s Border Collie, Beverton Nan CDEx - TDEx (195 points)
• 3rd Sarah Burroughes’ Labrador Retriever,Tarnedge Hobby CDEx - TDEx
• 4th Julie Atkins’ Border Collie, WT Ch Glenalpine Peg CDEx - TDEx PD judge, John Wykes, selected the following winners:
• 1st & WT Certificate, Jo Quick’s German Shepherd Dog, Falkenwald High Places, CDEx - TDEx, PDex (285 points)
• 2nd & Reserve WT Certificate, David Clark’s Border Collie, Blade of the Glade, CDEx - TDEx, PDEx (274 points)

Kathryn Mansfield, Kennel Club Secretary, said: “Dogs that compete in working trials are some of the most highly trained in the country. The relationship they have with their owners is remarkable and they are great examples of the fantastic results that can come from good training. It was particularly pleasing to see quite an array of different breeds competing.

“Huge congratulations to both Pat Herbert and Glenalpine Fen, and Jo Quick and Falkenwald High Places, for their impressive results. They truly highlighted the incredible skill involved in competing in this discipline at the highest level.”

For more information about Working Trials, please visit The Kennel Club website.