The Kennel Club would once again like to remind judges at championship and open breed club shows that a written critique for the first two placings in each class must be submitted to the weekly dog paper, Our Dogs.
The Kennel Club has been made aware of instances of judges submitting critiques to other outlets, including Facebook pages, assuming this complies with Kennel Club Regulations, and would like to remind all judges of the correct procedure as stated in Kennel Club show regulations, which is as follows:
Regulation F(1)22d
'All judges at Championship Shows and Open Breed Club Shows must produce a written critique for the first two placings in each class, and will dispatch these to at least one of the weekly United Kingdom Canine journals.'
The Kennel Club has published a set of FAQs which cover the most common questions addressed to The Kennel Club by both exhibitors and judges in regard to show regulations.
Additional information can be found in the Kennel Club Code of Best Practice for Judges.
Caroline Kisko, Kennel Club Secretary, said: "Whilst the vast majority of judges are following the correct procedure, there have been instances of critiques being submitted to various places online, including Facebook pages and club websites, rather than to Our Dogs which should be the case.
"Judges are welcome to add their critiques to social media and other outlets but must also remember to send them, preferably first, to Our Dogs as required by Kennel Club regulations.”
In issuing this reminder, the Kennel Club points out that it is not normally possible for a complaint regarding the non-submission of a critique to be made later than six months following the show concerned. This allows three months for the judge to write and publish the critique, and a further three months for any missing critiques to be reported.